The young track stars who have proven themselves as two of the best in the country

"Especially with year 11 next year," he said.

"This was going to be the big meet where I thought will I keep going and stick with it or will I focus more on school?"

So how does he feel now he's returned home?

"I'll keep going real hard at it," he said.

McAneney was one of two Dubbo Athletics stars who put their names up in lights at the national titles.

McAneney won silver in the 400m final while 17-year-old Ella Penman collected silver in both the 400m and 800m finals.

The pair also ran personal best times in their respective 400m finals while Penman's performance was even sweeter as her time was inside the qualifying mark for the World Athletics Under 20 Championships in Peru next year.

Penman is no certainty to compete at Peru given only those with the best qualifying times will compete, but the performance at Perth certainly provided plenty of motivation.

"A big goal is the world juniors," she said.

"But to do that I need to work on the little goals, like dropping my time more."

Being alongside a clubmate at the nationals was special for the pair and it was made even better as they were both chosen to run for NSW in the mixed 4x400m relay.

They went on to win gold to make their time in Perth unforgettable.

"That relay was good. It was exciting and it's always good to see our team win," Penman said.

Getting personal best times at such a major meeting was a proud moment for the Dubbo pair.

St Johns student Penman has long been a standout at Dubbo Athletics while McAneney has come on in leaps and bounds in recent years and has been carving seconds off his personal best times.

The Dubbo College young gun ran a 47.67 in the final at Perth, having finished in 49.54 in his heat.

His final time was just 0.02 of a second off the worlds qualifying time but that wasn't getting McAneney too down.

"Not really because I've gone down almost two seconds in two races," he said of his competition at Perth.

"To go down that much, (worlds) doesn't really bother me."

The two rising stars of the track are regulars at Barden Park and spend most days of the week training and honing their skills.

Getting to the level they have is about much more than what happens on the track and Penman added eating right and sleeping well contributed to her success.

The duo were also thankful for all the support they received, from their club to family and friends who provided plenty of congratulatory messages after the performances at Perth.