A depleted side, a parochial crowd, old boys' day, a hard run of matches and a possible letdown after losing the grand final replay.
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For the Maitland Blacks the road trip to Singleton was an ambush waiting to happen.
Especially against a side that had recruited heavily in the off-season and was significantly stronger than previously.
But not only did the Blacks win it, they did it in style, chalking up a half century in attack in their 53-24 win.
The club now gets a well earned rest, having next week off for the Country Championship weekend - which means players such as Michael Howell, Pat Batey and Chris Logan will be close to a return after injury.
For coach Matt Thomas that means the possibility of a refreshing problem - who to pick and who to leave out.
In recent weeks it has been a matter of finding enough fit players, full stop.
While there was a lot to like in the win over Singleton, like any coach, he was still able to find faults.
"Overall I'm delighted with the effort," he said.
"I've said before that we're starting to believe in what we're doing and it is showing.
"It was the same again here.
"Scoring 50 points with a disjointed side, you'd have to be pleased with that.
"On the down side, there are still little blocks of period in games when we take the pressure off.
I'm delighted with the effort. I've said before that we're starting to believe in what we're doing and it is showing.
- Maitland Blacks coach Matt Thomas
"We'll score a try and then for the next five minutes we'll take our foot off the throat.
"It's not for long, usually about five minutes or so, but it's a bad habit and I want us to get that out of our game."
The Blacks forwards paved the way for the win with a strong showing in the loose, and clearly dominating in the scrum.
In this regard hooker Phil Bradford was superb, and loose head prop Devante Manu very strong.
But on a day when Thomas thought his side played well right across the park, one of the most pleasing efforts of all was from rugby league convert Pat Robards who has handled the change of code surprisingly well.
"He's a strong defender as you'd expect from a league player," Thomas said.
"But he is also a very strong runner and good at getting us over the advantage line, which makes a big difference to a team, helping us get on the front foot.
"He's still learning some of the finer points of our game which is only natural, but he's a footballer and picking it up quickly."
After next weekend's break for the Country Championship, the Blacks return to action against Lake Macquarie at Marcellin Park on June 15.
"They're the biggest side in the comp for sure, so that brings its own challenges," Thomas said.
"But hopefully we'll have some players back and hopefully I will have some selection headaches. It will be a pleasant change.
"It's also Ladies Day which is always a good day."