No current Eels player is more Parramatta than Junior Paulo.
While grand final opponents Penrith are famous for their wealth of local talent, Paulo is one of only five Eels named to play in the NRL grand final on Sunday who progressed from Parramatta's junior system onto an NRL debut for the club.
Of those five - Paulo, Jake Arthur, Will Penisini, Oregon Kaufusi and Dylan Brown - the prop forward is the only one to have played 100 Parramatta games.
He's also the only one who was affiliated with the club the last time Parramatta made a grand final; in 2009, 15-year-old Paulo was a member of the Eels' Harold Matthews Cup team that made it to the decider themselves.
Now, 13 years later, Paulo will take to the field on Sunday afternoon with a simple aim: To make his local area proud.
"Rugby league is a language that everyone speaks in western Sydney," the Eels co-captain said.
"Everyone understands it. Whether they're playing at junior level or supporting, that's what brings the community together. Everyone just loves it down here."
Paulo was one of the last Eels to leave the pitch at the club's open training session on Monday; he had a backlog of jerseys to sign and selfies to take with fans dreaming of the Eels' first premiership since 1986.
Mingling with the Parramatta faithful this week is a privilege Paulo has relished.
"I love the Parramatta fan base so much," he said.
"It has been 36 years but they keep turning up every time that we're playing at home. Even when we're playing away games, you'd be surprised to see so many blue and gold army fans that turn up.
"(This weekend) we get to run out and represent everyone that's ever loved rugby league in this region and loved the blue and gold.
"It's all about rewarding them and giving back to western Sydney."
This week more than most, Paulo feels he owes western Sydney and its beating heart of rugby league a great deal.
"I'm very fortunate that rugby league has provided me with a life that I get to enjoy but most of all it's given me the discipline to help myself away from the footy field," he said.
"There's a whole lot of (other) paths that Junior Paulo would've taken back then.
"I pinch myself when I get to come to training in weeks like this.
"This is a dream we get to live."
