It's a big weekend for Tathra Sea Eagles fans.
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The club's first grade men and women are suiting up for their grand finals in Bega, and Adam Ellliott - a junior product of the club - is set to play in his first NRL final.
Elliott has been preparing for this moment since his debut in the top flight back in 2016 with the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs.
His former club made it into the first round of finals that year, but he did not play.
So, Saturday marks the 27-year-old's debut NRL finals game.
The Canberra Raiders' lock is hoping his parents will be able to make it to Melbourne for the occasion, but he knows he is competing with a few big games on the South Coast.
"I haven't spoken to mum and dad about it yet but the Tathra Sea Eagles play their grand final on Sunday, so I might be second fiddle," he laughed.
"I'm not too sure, but I'd say mum and dad might be able to sneak down to Melbourne and get back just in time for that."
Either way, Elliott wants to make sure his family and friends have more than one chance to see him play finals footy this season.
And he is determined to make sure the elimination final against the Melbourne Storm is not his last in green before he makes the move to Newcastle. He is not ready to face the sadness of farewelling his teammates, the fans, or the club just yet.
"We're gonna have to have in the forefront of our minds that defence is gonna win us the game and we're gonna have to do all the little things right," Elliott said.
"I want to make sure that we're playing as many games as we can, I want to go the whole way with them.
"Because I love playing with them, but I also love these fellas off the field, and we've all got really tight bonds and whenever it comes, it's going to be a really sad day.
"So I want to make sure we're delaying that as long as we possibly can, and making as many more memories as we can as well."
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Elliott was handed a lifeline by the Raiders, in the form of a one-year contract, this season to revive his career following a number of off-field incidents.
The "almost country" feel to Canberra seemed to suit him, leading to improvements both on and off-field, and a three-year deal at the Knights next season.
He knew when he signed last October to join the Raiders that finals footy was a strong possibility under Ricky Stuart.
The Raiders' second rower hopes to repay the club's faith in him, and the camaraderie he has experienced, by helping the green machine go all the way to the grand final.
"I knew coming down here it was a big reality, coming into a really good team and a really good system, and I just wanted to be able to add to that," Elliott said.
"It's just a different situation, it's uncharted waters. Usually this time of year I'm looking back and thinking what could have been, how many games did we lose by two that we should have won that could have got us in the eight, and whatnot.
"Now I just feel really grateful that I'm in this position but in saying that it's something that I don't want to take for granted, and I don't want it to be short lived."
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