They were teammates in Canberra's junior teams, now Shannon Boyd and Paul Vaughan are showing why they are the pillars of the Raiders' front-row rotation for years to come.
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The two impressive youngsters will face another test of their rapid improvement when they come up against the South Sydney Rabbitohs at ANZ Stadium on Sunday.
Boyd, 21, will feature in the starting team for the second straight week while 22-year-old Vaughan will provide impact off the bench with the return of workaholic lock-forward Shaun Fensom.
He has retained his spot against the Rabbitohs after an off-season where he shed nine kilograms, now tipping the scales at a still powerful 122kg.
Boyd said watching the way Vaughan had excelled in the top grade during his rookie season last year motivated him to take the next step.
"Seeing the big fella move up was outstanding,'' Boyd said.
"I didn't think I'd have one game this year and I've already had three, so I will keep going week-to-week and see how it goes.''
Having progressed together through the Raiders' SG Ball (under-18) and under-20 teams, Boyd and Vaughan have the potential for a decade-long partnership.
Raiders forwards Brett White (32 in April), Dane Tilse (29) and Tom Learoyd-Lahrs (29 in September) are all off-contract at the end of the season, while David Shillington (31 in June) is locked away until the end of 2015.
The Raiders have nurtured Boyd and Vaughan from a young age.
Boyd was spotted playing in Cowra while 22-year-old Vaughan is a product of the Gungahlin Bulls.
Vaughan made his NRL debut in round four last year, going on to play 18 games and being named the Raiders' rookie of the year.
He then went on to play three Tests for Italy in the rugby league World Cup.
Boyd debuted off the bench in the round one loss to the North Queensland Cowboys before he was promoted ahead of Tilse to the starting side for last week's 24-12 defeat to the Gold Coast Titans.
"He's going really good,'' Vaughan said of Boyd.
"He's big and strong and he's handling it quite well.''
When they're not running into opposition forward packs, not a minute goes by when the pair aren't taking light-hearted shots at each other.
They room together when the Raiders play away from home and can often be found playing pranks on their teammates.
"I don't know if you'd say we're mates, I've been forced to play with him for a long time so I can't really get away from him,'' Vaughan laughed.
"There's a lot of laughs, if anything we're pranking the other boys and annoying everyone else.''
