These are the kids helping Penrith junior rugby league smash a 52-year record.
In 2019 Penrith will field a staggering 9000 junior players across a record 580 teams, including 54 female sides.
The participation numbers are up three per cent on last year and form the largest contingent of Panthers juniors since the club entered the NSWRL in 1967.
No other junior league in Sydney can match Penrith for the number of teams and players.
"This is the most ever teams we have has registered," Penrith Junior League manager Phil Cummings said.
"Rugby league is in the blood out here - they just love it.
"The players are still registering but we are still two or three per cent up on last year. We expect it to go over 9000 players.
"The results we are getting are just outstanding. We have 4500 who play League Tag in summer but they just want to play rugby league in winter."
The teams compete from the under-6s through to A grade. Most grades have five or six divisions.
There are 24 competing clubs, which include St Clair, St Marys, Glenmore Park, Brothers Penrith and North-West Magpies, a club based in Pitt Town which has grown from five teams to 14 this year.
"We can accommodate kids who want to play at the elite level and we can accommodate kids who want to play for fun," Mr Cummings said.
"The kids can come out and play with their mates... there is no pressure on them. I think that is a benefit."
Panthers Group invests $5.5 million in junior rugby league each year.
The above article has been republished courtesy of Dean Ritchie and The Daily Telegraph.
