Few things can bind a club together like wins on the board and Rats winger Grady Slocombe senses there's a special buzz among his team at the moment.
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Slocombe is living through the resurgence, having stepped into Ararat's senior side when it was languishing in the lower half of the table.
Now, as he prepares for a second-consecutive senior finals campaign, the Rats' speedster said there was a special feeling in the Rats' clubrooms.
"It's good to have some success in the seniors, which we haven't had for a long time," he said.
"I think everyone has got their tails up a little bit. There's just a good morale around the club at the moment."
Slocombe made his senior debut in 2016, a year after winning the under-17 premiership.
The versatile Rat said having played in finals as a junior eased the September nerves, but he was more focused on the group's approach.
"I suppose I have played in a couple (finals), but at the same time there's been a long while where we didn't have much success," he said.
"I think a lot of the boys are starting to get a bit of a taste for it (success) and it makes it a little bit easier."
Slocombe was excited for the midfield battle against an energetic Horsham Saints outfit this weekend.
"I think we always have pretty good battles and they're a good side," he said.
"We'll try and respect all their good players and do what we need to do and hopefully it won't be too much of an issue."
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