They've been putting in the hard yards since the start of the new year but for James Tuttle and GPS, the moments which matter most will arise on Sunday.
Having dropped a thrilling major semi final against UQ those moments are two fold for Tuttle, who has a point to prove having fallen out of favour at Ballymore despite consistent, solid performances in his starts at Super Rugby level through the past two seasons.
The road back to the Reds No. 9 jersey begins with a showdown against Easts, who rolled Quade Cooper's Souths to earn their spot in the preliminary final.
"Watching the tape from them against Souths last week - they were really up for it," Tuttle said.
"Their defence really set the tone and obviously playing for a grand final spot they will be putting everything on the line.
"In the few games where we have been up against them this year set piece has been really good.
"It's been a really big battle there between the two sides
"Hopefully we can nullify that and work a few little tricks around their line speed and defence."
On a personal front Tuttle will square off with promising Nudgee College product Phoenix Hunt - who is one of Queensland Premier Rugby's best rookies this season.
The pair both have their teams playing at a good clip - a part of Tuttle's game which Reds coach Brad Thorn wants to see more of moving forward.
"There are a few different areas where I am in the dark a bit, selection wise," Tuttle said.
"But talking to Thorny that's he wants to play the game so I can only keep working on that.
"If they see that as an area or an issue for me it's obviously something I want to take on board and develop to give myself the best opportunity to be part of that Reds team next year."
Tuttle stopped short of declaring 2018 a frustrating year, describing the season spent toiling away for his beloved Gallopers as a "learning" curve.
"I haven't played as many games as I would have liked to this year but I've been able to take a step back and focus on a couple of things that I probably didn't put much time or effort into," he said.
"They will improve me as a person and improve me on the whole.
"I've been able to develop other areas of my game and put a lot of effort into those things.
"That can only help going into this Sunday, then into NRC and into hopefully a season with the Reds next year."
Fighting for time as the starting No. 9 for Queensland Country is next on Tuttle's to do list but for now, setting up a rematch with University next Sunday is all that matters.
"We just need to focus on ourselves - we really let ourselves down last week," he said.
"For us it's not about thinking about possibilities of playing in a grand final because if we don't win this week we aren't going to be there.
"It's all about focusing solely on Easts at this stage and bringing our best game so we can contest a grand final last week."
GPS face Easts at Ballymore on Sunday, kicking off at 3pm AEST, broadcast LIVE on redsrugby.com.au.
