Mitch Curran knows all too well what it feels like to be on the other end of a team hunting a hat-trick of Group Nine title wins.
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However come Saturday the 30-year-old is looking to equal the feats achieved by an Albury outfit that caused Southcity so much heartache.
Curran was part of the Bulls horror loss in 2014 the Thunder made it three wins in a row with a 45-4 victory.
Coming into his sixth grand final it is something that still sticks with him.
“That one still doesn’t sit very well, but it would be nice to be on the other end of it this time,” Curran said.
Only two people have played more games for the Bulls than Curran.
He’s been through plenty of good times with Southcity and the self-described veteran believes the whole club is in a good mindset heading in the decider against Gundagai at Equex Centre on Saturday.
“There’s a good vibe and everyone is keen and around each other,” Curran said.
“It’s a good feeling.
“We’re in a good spot and everyone knows their roles and work for each other.
“There is a good vibe with the three grades in again.”
Southcity come into the grand final on a 10-game winning run.
They’ve only lost two games this season, to crosstown rivals Kangaroos and Brothers in successive weeks mid-season, but Curran believes it helped the Bulls get on the right track.
“We had a little hiccup up early on, but I think that has been pretty good for us,” he said.
“It brought everyone back down to earth and we’ve knuckled down and started playing the way we should have.”
Despite the string of victories there has been a couple of close affair.
Finding the way to win late is something which Curran believes puts them in good stead to take on Gundagai for the third time in as many grand finals.
“Those tight games are always good and we kept finding the way to win,” he said.
“The boys had a never give up attitude.”
The Tigers are yet to get the better of the Bulls this season, but with both sides brimming with grand finals experience the second rower is expecting a tight affair.
It was been a different grand final approach for Curran this year.
He spent the weekend on the Gold Coast for a family wedding and didn’t train with the team of Tuesday.
He would have missed the preliminary final because of it, but with the Bulls going straight through to the decider it saved him from an anxious wait.
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