Lambton skipper Ben Kennedy and Maitland co-captain James Thompson are equally confident their sides will be lifting the NPL Men’s NNSW championship trophy on Sunday afternoon.
Premiers Maitland will meet Lambton at No.2 Sportsground looking to complete the premiership-championship double, while Jaffas will look to secure their first grand final win since 2017.
Jaffas and Maitland have exchanged 3-1 results in their two meetings during the regular season. Jaffas were victorious in round 12 and most recently, Maitland clinched the premiership with victory in the rescheduled round one on the final day of the regular season.
A grand final win would be Maitland’s first championship trophy after falling at the last hurdle in the last two grand finals in 2019 and 2020 to Edgeworth.
James Thompson, who co-captains the Magpies with strike partner Braedyn Crowley, is one player that knows how agonisingly close the club has been to taking home the championship trophy, with the 23-year-old playing in both the grand final losses.
Thompson has gone on to confirm himself as one of the league's most lethal strikers, reforming a deadly partnership with the returning Crowley this season. Thompson and Crowley have combined for a staggering 41 of the 57 goals the Magpies scored during the regular season.
But it has not been entirely smooth sailing for the Magpies as they prepare for the decider against the Jaffas, with Thompson under an injury cloud after injuring his ankle in the lead-up to their 4-1 disposal of Broadmeadow Magic in the major semi-final a fortnight ago.
Maitland coach Michael Bolch rated Thompson’s chances of suiting up on Sunday as 60-40, but Thompson firmly dismissed the veteran coach’s assessment and said his sights were firmly set on taking home the elusive championship for his side.
“It’s all good. I have been training all week and I am right to play,” Thompson said.
“It’s a third straight grand final for the club. Hopefully we can get the win in this one. It is very exciting for the club and I think we can win it. It will be a tough game [against Jaffas]. It always is.
“[Lambton] are an experienced team and they have so many players that can hurt you, so we have to be on our game. If we are, no one can stop us.”
Thompson also highlighted fellow attacking threats Crowley and Flynn Goodman and said the pair were a huge reason the club had made it to the decider.
“[Flynn Goodman] is such a good young player and his [performance against Magic] has given him the confidence to go on with it. This weekend he should be hitting his straps again and hopefully scoring another hat-trick,” Thompson said.
“Crowley just makes it so easy to play with him. I know if I can't shoot he is going to be there in a better spot. This season ranks as the top, number one [of my career so far].”
Jaffas captain and goalkeeper Ben Kennedy is another player familiar with the pressure of a grand final, with the veteran being a part of the Newcastle Jets championship-winning squad in 2008 at the beginning of his 159-game A-League Men’s career.
Kennedy has made himself at home at the Jaffas since joining from the Central Coast Mariners in 2019 and the 35-year-old said he was excited to be part of an important chapter in the club's history.
“It’s a big achievement [to reach the grand final],” Kennedy said.
“The Jaffas haven’t been a part of the top flight [in northern NSW] as long as some of the other clubs, so this is obviously a massive achievement. It’s something the club should be proud of.
“Our under-18s are in the grand final as well which is also a big achievement. The whole club has done really well.”
Kennedy has not featured in a grand final at any level since 2005 when he won the NNSW State League decider with Broadmeadow Magic. But the veteran shot-stopper said he was just as excited for the clash as he was almost two decades ago.
“It would be massive [to win the championship]. It’s why you play the game isn't it, to win grand finals,” Kennedy said.
“Myself and Josh Piddington won a premiership 17 years ago so it will be nice to win another one together.”
The Jaffas were beaten convincingly in their last outing against the Magpies, with Maitland clinching this year’s premiership with a 3-1 victory over the Jaffas in the last game of the regular season.
Kennedy said his side learnt a lot from that defeat and he was confident they could turn the result around to come away with the club's first championship since 2017.
“We have learnt to be more like ourselves since that day, to be honest. We kind of went back to basics and we are really just worried about ourselves and not about what the other sides against us have done,” Kennedy said.
“It was obviously disappointing in our last game [against Maitland]. They thoroughly deserved the victory that day.
“I think we have a lot of experience in our squad. We have boys that have won premierships before. I think that puts us in good stead for the day but obviously on the day it’s about delivering.”