While, yes, the Cowra Eagles have lost their last three games, the stats and results aren't quite telling the full story.
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The first loss, against the league-leading Bathurst Bulldogs away from home, came with six first choice players out of the squad, while Chris Miller, set to appear for NSW Country the following week, dislocated his shoulder.
Furthermore, as noted by co-coach Col Jeffs, the team had plenty of scoring opportunities against the Bulldogs, and failed to take them when they counted.
Jump forward two weeks later, and the loss against the Dubbo Kangaroos, while the biggest loss of the three matches, wasn't necessarily a surprise.
Dubbo have built into the season gradually, and as signaled by Shaun McHugh's dominant Country Cup performance, are starting to produce the footy that many believed they were capable of earlier in the year.
And last week's game was an intense affair against reigning premiers Orange Emus, with an Eagles squad missing some key players again while putting up a fighting effort, pushing the also injury-afflicted opposition right to the siren, and if not for a few lapses early, could've easily walked away with a win.
It's also worth noting, that in spite of the three losses, the Eagles are still in third spot and sit five points (and two wins) ahead of Dubbo, and 11 points behind the Emus.
While the gap seems like a lot, as last week's Emus win showed, which garnered the visitors five points away from home at the Cowra Rugby Grounds, points can ebb and flow quickly in the Blowes Clothing Cup.
It's obvious: the team's still well and truly in the frame for finals, and while the losses show room for improvement, there's still five weeks to bridge the gap to the comp's best.
The Eagles get a prime opportunity to sing the team song again when they travel to take on the Orange City Lions, who have struggled to put together a full 80 minutes outside of an early season tie against the Emus.
We'll see who wins on Saturday, but don't be surprised if the Eagles soar once more over the next few weeks.
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