My take on our top juniors

[mdrew]

Troy Duckett. The flying Titans youngster moved up to the Gold Coast from Coffs Harbour midway through the 2018 season and made an immediate impact in the GCRL U16 Division One competition for Currumbin and as a result has been selected in the Tweed Seagulls MM Cup squad for the 2019 season.

Recently Troy Duckett started in the centres for the Titans U16 side and scored a hat trick as the Titans defeated PNG 60 – 10.

Troy Duckett started the 2018 season as part of the North Coast U16 Andrew Johns Cup side, playing in three matches in that competition, starting each at fullback with those matches coming against Central Coast, Northern Rivers and the Newcastle Knights Development Squad.

In the GCRL U16 Division One competition with Currumbin playing a total of twelve matches including finals matches and scoring nine tries. Troy Duckett scored doubles against Southport on two separate occasions and also against Burleigh. Troy Duckett’s other three tries came against Mudgeeraba in two separate matches and Runaway Bay.

Earlier this season Troy Duckett started on the bench for the New South Wales U16 Kurri side in their annual match against Queensland Murri with Queensland prevailing on that occasion.

In 2017 Troy Duckett represented Group Two at the U15 level playing three matches and scoring against Group 21.

From a running perspective, Troy Duckett just seems to glide across the field and it appears effortless, no matter who is chasing him, they will not catch Troy Duckett, I am talking James Roberts type of pace but he has a much more effortless running style to that of the current Brisbane Bronco.

Troy Duckett does not necessarily have a side step per say, it is more of a swerve and he has a number of variations, with the scary part being that there is absolutely no loss of speed at all, making him incredibly difficult to stop when he is in open space and is moving towards a fullback who is near stationary.

Troy Duckett’s passing skills are also developing into those of the highest quality, he can pass equally well from either side of his body and can throw every type of pass imaginable, he can chime into a back line at full pace and then decelerate quickly to maintain his balance a pop a good short ball to his supports, he can throw a great spiral pass to his backline or he can quickly anticipate the numbers a throw a great cut out pass to exploit over laps.

Defensively Troy Duckett also stands out, with his closing speed and recovery speed he makes an impact on that side of the ball as well. With his speed, Troy Duckett has the luxury of being able to stand a touch deeper than some fullbacks yet still be able to close quickly to negate breaks by reducing the decision making time of the attacking player.

Similar to the attributes that make Troy Duckett such an effective defender, Troy Duckett is as you would expect a great returner of the ball. His sense of timing, speed and anticipation means that he gets to a lot of kicks on the full and then accelerates looking to exploit any gaps on the kick chase.

Troy Duckett exceptional lateral movement and sure hands means that he is a danger to make a large amount of ground from short attacking kicks by the opposition as he comes forward at full speed and retrieves with absolutely no loss of momentum and then will surprise the attacking team well before they can reorganise the defensive line.

Troy Duckett will be part of the Tweed Heads Seagulls MM Cup squad in 2019 and post that competition will play for Currumbin in the Gold Coast Rugby League U17 Division One competition.

Prior to moving to the Gold Coast Troy Duckett spent a lot of time at fullback but played some matches for Currumbin on the wing post his arrival. I will admit that with his speed and guile I think that Troy Duckett has an opportunity to play at fullback in the long term even though there is no doubt he would make a more than solid try scoring winger.

The play of Troy Duckett reminds me of how former Titan Kevin Gordon played when he first came into first grade and was able to exploit his speed advantage over the opposition before injuries cruelled his career and forced his early retirement.

[mdrew]

Curtis Dansey-Smaller. (Revised) The young former Western Australian and Rockingham Sharks fullback signed a two year deal with the Gold Coast Titans at the end of 2016 and spent the 2017 season alternating between the Titans NYC side and the Tweed Heads Seagulls Colts side including playing in their 2017 finals campaign. Curtis Dansey-Smaller is currently a member of the Titans Rookie Squad.

After spending some time training with the Titans NRL squad, Curtis Dansey-Smaller started the 2018 season with the Tweed Heads Seagulls U20 Colts side before being promoted to the Tweed Heads Seagulls Gold Coast Rugby League First Grade side.

Curtis Dansey-Smaller played in eleven Gold Coast Rugby League First Grade matches including finals making his debut against Runaway Bay. In those matches Curtis Dansey-Smaller scored six tries including a double against Runaway Bay (not in his debut) and he also scored against Southport, Ormeau and Runaway Bay once again in the regular season.

Curtis Dansey-Smaller also started on the wing in the opening week of the finals for Tweed Heads as they went down 37 – 16 to Runaway Bay.

In Week two of the GCRL First Grade Finals series, Curtis Dansey-Smaller once again started on the wing for Tweed Heads against Tugun with the Seagulls advancing on the back of a 40 – 26 victory.

In the GCRL First Grade Preliminary final Curtis Dansey-Smaller started on the wing against Currumbin and scored as Tweed Heads qualified for the GCRL First Grade Grand Final on the back of a solid 31 – 22 win over Currumbin.

In the Gold Coast Rugby League First Grade Grand Final Curtis Dansey-Smaller started on the left wing for Tweed Heads against Runaway Bay with the Seagulls going down 38 – 10 to a rampant Runaway Bay side.

For Tweed Heads in the 2018 U20 Hastings Deering’s Colts competition, Curtis Dansey-Smaller played in thirteen matches. Curtis Dansey-Smaller started eight matches in the centres and five on the right wing.

In those matches Curtis Dansey-Smaller scored seven tries including an outstanding patch when Curtis Dansey-Smaller scored six tries in three rounds including a Round Ten hat trick against Ipswich, a Round Eleven double against the Northern Pride and a Round Eight try against the Western Mustangs. Curtis Dansey-Smaller’s other 2018 Colts try came in Round Seventeen against Wynnum Manly.

Curtis Dansey-Smaller had a successful first and only season in the NYC competition in 2017 playing in sixteen matches including starting on the wing in all bar Round Three against Parramatta when he came off the interchange bench playing 40 minutes. In all of his other fifteen matches Curtis Dansey-Smaller played the entire matches.

Over his sixteen NYC matches in 2017 Curtis Dansey-Smaller scored nine tries including three doubles which came against the Melbourne Storm in Round ten, the Brisbane Broncos in Round Twenty two and Parramatta in Round twenty Four.

Curtis Dansey-Smaller’s 2017 per matches NYC statistics included running for 78 metres on eight hit-ups and five tackles. On four occasions Curtis Dansey-Smaller ran for in excess of 100 metres with his best effort against Parramatta in Round Twenty Four when he ran for 172 metres from just nine hit-ups. Round Thirteen against the North Queensland Cowboys saw Curtis Dansey-Smaller make eleven tackles, his highest defensive total of the season.

Curtis Dansey-Smaller has also played a number of matches for the Tweed Heads Seagulls Colts side in 2017 including playing in Round One of the Colts State wide Challenge Competition. In Round One Curtis Dansey-Smaller started in the centres and scored two second half tries against the Ipswich Jets. In the U20 Colts Challenge competition, Curtis Dansey-Smaller played in five regular season matches starting four in the centres and in Round Sixteen last weekend at fullback.

Curtis Dansey Smaller played his first match in the 2017 U20 Colts Challenge competition in Round Six in the local derby against the Burleigh Bears. Across his five U20 Colts Challenge matches Curtis Dansey-Smaller scored five tries including a hat trick in Round Eight against Ipswich and he also scored in Round Seven against Norths and in Round Sixteen against Souths Logan.

Curtis Dansey-Smaller also played in all three of the Tweed Heads Seagulls 2017 finals matches, starting their first final against Redcliffe in the centres, including scoring in their 17 – 16 loss. Curtis Dansey-Smaller then moved to fullback for Tweed Heads remaining two finals matches against Easts and Norths.

In 2016 Curtis Dansey-Smaller was named in the Western Australian U18 ASSRL squad from Rockingham Senior High School after representing the West Coast Pirates in the New South Wales SG Ball competition earlier this year. Unfortunately the Pirates had a horror season in SG Ball, losing all eight of their games and conceding in excess of 350 points in the process.

On the other side of the coin in attack they averaged around 18 point per game but could not prevent sides piling on the points when they turned the ball over. Curtis Dansey-Smaller was one of a number of the Western Australian U18 side that met the Titans at a joint Titan – Western Australian Rugby League Promotional event in 2016 when the Titans were in Perth for a match against South Sydney.

For Rockingham in the Western Australian rugby league competition in 2016 even though he was eligible to play in the U18 competition, Curtis Dansey-Smaller played the entire 2016 season in the Smarter than Smoking first grade side, mainly on the wing where he scored eight tries in eleven matches, including a hat trick in the opening round against South West Warriors and later in the season scored a double against the Joondalup Giants.

In the U18 competition in 2016 he scored five tries in seven matches alternating between fullback and centre, including a double against the Joondalup Giants.

Curtis Dansey-Smaller was named in the Combined Affiliated States U18 side for the 2016 ASSRL U18 championships which were held in July 2016 in Brisbane. Over the course of the Championships, Curtis Dansey-Smaller scored three tries with two coming in the first match of the Championships against NSW Combined Independent Schools and he also scored on Day Four against the ACT.

From an attacking perspective, Curtis Dansey-Smaller has very good footwork to go along with above average to plus evasive skills and above average speed off the mark, he does not necessary have great top end speed, but he can get to his top speed rapidly.

Curtis Dansey-Smaller has a very good step off both feet and can put together combinations of steps over a short distance to break free of situations where he is seemingly surrounded by defenders and has no right to make any further ground. It is still a bit of a mystery for me as to why he does not score more tries.

Curtis Dansey-Smaller seems to also have a very good positional sense in terms of taking a high percentage of opposing teams general play kicks on the full, thus regularly giving his team good initial field position to start their set of six. Similarly his positional sense when close to his own goal line means he defuses a lot of attacking short kicks and bombs as well.

Curtis Dansey-Smaller will also take the responsibility to run the ball back himself rather than hand it up to his winger even though he is a smaller type of fullback which from an efficiency perspective is the most appropriate thing to do.

In relation to his defence, one thing that stands out to me is that he will not take a dummy from attackers running at him and he will stay with the ball carrier on all occasions and force the attacker to make a decision rather than making it for him.

Curtis Dansey-Smaller is solid and seemingly understands the attributes of his opposite number to the extent that he alters his defensive positioning if he is against speedy, elusive wingers and against larger wingers.

Curtis Dansey-Smaller in 2019 seems a lock to be a key member of the Tweed Heads Seagulls Queensland Cup side, if he is not in the NRL that is, yes he has been that effective this year for Tweed Heads this season both in the Hastings Deering’s Colt competition and the Gold Coast Rugby League First Grade competition.

From a position perspective, I appreciate that he has played both at fullback, centre and on the wing but with his timing, footwork and anticipation, I think that ultimately he ends up at fullback in the long term although Curtis Dansey-Smaller will likely break into either the NRL or Queensland Cup on the wing prior to any potential move to fullback subsequent to that.

From a player comparison perspective for Curtis Dansey-Smaller think of our own Anthony Don as a player who may not have blazing speed etc. but he gets the job done efficiently and effectively with few errors and always seems to be in the right position to exploit breaks or create something when you least expect it.

Like Don, Curtis Dansey-Smaller is also very good under the high ball both from an attacking and defensive perspective. Curtis Dansey-Smaller does have more speed than Anthony Don has however.

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Tahne Robinson. (Revised) The young Tweed Coast Raiders half has already donned a Titans jersey in a number of Titans junior development matches a couple of years ago and since moving to the Tweed Coast Raiders NRRRL side at the start of the current season has made every post a winner.

For the Raiders in the NRRRL First grade competition this season Tahne Robinson has been involved in fifteen matches including the final’s series.

In the regular season of the NRRRL First Grade competition, Tahne Robinson scored fourteen tries and kicked forty eight goals to finish with 152 points.

Tahne Robinson had big matches in Round Four against Lismore Marist Brothers when he scored a double and kicked four goals and in Round Five against Mullumbimby when he also scored a double but in that match kicked five goals. Round Nine in a Raiders 60 – 0 win over Evans Head also saw Tahne Robinson score a double and kick two goals in the big win.

Round Ten saw Tahne Robinson play in the U18 fixture against Lower Clarence and then back up in the NRRRL First Grade match kicking eight goals from ten attempts in a Tweed Coast Raiders 56 – 28 victory over Lower Clarence.

In Round Twelve against Northern united, Tahne Robinson scored a try and kicked seven goals and Round Fourteen saw Tahne Robinson score a double and kick six goals against Byron Bay.

Tahne Robinson’s other tries in 2018 have come against Northern United on two occasions, Murwillumbah(on two occasions), Cudgen and his 2017 club Casino RSM.

In the Round Eight top of the table clash against Cudgen, Thane Robinson kicked three goals from three attempts to lead the raiders to a two point win. In relation to the particular match against Cudgen Tahne Robinson was backing up the day after playing in the New South Wales Country U23 Championship Final.

In the Preliminary Final Tahne Robinson kicked two first half goals as Tweed Coast held on to defeat Murwillumbah to progress to the NRRRL First Grade Grand Final against Ballina.

In the NRRRL First Grade Grand Final Tahne Robinson started at half back against Ballina with Tweed Coast winning in convincing style 24 – 4 against Ballina with Tahne Robinson kicking four goals, including three conversions and a second half penalty goal.

The local paper the Northern Star, in their NRRRL Grand Final write-up gave Tahne Robinson’s performance an 8.5/10 and noted that he kept Ballina off balance the entire game.

Tahne Robinson set up Tweed Coast first try of the Grand Final in just the second minute when he put in a deft left foot chip which Ballina scored from. In the Grand Final Tahne Robinson regularly took the ball to the field and was also very good defensively.

In 2018 Tahne Robinson also played in six NRRRL U18 matches for the Tweed Coast Raiders.

Over the course of this season Tahne Robinson played for the Norther Rivers U23 representative side in the New South Wales Country U23 Championships starting at half back in all three of their matches, including the Championship Final recently in a 26 – 22 wing over Monaro, a match that saw Tahne Robinson kick three goals.

Thane Robinson’s other two matches for Northern Rivers in the New South Wales Country U23 Championships were against North Coast and the Greater Northern Tigers starting both at half back.

In 2017 Tahne Robinson was a standout for Casino RSM in the NRRRL First Grade competition even though he was still eligible for U18’s. Unfortunately for Tahne Robinson and his Casino RSM team mates they were defeated 32-20 in their NRRRL semi-final by his new team the Tweed Coast Raiders. Tahne Robinson towards the end of last year was named the NRRRL Rookie of the season.

The former St Mary’s College Casino student was also selected in the MCC 18 years Presidents Rugby League team in 2017. Tahne Robinson over his junior career has made numerous Group One Junior Representative sides as well.

Tahne Robinson only played in one U18 NRRRL match in 2017 season but he made the most of it, scoring 18 points from a try and seven goals against Mullumbimby in April. Tahne Robinson played thirteen 2017 Novaskills NRRRL First Grade matches scoring nine tries and a conversion over those matches. In addition to the double in the final regular season round against his new team being the Tweed Coast Raiders, Tahne Robinson scored a double in mid-July against Mullumbimby.

Earlier in 2017 season Tahne Robinson was named at half back for the East Coast Dolphins U18 side in the New South Wales Country Championships. Tahne Robinson played the 2016 season in the U18 NRRRL Competition with Casino RSM and finished as the leading points scorer in the competition with 106 points which came from four tries and 45 goals.

Tahne Robinson is only slight of build even when up against players in his own age group but looks even smaller against men. Do not take his lack of size in any way as a lack of ability or courage, Tahne Robinson has a lot of both, which is on display each time he runs onto the field.

With the ball Tahne Robinson is a very good distributor and will take the ball to the line in an effort to set up his supports. Tahne Robinson is particularly adept at using the blind side when he sees an opportunity.

Tahne Robinson has an exceptional show and go and step has scored a number of tries in 2017 in first grade using these traits including his first try against the Tweed Coast Raiders late in the 2017 season. Once he is open space his above average speed off the mark allows him to gain separation from the defence and enables him the time to make the correct decision with the ball.

From kicking perspective Tahne Robinson has a very good short tactical kicking game especially in relation to grubber kicks into the in goal area where he is able to weight the ball well, the try he set up in the Grand Final is testament to his very good left foot.

Being left footed is a great advantage for Tahne Robinson moving forward as it allows a team to have a kicker either side of the ruck that is kicking using their preferred angle.

From a goal kicking perspective Tahne Robinson displays both range and accuracy and has the opportunity going forward to be a team’s first choice goal kicking option. Even from right on the touch line, Tahne Robinson’s left foot has the power and accuracy to be a good chance of kicking the goal.

In defence, due to his size Tahne Robinson is obviously not going to come up with the big hit but reads the play well and can hold his own when defending much bigger players and against players with similar size is very aggressive when finishing off his tackles. He is also very vocal on the field always talking and encouraging his side to move up in a straight line and make hard initial contact with the ball runner.

Tahne Robinson is good enough to push for playing time in the Queensland Cup Colts competition in 2019 but first things first, he will finish this season in the Tweed Coast Raiders NRRRL side where even at just 18 years old he is one of the competitions stand out players.

If he chooses to test himself in the U20 Hastings Deering’s U20 Colts competition in 2019, Tahne Robinson will have two years of eligibility starting in 2019.

If Tahne Robinson does not choose to look to break into the Hastings Deering’s Colts competition in 2019, he will be a lock to start at half back for the Tweed Coast Raiders NRRRL First Grade side as well as being the likely starter for the Northern Rivers Titans U23 side for the 2019 version of the New South Wales Country U23 Championships.

Tahne Robinson always has been and always will be a half back when playing rugby league although he would likely be able to full in at hooker should the need arise.

From a player comparison perspective for Tahne Robinson think of someone like the Titans own Ashley Taylor as a young play maker who whilst having all the skills necessary for a future at half back, also shows the ability to alter his game based on what his team needs during the course of a match and whose kicking game can have a major impact.

One aspect where Tahne Robinson is a touch different to Taylor is that he is constantly looking to take the line on as often as possible, I am not saying that he is reckless running the ball, more that Tahne Robinson is very confident in his ability to run the ball and looks to do so on a regular basis.

Tahne Robinson’s improvement this season has been nothing short of incredible and was in no way out of his depth as an 18 year old playing for the Northern Rivers U23 side and was unlucky not to be selected in the New South Wales Country U23 side such was the quality of his performances over the course of the 2018 season.

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Kel Sheather. (Revised) The talented Titans linked young half may have still be eligible to play in the MM Cup competition and in fact was named in the Tweed Heads Seagulls MM Cup squad for this season late last year, but in fact has by-passed the U18 competition all together and commenced the 2018 season as the starting half back for the Tweed Heads Seagulls U20 Colts side and scored a good try in Round One against the North’s Devils when he split the North’s defence from around ten metres out when operating on the left side of the field.

Kel Sheather also started Rounds Two where he had a try assist and Three against Victoria and Burleigh respectively at half back. Kel Sheather has primarily played on the left side of the field so far this season for the Tweed Heads Seagulls.

Round Three against Burleigh once again saw Kel Sheather lead Tweed Heads around the field well especially in the second half with the Seagulls coming from behind to beat their local rivals by four points with two late tries.

In total for Tweed Heads in the 2018 Colts competition, Kel Sheather played in eleven matches scoring two tries. In addition to the try noted above against Victoria, Kel Sheather also scored against Wynnum Manly in Round Six.

Kel Sheather started his first eight U20 Hastings Deering’s Colts matches at half back, the last being in Round Eight against the Western Mustangs. In his other three matches being against Ipswich in Round Ten, Redcliffe in Round Thirteen and Wynnum Manly in Round Seventeen, Kel Sheather has started from the interchange bench.

Kel Sheather also played a number of matches in the NRRRL competition this season for Ballina making his NRRRL First Grade debut in June and scoring against Casino RSM. In his eight NRRL First Grade regular season matches in 2018 Kel Sheather has scored 32 points from four tries and eight goals.

Kel Sheather was also heavily involved in Ballina’s NRRRL First Grade final’s series, culminating in Ballina playing the Tweed Coast Raiders in the NRRRL First Grade Grand Final with Ballina going down 24 – 4 against the Tweed Coast Raiders in a physical contest in Ballina.

Kel Sheather started the Grand Final at five eight and operated primarily on the right side of the field for Ballina. He did not get too many chances in attack but acquitted himself well defensively against a Tweed Coast forward pack that sent a lot of traffic his way.

Kel Sheather had a huge match late in the regular season against Lower Clarence in Round Seventeen scoring two tries and kicking eight goals for an individual point’s haul of 24. Kel Sheather’s other regular season tries came in Round Seventeen against Lismore Marist Brothers and Round Seven against Casino RSM.

Kel Sheather also played one NRRRL U18 match being in May against the Tweed Coast Raiders and that day he then backed up for the First Grade match later in the afternoon.

The 2018 season is the second season in which Kel Sheather has been involved in the NRRRL First Grade competition after playing in nine matches in 2017, scoring one try.

The St Johns College Woodlawn half back in 2017 plyed his trade for the Ballina Seagulls in the NRRRL Northern Rivers Rugby League competition playing both first grade and U18’s this season as well as playing for St College Woodlawn in a number of Schoolboy competitions including the GIO Cup. Kel Sheather set up a great try in the semi-finals of the New South Wales Catholic Cup schoolboy competition when a great kick of his in the wet found the chest of centre Jordan Sly but a late try resulted in a 14 – 10 loss to Sydney’s Holy Cross Ryde.

Kel Sheather also scored a 100 metre try and was singled out for special praise by his coach in Woodlawn’s New South Wales GIO Cup Grand Final victory over Patrician Brothers Fairfield in Sydney in late August 2017.

Kel Sheather in 2017 played ten matches in the U18 NRRRL competition scoring 52 points from five tries and sixteen goals. All of his tries have been scored in different games and came against Tweed Coast on two separate occasions, Byron Bay, Casino RSM and Kyogle. Kel Sheather also played nine NRRRL first grade matches and scored his sole try in his third ever first grade match against Byron Bay.

In 2016 Kel Sheather started from the bench for the Northern Country Combined Catholic College side in the NSW CCC trials. Over the last couple of years, the young halfback has not played a great deal of club rugby league for his club side the Ballina Seagulls but has played a fair amount of matches, including the National GIO Cup competition with St Johns College Woodlawn.

Kel Sheather came to prominence in the green of Woodlawn last year when he was part of the NSW CCC Cup Woodlawn side that made the semi-finals of that competition last year. That side included former Titan Sam Elliot and Zac Beecher who has previously played in the MM Cup competition of the Gold Coast.

In attack his initial burst of speed off the mark is the first attribute that you will notice when you see him play, he has a dynamic initial burst however he does not have an extra gear to move to when he is in open space. Coupled with a very good step off both feet, although he seems to step off his right foot on a more regular basis, Kel Sheather’s speed enables him to make breaks however his lack of plus top end speed does impact on his ability to score from his own breaks.

Kel Sheather’s initial burst off the mark was the primary reason for his try in Round One against the North’s Devils. He received the ball on the left side of the play the ball about ten metres out from the North’s line. Kel Sheather ran across field with the ball out in front of him in both hands and when the North’s defensive line hesitated not knowing whether he would run or pass, Kel Sheather stepped off his left foot and exploded through a small gap to score with the North’s fullback trying in vain to make the tackle as Kel Sheather dived across the line to score near the left upright.

Kel Sheather can and will beat defenders in the inside with a step and if the defensive line is staggered a dummy and go, presents multiple headaches for the opposition’s defensive strategies and also backs up well.

It is these attributes that means Kel Sheather is a threat to run every time he is at dummy half and opposing defences must that that into account, for if the markers do but work hard or there are slow moving forwards he has the ability to exploit that on each occasion, like he did against North’s.

A good left foot step in Round Two against the Victorian Thunderbolts highlighted the effectiveness of his step to create opportunities. With a couple of minutes to go in the match, Kel Sheather took the ball on the field (where he has primarily played) stepped off his left foot to elude a defender who had rushed out of the line and then popped a good short inside ball to Ben Thomas who scored near the posts. The try from Kel Sheather’s perspective involved good footwork in limited space and then appropriate timing, direction and weight on his pass to set up Ben Thomas for the try.

In previous year’s he has run quite a lot but last year and so far this season he has seemingly taken a step back and become more of an organising type of halfback, but he still takes on the line when he sees an opportunity as was evidenced in Round One against North’s.

At present, one area for him to continue to develop is his play making skills, including putting his runners holes gaps. I am not suggesting that play making skills are currently under developed but an improvement in that area will enable his speed and footwork to play better in game situations as defensive lines start to focus in his runners and thus leave more space for him.

Kel Sheather continues to refine his passing especially to his left and has thrown a number of good passes this season, none more so than a good long spiral to left centre Lee Turner which put him outside his defender and then Lee Turner just had to draw the winger and pass Gerard Ah Nau for his first try in the left corner and his first in Seagulls colours since his move from Group 20.

From a goal kicking perspective, he is very effective near the posts, his strike rate last year was a touch above 90% and will have his moments where he kicks then in bunches from the sideline as well. I am not sure whether he will be a team’s primary goal kicker going forward, but it is certainly not out of the question that he will not be either.

In defence, due to his size he is obviously not going to come up with the big hit but reads the play well enough and can hold his own when defending much bigger players. When confronted with forwards running directly at him on the fringes of the ruck he will get in front of them and use his shoulder in an effort to contain them until defensive help arrives. He does have an aggressive streak in him when defending and this holds him in good stead when defending against wide running back rowers.

After missing a couple of matches through injury after the opening rounds of the 2018 Hastings Deering’s U20 Colts competition, Kel Sheather has been in and out of the Tweed Heads Seagulls side but in 2019 he should be a key member of the side and he is also Colts eligible in 2019.

From a position perspective, Kel Sheather is making a good fist of half back with the Tweed Heads Seagulls Colts side this season and in the NRRRL First Grade competition and clearly has made great strides in his game management and ball playing skills and thus there is no reason to consider a move from half back.

With his evolving game management and ball playing skills to compliment his running game a player comparison to young Melbourne Storm half back Brody Croft is not unwarranted. Like Croft Kel Sheather is also a very good goal kicker as well as tactical kicker.

Kel Sheather had a very good start to the 2018 season and certainly has an intriguing skill set and has come on in leaps and bounds this season in Colts and has adapted to the size and speed of the older players he is up against very quickly indeed.

Kel Sheather certainly has had to deal with a very steep learning curve this season but he has handled it with aplomb which bodes well for the future with the Titans.

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Kade Hill. (Revised) He is a young half/five eight from Northern New South Wales who has been part of the Titans junior development set up in the NRRRL region and attended a Titans Elite Academy Camp that was held for 18 young Titans contracted players at Lennox Heads in late 2017.

Recently Kade Hill has been named in the Tweed Heads Seagulls 2019 MM Cup squad.

This season Kade Hill played five matches for the Murwillumbah Mustangs in the NRRRL U18 competition scoring two tries in the process, with those tries coming against the Tweed Coast Raiders and Kyogle.

Over the course of the 2017 season Kade Hill along with two other Titans linked youngsters in second rower Ben Liyou and Jordan Tauali’i stood out for the East Coast Dolphins U16 side which made the New South Wales Country U16 Age Championship final and also along with his two team mates made the New South Wales Country U16 side that were undefeated on a two match tour of New Zealand’s South Island playing an U17 Canterbury selection as well as a West Coast selection in Greymouth. Kade Hills was able to cross for a double in their semi-final victory over the Bidgee Bulls and recently he was named the Group 18 U16 Player of the Year.

During the 2016 season, Kade Hill represented Group 18 at the U15 level where he played at half back partnering talented five eight Mitchell Malone. Kade Hill as also part of the Titans squad that played the Balmain Tigers in an U15 trial match on the Gold Coast late in 2016.

For Group 18 in 2016, Kade Hill played in two matches being against Group 21 and Group Three over the course of the 18/19 June weekend and scored a good solo try on the Sunday against Group Three.

In 2016 Kade Hill also represented the North Coast in a match against the Hunter Region in the New South Wales Greater Northern Rugby League Exchange competition scoring a very good individual try in the process showcasing his speed off the mark and deft right foot step.

In 2015 Kade Hill represented Group 18 in the U14 age group. He played his schoolboy rugby league with Murwillumbah High School in Northern NSW. Kade Hill is a multi-sport athlete, as he also played cricket where he seemed to be a decent spin bowler and played touch football as well highlighting his versatility.

In attack Kade Hill has above average to plus speed off the mark but does not necessary have an extra gear in open space, but he is able to sustain his top speed over considerable distance. In confined space, he has very good footwork, including a good step off both feet.

Kade Hill can beat defenders in the inside with a step and if the defensive line is staggered a dummy and go, presents multiple headaches for the opposition’s defensive strategies.

At present, one area for him to continue to develop is his play making skills, including putting his runners, whether they are backrowers or centres into holes. With experience however there is nothing to suggest that these type of play making skills will not develop over time as we are talking about still young blokes here.

As games progress Kade Hill is very good at identifying tired forwards in the defensive line, and he will target them accordingly. Presumably as a result of his time playing touch football, Kade Hill plays what is in front of him rather than just play to a set game plan, which is a sign of a young player with a good understanding of the game.

In defence, due to his size Kade Hill is obviously not going to come up with the big hit but reads the play well enough and can hold his own when defending much bigger players. When confronted with forwards running directly at him on the edge of the ruck, Kade Hill will get in front of them and use his shoulder in an effort to contain them until defensive help arrives.

Due to his speed off the mark Kade Hill is also a very good cover defender as he tracks the ball across the field and has a solid low tackling technique from the side.

Moving forward to the 2019 season Kade Hill has been selected in the Tweed Heads Seagull MM Cup squad where he will be in a battle with the likes of Thomas Neale for the half back spot alongside five eight Toby Sexton.

Post the MM Cup competition, I make the assumption that Kade Hill will line up once again for Murwillumbah in the U18 NRRRL competition and will also more than likely make his NRRRL First Grade debut as well.

From a position perspective, with his footwork, speed off the mark and developing play making skills, he certainly has the attributes to stay in the halves, either at five eight or half. I do not think that Kade Hill has ever played there but I would be intrigued to see how he would go at fullback, purely from a physical and skill attribute perspective rather than an analysis of his current play.

From a player comparison perspective, think of former Titan and soon to be Manly Sea Eagle Kane Elgey as a developing ball player and game manager with very good speed and evasion in confined space. At this stage in his career Kade Hill does not have the size of Kane Elgey but he still has plenty of growing and filling out to do.

[mdrew]

Oscar Clarke. (Revised) The ultra-talented young Tweed Coast Raiders forward has been outstanding over recent seasons including in 2016 season when he was named as the Group 18 Junior Representative Player of the year after he starred for the Group 18 U16 side, he was also named as the U16 Group 18 most consistent player in that year.

Oscar Clarke was named in the Tweed Heads Seagulls 2018 MM Cup side but did not play any matches in that competition this season.

For the Tweed Coast Raiders in the NRRRL competition, Oscar Clarke was involved in all three senior grades over the course of the 2018 season.

In the U18 NRRRL competition’s regular season, Oscar Clarke played in eleven matches finishing the season with twelve tries which placed him equal second with centre Ballina James Torrens on the try scoring tally, five behind Cudgen centre Liam Cusack.

Oscar Clarke scored an early season hat trick against Lismore Marist Brothers and mid-season scored doubles in consecutive rounds against Lower Clarence and Ballina.

Oscar Clarke’s U18 NRRRL season came to an end in week two of the finals when Tweed Coast went down 22 – 14 to the Lower Clarence Magpies.

This season Oscar Clarke also played in one Reserve Grade match which was against Murwillumbah in July.

After playing three NRRRL First Grade games in 2017, Oscar Clarke added three more to that number in 2018 and also scored his first career NRRRL First Grade try when he scored against Northern United in his second NRRRL First Grade match this year after playing his first against Murwillumbah. Oscar Clarke’s third NRRRL First Grade match this season was played against Casino RSM.

Oscar Clarke’s 2017 season started off well with Oscar Clarke being selected in the East Coast Dolphins U18 Development Squad for the New South Wales Age Championships. Oscar Clarke who played both in the front row and second row over the course of the 2017 season represented the East Coast Dolphins U16 team in 2016 as well. Earlier in 2017 the former Kingscliff High School student was selected in the North Coast Open Rugby League side for the New South Wales Combined High Schools trials.

Oscar Clarke finished 2017 as the leading try scorer in the Novaskill’s U18 NRRRL competition with fifteen tries from only fourteen matches played. Oscar Clarke has scored three hat tricks which have come against Byron Bay, Evans Heads and Lismore Marist Brothers.

On Saturday June 3 Oscar Clarke made his NRRRL first grade debut as a 17 year old against Mullumbimby and played two further first grade matches in 2017 which were against Byron Bay in July and against Casino RSM in August.

The young hard running backrower usually lines up on the right hand side of the field and runs with speed into the defensive line. Oscar Clarke is not the biggest young forward you will ever see, but he is all effort in attack and will constantly run the ball into the heart of the opposition forward pack regardless of how big they are.

Oscar Clarke is a smart runner though to the extent that he does use good foot work prior to the defensive line to help negate his lack of size and he also has very good leg drive once initial contact has been made. He also fights hard when tackled to ensure he gets a quick play the ball to maintain the momentum for his side.

Even against the some of the sides in the 2017 New South Wales Age Championships that had massive forward packs, including Newcastle, he was the most effective Dolphins forwards throughout the Championships.

In addition, Oscar Clarke has enough speed to be an effective runner of the football being able to run the ball on the edges of the ruck. Oscar Clarke is not exceptionally quick but quick enough to rush defenders to make a decision of when to commit to the tackle.

I would consider Oscar Clarke a strong effective tackler who looks to use the angle of the attackers runs to his advantage, redirecting their momentum. His above average lateral mobility also enables him to not be over matched when defending against smaller quicker players on the edge of the ruck. In the context of defending in the centre of the ruck a continued focus on increasing his functional strength will enable him to better handle the biggest of forwards one on one, but I have no doubt with his dedication and the tools that are available to him, this will be easily addressed.

Oscar Clarke seems to have the type of frame that could add muscle without compromising his speed or lateral movement attributes. His head placement always seems to be correct, thus reducing the possibility of injury to himself and increasing the effectiveness of the tackle.

I hope that Oscar Clarke will look to get an opportunity in the Hastings Deering’s Colts competition in 2019 and from there the sky is the limit for this outstanding talent. Oscar Clarke has the skill and temperament to progress very quickly through the rugby league ranks all of the way to the NRL and potentially even beyond.

I would think that Oscar Clarke will continue to alternate between front row and second row over the next season or so but ultimately I believe that he will end up in the second row long term where his burgeoning skill set can be best utilised.

A player comparison with Brisbane Broncos, Queensland State of Origin and Australian Test second rower Matt Gillett is fair and appropriate.

Oscar Clarke is an effective runner of the ball with a deceptive off-load and is a harder hitter in defence that he is sometimes given credit for, he can on occasion be a devastating defender.

In short Oscar Clarke is a talented all round forward who has a big future in the game.

[mdrew]

Ryan Rivett. (Revised) The Titans linked half spent the 2018 season playing for Burleigh in the U16 Division One competition but also got an opportunity in the U17 Division One competition as well.

Ryan Rivett started at half back and scored a hat trick for the Titans U16 side in a 60 – 10 win over PNG at Pizzey Park and was named by the coaches as the player of the match. Ryan Rivett also started in the halves for the Titans U16’s in their 30 – 10 to New South Wales Country U16’s and kicked a second half conversion in the match.

In the U16 Division One competition, Ryan Rivett played in twelve matches including the finals series scoring 101 point from eight tries, thirty four goals and a field goal (kicked against Southport).

From a regular season try scoring perspective, Ryan Rivett scored a double against Runaway Bay and also scored against Helensvale, Mudgeeraba in two separate matches and against Southport.

Ryan Rivett’s best goal kicking match was against Mudgeeraba in June when he kicked six and on three occasions he kicked four goals in a match.

In Week Two of the U16 Division One Finals series, Ryan Rivett started at half back for Burleigh as they defeated Helensvale 24 – 18. In the Friday night match Ryan Rivett scored a try and kicked four from four.

In Week Three of the GCRL Finals series being the Preliminary Finals, Ryan Rivett was certainly busy. On the Friday night he started at half back in the U16 Division One match, scoring as Burleigh went down 28 – 26 to Currumbin.

Ryan Rivett then started at five eight for the Burleigh U17 Division One side, scoring a try and kicking three second half conversions but unfortunately Burleigh went down to a rampant Runaway Bay side 34 – 22 to end their season.

Ryan Rivett made his U17 Division One debut against Mudgeeraba in late May 2018 starting the match at half back and running riot on the way to scoring a hat trick. In his second and final U17 Division One match of 2018 Ryan Rivett kicked two goals against Helensvale.

Ryan Rivett has also recently been selected in the 2018 Queensland Indigenous U16 side for the QPIIC Championships to be held in October in Beenleigh.

Ryan Rivett was part of the Gold Coast Vikings White U16 side that played in the South East Queensland U16 Challenge early in the season and recently was named joint winner of the GCRL U16 Representative Player of the Year.

The nippy young Burleigh Bears half back’s outstanding 2017 season culminated in him putting on a Titans jersey for the Titans U15 side that took on a Balmain Tigers selection at Cudgen late last year, 2017 also saw Ryan Rivett be part of the Gold Coast Academy of Sport Excellence Program.

Over the course of the GCJRL 2017 U15 Division One competition for Burleigh Ryan Rivett played in thirteen matches scoring five tries, kicking nine goals and a field goal for 39 points on the 2017 season. All of Ryan Rivett’s tries came in individual matches against Southport on two occasions, Coomera on two occasions and Helensvale.

Ryan Rivett’s field goal came late in the season against Coomera. Ryan Rivett started off the season as Burleigh goal kicker, kicking four in a match against Southport and the following week, three against Coomera. All of his season’s goals came in the first four rounds of the competition.

In attack, Ryan Rivett generally plays an understated role, focussing more on the distribution and game management aspects of his role as a half. A key attribute to how Ryan Rivett plays is his ability to organise and direct his team around the field as well as adjusting his game to the specific situations encountered within a game.

Ryan Rivett will though take the line on when the opportunity arises however, but as noted his best attribute is that of a game manager with the ability to draw defenders out of the line and put his runners into the subsequent hole that is generated. Ryan Rivett has decent speed off the mark and quick twitch feet in confined space but does not have explosive acceleration or high top end speed.

From a kicking perspective Ryan Rivett has a solid kicking game, with reasonable distance and accuracy on all types of kicks, from kicking for field position or from an attacking perspective as well as tactically for field position. I am sure that moving forward focussing on his kicking skills will be a key focus area both from a distance and accuracy perspective.

In defence, due to his size Ryan Rivett is obviously not going to come up with the big hit but reads the play well and can hold his own when defending much bigger players through sheer force of will. He is also very vocal on the field always talking and encouraging his side both in attack and defence.

Ryan Rivett will transition to the U17 Division One competition in the Gold Coast Junior Rugby League competition for Burleigh in 2019 and has also been named in the 2019 Burleigh MM Cup squad.

From a long term position perspective, based on his skill set and size, halfback seems to be Ryan Rivett’s ideal position going forward and a talented game manager at that. After saying what I just said it would be interesting to see how Ryan Rivett would solid at hooker with his decent speed off the mark and his solid kicking and passing game.

From a player comparison perspective, think along the lines of Manly half Daly Cherry Evans as an intelligent skilful player who will be the catalyst for most of the good things that his team does and is faster between the ears than his foot speed.

[mdrew]

David Butler (Revised) He is a Titans contracted local young front rower who has been part of the Titans junior development set up since the age of 13.

Earlier this season David Butler represented Queensland in both the U18 and U18 QSSRL Open School Boys sides and late last year was named in the Queensland U18 Emerging Origin squad and over the weekend David Butler was part of the Queensland Samoa U18 side that took part in the Queensland Pacific Islands Cultural Carnival.

In the U18 match for Queensland against New South Wales David Butler come on late in the first half about the same time as fellow Titan Blake Campbell and made and immediately made some solid hits in defence as well as an outstanding run on his first hit-up to settle him into the match.

David Butler made the QSSRL U18 side after some impressive performances for the South Coast side that lost the Championship Final 34 – 28 to Met North.

Earlier this season, David Butler was an ever present in the Tweed Heads Seagulls MM Cup side, playing every match including their semi-final against South’s Logan. David Butler started Round One on the inter change bench but started the remainder of the season in the front row.

Post the MM Cup and playing for South Coast in the U18 QSSRL Championships David Butler played Round Three of the GCRL U19 competition, starting in the front row for Helensvale as they went down 36 – 6.

David Butler also made one appearance for Tweed Heads in the U20 Hastings Deering’s Colts competition late in the season.

This season David Butler moved from Coombabah State High School to Keebra Park and started the majority of their matches in the front row. Keebra Park unfortunately bowed out in the Queensland GIO Cup quarter finals going down to Marsden State High School.

In 2017 David Butler played for Helensvale in the U17 Division One competition on the Gold Coast and is starting in the front row in their 34 – 20 Grand Final victory over Ormeau and scored a try to cap off a great night for the 17 year old.

For Helensvale in the U17 Division One competition in 2017 David Butler has played in nine matches including the Grand Final and also scored in Helensvale’s final’s win over Bilambil a fortnight earlier. During 2017 David Butler made his U20 Colts Challenge debut for Tweed Heads Seagulls a great achievement for a 17 year old.

In 2016, David Butler played for Gold Coast White in the CC Cup competition and played in the second row for Coombabah State High School in the Super Six and GIO Cup Schoolboy competitions along with plenty of other Titans linked players such as Logan Cootes, Blake Campbell, Reihana Marsh and Taine Tuaupiki.

David Butler had some outstanding matches in the 2016 GIO Cup competition including an outstanding effort against Kirwan State High School in a nationally televised match and also was one of the best for Coombabah when they comprehensively defeated Palm Beach Currumbin. Coombabah progressed all the way to the Queensland Grand Final where they were beaten in golden point extra time 13 – 12 by Keebra Park after a field goal attempt by Coombabah hit the upright with a minute to go in normal time.

In the CC Cup in 2016, David Butler scored five tries over the course of the six matches that he played in the competition, starting all in the front row, with those tries coming in consecutive games from Round Two to Seven. David Butler scored against Gold Coast Green and Easts Tigers twice and against South Logan as well.

For Helensvale during the 2016 season, David Butler played in nine games averaging exactly a try a game to finish the second leading try scorer in the U16 Division One competition. David Butler scored three doubles coming in matches against Southport and Runaway Bay in consecutive weeks and against Runaway Bay again later in the season. David Butler also played two matches at the U17 Division Two level.

David Butler represented South Coast in the QSSRL U15 competition in 2015, where in my opinion was the best forward on show. He understandably made the Queensland U15 Maroons side for the national U15 school boy’s titles held in June 2015 and with fellow Titans junior Geordie Brand was part of the Championships winning Queensland side.

David Butler was actually named the Queensland Maroon’s player of the match in their first game against NSW Combined Catholic Colleges I believe it was. He was also selected for Queensland at the U12 level a couple of years ago.

David Butler runs exceptionally hard and there is little subtlety to his running, it is straight and hard and another positive is that he will not just run upright, he will drop his should into the defender making it difficult if not impossible for him to be stopped easily or by a single defender.

David Butler’s running style means that he throws self-preservation out of the window, and fires up his team mates with his charges at full speed into a set forward defensive line.

David Butler was the primary kick-off return player for both Keebra Park this season and on Day Two of the U18 QSSRL competition for South Coast against Darling Downs made some big returns including one in the first half where he split the defence from the kick off, rumbling to around the half way mark before being dragged down. South Coast scored later in the set of six.

David Butler will on occasion take advantage of slow defenders by angling back behind the play the ball, but outside of that he just flat out runs full throttle every time he touches the ball and runs fast and will fight for a quick play the ball every time. If anything he is more effective in the second half of games where his running style begins to wear down the opposition.

I have not seen a great deal of off loads from him, so whilst they will not necessarily be a significant part of his game moving forward developing this ability and the use of some foot work prior to the line will only make him even more effective. He has good lateral movement for a front rower so he does have the skills to develop some footwork but just needs more experience.

Defensively he hits very hard and usually aims for just under the ribs and is certainly someone opposing forwards look for when running the ball up and is adept at making sure the opposition do not get quick play the balls, read that he is very good at winning the wrestling battle in the ruck.

David Butler defends in the centre of the ruck and is best suited in the long run defending there and adds a degree of intimidation to any forward pack he plays for.

David Butler’s motivation and attitude cannot be questioned, in the U18 QSSRL Championship Final with the game all but gone, David Butler still gave everything. The Met North fullback made a break and after stepping the South Coast fullback looked destined to score but David Butler had sprinted 50 metres and made a superb diving tackle to cut him down from behind when he looked certain to score.

David Butler has been a bit of a favourite of mine, since I saw him play for our U13 development squad in a game at Redlands a few years ago now. He had come off for a rest, but a couple of injuries meant that the coach turned around and said to the players on the bench, “I need someone to play lock”, David Butler’s hand went straight up, when the coach told him to quickly warm up to go on, he turned to the player next to him and get a quick rundown of where he needed to defend on the field as he had never played lock before. A little thing like this goes a long way to show the dedication and willingness of him to do what is necessary to help his team win.

David Butler will start the 2019 season as a key member of the Tweed Heads Seagulls U20 Hastings Deering’s Colts side and will also likely get an opportunity in the Gold Coast Rugby league First Grade competition to get an opportunity to test himself against men.

From a long term perspective, I would consider it almost certain that David Butler will end up in the front row where he can be a strong physical and leadership presence for any team that he plays, although the way that locks play these days, they are essentially a third front rower so whilst he may have the No. 13 on his back, the way he plays the game will not change to any significant degree.

From a player comparison perspective, I know that it is a big call but I can see aspects of a playing style that is similar in style to Cowboys, Queensland and Australian front rower Matt Scott as a front rower who will make a lot of ground in attack to set up momentum and field position for his team.

Like Matt Scott, David Butler gets on top of the opposition by out working them and wearing them down as the match progresses through a hard relentless aggressive attitude.

[mdrew]

Rowan Mansfield. (Revised) After being involved in both the Titans and Bronco’s Development Squads in recent years it is great to see Rowan Mansfield sign with the Titans earlier this season and to see him play for the Titans U15 side when they defeated the Western Mustangs six tries to three at Nerang in March.

In that match Rowan Mansfield lined up at right centre where he opposed the talented Blake Cesseri from the Western Mustangs and more than held his own over the course of the match.

Recently Rowan Mansfield started at fullback for the Titans U15 side as they defeated a U15 Balmain Tigers touring side 16 – 10 with Rowan Mansfield scoring an outstanding try.

In the first half Rowan Mansfield was dangerous with the ball and almost scored early when he looked to step his way through the Balmain Tigers forward pack from close range and was also dangerous chiming into the backline off Titans scrum wins especially to the right side of the field.

In the second half Rowan Mansfield moved onto the right wing and scored an outstanding try highlighting his outstanding speed. The try was constructed in the inside through a chain of passes from Thomas Weaver through Jye Gray to Kaleb Ngamanu who put Rowan Mansfield into a gap down the sideline. Rowan Mansfield used an outstanding in and away to beat the Balmain fullback to score untouched after a seventy metre run just to the right of the goal posts.

Rowan Mansfield is just one of a number of talented Northern Rivers juniors that have recently (the last year or so) linked with the Titans, a list also including second rower Ben Liyou, half Kel Sheather and centre/second rower Ethan Foster amongst others.

Rowan Mansfield is a young fullback or centre from the Ballina Seagulls junior rugby league club who play in the Group One junior rugby league competition in Northern NSW, which is the same club that former Titans centre Brian Kelly played his junior rugby league for.

This season in the Group One U15 competition, Rowan Mansfield played in eleven matches, including the finals scoring five tries. Each of Rowans Mansfield regular season’s tries came from individual matches and were scored against, South Grafton, Clarence Coast on two occasions and against Casino RSM.

On the first Saturday of the Group One finals, Rowan Mansfield scored for Ballina in their 26 - 4 Group One U15 semi-final victory over South Grafton.

In the Grand Final Rowan Mansfield and his Ballina team mates went down to a committed South Grafton Rebels side 16 – 0 in a defensive tussle.

Rowan Mansfield also played in three Group One U16.5 matches, making his debut against Clarence Coast in early August scoring on debut.

Earlier in 2018 Rowan Mansfield was part of the New South Wales Combined High Schools (NSW CHS) U15 side that participated in the ASSRL U15 national Championships, being one of ten Titans involved in the Championships. NSW Combined High School Titans team mates were second rower Ryan Foran and fullback/centre Riley Lack.

At the 2018 New South Wales Country U15 Championships Rowan Mansfield was named in the centres for the Group One U15 side.

In Group One’s Round One U15 match against Newcastle Rowan Mansfield started in the centres with Group One winning 22 – 18 against Newcastle and Rowan Mansfield scoring a double.

In Group One’s second match of the Championships Rowan Mansfield kicking a conversion as Group One ran out 28 – 6 winners against Group Three.

Group One won their Northern Cup semi-final against Group 19 before going down 10 – 6 against Group Two in the U15 new South Wales Country Northern Cup Final.
Rowan Mansfield played four matches at the U16 ASSRL Championships primarily at fullback and scored against New South Wales Combined Catholic Colleges.

Rowan Mansfield was recently named in the 2019 Northern Rivers Titans U16 side for the Andrew Johns Cup.

Early in 2017 Rowan Mansfield represented Group One U14’s in the New South Wales Age Championships were he was named in the centres. In those Championships, Rowan Mansfield was absolutely outstanding on his way to scoring four tries from just three matches, including a Round One hat trick against Group 14 and in Round Three he scored against the Central Coast.

For the 2017 season Rowan Mansfield was the leading try scorer in the Group One U14 competition scoring 23 tries from just twelve matches. Rowan Mansfield scored five in a match against Marist Brothers and also had hat tricks against the Grafton Ghosts and South Grafton Rebels.

In a seven match span to start the 2017 season Rowan Mansfield scored an incredible nineteen tries. Rowan Mansfield was in fact named the U14 Ballina Seagulls Best and Fairest for the 2017 Group One U14 season.

Rowan Mansfield also played eight matches in the 2017 Group One U15 competition scoring against Casino RSM. On six of the eight occasions that Rowan Mansfield played U15’s he was backing up from the U14 contest earlier in the day.

In the 2016 season Rowan Mansfield scored an amazing 35 tries in only 13 games to finish the leading try scorer by 13 tries, adding in his two conversions, Rowan Mansfield had a total points tally of 144 on the season in the U13 Group One Junior Rugby League competition and added another six tries from as many games in the U14 age group.

In the U13 competition in 2016, Rowan Mansfield was only kept try less on one occasion in 2016, being against Lismore Marist Brothers in the last match of the season. Rowan Mansfield scored six tries in a match against Kyogle and five also against Kyogle earlier in the season and on four occasions, scored four tries in a match which came against Casino RSM on two separate occasions and against Grafton and South Grafton.

Rowan Mansfield also scored two hat tricks, coming against Lismore Marist Brothers on two separate occasions. At the U14 level, Rowan Mansfield scored two doubles which came against Grafton and Kyogle.

In attack his speed off the mark is the first attribute that you will notice when you see him play live. Only watching him play live will do his speed off the mark justice, watching him play live, it is great to see when he takes off. He also has an extra gear once he is through the defensive line and has the ability and endurance to maintain his speed over a long distance. Couple his speed with a very good right foot step and you have a young player who seemingly makes breaks at will.

Rowan Mansfield can and will beat defenders in the inside with a step and if the defensive line is staggered a dummy and go, presents multiple headaches for the opposition’s defensive strategies. He also backs up any line breaks that are made by his forwards. Yes I know that he is still very young but Rowan Mansfield has absolutely blazing speed already, which would have to be considered in the plus-plus category.

For the Titans U15 side in March Rowan Mansfield expertly got on the outside of his Western Mustangs opponent down the right hand grand stand side of the field at Nerang beating his opposing centre with speed and guile and even with a lot of cover defence coming across expertly set up his fullback with a great pass back on the inside. Even though the fullback was pulled down just short of the try line it was a great piece of play by Rowan Mansfield and personified his style of play perfectly in that brief moment of brilliance.

Rowan Mansfield also has very good hands for such a young player and when he retrieves the ball from an opponent’s kick he simply just takes off and is difficult for the opposition to get his hands on as he nears top speed.

Rowan Mansfield is not the biggest or necessarily strongest player but will take the hit when needing to make the tackle in the last line of defence and has the recovery speed to compensate if he needs to turn and chase an opponent’s break. Rowan Mansfield is also adept at using the sideline to his advantage when he is defending against opposition breaks.

Even against such a talented centre as Blake Cesseri (the best U15 centre in Queensland) Rowan Mansfield held his own for the Titans U15 side, especially considering that Rowan Mansfield has not spent a great deal of time in the centres over the last couple of seasons.

Moving towards the 2019 season Rowan Mansfield has been named in the Northern Rivers Titans U16 Andrew Johns Cup squad and will play in the Group One U16.5 competition for Ballina and may even get a match or two in the U18 NRRRL competition.

From a position perspective, I would suggest that he will continue to play fullback and centre for the foreseeable future, although I believe when it is all said and done Rowan Mansfield will ultimately end up at fullback although with how he played in the centres for the Titans U15 side recently it cannot be ruled out that Rowan Mansfield will not stay in the centres and perform very well there as well.

From a player comparison perspective, think along the lines of Cowboys fullback Lachlan Coote as a fullback with outstanding pace and footwork in attack and who is also courageous when it comes to his defensive duties and on kick returns.

There is just something about how this young man moves that is impossible not to be impressed by and the scary part of me is that even though he was solid for the Titans U15’s this season there is plenty more to come from Rowan Mansfield.

[mdrew]

Faaleo Aholahi. The Logan Brothers front rower is an outstanding addition to the 2019 Burleigh Bears MM Cup squad after playing a leading role in the GBJRL Nev Blair U18 competition this season with Logan Brothers.

The way Faaleo Aholahi plays in attack has no subtlety involved, he just runs hard and straight throwing self-preservation out of the window, in a long run that probably not great for him but it does fire up his team mates when they see him charging at full speed into a set forward defensive line.

I have not seen many offloads from him but obviously the type of game he plays requires few mistakes although on rare occasions Faaleo Aholahi does lose a touch of focus and his technique suffers a touch and he can run too front on. I thing that the biggest reason why is that he is so determined to get the ball and run hard which is a great trait to have.

Defensively Faaleo Aholahi hits very hard and usually aims for just under the ribs and is certainly someone opposing forwards look for when running the ball up and is adept at making sure the opposition do not get quick play the balls, read that he is very good at winning the wrestling battle in the ruck but just needs to adjust to how each referee controls a particular game.

Faaleo Aholahi defends in the centre of the ruck and seems best suited in the long run defending there and adds a degree of intimidation to any forward pack he plays for, continued work from a stamina perspective will aid this as the game progresses.

Faaleo Aholahi who will play the 2018 for the Burleigh MM Cup side and post that competition it will be interesting to see where he plays. Faaleo Aholahi may stay on the Coast and playing in the Gold Coast Rugby League U19 competition or he may play for his junior club being Logan Brothers in the GBJRL U18 Nev Blair competition, either way Faaleo Aholahi is player to keep an eye out for.

Faaleo Aholahi is probably considered by some as a bit of a late bloomer but that is not necessarily the case. Over the last couple of years, Faaleo Aholahi’s game has continued to develop and mature so his play this season would come as no surprise to anyone who has been him play over the last couple of seasons or the Logan Brothers coaching staff.

From a position perspective I firmly believe that Faaleo Aholahi’s best position as he progresses in the junior rugby league ranks is where he is currently playing being the front row.

Faaleo Aholahi’s game resembles that of former St George Dragon and Brisbane Bronco and current English Super League front rower Ashton Sims. Like Sims, Faaleo Aholahi seems to have little thought other than to crash head long into the opposition and then to get a quick play the ball.

[mdrew]

Ezra Ubaldino. (Revised) He is a local young Titans contracted centre or second rower who even though he was still eligible for the U15 age group spent the 2018 season playing for Burleigh in the U16 Division One competition. Recently Ezra Ubaldino was named in the Gold Coast Vikings U16 Training Squad for the 2019 U16 South East Queensland Challenge.

In the 2018 U16 Division One competition, Ezra Ubaldino played in five matches including the finals scoring four tries. Ezra Ubaldino’s two regular season tries came against Southport and Helensvale.

In week two of the U16 Division One finals series Ezra Ubaldino started in the second row and scored for Burleigh as they overcame a resilient Helensvale side 24 – 18.

In Week Three of the U16 Division One finals series Ezra Ubaldino started in the second row and scored as Burleigh went down 28 – 26 to Currumbin in the Preliminary Final.

In March of this year Ezra Ubaldino started in the second row for a Titans U15 side that defeated a U15 Western Mustangs selection six tries to three, in that match, Ezra Ubaldino was the Titans best in my opinion and also scored a strong second half try.

In 2018 the PBC student represented South Coast at the U15 ASSRL Championships and from there was selected in the Queensland White side for the ASSRL Championships. In those Championships Ezra Ubaldino played in three matches and achieved a 100% try scoring strike rate after scoring a double against the ACT on Day One and also scoring against the ACT on the final day of the Championships.

In 2017 at the start of this season Ezra Ubaldino transferred from the Currumbin Eagles to the Burleigh Bears where he played in the U15 Division GCJRL competition even though the PBC student was still eligible for the U14 age group. Ezra Ubaldino was part of the Titans U15 side that played a Balmain Tigers selection late in 2017 with the young man being outstanding in that match.

Ezra Ubaldino played nine matches for Burleigh in the GCJRL U15 Division One competition including their semi-final campaign scoring three tries in the process. Ezra Ubaldino scored a double against the Southport Tigers and late in the season also scored against the Coomera Cutters. Ezra Ubaldino also played one match for Burleigh in the U15 Division Two competition against the Ormeau Shearers in May 2017.

2016 saw Ezra Ubaldino represent the Gold Coast Vikings at the U13 level where they went through the Hill Stumer Championships undefeated and from there Ezra Ubaldino was selected in the South East Queensland White side for the Queensland Age Championships. For the Vikings in 2016 Ezra Ubaldino was selected in the centres but for South East Queensland White he was selected in the second row.

At the 2016 Hill Stumer Championships held at Carina, Ezra Ubaldino played in all three of the U13 Vikings matches including scoring a great hat trick in the Sunday game against Ipswich including two long range efforts in a 58 – 6 victory for the Gold Coast youngsters.

In 2014, Ezra Ubaldino represented South Coast in the QPSRL U11 competition, a competition that South Coast dominated and went on to win, scoring 132 and conceding only 12 across the five matches. In those championships, Ezra Ubaldino scored three tries, one each against Capricornia, Sunshine Coast and Met West. Runaway Bay centre Connor Te Kani and Ormeau five eight Syris Schmidt were also part of that South Coast side and all three have continued to take positive steps with their development and look to have a lot of potential to work with moving forward.

The pace and power in terms of how Ezra Ubaldino runs the ball is the outstanding feature of his game, he takes the ball to the line with speed, but he does not just put his head down and rush forward, he uses quick and subtle footwork prior to the line and seems to targets the gaps between defenders and will actively seek out opposing defenders who are slow to move up.

When the opposition are on the back foot Ezra Ubaldino will target the smaller defenders on the edge of the ruck or wider out and burst through and for a big young bloke he has very good speed over the medium term and has the strength and power to drag defenders with him.

I would consider that his speed would be considered above average for a centre but plays faster as a result of him timing his runs so well that the dummy half can present a flat pass to him and also as a result of the power that he runs at. Ezra Ubaldino also has a very powerful fend especially with his right hand.

Against Ipswich in the U13 Hill Stumer Championships in 2016 Ezra Ubaldino made a long break down the left hand touch line with no support, when confronted by the fullback, Ezra Ubaldino smartly changed the ball into his left arm and produced a great right hand fend when the Ipswich fullback went to tackle him high, knocking the Ipswich fullback to the ground with one push. Ezra Ubaldino then continued on to score a great solo try in the left corner, being one of three that he scored on the day.

The defensive side of his game is similarly effective, Ezra Ubaldino does not just charge wildly up looking for a huge hit (well maybe sometimes but not often), but is cold and calculating in where and when he hits. Quite a few of his tackles resulted in a knock on by the opposition as the ball came loose as a result of the impact of the tackle, he just hits so hard.

Ezra Ubaldino drives hard with his legs and always uses his shoulder and core body strength to drive into his opponent and force them off balance or off their running line.

With his strength and technique Ezra Ubaldino should likely always be considered a plus defender regardless of age group or quality of opponent. Ezra Ubaldino also has some aggression in his game which he will need to ensure that he moderates it and channels it correctly which I am sure will come with additional experience.

Moving forward to the 2019 season it will be interesting to see whether Ezra Ubaldino will continue to play “up” an age group and play for Burleigh in the U17 Division One competition or play for what is shaping to be an impressive U16 Division One Burleigh side in 2019 alongside the likes of fellow Titans contracted Bailey Martin and the fast improving Flynn Daniel.

Ezra Ubaldino has also been selected in the Gold Coast VikingsU16 squad to compete in the 2019 South East Queensland U16 pre-season Challenge.

From a position perspective prior to this season I would have argued that Ezra Ubaldino’s long term future lies in the centres but after his performances in the second row this season playing primarily against players a year older than him, I now have to change my thinking and based on the 2018 season a long term future in the second row is certainly on the cards.

From a player comparison perspective think of New Zealand Warriors tough hard aggressive young second rower Isaiah Pappalli as a good comparison for Ezra Ubaldino, both just charge at the line without fear and really try to hit as hard as possible in every tackle.

People watching Ezra Ubaldino play for the first time may think that he is all speed, power and strength but whilst he does display those attributes there is a lot more to his game revolving around positioning, awareness, timing and anticipation.

With time and maturity the young man could really develop into a special player.

The future is certainly bright on the Gold Coast with young players like Ezra Ubaldino coming through the ranks.

[mdrew]

Connor Williams. (Revised) The Titans linked youngster started off the 2018 season in the Western Mustangs MM Cup side and then transitioned back to the Toowoomba Rugby League competition
playing with Southern Suburbs in the U18 competition where he has been an absolute stand out.

In the MM Cup, Connor Williams was involved in all six of the Western Mustangs matches and scored his sole try of the season in Round Six and a huge second half comeback against the Burleigh Bears.

Connor Williams came off the interchange bench in Round One, started at lock in Rounds Three and Four (Western Mustangs had a round two bye) and started in the second row in his remaining matches.

Connor Williams played fifteen matches in the Toowoomba Rugby League U18 competition this season for Southern Suburbs including the finals series.

In those matches Connor Williams scored fourteen tries, ten in the regular season and four in the finals series. In the regular season, Connor Williams scored doubles against Pittsworth, Wattles and Toowoomba Valleys and also scored against Warwick, Pittsworth, Goondiwindi and Gatton.

In the first week of the finals Connor Williams started in the second row as Southern Suburbs overcame South Burnett and in week two of the finals he once again started in the second row and scored as Southern Suburbs progressed with a 36 – 14 win over Gatton.

In the Preliminary Final against Dalby, Connor Williams started in the centres instead of his normal second row position and scored a try in the 2nd minute of the second half as Southern Suburbs defeated Dalby 44 – 4 to progress to the Grand Final.

In the 2018 Toowoomba Rugby League U18 Grand Final Connor Williams started in the centres against Highfields and Districts and was on the winning side as Southern Suburbs won 38 – 10.

Connor William’s first TRL U18 match this season was in Round One against Toowoomba Valleys and then as a result of his MM Cup commitments did not play again in the U18’s until Round Six. In Rounds One and Six Connor Williams started from the inter change bench but since then has started all of his matches in the second row.

Connor Williams also made his Toowoomba Rugby League First Grade debut this season when he started in the centres in July against Highfields and Districts. Connor Williams played two more First Grade matches, starting both in the centres as well against Goondiwindi and Gatton scoring on both occasions as well.

The St Mary’s student was also part of the Darlings Downs U18 side that participated in the U18 QSSRL Championships this year.

Connor Williams started at lock for St Mary’s College Toowoomba in the 2018 Confraternity Shield including starting in the final against Ipswich’s St Peter Claver College which St Mary’s won 42 – 6.

In the Qualifying rounds St Mary’s defeated St Patricks College Mackay 20 – 4, St Peter Claver College 24 – 6 and St Teresa’s College Abergowrie 26 – 18 to progress to the finals.

Prior to making and subsequently winning the Confraternity Shield, St Mary’s defeated Aquinas College Ashmore 36 – 4 in the Qualifying Final and Ignatius Park College Townsville 22 – 10 in the semi-final to have an outstanding competition.

The young Toowoomba South’s lock or second rower was solid throughout the 2017 season playing at the U16 level in the Toowoomba Junior rugby league competition. The 2017 Toowoomba 15/16 Academy Squad member and Titans/Western Mustangs squad member attended a Titans sponsored camp in Lennox Heads for three days including playing a match for the Western Mustangs against the Titans. As a result of his performances over the 2017 season Connor Williams has been placed on a Titans Scholarship for the next couple of seasons.

Connor Williams started at lock in the 2017 U16 TJRL Grand Final that Souths won 32 – 20 against Highfields. Connor Williams scored his first try of the Grand Final in the 27th minute of the first half to extend South’s lead to 14 – 6. Connor Williams second try came in the 21st minute of the second half to give Souths a 30 – 12 lead.

Over the course of the 2017 for Toowoomba Souths in the U16 Toowoomba Junior Rugby League competition Connor Williams scored eleven tries from thirteen matches. In addition to his Grand Final double, Connor Williams also scored doubles against Highfields in the regular season and Valleys.

2017 also say the St Marys College Toowoomba student represent the Toowoomba U16 representative side and from there was selected in the U16 South West Mustangs side in the second row for the 2017 U16 Central Division Selection Trials.

Connor Williams is a solidly built exceptional athlete and this can be seen when be he is running with the football. In his carries Connor Williams rarely takes a hit up without movement, he uses foot work prior to the line to look to break through as well as cutting either cutting back in behind the play the ball or cutting out towards the smaller defenders on the fringes of the ruck.

In the 2016 U15 Toowoomba Junior Rugby League Grand Final, especially in the second half when I thought he was the best player on the field he made some great runs, including on the last play of the Grand Final when he burst onto a pass on the half way mark, he outpaced the cover defence and broke the tackle of the fullback to score a deserved try.

Like one or two others mentioned over the course of these write-ups Connor Williams runs ‘fast’ into the defensive and his foot work prior to the line enables him to get partly through the line on a number of occasions. One reason for this is that Connor Williams is an intelligent footballer, he does not try to run over defenders, but he runs at the gaps between defenders and uses his running speed to break through if defenders only use their arms in the tackle.

Connor Williams has very good speed off the mark for a second rower and can then translate that into very good top end speed which he can sustain over long distances. This was highlighted in the first half of the 2016 U15 TJRL Grand Final when Connor Williams broke through the line from around 40 metres out, he was brought down short of the line but a quick play from Connor Williams set up a try to winger Taegon Inmon from a great Jordan Lipp kick.

Connor Williams would be one of the faster back rowers running around for his age group in the Western Mustangs region. Also in the Grand Final he showed his speed down the left side of the field when he made a 40 metre break before setting up his centre Reece Liston to score his second try in the left corner.

Playing on the left hand side of the field seemingly more often, means that his right foot step and his fending using his left hand are the effective attributes, but based on his physical attributes, his skill set and his understanding of how to play the game means that I have no doubt that these attributes are transferrable to playing on the right hand side of the field to increase his effectiveness on the field.

Defensively Connor Williams looks to wrap up the ball on initial contact, he will not constantly come up with big hits, but is certainly capable of hitting hard when the opportunity presents itself, but will rarely miss tackles and also covers across the field very well, meaning he is always in a good position to make a tackle if the ball is turned back inside and also to make cover defending tackles if breaks are made wider out.

One area that I have noticed is that Connor Williams does defend a lot in the centre of the ruck, rather than on the fringes, in no way is this a negative in the context that with his size and strength he can handle the physical contact and work load, but as he progresses in age Connor Williams will probably need to adjust to defending more on the fringe of the ruck to enable him to use his exceptional athletic ability more.

Connor Williams made the best tackle of the U15 TJRL Grand Final in 2016 in the second half when he came out of the line and smashed his Highfields opponent with a perfectly timed front on tackle right on the half way mark jolting the ball lose and putting South’s back on the attack.

Connor Williams is quick enough to get to most outside backs in cover defence, in short he is one of the better back row cover defenders I have had the opportunity to see in junior football. Due to his speed and positional sense Connor Williams is usually one of the first players down field in relation to kick chase as well. These last two attributes are part athletic ability part determination. Connor Williams just does a lot of the little things well.

Connor Williams is eligible for the MM Cup competition once again in 2019 and understandably has been named in the Western Mustangs squad and post the completion of that competition will be in line for an immediate call up to the Western Mustangs Colts side and will also likely expand on his three Toowoomba Rugby League First Grade matches in between his Western Mustangs commitments.

From a position perspective, Connor Williams seems to have the ideal build for a second rower in the modern game to go along with good pace and thus from a position projection perspective, second row seems to be Connor William’s ideal position moving forward.

I appreciate that Connor Williams played in the centres in the Toowoomba Rugby League First Grade competition and in the U18 Finals series this season but that was more to do with the fact that he was a 17 year old playing against older players and men rather than what position Connor Williams will ultimately play in the long term.

From a player comparison perspective, someone along the lines of Boyd Cordner of the Roosters, New South Wales State of Origin captain and Australia would be appropriate from a style perspective as a tall powerful well-rounded back rower who plays the game hard with toughness and at a pace above a lot of the players around him.

[mdrew]

Leslie Hartvigsen. (Revised) The young ultra-talented Toowoomba based second rower had a big year for the 2017 Western Mustangs MM Cup being part of the MM Cup winning side before progressing onto the Western Mustangs U20 Colts Challenge squad later in the season.

Leslie Hartvigsen’s 2018 season has followed the same course as his 2017 one. He started the season in the MM Cup and then moved immediately to the U20 Colts side for the Western Mustangs.

In the MM Cup this season for the Western Mustangs, Leslie Hartvigsen played in all six of the Western Mustangs matches starting in the second row on each occasion. In those six mates Leslie Hartvigsen had a 50% strike rate with his tries coming in Rounds One, Four and Seven against Victoria, Norths and Souths Logan respectively.

Leslie Hartvigsen made his 2018 Colts debut in Round Ten against the Mackay Cutters starting from the bench and since that time has played in eight additional matches. Leslie Hartvigsen celebrated his 2018 Colts debut by scoring in the Western Mustangs victory over the Cutters and also scored in Round Seventeen against Redcliffe.

Leslie Hartvigsen moved into the starting line-up in Round Thirteen against Easts when he started in the centres and started Rounds Fourteen through Eighteen in the centres as well.

Leslie Hartvigsen also played ten matches in the Toowoomba Rugby League U18 competition this season for Southern Suburbs including the finals series.

In the Toowoomba Rugby League U18 competition this season Lesley Hartvigsen scored eight tries, three in the regular season and five in the finals series. In the regular season, Lesley Hartvigsen scored a double against Pittsworth and also scored against Gatton.

In the first week of the finals Lesley Hartvigsen started from the bench as Southern Suburbs overcame South Burnett and in week two of the finals he started at lock and scored two second half tries as Southern Suburbs progressed with a 36 – 14 win over Gatton.

In the Preliminary Final against Dalby, Leslie Hartvigsen started in the centres and scored a first half hat trick (9th, 30th and 32 minute) as Southern Suburbs defeated Dalby 44 – 4 to progress to the Grand Final.

In the 2018 U18 Toowoomba Rugby League Grand Final Leslie Hartvigsen started in the centres alongside fellow Titans linked centre Connor Williams against Highfields and Districts with Southern Suburbs taking the premiership as a result of a 38 – 10 Grand Final victory.

Lesley Hartvigsen also made his Toowoomba Rugby League First Grade debut this season when he came off the bench for Southern Suburbs against Toowoomba Valleys in late June.

On a number of occasions Lesley Hartvigsen played for Southern Suburbs and then backed up for the Western Mustangs Colts on the same weekend showcasing his stamina and durability.

In the MM Cup competition for the Titans aligned Western Mustangs in 2017, Leslie Hartvigsen played in four of the Mustangs regular season MM Cup matches as well as their 29 – 22 semi-final win over Easts and their MM Cup Grand Final win over South’s Logan 40 – 30 and also the U18 National Championship final against the Parramatta Eels which the Western Mustangs lost but not outclassed.

Leslie Hartvigsen started all of his 2017 MM Cup matches from the inter change bench except for Rounds Six and Eight when he started in the second row. Leslie Hartvigsen was able to score two tries in the MM season coming against the Central Queensland Capra’s in Round Five (his first MM Cup match) and against the Central Crows in Round Eight.

Leslie Hartvigsen has also played in three of the Western Mustangs U20 Colts Challenge matches this season, making his debut in Round Thirteen against the Ipswich Jets. Leslie Hartvigsen came off the inter change bench in Rounds Fifteen against Tweed Heads and Round Sixteen against the Sunshine Coast Falcons.

After the Western Mustangs 2017 MM Cup success Leslie Hartvigsen went back in the Toowoomba Rugby League competition representing Southern Suburbs and played in the U18, reserve grade and first grade Toowoomba Rugby League competitions. Leslie Hartvigsen’s 2017 Toowoomba Rugby League season finished when his Southern Suburbs U18 side were beaten 30 – 26 in their elimination final by the Warwick Cowboys.

Over the course of the TRL U18 competition in 2017, Leslie Hartvigsen played in nine matches and scored against Pittsworth and Goondiwindi. Leslie Hartvigsen made his reserve grade debut on 25 June 2017 against Wattles and proceeded to play in two more reserve grade fixtures which were against Warwick and Toowoomba Brothers.

Leslie Hartvigsen also played two Hutchies A Grade matches in 2017 making his debut against Toowoomba Brothers on a Sunday afternoon where he had already played in the U18 and reserve grade matches.

The Harristown State High School student and Toowoomba South junior represented the Toowoomba Clydesdales in the CC Cup during the 2016 season and then transitioned back to the TJRL U16 TJRL competition, where he scored two tries and also kicked two conversions from eleven games on the season, with the tries coming against Pittsworth in his first club match of the season and also against Brothers late in the year. In 2015 Leslie Hartvigsen was also named as the most outstanding junior rugby league player for Harristown at their annual sports awards night.

In 2016 Leslie Hartvigsen was also selected in the South West Mustangs U16 side and from there was selected in the U16 Central Crows side for the Queensland Age Championships. In the CC Cup competition, Leslie Hartvigsen started every match in the second row for the Toowoomba Clydesdales, including their quarter final win over Gold Coast Green. Over the season he scored three tries in total including scoring in the first minute of the first CC match of the season against the Central Crows and he also scored a double against Gold Coast Green in the above mentioned quarter final.

Leslie Hartvigsen’s style of play is that of a wide running back rower with above average speed for the position. He is quite quick off the mark, but what makes him even more impressive from a speed perspective is that when he gets into space, Leslie Hartvigsen has an extra gear again which is a plus attribute for such a strong powerful back rower, making it almost impossible for the cover defence to catch him once he is open space.

When he runs on the fringes of the ruck and Leslie Hartvigsen uses his foot work to beat defenders with a variety of moves, including a decent step off both feet and a very good in and away as well as simply running over people. Couple those two aspects with a very good fend and you have a strong young player who can cause issues for any defensive line.

Leslie Hartvigsen seems to line up on the right side of the field more so than the left, but I have no doubt moving forward that he will be able to play on either side of the field.

Leslie Hartvigsen is an aggressive defender whether he is defending in the centre of the ruck or on the fringes, and due to his natural strength is more than capable of defending one on one and can and will stop even the biggest opposing forwards in their tracks when he is able to set his base. His speed and lateral movement means that he will not be beaten by light stepping halves trying to take advantage of tiring forwards or the opposition running out of dummy half.

Leslie Hartvigsen does however tend to drift inside and defend in the centre of the ruck as games progress rather than hold his spacing on the edges of the ruck, but heck that seems to be more to do with enjoying the physical aspects of rugby league and wanting to be in the thick of the action all of the time.

The scary thing is that Leslie Hartvigsen has two years of Colts eligibility left come the start of the 2019 rugby league season where he will start the season with the Western Mustangs Colts side.

In terms of the ultimate position that Leslie Hartvigsen plays, I believe that with his combination of hard running on the fringes of the ruck and his aggressive defensive style will ensure that he continues to play where he has almost always played in his junior rugby league career to date, that being in the second row.

In saying what I have above in the interests of accuracy I should note that Lesley Hartvigsen has played a number of matches in the centres for the Western Mustangs Colts side and Southern suburbs in the Toowoomba Rugby League U18 competition but for me he is more effective as a second rower.

From a style perspective, the one that stands out for me is Titans Bryce Cartwright as a mobile, wide running backrower with a diverse skill set. Leslie Hartvigsen could really turn into a special player and sooner rather than later.

[mdrew]

Luke Maiden. (Revised) The Toowoomba based youngster has recently signed a Titans Rookie contract. From a trivia perspective Luke Maiden is the nephew of former Manly and New South Wales State of Origin star Nic Kosef (thanks for the information Bart).

After an outstanding MM Cup campaign in 2017, Luke Maiden this season once again played in the MM Cup for the Western Mustangs this season and just like last year, once that competition concluded he moved immediately to the Western Mustangs Hastings Deering’s U20 Colts squad.

In his second season in the MM Cup with the Western Mustangs Luke Maiden played in all six matches and had a 50% try scoring strike rate. Luke Maiden scored in Rounds One, Five and Seven against Victoria, Sunshine Coast and South’s Logan respectively.

His progression to the Western Mustangs Hastings Deering’s Colts side saw Luke Maiden play in eight matches. Luke Maiden came into the side in Round Eight against Tweed Heads when he started on the interchange bench. Luke Maiden has also started on the interchange bench in Rounds Ten Eleven and thirteen against the Mackay Cutters South’s Logan and the Easts Tigers respectively.

Luke Maiden moved in the starting side in Round Sixteen against Norths starting the match at lock. In total in his eight matches, Luke Maiden started two matches in the front row, one at lock and five from the interchange bench.

Luke Maiden’s sole try of the 2018 Colts season came in Round Fourteen against the Ipswich Jets.

In addition to his Western Mustangs duties at the MM Cup and Colts levels, Luke Maiden also found the time to play for Southern Suburbs in the U18 Toowoomba Rugby league competition including starting in the front row in Round One against Toowoomba Valleys where he scored in Southern Suburbs 26 – 8 victory.

In total for Southern Suburbs in the U18 Toowoomba rugby League competition including the finals series, Luke maiden played in seven matches scoring four tries which came against Toowoomba Valleys, Goondiwindi and South Burnett in the regular season.

In the Preliminary Final against Dalby, Luke Maiden started in the front row and scored a try in the 12th minute of the second half as Southern Suburbs defeated Dalby 44 – 4 to progress to the Grand Final.

In the U18 Toowoomba Rugby League Grand Final against Highfields and Districts Luke Maiden started in the front row in the 38 – 10 win.

In 2018 Luke Maiden also played two Toowoomba Rugby League First Grade matches making his debut against Toowoomba Valleys in late June and also playing against Goondiwindi in late July.

At the Western Mustangs Awards Presentation night in November 2017, Luke Maiden was awarded the Western Mustangs Players Player award.

In 2017 after being part of the Western Mustangs MM Cup winning side early in 2017, Luke Maiden graduated to the Western Mustangs U20 Colts side where he started a number of matches in the front row after starting the MM Cup Grand Final at lock and being a key contributor to the 40 – 30 grand final victory over the South’s Logan Magpies and similarly in the U18 National final against Parramatta.

Luke Maiden has recently signed a Titans Rookie Contract for the next two seasons, which will cover his time in the U20 Colts competition.

In 2017 the St Mary’s Toowoomba High School student started all eight of the Western Mustangs MM Cup matches at lock, scoring in Round Two against the Mackay Cutters and also in Round Eight against the Central Crows.

In 2017 Luke Maiden broke into the Western Mustangs U20 Colts Challenge side in Round Five when he came off the bench against South’s Logan and also started on the bench in Rounds Six and Eight.

Luke Maiden’s first start at the U20 Colts Challenge level was in Round Nine when he started in the front row against the Burleigh Bears. In total in the U20 Colts competition in 2017 for the Western Mustangs, Luke Maiden played in nine matches, starting four from the interchange bench and five in the front row.

Luke Maiden also played a number of matches in the Toowoomba Rugby League competition over the course of the 2017 season for Southern Suburbs in the U18 and First Grade competitions. In the U18 TRL competition Luke Maiden played in two matches scoring in the first of those against Highfields and Districts and made his Hutchies A grade debut Toowoomba Valleys in July 2017.

Luke Maiden is a very solidly built young front rower with a powerful running style and low centre of gravity, which makes him quite difficult to tackle as he is also adept at dropping his shoulder into defenders as he impacts the defensive line. There is no subtlety to his game, he runs straight and hard, with the only concession to this being a slight step off his right foot in occasion prior to impacting the defensive line.

In a one on one battle with an opponent if they look to hit him around the chest area they will struggle to contain Luke Maiden due to his size and the strength in his legs, a defensive line will always need to commit at least two defensive resources to effectively stop him.

One thing that Luke Maiden does well is continuing to pump his legs once his initial momentum is halted by the defensive line, he makes more metres than he should as a result. He does not have a real off load to his attacking game, but that is not his role, Luke Maiden’s role is to take the ball into the heart of the opposition’s defensive line and make as many metres as possible.

Like his attacking game, his defensive methodology is simple and effective in its execution and effectiveness. He moves up and hits the ball carrier as hard as he can, as often as he can, full stop. He is best suited to defending in the centre of the ruck and that is where you will almost always find him and for a solidly built young player.

Luke Maiden moves well in terms of moving up and back in defence. Luke Maiden’s lateral movement is actually more than reasonable for a front rower as for that matter is his overall straight line speed.

In 2019 Luke Maiden will move to the Gold Coast and line up for the Burleigh Colts side where he will be a key member of the side and will also be Colts eligible in 2020 after which time he will be more than ready to test himself in the Queensland Cup competition.

Luke Maiden spent a fair bit of time at lock in the MM Cup competition over the last two seasons, with the likes of Blake Cullen and Jordan Crocker in the front row but currently in rugby league the lock plays as a third front rower so regardless of whether he is wearing jersey 8, 10 or 13, Luke Maiden will be lining up in the centre of the ruck on a rugby league field in both attack and defence.

Coming up with an NRL player with similar playing attributes to those of Luke Maiden was not that difficult, he has similar physical and playing attributes to those of Manly forward Jake Trbojevic, like Trbojevic, Luke Maiden will work hard all day both in attack and defence and will also bring an intense effort every time that he walks onto the field.

[RenegadeGC]

Luke Maiden. (Revised) The Toowoomba based youngster has recently signed a Titans Rookie contract. From a trivia perspective Luke Maiden is the nephew of former Manly and New South Wales State of Origin star Nic Kosef (thanks for the information Bart).

After an outstanding MM Cup campaign in 2017, Luke Maiden this season once again played in the MM Cup for the Western Mustangs this season and just like last year, once that competition concluded he moved immediately to the Western Mustangs Hastings Deering’s U20 Colts squad.

In his second season in the MM Cup with the Western Mustangs Luke Maiden played in all six matches and had a 50% try scoring strike rate. Luke Maiden scored in Rounds One, Five and Seven against Victoria, Sunshine Coast and South’s Logan respectively.

His progression to the Western Mustangs Hastings Deering’s Colts side saw Luke Maiden play in eight matches. Luke Maiden came into the side in Round Eight against Tweed Heads when he started on the interchange bench. Luke Maiden has also started on the interchange bench in Rounds Ten Eleven and thirteen against the Mackay Cutters South’s Logan and the Easts Tigers respectively.

Luke Maiden moved in the starting side in Round Sixteen against Norths starting the match at lock. In total in his eight matches, Luke Maiden started two matches in the front row, one at lock and five from the interchange bench.

Luke Maiden’s sole try of the 2018 Colts season came in Round Fourteen against the Ipswich Jets.

In addition to his Western Mustangs duties at the MM Cup and Colts levels, Luke Maiden also found the time to play for Southern Suburbs in the U18 Toowoomba Rugby league competition including starting in the front row in Round One against Toowoomba Valleys where he scored in Southern Suburbs 26 – 8 victory.

In total for Southern Suburbs in the U18 Toowoomba rugby League competition including the finals series, Luke maiden played in seven matches scoring four tries which came against Toowoomba Valleys, Goondiwindi and South Burnett in the regular season.

In the Preliminary Final against Dalby, Luke Maiden started in the front row and scored a try in the 12th minute of the second half as Southern Suburbs defeated Dalby 44 – 4 to progress to the Grand Final.

In the U18 Toowoomba Rugby League Grand Final against Highfields and Districts Luke Maiden started in the front row in the 38 – 10 win.

In 2018 Luke Maiden also played two Toowoomba Rugby League First Grade matches making his debut against Toowoomba Valleys in late June and also playing against Goondiwindi in late July.

At the Western Mustangs Awards Presentation night in November 2017, Luke Maiden was awarded the Western Mustangs Players Player award.

In 2017 after being part of the Western Mustangs MM Cup winning side early in 2017, Luke Maiden graduated to the Western Mustangs U20 Colts side where he started a number of matches in the front row after starting the MM Cup Grand Final at lock and being a key contributor to the 40 – 30 grand final victory over the South’s Logan Magpies and similarly in the U18 National final against Parramatta.

Luke Maiden has recently signed a Titans Rookie Contract for the next two seasons, which will cover his time in the U20 Colts competition.

In 2017 the St Mary’s Toowoomba High School student started all eight of the Western Mustangs MM Cup matches at lock, scoring in Round Two against the Mackay Cutters and also in Round Eight against the Central Crows.

In 2017 Luke Maiden broke into the Western Mustangs U20 Colts Challenge side in Round Five when he came off the bench against South’s Logan and also started on the bench in Rounds Six and Eight.

Luke Maiden’s first start at the U20 Colts Challenge level was in Round Nine when he started in the front row against the Burleigh Bears. In total in the U20 Colts competition in 2017 for the Western Mustangs, Luke Maiden played in nine matches, starting four from the interchange bench and five in the front row.

Luke Maiden also played a number of matches in the Toowoomba Rugby League competition over the course of the 2017 season for Southern Suburbs in the U18 and First Grade competitions. In the U18 TRL competition Luke Maiden played in two matches scoring in the first of those against Highfields and Districts and made his Hutchies A grade debut Toowoomba Valleys in July 2017.

Luke Maiden is a very solidly built young front rower with a powerful running style and low centre of gravity, which makes him quite difficult to tackle as he is also adept at dropping his shoulder into defenders as he impacts the defensive line. There is no subtlety to his game, he runs straight and hard, with the only concession to this being a slight step off his right foot in occasion prior to impacting the defensive line.

In a one on one battle with an opponent if they look to hit him around the chest area they will struggle to contain Luke Maiden due to his size and the strength in his legs, a defensive line will always need to commit at least two defensive resources to effectively stop him.

One thing that Luke Maiden does well is continuing to pump his legs once his initial momentum is halted by the defensive line, he makes more metres than he should as a result. He does not have a real off load to his attacking game, but that is not his role, Luke Maiden’s role is to take the ball into the heart of the opposition’s defensive line and make as many metres as possible.

Like his attacking game, his defensive methodology is simple and effective in its execution and effectiveness. He moves up and hits the ball carrier as hard as he can, as often as he can, full stop. He is best suited to defending in the centre of the ruck and that is where you will almost always find him and for a solidly built young player.

Luke Maiden moves well in terms of moving up and back in defence. Luke Maiden’s lateral movement is actually more than reasonable for a front rower as for that matter is his overall straight line speed.

In 2019 Luke Maiden will move to the Gold Coast and line up for the Burleigh Colts side where he will be a key member of the side and will also be Colts eligible in 2020 after which time he will be more than ready to test himself in the Queensland Cup competition.

Luke Maiden spent a fair bit of time at lock in the MM Cup competition over the last two seasons, with the likes of Blake Cullen and Jordan Crocker in the front row but currently in rugby league the lock plays as a third front rower so regardless of whether he is wearing jersey 8, 10 or 13, Luke Maiden will be lining up in the centre of the ruck on a rugby league field in both attack and defence.

Coming up with an NRL player with similar playing attributes to those of Luke Maiden was not that difficult, he has similar physical and playing attributes to those of Manly forward Jake Trbojevic, like Trbojevic, Luke Maiden will work hard all day both in attack and defence and will also bring an intense effort every time that he walks onto the field.

Seen this kid play. Great pick up for the Titans. Big, tough and good motor. Could potentially be a great addition to Titans NRL squad in a couple of years if he keeps progressing.