Angus Jackson and Lachlan Mahoney were teammates in the Hunter Wildfires under-15s last year.
On Sunday, Jackson is among 13 Hunter players in the NSW Country under-16s side and Mahoney will captain City as they battle for the Ella Cup at No.2 Sportsground.
The best junior boys and girls rugby players will converge on Newcastle for the annual Country versus City showdown from under-14 to under-18s.
Incredibly, the Hunter Wildfires will make up 37 per cent of the Country players as well as a few City.
The region's greatest representation is in the under-16s, where Hunter has 13 of 23 in the boys squad and 12 of 23 in the girls.
"The high selection rate is due to the depth we have developed in the junior program," said Brent Dale, who coaches the under-16 boys and is the NSW Rugby development manager for the region.
"In that age group, we also had 26 boys play for other zones at the Country Championships. Half of the Central Coast side and a third of Parramatta were Hunter players.
"Overall, Hunter loaned 76 players to other zones in all age divisions.
"We have put a number of programs in place and have invested in coaching. We have 800 secondary school kids playing rugby in under-14s, under-16s and opens. We also have a separate girls competition which has 16 teams.
"We started a few years ago with a handful of teams playing 12-a-side."
The Wildfires beat Central West in the final of the under-16s Country Championships, before going down 15-7 in the quarter-final of the State Championships to eventual finalists Easts.
Their pack dominated and was rewarded with the tight five - 1 Sione Tahilanu, 2 Josh Perry, 3 Bevan Hill, 4 Flynn Squires, 5 Sam Noonan - selected for Country.
They also supplied reserve props Sam Ngungutua and Kehatti Palu.
"We did a lot of scrummaging," Dale said. "Our scrum destroyed every scrum including Sydney sides."
Mahoney played in the Wildfires team which won the under-15s in 2025 before he took up a scholarship at Knox College in Sydney this year.
It is a similar situation for Sid Maxwell who will captain the City under-15s against Country. He played for Hamilton and Hunter in 2025 and is now at the Shore School.
The Wildfires under-16s girls did not concede a point in the Country Championship, beating Illawarra (12-0), Central West (41-0) and Central North (39-0). They progressed to the State Championships, beating ACT 17-0 before going down to Manly 5-0 in the semi-final.
The under-18s boys progressed the furthest at the State Titles, losing the final 21-12 to Randwick.
Some players in the under-18s boys are not eligible for City due to school rugby commitments.
Dale believes the gap between Country and City is closing.
"Spectators on Sunday will see a high skill level and fast-paced rugby," he said.
"Country will be very competitive, especially in the under-16s and under-18s."
Dale hopes the next wave of players follow in the path of Australian under-20s representatives TJ Talaileva (Wildfires), Harper Strachan (Sydney University) and Nic Hill (Warringah).
Meanwhile, in Hunter Rugby on Saturday leaders Merewether will be out to end a two-game losing run against a desperate Hamilton at Passmore Oval.
Merewether, after winning 10 games straight, have lost the past two.
Halfback Rory Ryan and No.8 Noah Jackson return. Jackson replaces his older brother Tom (ear), with Lachy Milton moving into the second row. Matt Williams will play off the bench after recovering from a torn calf.
"Discipline and decision-making cost us last week. tighten that up and we will be back to winning ways," coach Nick Bampton said.
Hamilton are in fifth spot and coming off a 20-19 loss to University.
"Hamilton did everything they could to lose last weekend and will be looking for redemption," Bampton said. "They are six points behind Wanderers. The next two weeks will determine their season. No doubt they will come out of the gates firing."
In other games, prop Adam Rayner will play his 50th game when Wanderers welcome high flyers University and Southern Beaches are at home against Maitland.
Wanderers women's side will wear a one-off jersey against University to raise awareness and funds for the Epilepsy Foundation.
They will also honour the memory of Claire Hogan, who died from the disease last year.
Hogan worked for Wanderers sponsor, the Commonwealth Hotel, and at No.2 Sportsground on match day, and became friends with many of the players.
Hogan' parents and siblings will be at the game.
The tribute coincides with the club's annual ladies day, with money raised going to the Epilepsy Foundation.
Hunter selections in NSW Country junior teams
Under-14 boys: 2 Noah Brady, 7 Luca McCourt, 8 Finnian Brownlee, 11 Aubrey Krisenthal Collins, 14 Evan Beacher, 22 Darcy Bendeich
Under-14 girls: 2 Amelia Lauti, 3 Oriana Soe, 5 Isla Chippendale, 6 Imohgen Alo, 9 Ariya Tosotagi Osasa, 10 Roma Meihana, 13 Annabelle Gunn, 15 Caitlin Petersen
Under-15 boys: 2 Digby McDonald, 3 Flynn Rimancozy, 7 Braeden Burrows, 9 Sam Burey, 13 Ethan Palamo, 14 Jack Badior, 16 Ali Oto, 17 Jacob Leung, 20 Oliiver Ramien
Under-16 boys: 1 Sione Tahilanu, 2 Josh Perry, 3 Bevan Hill, 4 Flynn Squires, 5 Sam Noonan, 9 Angus Jackson, 10 Xavier Gunn, 12 Ollie Daniels, 14 Matthew Green, 18 Sam Ngungutua, 19 Kehatti Palu, 22 Mason LeBrocque, 23 Courgar Campton
Under-16 girls: 1 Amber Rose Osasa, 4 Dakodah Mariri, 7 Zoe Smith, 8 Jessica Boreham-Cole, 9 Piper Levini, 10 Bondi Werner, 11 Ruby Brochtrup, 12 Alissa McNair, 16 Keisha Rangi-Garham, 17 Bethany Filipo, 19 Shania Aiolupotea, 23 Luca Fong
Under-18 boys: 4 Tully Drelincourt, 5 Xavier Schneider, 10 Claye Filipcevic, 11 Ashley Clarke, 13 Anthiny Time, 16 Rory Tyacke, 20 Lachlan Eather
Under-18 girls: 1 Poppi Flander, 3 Amelia Cashen, 6 Annabelle Brown, 9 Pandora Grant.
