The 2023 National Championships-winning Allies side is the latest -- and perhaps greatest -- indication that Aussie Rules can prosper in rugby league heartland.
No Allies side in its seven-year history had won more than once at the four-round carnival, but this edition blitzed its way to an undefeated, maiden championship in a remarkable display of the junior footy talent across the country.
The Allies eased past South Australia by 18 points, flexed their muscle with a 14-goal demolition of Western Australia, then turned all heads in the footy industry with a 44-point thumping of Vic Metro. On Sunday they were crowned champions after an enthralling 11-point victory over Harley Reid's Vic Country.
It's arguably the biggest task in junior footy -- bringing together the best of New South Wales, Queensland, Tasmania, the ACT and the Northern Territory, and attempting to play a cohesive brand against well-drilled teams from footballing states. Those same teams have been playing together at representative level through the years, opportunities not afforded to this Allies group.
Swans Academy coach and first-year Allies coach Mark McVeigh was given a three-day camp to set his boys up for success in the biggest footy showcase of their lives.
"The hardest part was trying to gel all these players together," McVeigh admitted to ESPN.
"Before the game against Vic Country we spoke about the fact that we'd travelled well over 500,000 kilometres, well over 350 flights amongst us to get to where we wanted to get to.
"We wanted to leave a legacy for the Allies to follow, so younger players that come through the system go 'Okay, I know how the Allies play'."
That Allies legacy has been established, with McVeigh's side playing run-and-gun, free-flowing footy. It was a style that suited the tenacity of a centre square brigade which could feature five first round picks come November.
They got the ball in quickly to unstoppable spearhead Jed Walter, and entrusted a well-drilled back six headlined by Allies MVP Connor O'Sullivan, whom McVeigh bullishly claims will "rocket up the draft" into top-10 calculations after his carnival.
Hailing from Albury, O'Sullivan is one of many showcasing the immense potential of the regions.
For McVeigh, it proves the strength in a northern academy system that rewards the Swans, Giants, Lions and Suns with first dibs on the talent funnelled through their junior pathways.
While it hasn't always been smooth sailing for the academy programs, the past eight years have proved that it's a premier developmental tool in footy.
Callum Mills was playing rugby for the Warringah Rats before his academy opportunity presented; Isaac Heeney similarly was ripped away from rugby's grasp in Newcastle when he was 12. Errol Gulden and Braeden Campbell were also 12 when they started their journey together.
Now, there are 750 kids training in the Swans Academy each year across the city, from ages 11 to 18. It's a football program that costs the club seven figures per annum, and it's one of four academies now vaulting Aussie Rules into the forefront of grassroots sport in traditional rugby league heartland.
"Without being too to the point, they got their s--- together," McVeigh said of the northern academies.
"The academies have put in place unbelievable programs from a girls and boys point of view where they come in and they're subjected to the best facilities, they're subjected to seeing their stars walking around, they have really good coaches.
"We turn up on time, we train really hard, we're respectful to everyone."
Whether it was Gold Coast's trio of first-round fancies Walter, Ethan Read and Jake Rogers, or Tasmania's dynamic midfield duo Colby McKercher and Ryley Sanders, the collective buy-in and professionalism from the Allies contingent supplanted the group's lack of time to get acquainted.
It reflects an academy system that is now the focal piece of list management for the NSW and QLD clubs.
Palm Beach Currumbin boasts the esteemed trio of Suns Academy graduates that could change the complexion of Gold Coast from day one. The Riverina's Charlie McCormack is bearing the fruits of years with the Giants Academy.
The face of the Swans' Academy this year is Caiden Cleary, a tough inside midfielder who embodies the Bloods' uncompromising culture. He's set to attract a top 20 bid at the draft after honing his craft in the academy for years.
Whether it's Collingullie's hard-nosed Harry Perryman or Sabrina's star ruck export Lauren Bella, the northern academies are investing millions to grow the game and reap the benefits at the top level.
This all-conquering Allies side is both a product of that vision, and a glimpse into the future of footy.