MACQUARIE legend Mal Graham believes there are similarities between the current Scorpions and the team he captain-coached in 1991 to their only Newcastle Rugby League premiership.
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On Sunday the Scorpions will aim to qualify for their third grand final in their 55-year history when they play Western Suburbs in the preliminary final at St John Oval.
Graham also captain-coached Macquarie to a 1994 grand final loss against Kurri Kurri.
In 1991 the Scorpions, then known as Toronto Workers, were ranked outsiders when they beat the Rosellas 21-10 in front of 12,000 people at Harker Oval.
The year before Graham was sacked as Wests captain-coach and he moved to Toronto where he lured North Sydney forwards Kevin Marr and David Steptoe.
Graham also signed Cessnock rookies Jared Forbes and Mark Hollis and then built the rest of the team on local juniors, led by Danny and John McKelvie, Shane Tobin, Brett Ryder and David Hill.
"I see similarities in the younger boys coming through, who have enormous talent like Jordan Noble at hooker, Mitch Manson, Matt Hay, Malik] Deyaolu and throw in the two Briggs boys Randall and Isaac," Graham said.
"You've got a lot of local juniors who have come through the system. You then throw in the experienced campaigners like Blake Gallen, Simon Allen and Josh Schmiedel who have complemented the team well, considering the injury toll."
Back in 1991 Macquarie were massive underdogs. To gain an edge, Graham employed Knights sports psychologist doctor Roger Peters four weeks out from the grand final.
"He added a lot to us in our mental preparation," Graham said. "We went in as a team of extremely confident individuals and knew that today was going to be our day at Harker Oval."
These days Graham is a Newcastle Rugby League director, but remains a keen supporter of the Scorpions.
After watching an injury-plagued Macquarie break a seven-game winning drought in semi-finals last Saturday against Cessnock, Graham remains optimistic the inexperienced side can upset the minor premiers.
"They're not frightened by name players and are unaware of the lack of finals success the Scorps have had in recent years," he said.
"They're playing off the cuff, contributing well and adding some enthusiasm and spark with nothing to lose.
"They're a very good chance against Wests. It just remains to be seen if they have enough class and whether Wests, after a little scare, bounce back."
