The Allies squad set to take on the rest of Australia at the Under 18 NAB AFL National Championships was named yesterday.
Ten players were chosen from the Gold Coast SUNS Academy, along with four from the Lions Academy.
The selected Queenslanders will play beside representatives from the GWS and Sydney Swans academies, as well as players from the Tasmanian and Northern Territory under 18 teams.
Former Queensland Under 18 Coach and current Queensland Academy and High Performance Coach, Adrian Fletcher, will coach the side.
Both the SUNS and Lions academies recently finished playing in the Academy Series, which replaced the division two carnival for the first time this year. According to Fletcher, it’s provided more opportunity for Queensland talent to be exposed.
“As the series went on, the games actually became more tight and competitive games, which allowed the individuals to test themselves against the interstate payers,” said Fletcher.
“I reckon it raised the standard, obviously 30 got an opportunity with the Lions and 30 got an opportunity (with the SUNS), so there’s 60 kids who are playing in a high performance environment, which has got to be a plus for Queensland footy.”
The Allies have their first game at Blacktown International Sportspark in New South Wales, on Sunday June 11, at 12.30pm. Prior to the start of the championships, the squad of 48 players will be trimmed down to 35.
2017 NAB AFL UNDER-18 ALLIES SQUAD
NSW-ACT (GWS Academy): Nicholas Shipley, Brendan Myers, Jack Powell, Nathan Richards, Jarrod Brander, Alex Paech, Daniel Johnston, Laine Fitzgerald, Doultan Langlands, Jy Lane, Tom Highmore, Charlie Spargo
NSW-ACT (Sydney academy): Luke Skrivanic, Nick Blakey, James Bell, Michael Carroll, Harrison Carr, Luke Robertson, Jarrod Osborne, Jake Brown, Jack Hardman
Queensland (Gold Coast academy): Brodie Foster, Brayden Crossley, Harry Simmington, Jacob Dawson, Bailey Scott, Sam Davidson, Damien Burke, Timakoi Bowie, Caleb Graham, Kwaby Boakye
Queensland (Brisbane Lions academy): Connor Ballenden, Jack Payne, Jack Clayton, Ben Sloan
Tasmania: Chayce Jones, Tarryn Thomas, Hugh Dixon, Thomas Mundy, Jake Hinds, Nicholas Hutchinson
Northern Territory: Rodney Baird, Zac Bailey, Matthew Green, Jeremiah Scrutton, Tony Olango, Adam Sambono, Dominic Grant
By Sean Melrose
Follow @seanmelrose
