hard yards

British  

plural noun

1. a great deal of effort or hard work, esp in playing a sport

   Dallaglio's ability to make the hard yards and cross the gain line

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Example Sentences

These epic trips could be made easier by success - the prospect of glory making the hard yards feel a little lighter.

From BBC

“As we get more and more of the hard yards behind us, my excitement about what’s possible for Citi grows exponentially,” Fraser said.

From The Wall Street Journal

But he added: "While AI promises to dramatically improve drug discovery and development, we still need to do the hard yards when it comes to testing safety and efficacy."

From BBC

And yet against the Waratahs they were still shovelling the ball out the backline without doing the hard yards up front.

From BBC

That's the story of his career really, because he has done the hard yards to get here, and have moments like this for the first time at the age of 32.

From BBC