Like Launceston two years earlier, North Launceston is leaving no stone unturned in finding its next crop of premiership players.
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Since losing a handful of A-graders in the off-season, the Bombers have set about blooding as many youngsters as possible while proving every bit the flag threat they've posed for the past eight seasons.
Last month coach Brad Cox-Goodyer said reaching 22 debutants for the season was a distinct possibility - three games out from finals that number sits at 19.
Ben Simpson's younger brother Sam was best on ground in a big development league win over Lauderdale last round, while William Manshanden, who was labelled 'one to watch' by skipper Jay Foon earlier in the season, is also yet to debut.
Of the 19 debutants, it's clear North have found some long-term players.
Classy half-back Michael Stingel impressed many in the development league last season and is one of just five Bombers to have played every senior game this year.
Brandon Leary has not missed since kicking four goals on debut, while Ryan Whitney (15 games), Declen Chugg (13), 16-year-old Oscar Van Dam and Harry Bayles (10 each) and Judah Edmunds (7) have all looked promising throughout the year.
The success of North's young brigade has surprised many, but was predicted by Blues coach Mitch Thorp at the start of the season.
Thorp led the Blues to a similar rebuild in 2019, debuting 14 players and playing another handful with fewer than 10 senior games to their name.
Since round 1, 2019, Alec Wright has not missed a game and then-debutants Jack Tuthill and Grant Holt have played 47 and 43 senior games respectively.
"The expectation was that we would decline really quickly and it was actually the opposite," Thorp said earlier this year.
"It took us a couple of games to get going, but we ended up making the prelim and probably should have made the grand final.
"My past experience with younger sides is that often you get closer to 100 per cent effort than you maybe do from a side that has maybe won a few flags."
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