Not only were bragging rights on the line but also spots in the Greater Western team to compete at the NSWCHSSA Rugby League Championships.

The essence of what Polson said to his charges with the half-time score at 12-10 was: "Dig in."

"At half-time I challenged them with pushing themselves beyond their limits - what they thought their limits were," Polson said.

"And it was so satisfying. At the end I told them it was one of the best wins I've had in all my time coaching. They took on board what I said at half-time and then they did it."

READ ALSO:

The North West players were rewarded with a 24-14 victory and nine players were selected for Greater Western.

They'll compete at the rugby league championships in Wollongong on May 17-19.

There will also be an under 15s Greater Western side at the championships which will feature two players from North West.

In the 15s game, the score was much more lop-sided with Western scoring a comprehensive win over North West.

North West was coached by Paul Cleary while Matt Trainor was the team runner for both the 15s and open sides.

"We made too many errors and we were caught tackling most of the game," Trainor said of the under 15s side.

"When we had the ball, we were OK. The forwards worked pretty well in patches in their pairs but the backs didn't get much footy and the halves were under a lot of pressure."

The 11 North West representatives will now work toward the championships in May.

Polson will be heading along to help coach the side which "has a a bit of size this year".

The coach said the side will meet up for an extra three-hour training run a week before the carnival.

It's a move that has helped in the past.

"We've done it for a few years and we realised it works," Polson said.

"It gets the confidence up. They get to know each other and hit the ground running opposed to going in off one training run and peaking on day two.

He added: "If we didn't have that training, it'd just be an hour [of training] a day before the championships."

Polson made special mention of the Charlie Parsons who "was outstanding" along with Sam Fechner, Mitch Henderson and Ethan Antzakles. Charlie Bonham, Keandre Johnson-Vale and Cooper Wilson had good games in the 15s.

North West students selected for Greater Western

15 Years: Charlie Bonham (Coonabarabran HS), Keandre Johnson-Vale (Armidale SC)

Opens: Jovan Moore (Macintyre HS), Nathan Walker (Coonamble HS), Mitchell Henderson (Farrer MAHS), Ethan Antzakles (Farrer MAHS), Charlie Parsons (Quirindi HS), Logan Spinks (Farrer MAHS), Sam Fechner (Quirindi HS), Nicholas Hooley (Farrer MAHS), Jack Grob (Glen Innes HS)

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: