Launceston is fully aware not to have taken the points over North Launceston since the first of its neighbour's last five State League flags.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
For those keeping a count, that stands at 18 incredulous losses in a row for the Blues.
It would have been hard to fathom 12 months earlier after the last victory in 2013.
That year Launceston had come within just 14 points of reaching the grand final against South Launceston to finish up the home and away season six wins the better of a battling North Launceston.
But the Bombers flipped it around the next year to not only claim 13 wins to four for the men from Windsor Park, but to start their premiership legacy all from a resounding triumph over Western Storm.
"It's a different group now, so we won't speak about that too much at all, I don't reckon," Blues vice-captain Ryan Tyrrell said on Monday.
"We will just focus on us, focus on what we have been working towards this preseason and put it into work this game day."
The defending premiers since 2017 showed a touch of rare vulnerability after just scraping home by 10 points against North Hobart in the opening TSL round.
Tyrrell was not willing to buy into anything more than North Launceston were just a little off their game, some four months removed from the scheduled start.
ELSEWHERE IN SPORT
"I expect them to be still be very good, to be very competitive so really I can't wait. We have done everything we can considering the circumstances to prepare," he said.
"Our team has a very competitive and a hard-working nature, and if we take that into the game and just be as competitive as we can, we will have every confidence we can take it up to them."
Launceston has just about every reason to sound confident after a positive return from the COVID-19 break.
While their woes against the Bombers remain up in the air, the Blues have the wood at least over Glenorchy.
The Magpies have been the only team to upset the premiership run in 2016 that could have been six straight, but have not won the last four against Mitch Thorp's side.
That 26-point victory on Saturday built on its stellar semi-final performance last year against the same rival.
"That [record] definitely would have been in the back of their minds," Tyrrell said.
"It gave us the confidence leading into the game that we can win down there and play some good footy."
But Tyrrell, who admitted to pulling up sorer than most times after a match, was just satisfied to come home from KGV Oval unscathed.
"Every win is going to be so important, so it's good to get the season off to a good start. But it's really a starting point for us so we can really build for this week," he said.
Subscriptions are available here.
Sign up to our Sport email here.