Matt Lantry described the performance as "courageous", Brock Lamb said it felt "awesome" and Alex Langbridge told of his "pride" lifting the trophy aloft.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
It was a thrilling end to a season that almost didn't exist because of the global coronavirus pandemic, but the Pickers chanced their arm by looking beyond Newcastle Rugby League and joining the one-off NSW Rugby League competition.
They dropped just one game along the way, held on to claim the statewide decider and have now been crowned minor-major premiers for 2020.
"It's special," Maitland coach Lantry said.
"The magnitude of a team is how quickly they come together and I think that's what got us through.
"We spoke beforehand about family and courage was our key word today. Courage epitomises what this club did this year.
"We went out on a limb, came down here and had a crack. We had some doubters, we had some people that were jealous of the decision that we made.
"In the end we answered every critic, held our opinions to ourselves and made a statement today. We are the premiers of the state in the President's Cup."
The Pickers, minus injured five-eighth Chad O'Donnell (knee), led 6-0 at half-time with winger James Bradley scoring off a Daniel Langbridge grubber in the 28th minute.
Wolves centre Addison Demetriou and winger Honeti Tuha, who used to play for Lakes, crossed in quick succession to put them ahead 10-6 shortly after the break.
Back-to-back line drop outs twice resulted in tries for Maitland, first via second-rower Jacob McCudden on the hour mark and followed by centre Gary Anderson in the 73rd minute.
Lamb had the last touch on both occasions, short pass and chip respectively, before slotting a field goal for a 17-10 advantage with less than four minutes left. Demetriou converted his own try in the closing 60 seconds.
"That was awesome and that was a grand final. We showed a lot of resilience today," Lamb said.
Pickers skipper Alex Langbridge, who made several try-saving tackles, was named player of the final and player of the year during the post-match presentation.
"It was a massive effort and I was just proud of Maitland as a community and as a rugby league club," he said.
"It would have been an easy year to say we'll just give it a miss or just play in the local competition but these opportunities were put in front of us and I think we grabbed it with both hands."
MAITLAND 17 (James Bradley, Jacob McCudden, Gary Anderson tries; Lamb 2 goals; Lamb field goal) def GLEBE BURWOOD 16 (Addison Demetriou 2, Honeti Tuha tries; Demetriou 2 goals).
Josh Callinan
My name is Josh Callinan and I'm a sports journalist at the Newcastle Herald. I started with the newspaper in 2016 after a decade at the Maitland Mercury.
My name is Josh Callinan and I'm a sports journalist at the Newcastle Herald. I started with the newspaper in 2016 after a decade at the Maitland Mercury.
