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  1. #1216
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    Delahia Wigmore. The former Cairns Brothers junior has made an immediate impression on the Gold Coast since has move south being named in the 2020 Gold Coast Vikings U16 Training Squad.

    In 2019 Delahia Wigmore represented Peninsula in the second row at the QSSRL U15 School Boy Championships performing well in a high quality competition.

    In relation to club rugby league Delahia Wigmore, prior to this season played for Cairns Brothers, in 2019 playing in both the Cairns and Districts Junior Rugby League U15 and U16 competitions in the second row position.

    Delahia Wigmore had a particularly impressive 2018 season in the Cairns U14 competitions scoring ninety eight points from twenty two tries and five goals from jut thirteen matches.

    Delahia Wigmore had an outstanding match in late 2018 scoring a hat trick against Southern Suburbs. Delahia Wigmore’s first try came when he packed into a scrum at lock, picking up the ball from that position after Brothers won the scrum from their own feed. Delahia Wigmore took off to his left, producing a left foot step immediately upon clearing the scrum base. Delahia Wigmore then produced an outstanding right foot step to beat the main Southern Suburbs defensive line before a further left foot step wrong footed the cover defence to score in the left corner.

    Delahia Wigmore’s second try of the match and second in the first half resulted from a left foot step that Delahia Wigmore produced when he took a hit-up to the right of the play the ball. With the step Delahia Wigmore got half way through the defensive line, he then continued to pump his legs dragging two defenders with him over the line to score under the posts.

    Delahia Wigmore’s final try of the match that he scored in the second half came when he took the ball two passes off the ruck to the left of the play the ball and beat three defenders through sheer power to score next to the left upright.

    Delahia Wigmore is a tall, rangy outstanding athlete and this can be seen when be he is running with the ball. In his carries he rarely takes a hit up without movement, Delihia Wigmore 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.

    Delahia Wigmore runs ‘fast’ into the defensive and his foot work prior to the line enables him to get partly through the line quite often, certainly more so than you would expect for a backrower taking the ball through the centre of the ruck.

    One reason for this is that Delihia Wigmore is a smart 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 on the tackle. Delahia Wigmore will also continue to pump his legs after contact adding another dimension to his ball running took kit and adding to the reasons that he is difficult to tackle.

    Delahia Wigmore does not necessarily have a great top end speed, but he is certainly more than fast enough to get through to the full back prior to the arrival of the cover defence. Delahia Wigmore would be one of the faster back rowers running around in Queensland for his age group I would attest based on my observations.

    Playing on the right 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 left hand side of the field.

    In defence Delahia Wigmore regularly is the first player up to target the ball carriers, even though he is not one of the bigger forwards in his team and will make solid initial contact as well as having the ability of defending one on one. When the opportunity presents Delahia Wigmore has the ability to hit very hard, by setting a good base and driving through his lower body and core into his opponent.

    Ultimately though Delahia Wigmore is a strong defender with a good front on tackling technique and good lateral movement to track and engage smaller opponents either on the fringes or centre of the ruck.

    In 2020 Delahia Wigmore will play for the Ormeau Shearers in the Gold Coast Rugby League U16 Division One competition.

    With his size and speed combination Delahia Wigmore looks set to continue to be an outstanding rugby league second rower in coming seasons and it this early stage of his career, one that can operate on both sides of the ruck.

    With the combination of size and speed that he has at his disposal, Delahia Wigmore has qualities that are similar to the Titans own outstanding second row prospect Darius Farmer. Both just ooze class and potential.

  2. #1217
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    Brenton Daley-Holten. (Updated) After missing some playing time, Brenton Daley-Holten is back on the field to start the 2020 season and is part of the Tweed Heads Seagulls U20 Hastings Deering’s squad including playing in the Tweed Heads Colts side that played the U23 NRRRL representative side in a February 2020 trial.

    The former Titans linked back was part of the Tweed Heads Seagulls MM Cup squad in 2018 but did not play in any of the rounds and in 2019 was part of the Bilambil Jets GCRL First Grade side.

    Like in previous seasons, Brenton Daley-Holten played in the Gold Coast Rugby League competition with the Bilambil Jets in 2018 playing in eleven U19 matches including the finals series. Brenton Daley-Holten’s only regular season points were from a conversion against the Ormeau Shearers.

    In Week One of the GCRL U19 finals series, Brenton Daley-Holten started in the centres for Bilambil as they went down 38 – 8 to Southport.

    Week Two of the finals series saw Bilambil bounce back to defeated Mudgeeraba 54 – 26 with Brenton Daley-Holten starting in the centres and scoring his first try of the season.

    In the Preliminary Final against Currumbin, Brenton Daley-Holten started in the centres once again against as Bilambil went down 36 – 26 to the Currumbin Eagles.

    Brenton Daley-Holten had a great 2017 season which commenced with a spot in the Tweed Heads Seagulls MM Cup side and from there Brenton Daley-Holten had an outstanding season in the Gold Coast Rugby League competition with the Bilambil Jets in the U17 Division One, U19 and first grade competitions.

    Benton Daley-Holten has been with the Titans for a number of years now and has already played multiple matches for Titans junior development squads across a number of age groups.

    For the Tweed Heads Seagulls MM Cup side in 2017, Brenton Daley-Holten played in all six of their matches, starting the first three matches on the wing and the final three at fullback. Across the six matches Brenton Daley-Holten scored four tries, scoring in Round One against the Ipswich Jets, Round Two against Victoria, Rounds Seven against the Norths Devils and Round Eight against Souths Logan.

    Upon the completion of the 2017 MM Cup competition, Brenton Daley-Holten played for the Bilambil Jets in the Gold Coast Rugby League competition, playing one match at the U19 level which came against Ormeau in July, eleven in the U17 Division One competition including scoring a late season double when he started at fullback. Brenton Daley-Holten’s other U19 tries came against Ormeau on two separate occasions and Mudgeeraba.

    Brenton Daley-Holten made his Gold Coast Rugby League First Grade debut on Sunday 23 July 2017 against Runaway Bay scoring a double and the following week scored a hat trick against Currumbin to have a great start to his Gold Coast Rugby League First Grade career. All told in 2017 Brenton Daley-Holten played in three Gold Coast Rugby League First Grade matches scoring five tries.

    In his debut Brenton Daley-Holten produced a Man of the Match performance after starting on the right wing, including in the first half an outstanding run after retrieving a kick from his own in goal. After taking the ball Brenton Daley-Holton beat the initial Runaway Bay defender with a deft step before splitting the Seagulls defence through the middle and initially rounding the fullback before being reigned in after a sixty metre run.

    Brenton Daley-Holten’s first try came when he received the ball five metres out from the Runaway Bay line after a backline movement by the Jets. When he took the ball Brenton Daley-Holten was stationary and right on the touch line, but he produced a right foot step away from the sideline and got down low to dive over.

    Brenton Daley-Holten’s second row was a spectacular effort, Bilambil put up a mid-field bomb which Brenton Daely-Holten jumped over the pack to take, critically maintaining his feet when he landed and immediately took off running thirty metres to score under the posts.

    In 2016 Brenton Daley-Holten was part of the South Tweed U16 side that won their Group 18 junior rugby league grand final 34-6 over the Bilambil Jets and has played in multiple Gold Coast Titans Development Squad matches over the last couple of seasons.

    From a representative perspective Brenton Daley-Holten also had a very good season in 2016 representing Group 18 at the U16 level and then progressing to being selected in the East Coast Dolphins U16 side for the New South Wales Country age championships where he was selected on the wing and played in all four of their matches, including a semi-final loss to Newcastle. Brenton Daley-Holten has previously represented Group 18 at the U14 level in 2014 where he played a couple of games at five eight.

    Brenton Daley-Holten played the majority of his football in 2016 in the centres, except for time on the wing for the East Coast Dolphins U16 side but in 2017 he has also spent time at fullback, certainly when playing for his club side and in that position, is a strong runner of the football.

    Whilst in does not have blinding speed off the mark, Brenton Daley-Holten does have decent speed overall but I would not consider it at the plus level and can break tackles by running over his direct opposite defender as well as using a very good fend, when he gets to the outside, this prevents defenders from getting he under his ribs and thus he can maintain his running line under defensive pressure rather than being forced towards the sideline.

    One skill that Brenton Daley-Holten does possess when playing in the centre position is a more than decent in and away and he will wait until the last possible minute to step to commit the defender before getting on his outside reducing the time for his direct opponent to react to his movement.

    In terms of his defence, he obviously during the course of this year, defended in multiple positions and in each position Brenton Daley-Holten commits wholeheartedly to every tackle. His initial contact is more than solid and is more than enough to stop the momentum of the ball carrier immediately upon contact.

    Brenton Daley-Holten is also effective at wrapping the ball up and preventing offloads. Due to his current attributes he is more effective when his team is using an up and in style of defensive strategy rather than a sliding methodology.

    In 2020 Brenton Daley-Holten is part of the Tweed Heads Seagulls U20 Hastings Deering’s Colts squad.

    A long term position perspective for Brenton Daley-Holten is a little more clouded, he has played, wing, centre, fullback and five eight so far in club and representative rugby league, but based on his skill and physical attributes, I am leaning towards centre being his best position in the short term, but I would not rule out a move to the back row as Brenton Daley-Holten progresses through the senior rugby league competitions. I note that Brenton Daley – Holten has spent time in the second row for the Tweed Heads Colts side in there trials for the 2020 season.

    From a player comparison perspective for Brenton Daley-Holten I think that you could look at either of the Morris brothers for a suitable playing comparison, being that of a big strong, fast, powerful centre who as well as being dominant defensively will create things in attack when give the ball early with space for them to create for either themselves or team mates.

    Brenton Daley-Holten has had an interrupted run the last couple of season’s but that does not in any way impact on his long term projection. This young man is an exceptional talent and is one to keep an eye on in the future.

  3. #1218
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    Alex Fisher. The Former Australian Universities 2018 representative Alex Fisher joined the Burleigh Bears Hastings Deering’s Colts squad this season after training with the Norths Sydney Bears Jersey Flegg squad in 2019.

    Alex Fisher started Round One of the 2020 Hastings Deering’s Colts competition for the Burleigh Bears from the bench against the Wynnum Manly Seagulls playing in the second row when he was on the field in the Bears first up victory.

    In 2019 after representing the New South Wales Tertiary side starting from the bench against Queensland Universities (Queensland won 28 – 10). Alex Fisher also started from the bench for the Australian Universities side on their South African tour in 2018 including their victory over the South African Schools side in their International clash.

    In 2018 the former Glenn Innes Magpies junior played in the U18 Illawarra competition whilst attending the University of Wollongong.

    Alex Fisher is a talented wide running backrower with a decent turn of speed once he breaks through the line and will outpace all but the quickest cover defenders. Alex Fisher has the ability to use footwork before the line, especially on the ends of the ruck where he has a good in and away as well as a very good fend to complement his footwork, Alex Fisher can also throw a solid short pass in those situations as well, where he tries to wait as long as possible before popping the short pass.

    On top of those attributes, Alex Fisher is impressive at running a good line on the fringes of the ruck and constantly picks the right holes to run into thus making the play makers on his team look good. He will also take his share of runs in the middle where he uses foot work prior to the line so as not to constantly absorb big hits against, usually much larger opposition forwards.

    Alex Fisher is also a disciplined player who does not often give away penalties or makes silly mistakes and also has good hands, including the ability to drag in passes that are behind him.

    Defensively he looks to wrap up the ball on initial contact, he will not constantly come up with big hits, but will rarely miss tackles and also covers across the field very well, meaning Alex Fisher is usually in good positions to make a tackle if the ball is turned back inside and also to make cover defending tackles if breaks are made wider out.

    Alex Fisher is also quick enough to get to most outside backs in cover defence. Due to his above average speed for his position speed, tackling technique and positional sense he is usually at or near the top of the tackle count for his team.

    Alex Fisher will play the remainder of the 2020 season with the Burleigh Bears U20 Hastings Deering’s Colts side and will also look to push for an opportunity with the Burleigh Gold Coast Rugby League First Grade side as the season progresses.

    At a mobile 185cm and 96kg Alex Fisher has the ideal size and speed combination for a modern day rugby league second rower and that is where Alex Fisher will stay for the duration of his rugby league career.

    From a current NRL player perspective, Alex Fisher is a bit smaller from a physical stand point, but Alex Fisher has a similar playing style to fellow red head, Canberra Raiders NRL forward Corey Horsburgh. Both are tough young men who relish the physical contact that comes with playing rugby league at or near the highest level and are both all heart and all effort types of players

  4. #1219
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    Michael White. The former Lower Clarence Magpies junior was named on an extended bench for the Tweed Heads Seagulls Hastings Deering’s Colts side in their 2020 Round One match against the Northern Pride but in the end did not make his debut in the match last weekend.

    Prior to his move to Tweed Heads Michael White was a stand out in his two seasons in the U18 NRRRL competition with the Magpies playing primarily in the halves in Lower Clarence’s Black and White.

    Michael White is just a superb mover seemingly gliding across the field effortlessly with outstanding balance, body control and exquisite hand eye co-ordination which has been aided by playing hockey at a very high level. Seriously Michael White’s running style looks just effortless and perfectly balanced and is undertaken at speed.

    It is hard to put in words just how talented Michael White is in terms of running the ball, he has outstanding speed both off the mark which I would consider in the plus plus category and top end speed which must be considered plus regardless of position.

    Michael White with his pace is able to exploit even the smallest of gaps in the defensive line with an exceptional step off either foot and incredible acceleration as well as outstanding balance and body control. When Michael White steps, regardless of the size of the step or in which direction there is absolutely no loss of speed or momentum as he moves to his new vector and continues on.

    It is that speed trait which opens up his incredible ball playing skills as well. Teams start to focus heavily on Michael White when he has the ball with outside defenders looking to come in to assist that they open up holes wider out in the defensive line that Michael White can exploit.

    Michael White has exquisite timing on his passes and is able to weight them perfectly as well and can do so from either side of his body. Adding in this is that Michael White can stop on a dime even travelling at full speed and pop the short pass, thus it looks for all money that he is going to run the ball thus the defence converges and then the ball is delivered to a support runner who is through a hole before the defensive line can readjust.

    Michael White also runs with the ball in both hands out in front of his body which is another reason why the defensive line is unable to determine exactly what Michael White is going to do with the ball at any given time. By the time that they have figured it out it is usually too late to stop Michael White.

    Michael White just seems to have all of the time in the world to do what he wants on a rugby league field and is just so calm and composed and seemingly always two or three plays ahead of the opposition and his own team mates on occasion to be honest.

    Defensively Michael White is a very strong young man with exceptional functional strength to go along with an innate understanding of the attacking strategies of rugby league thus he is able to anticipate what an attacking side is looking to do with the ball and then be in the best position to negate it.

    Michael White has a very good low tackling technique which is simple and repeatable and effective against all size opponents and thus there is no need for a defensive minder on Michael White’s side of the field.

    Michael White is also Colts eligible in 2021 and thus is set for a second season with Tweed Heads in the Hastings Deering’s Colts competition in 2021.

    Michael White from what I understand played exclusively at five eight or half this season in school boy and club rugby league and I can really see him making a name for himself at five eight in particular over the next season or two in the Group Two First Grade competition for the Grafton Ghosts.

    In saying that however with his speed, body control, elusiveness and ball skills from playing in the halves regularly I would really like to see how Michael White’s skills and athletic ability would translate to the fullback position where he would have more room to move and be in a position to be the second receiver when the ball is played out the back by the half or five eight. I think that Michael White would be dynamic in the custodian role.

    From my perspective, a talented, unselfish attacking player with similar attributes to Michael White is North Queensland Cowboys and former Melbourne Storm fullback or five eight Scott Drinkwater. Like Drinkwater, Michael White has great acceleration to go along with a wicked sidestep off both feet, and the play making skills to make opposition teams pay if defences look to focus too much on him rather than his support runners or if individual defenders come out of the line too quickly.

    Also like Drinkwater, Michael White has the skill set and potential to play multiple positions and play them very effectively

  5. #1220
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    Taiti Avaemai. Taiti Avaemai was named to start in the second for the Northern Rivers Titans in Round One of the 2020 U16 Andrew Johns Cup against the Parramatta Eels at Cudgen however the match was cancelled due to the wet conditions in Northern New South Wales that particular weekend.

    Taiti Avaemai was back in the Northern Rivers Titans side starting from the bench in Round Four against the Greater Northern Tigers playing in the right second row position when he came on in his two stints in the match.

    Round Five saw Taiti Avaemai named on the extended bench for the “local derby” against North Coast but he did not make the final squad for the match.

    In 2019 the PBC student was selected on the inter change bench for the Group 18 U15 representative side for the New South Wales Country Age Championships and played for the Tugun Seahawks in the Group 18 U15 competition.

    From an attacking perspective, Taiti Avaemai has a wide running mindset for a backrower with a very good turn of speed once he breaks through the line. Like all good running backrowers though, he takes his share of runs in the middle of the ruck but he is impressive at running good lines on the fringes of the ruck and constantly picks the right holes to run into although he is not averse to running straight over people if the situation warrants.

    Taiti Avaemai’s determination is one aspect that enables him to be in the right place at the right time. He is a hard runner and does not give up on the run until the opposition puts him on the ground, as a consequence, he makes a lot more metres for his team than he has a right to and with his determination he will also on occasion break clear of the defenders totally. I would consider that he runs ‘tough’ with the ball in his hands.

    Taiti Avaemai in his junior rugby league career to date has defended both in the edge of the ruck and well as through the middle. Taiti Avaemai was quietly effective in both situations from both a quality and quantity perspective. Taiti Avaemai’s initial contact is solid and is more than enough to stop the momentum of the ball carrier and effect the majority of his tackles one on one. Taiti Avaemai is also effective at wrapping the ball up and preventing offloads.

    While Taiti Avaemai hits hard, but I would not call it aggressive per say, but he is just tough in his approach to his defence. I do not necessarily think that Taiti Avaemai’s defensive work will stand out because he is not going to come up with a huge hit which will get people on their feet, but Taiti Avaemai will do a lot of work and will likely always finish at or near the top of the tackle count regardless of the level and standard of football he is playing.

    Post the 2020 U16 Andrew Johns Cup competition Taiti Avaemai will line up for the Tugun Seahawks in the Group 18 U16 competition as well as representing PBC in their multiple school boy rugby league competitions such as the Langer B competition amongst others.

    Taiti Avaemai is not necessarily a big rugby league second rower by any means but he makes up for that with his effort, speed and mobility around the field and they are two of the reasons that I believe that Taiti Avaemai will stay in the second row for the duration of his rugby league career.

    From a player comparison perspective for , Taiti Avaemai someone with a similar playing style that could be used for a comparison perspective would be the Brisbane Broncos captain and second rower and New Zealand International Alex Glenn as a strong hard running, solid tackling quietly effective second rower.

  6. #1221
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    Callis Quinn-Armstrong. The young man’s move to the Gold Coast from New Zealand paid immediate dividends with Callis Quinn-Armstrong being named in the 2020 Gold Coast Vikings U16 Training Squad for the U16 Pre-season South East Queensland Challenge which unfortunately was cancelled due to the pandemic.

    In 2019 Callis Quinn-Armstrong represented the Central Vipers regional representative side in the New Zealand U15 National Youth Tournament starting all five if the Vipers matches at fullback, scoring in Match Two against the Counties Manukau Stingrays and against the Auckland Vulcans in the Vipers final match of the Tournament.

    Callis Quinn Armstrong’s other matches in the 2019 New Zealand U15 National Youth Tournament were against the Wai-Coa Bay Stallions in Match One, Auckland Vulcans in Match Three and in Match Four against the Northern Swords.

    2019 also saw Callis Quinn-Armstrong represent New Plymouth Boys High at the U15 level in rugby including being selected in their squad for the 2019 U15 Napier School Boy Rugby Tournament. Callis Quinn-Armstrong also represented New Plymouth Boys High in 2018 at the U14 Colquhoun School Boy Rugby Tournament. In rugby for New Plymouth Boys High, Callis Quinn-Armstrong primarily played at half (No. 9) in 2018 and 2019.

    Callis Quinn-Armstrong also represented New Plymouth Boys High in 2019 in touch including being part of their First VI at the New Zealand National School Boy Touch Championships. An impressive achievement for a fifteen year old young man.

    In 2018 Callis Quinn-Armstrong was named on the wing for the 2018 U14 New Zealand Maori Tama All-Tournament team after playing for Taranaki Maori in the tournament. Also selected in the All-Tournament Team in 2018 were Titans Levon Pure (interchange) and Jeremaiah Temparo (second row).

    When Callis Quinn-Armstrong runs the ball, he is exceptionally quick and explosive, with exceptional speed, both off the mark and when he gets into open space, teams in his age group in the Group One junior competition just could not handle him when he had the ball. He also can step off both feet exceptionally well and also has a great swerve whilst maintaining top speed.

    There is nothing that Callis Quinn-Armstrong cannot do running the ball and it is only now about developing his ball playing skills to make his footwork and running ability even more lethal. In attack Callis Quinn-Armstrong also played up in the line quite often and was his team’s primary attacking option.

    In addition Callis Quinn-Armstrong also has the ball playing skills to set up his support runners and get them lines to run into when defenders came out of the line to negate his time with the ball in hand. Callis Quinn-Armstrong has become adept at drawing defenders out of the line and putting his support runners into the subsequent hole. As his play making skills continue to evolve, the attacking possibilities are endless in relation to Callis Quinn-Armstrong are endless.

    In terms of running the ball back from kicks, Callis Quinn-Armstrong ‘s timing and anticipation means that he gets to a lot of balls on the full and makes a quick decision whether to run the ball flat out back into the oncoming defenders or look to create an opportunity by running across field. Regardless Callis Quinn-Armstrong is an absolute handful to tackle with his speed and evasion skills.

    Defensively Callis Quinn-Armstrong is a solid one on one defender who will put his shoulder into the tackle and will mirror the movement of his direct opponent and adjust on the move prior to committing to the tackle.

    In rugby the No. 9 always has a lot of traffic directed at them especially giant opposition flankers and No. 8’s thus there can be no doubt that Callis Quinn-Armstrong has the courage and skill set to be a very effective defender regardless of the size of the opponent running at him.

    In 2020 Callis Quinn-Armstrong will play for the Beaudesert Kingfishers in the Gold Coast Rugby League U16 competition.

    With his ability to gain separation from his opponent, sound positional sense, and passing ability to both sides of his body which were evidenced in the Gold Coast Vikings U16 trials, fullback seems to be Callis Quinn-Armstrong’s ideal position but for the next couple of seasons at least I anticipate Callis Quinn-Armstrong will continue to play a variety of positions.

    An NRL player comparison perspective for Callis Quinn-Armstrong is an intriguing one, I think for me the most appropriate player comparison would be former North Queensland Cowboy and New Zealand International Te Marie Martin, both are elusive runners and both have underappreciated game management skills.

  7. #1222
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    Mikey Williams. (Revised) After missing the last portion of the 2019 Hastings Deering’s Colts season through injury it is great to see Mikey Williams in the Burleigh Bears Queensland Cup squad for the 2020 season.

    Mikey Williams started on the bench for the Burleigh Queensland Cup side in their February 2020 trial against the Titans at Pizzey Park. Mikey Williams also started on the right wing for the Burleigh A Grade side in their late February 2020 trial against the Tweed Heads Seagulls.

    The powerful centre or winger started off the 2019 season where he finished the 2018 one when he scored a typically impressive try for the Burleigh U20 Hastings Deering’s Colts side in their 24 all Round One match against Norths at Bishop Park.

    Against Norths Mikey Williams started at right centre, he cut back inside splitting the Norths defence and then crashed over in the fullbacks tackle literally right on the right upright to score his first try of the 2019 season.

    In total in the 2019 U20 Hastings Deering’s Colts competition Mikey Williams played in six matches for Burleigh and was regularly one of their stand outs. In his six games Mikey Williams scored three tries for a 50% try scoring strike rate.

    In addition to his Round One try against Norths Mikey Williams also scored against Ipswich in Round Two and Wynnum Manly in Round Six.

    As noted Mikey Williams started Round One in the centres and also started there in Round Two against Ipswich before starting on the wing in Round Three against Tweed Heads and also starting on the wing in Round Four. Mikey Williams moved back to the centres for Rounds Five and Six.

    Mikey Williams try against Ipswich was as a result of a dummy half run when he powered through the defenders on the goal line who had no chance to stop him.

    Mikey Williams also had an outstanding pre-season in 2019 dominating in trials against both Easts and Tweed Heads. Against Easts Mikey Williams scored a double and also had a try assist when he offloading an outstanding pass under pressure from three defenders.

    Against Tweed Heads Mikey Williams also scored and had an outstanding run returning a Seagulls drop out and getting the ball to within a metres of the line.

    The young Auckland New Zealand born centre moved over to Australia for the 2018 season and started the season as part of the Burleigh Bears U20 Hastings Deering’s Colts side starting in the centres in their 28 – 24 victory over the Sunshine Coast Falcons in Round One.

    After playing in nine matches for Burleigh in the U20 Hastings Deering’s Colts competition in 2018, Mikey Williams was promoted to the Burleigh Bears Gold Coast Rugby League First Grade side and has not looked back, alternating between playing on the wing and in the centres.

    After his move from the Colts competition, Mikey Williams played in eleven GCRL First Grade regular season matches, scoring seven tries including a double on debut against the Bilambil Jets in late May and also a double against Ormeau.

    As noted above Mikey Williams started the 2018 season as part of the Burleigh Bears Hastings Deering’s U20 Colts side and prior to his promotion started in the centres in all nine of Burleigh’s Colts matches. Mikey Williams last Colts match was in Round Eleven against the Easts Tigers.

    In those nine matches, Mikey Williams scored four tries, the first of which came in Round Four against Souths Logan. His other tries came in Round Six against the Western Mustangs, Round Eight against Central Queensland and Round Nine against the Townsville Blackhawks.

    2017 saw Mikey Williams play a lot of matches for both his school boy side, being Auckland’s St Pauls College and well as in the SAS Fox Memorial competition which is essentially an Auckland based U20 competition with the standard being quite high as well.

    In 2017 Mikey Williams was part of the St Pauls First XIII side that won the SAS College Open Rugby League Championship for the third straight season with a victory over Kelston Boys High for whom new Burleigh Bears MM Cup player Larryon Tevita started at lock. Mikey Williams was also part of the 2016 St Pauls Open side.

    To cap off a great 2017 rugby league season, Mikey Williams was named in the 2017 SAS College Rugby League team of the year in the centres with Burleigh MM Cup and Colts player Larryon Tevita named at lock.

    Mikey Williams also took home the leading try scorer of the season award with eight tries including a double in a victory over Aorere College in one of the early rounds of the competition in a dominant display.

    Mikey Williams played in the SAS Fox Memorial competition for Richmond, playing in a total of twelve matches scoring four tries including a double in June against the Te Atatu Roosters and tries in consecutive weeks against the Mangere East Hawks and Mt Albert. Mikey Williams also played one match in the 2017 SAS Fox Memorial Premier competition, which is the Auckland equilivant to the Gold Coast Rugby League First grade competition, an impressive feat for an 18 year old school boy.

    In 2017 Mikey Williams was also selected in a New Zealand Select U18 side that played against the Australian School Boys with Mikey Williams starting on the interchange bench for the New Zealanders.

    Mikey Williams made the New Zealand Select side after starting in the centres for the U18 New Zealand Residents side in their 28 – 10 victory over New Zealand Taurahere with Mikey Williams scoring in the match. Mikey Williams was also selected for the New Zealand U18 side in 2017.

    A team mate in the U18 New Zealand Residents side was former Tweed Heads Seagulls U20 Colts recruit Aublix Tawha and opponents in the New Zealand Taurahere side was Titans contracted Darius Farmer, who was a team mate in the Burleigh Bears Colts side and Burleigh First Grade side.

    From an additional representative perspective Mikey Williams has represented the Akarana Falcons at the U15 level in 2014 and U17 level in 2015 in the New Zealand National Age Championships, scoring three tries in 2014 and one in 2015.

    In attack one of the positives in how Mikey Williams plays is when he is given the ball early he seems to have a lot of room to move and this is something that he is able to exploit. When he gets the ball early Mikey Williams is able to the opposing centre on the inside and out pace the converging cover defence.

    Whilst he is a big strong powerful young centre, Mikey Williams also has a myriad of attacking moves, including a great in and away, and also being able to cut back on the inside of his defender if they over commit to the outside.

    I would consider that Mikey Williams speed would in the above average category for a centre, add his power and strong fend and you really have a young centre who could develop in anything on a football field. Mikey Williams must be a five eight’s dream, when he gets the ball early he seems to cause real havoc for the defensive line.

    In 2019 Mikey Williams has been the player that Tweed Heads has relied on to take the first hit-up from scrums in their own territory, one memorably run was early in the season against Tweed Heads when Mikey Williams took the ball on his own three quarter line breaking tackle after tackle before being dragged down from behind by Tweed’s and Titans second rower Blake Campbell about ten metres from the Burleigh try line.

    Defensively Mikey Williams hits very hard and constantly is in a position to disrupt the attacking movement of the opposition. I would suggest that he would be more than capable to adapt and excel in either an up and in or sliding methodology.

    The other point I will make is that he certainly does not shirk contact, both in attack or defence. Mikey Williams clearly has a strong appreciation of the defensive aspect of the game in that he knows when to come in and when to slide and let the play develop prior to committing.

    Mikey Williams was to have played the 2020 season in the Queensland Cup with the Burleigh Bears.

    Mikey Williams is a solid strong fast and powerful young man who has the physical and skill attributes to make a career on the wing for the duration of his rugby league career and at 180cm and 105kg has the size to be a difference maker from that position.

    Recently returned Titans cult figure Greg Leleisiuao is the ideal player comparison for the talented and powerful Mikey Williams. Like Leleisiuao, Mikey Williams has the speed, elusiveness, strength and line running ability teams crave for on the wing in the modern game.

    Over the last two seasons Mikey Williams has been a more than pleasant surprise since his move to the Gold Coast that may pay a huge future dividend for the Titans.

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    Braden Teuila. The left second rower or centre was part of one of the Titans U15 squads that played in a three team round robin set of matches at Pizzey Park in February 2020 in hot and muggy conditions.

    The former Brisbane Bronco’s junior development squad member was part of the Logan Brothers U14 Division One side in 2019 playing in fifteen matches in Logan Brothers yellow and green scoring eight tries in finish with a solid 53.33% try scoring strike rate.

    One of his best matches of the 2019 season came when Braden Teuila was outstanding for Logan Brothers in their heart breaking late two point loss to the unbeaten at the time Souths Acacia Ridge side at Civic Park, Logan. That Sunday afternoon Braden Teuila terrorised the Magpies right side defence for the entire hard fought match.

    In 2019 Braden Teuila also started three matches in the second row for the South East Queensland Green U14 representative side scoring on Day Two against Northern. In 2018 Braden Teuila was named in the U13 Brisbane Stingers representative squad.

    In 2017 Braden Teuila represented Met East in the Queensland School U12 Championships starting all of Met East’s matches in the second row.

    Braden Teuila is a quick powerful second rower or centre with a fluid running style with a classic centre/second rowers build with the ability to stand up his direct opposite and then beat him with pace on the outside. In terms of his playing style, the in and away is Braden Teuila’s bread and butter play.

    Braden Teuila has very good speed off the mark and can break to the outside quickly with no loss of speed, couple that with long arms, which he uses to great effect with a powerful fend makes him difficult to tackle as defenders cannot get under his reach and disrupt his balance, speed or running line.

    These traits were on display on multiple occasions in 2019 in the U14 Division One Greater Brisbane Junior Rugby League competition and I can recall two matches in particular at their home ground at Civic Park Logan that Braden Teuila utilised those traits with those matches being against North Lakes and the a fore mentioned match against Souths Acacia Ridge. Braden Teuila was also outstanding in an away match against Carina that I attended when he was the catalyst for an outstanding Logan Brothers effort that day.

    When opposing centres/second rowers are able to get hold of him, Braden Teuila is usually is able to maintain his balance as well as his running line and keeps an arm free, looking to offload if presented with the opportunity.

    Braden Teuila has far more tools though than just an in and away, he will also use his size and strength to run straight over smaller opposing centres as well as also having the skill to step back inside of the defender if he is pushing to the outside too early.

    What Braden Teuila is also adept at doing is timing his pass to his outside supports if the outside defender looks to come in and help defend him allowing an overlap to develop on the outside.

    Due to his size and strength, Braden Teuila is a very good defender regardless of position. He will not necessarily hit hard, but Braden Teuila is very good at mirroring the movement of the opposing player and wrapping him up ball and all. Braden Teuila is also quick enough to recover and chase if the opposition gets on the outside and his long reach and strong hands are also a positive attribute in those situations.

    From a team defensive methodology stand point, Braden Teuila seems to be very comfortable in a sliding defensive scheme where he can use his speed and body control to their best advantage by allowing the play to develop in front of him before committing to an appropriate course of action to shut it down. In saying that Braden Teuila has the timing and anticipation to be able to come out of the line if the situation warrants to stop an attacking play in its tracks before it can evolve to its ultimate conclusion.

    Braden Teuila will play the 2020 season with Logan Brothers in the Greater Brisbane Junior Rugby League U15 Premier Division competition. Braden Teuila will also play for Marsden State High School in the Mako’s various school boy rugby league competitions and he will also push for a spot in the Met East U15 side for the 2020 QSSRL U15 Championships.

    Braden Teuila played left second row and left centre for Logan Brothers in 2019 and also for the U14 South East Queensland Green representative side and shapes to stay on the left for the for see able future either in the centres or second row.

    In relation to a current NRL player with a similar playing style to Braden Teuila my observations would suggest that Brisbane Broncos and Tongan International centre Ketone Staggs is a similar player. Taking into account that they operate on opposite sides of the field at present, both Staggs and Braden Teuila are tough, quick, aggressive and deceptively strong ball runners who know their way to the try line and get there with uncanny regularly.

    Similarly Staggs and Braden Teuila both are outstanding defenders with a technique first approach to that aspect of their game but they also make sure the opponent knows who tackled them.

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    Tanu Nona. Tanu Nona was named to start at hooker for the Northern Rivers Titans in Round One of the 2020 U16 Andrew Johns Cup against the Parramatta Eels at Cudgen however the match was cancelled due to the wet conditions in Northern New South Wales at that time.

    Tanu Nona started Round Two of the U16 Andrew Johns Cup at hooker against the Newcastle Knights in Ballina. Tanu Nona was involved in an old fashioned mouse trap play late in the match. Tanu Nona ran over the top of the ball to the right of the play the ball leaving the ball to right centre Michael Roberts who took off to the left and forced his way over the try line from close range to ensure the Titans 28 – 22 victory.

    Tanu Nona also spent the majority of his time on the field packing in at lock when the Titans had the scrum feed and it was from this situation that he was part of a set play from the scrum base that led to a try to Titans right winger Jamal Laurie. The ball went through Tanu Nona’s hands to Harvey Moase who was able to put Jamal Laurie away down the touch line.

    Tanu Nona also started at hooker in Round Three against the Central Coast Roosters and for me was close to if not the Titans best in their 28 – 22 victory, scoring a try and having a big hand in another.

    Tanu Nona’s try was an outstanding individual effort in the first half. With the Central Coast defence back peddling Tanu Nona exploded out of dummy half to the right of the play the ball around about twenty five metres out from the line and was just too quick and strong for the Central Coast defence, scoring near the left upright after breaking through a number of tackles.

    In the second half, Tanu Nona ran out of dummy half to the right of the play the ball and was able to get a one armed (right arm) pass away to Michael Roberts whilst engaged with the defensive line to send Michael Roberts away down the right side of the field from his second try.

    Tanu Nona also started at hooker in Round Four against the Greater Northern Tigers and added another try assist when he threw a perfectly weighted long pass out of dummy half to his left for Damon Coldwell to score in the corner from close range. The pass was perfectly weighted because as well as needing to cover an extended distance, the pass had to be looped over a defender who had come out of the line. Tanu Nona had no margin for error with the pass but made it look deceptively easy and routine, such was its execution in one fluid movement.

    Tanu Nona was once again at hooker in the Round Five local derby against North Coast and as usual provided excellent service out of dummy half as well as undertaking some probing runs to get the Northern Rivers Titans on the front foot early in their sets of six in their two point victory in the must win match.

    In 2019 Tanu Nona was selected on the inter change bench for the Group 18 U14 side for the New South Wales Country Age Championships and played for Byron Bay/Lennox Heads in the Group 18 U15 competition.

    Previously Tanu Nona played for the Currumbin Eagles in the Gold Coast Junior Rugby League competition before his move to his current Northern New South Wales Byron Bay/Lennox Heads club.

    Tanu Nona is quite an elusive runner of the ball and has impressive foot work in confined space. He will take on the line regularly and has a very good step off both feet but his left foot step seems to be the preferred step based on the games that I have seen at least.

    Tanu Nona also has some size about him and uses that to his advantage when he runs out of dummy half in terms of initiating contract with the defensive line and generating a quick play the ball to maintain his side’s momentum.

    Tanu Nona’s passing game is what I would consider above average and he will drift across the field looking for runners to run into holes and has the ability to hold the defensive line in place as he develops the play in front of them, making to easier for his support runners to get a clear passage through the line, especially when a defender comes out of the line and commits to Tanu Nona.

    Tanu Nona will also wait until the last possible moment to release the football. His best attribute in his passing game is the speed, timing and accuracy when he passes to his outside backs. Tanu Nona gets a very good spiral on the ball from both sides of his body and leads his outside attackers into the ball, enabling them to maintain the momentum of their run. Clearly his passing ability is one of the reasons that when his side has the scrum feed, Tanu Nona packs in at lock.

    Tanu Nona’s defence for a hooker is very good, for a hooker his initial contact is more than solid and he can defend effectively one on one against far larger forwards, he sets a good base with his lower body and explodes upwards with his shoulders to drive into opposing forwards.

    Tanu Nona’s intensity and continuous effort means that he will track the ball across the field and thus is in a good position when the ball is passed back inside. Tanu Nona literally tackles everything that moves in the centre of the ruck and displays a solid repeatable defensive technique and is able to make multiple tackles in any given defensive set of six tackles.

    Post the 2020 U16 Andrew Johns Cup competition Tanu Nona will line up for Byron Bay/Lennox Heads in the Group 18 U16 competition. Tanu Nona may also get an opportunity with the Byron Bay Devils U18 NRRRL side as the 2020 season progresses, he is certainly good enough to hold his own against players in the main two years older.

    Whilst he has a bit of size for a hooker, with his speed and distribution out of dummy half it is clear to me that Tanu Nona is the attributes and mentality to stay in the hooking role into the future.

    With his size and speed out of dummy half Tanu Nona has a playing style equilivant to that of new New Zealand Warriors and former Penrith Panthers dummy half Wade Egan.

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    Geordie Brand. The outstanding youngster was named to start from the bench for the Tweed Heads Seagulls U20 Hastings Deering’s Colts for their 2020 Round One match against the Northern Pride but ultimately was not part of the final 17 for the match.

    The former Titans contracted youngster and Keebra Park student is back on the Gold Coast after spending two seasons in Sydney playing for the Sydney Roosters in the U18 SG Ball and U20 Jersey Flegg competitions and is also part of the 2020 Queensland U20 Emerging Origin Squad.

    Geordie Brand has already represented Queensland on two occasions starting both matches in the front row being in 2018 for the Queensland U18 side and 2016 as part of the Queensland U16 side.

    As noted above in 2019 Geordie Brand was part of the Sydney Roosters U20 Jersey Flegg squad, playing in fourteen matches with his first appearance being from the bench in Round two against Manly after the Roosters had a Round One bye with his final match of the season being off the bench in Round Nineteen.

    Geordie Brand made his first start in Round Four in the front row against Canberra, going on to start five matches, all in the front row with the remainder of his 2019 appearance from the bench.

    In his fourteen matches, Geordie Brand scored in Round Six against the Melbourne Thunderbolt sand Round Twelve against the Norths Sydney Bears.

    In 2018 Geordie Brand started in the front row in ten of the Sydney Roosters eleven U18 SG Ball matches in the front row, missing only Round Five, with his first appearance coming in Round One against the Canterbury Bulldogs. Geordie Brand had a big Round Seven match against the Parramatta Eels, scoring a try in each half for his only tries of the competition.

    In 2017 Geordie Brand was a stand out for the Keebra park Open Rugby League side in their great GIO Cup run. That same season Geordie Brand represented South Coast at the QSSRL Championships and subsequently represented the Queensland U18 school boy’s side at the 2017 U18 ASSRL Championships. To cap off 2017 and his Keebra Park school boy career, Geordie Brand was named in the front row in the Keebra Park Team of the Year alongside Tannah Boyd who was named at half.

    In addition to playing for Keebra Park, in 2017 Geordie Brand played four matches for the Tweed Heads Seagulls Mm Cup side, starting Round One from the interchange bench against the Ipswich Jets. Geordie Brand’s sole start came in Round Five when he started in the front row against Souths Logan. Geordie Brand rounded off the 2017 MM Cup season with a try in Round Seven against the Norths Devils.

    In 2017 Geordie Brand was part of the South Logan Magpies U16 Cyril Connell Cup side that went all of the way to the Grand Final unfortunately going down 20 – 16 to the Townsville Blackhawks.

    Over the course of the 2016 Cyril Connell Cup season Geordie Brand started in the front row in eight of Souths Logan’s nine matches, missing only Round Seven. Geordie Brand finished the season with a try scoring strike rate of 62.5%. Geordie Brand scored a Round One double against Gold Coast White and also scored in Round Five against the Easts Tigers, in the Quarter Final against Ipswich and the Grand Final against the Blackhawks.

    In 2015 Geordie Brand captained his Logan Brothers GBJRL U15 Premier Division side all of the way to the Grand Final against Souths Acacia Ridge at Bishop Park and was one of the best players on the field, eclipsed probably only by David Fifita who played lock for Souths Acacia Ridge that day.

    One Geordie Brand play in the Grand Final still resonates with me to this day. From a drop out by Souths, Geordie Brand took the ball on about the half way mark and produced an incredible charge that was only stopped a metre out on the left side of the field. A typically quick play the ball by Geordie Brand led to a try for Logan Brothers on the opposite side of the field.

    Rarely can you find a young player who is equally at home running on both sides of the ruck but that is what a team has with Joseph Shannon, he runs a superb outside shoulder line and his excellent footwork enables him to step off either foot to enable him to cut back against the movement of the defensive line to take advantage of gaps back on the inside of his direct opponent.

    For a big strong young man, Joseph Shannon also has above average speed, not just off the mark but also when he is in clear space, when he makes a break Geordie Brand is more than capable of going the distance and normally easily out paces the cover defence.

    Geordie Brand is not just a strong runner of the ball he as noted above has excellent footwork prior to the line and also some very good short passing both before the line and when in contact with a defender.

    Geordie Brand in schoolboy rugby and junior age groups was a magnet for defenders and is adept at identifying when multiple defenders are vectoring towards him and identifying the appropriate force to be applied to his passing when off-loading.

    On a lot of his runs Geordie Brand rather than trying to step his opposite number will really look to initiate the contact and then use his strength to hold the defender off his body to either push through the tackle or draw in the next defender to create space for his outside support.

    Geordie Brand also has an exceptionally quick play the ball which results in his side being able to maintain the momentum that Geordie Brand has generated through his run and play the ball.

    Defensively Geordie Brand has a hard edge to his play and his initial contact is more than sufficient to redirect the momentum of the ball carrier. Geordie Brand sets a very good base which he uses to explode into the ball carrier looking to use their own momentum against them.

    Geordie Brand’s good situation awareness also enables him to be well positioned when he is defending against smaller quicker opponents and he endeavours to minimise the time available for the opposing attacker to generate speed and to utilise their footwork.

    Geordie Brand is also able to change direction quickly to adjust to the directional changes of the attacker especially when he is marking up against multiple attackers running in his direction where Geordie Brand will hold his ground to let the play to develop in front of him before committing to a specific defensive course of action.

    Another area where he has a plus attribute is in relation to his leaderships skills. Geordie Brand is a strong confident personality and that translates to a leader on and off the field. This is a trait that you cannot teach, you either have it or you don’t. Even if he is not the nominated captain on the field Geordie Brand is a leader regardless of which team he is lining up for and acts accordingly both on and off the field.

    Geordie Brand was to have played the 2020 season with the Tweed Heads Seagulls and make no mistake Geordie Brand has NRL potential at the very least.

    I appreciate that Geordie Brand has spent the majority of his career in the front row, but I honestly believe that at the Queensland Cup/NRL level Geordie Brand would be best suited in the second row where his outstanding mobility could best be utilised a bit wider of the ruck rather than the congested centre of the field.

    For me Geordie Brand is a cross between the Broncos David Fifita (a touch slower foot speed than Fifita though) and recently retired Bronco Matt Gillett, he is all class and no doubt will make a major impact for the Tweed Heads Seagulls Hastings Deering’s Colts side this season and also potentially at higher level.
    Last edited by mdrew; 09-04-20 at 05:40 PM.

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    Izaya Leato-Beckett. The tall long striding young Gold Coast local started from the bench for the Burleigh Hastings Deering’s Colts side in their Round One victory against the Wynnum Manly Seagulls coming on for his Hastings Deering’s Colts debut in the first half of the match.

    Izaya Leato-Beckett is better known as a touch player, representing both Queensland and Australia in recent years. In 2019 Izaya Leato-Beckett represented the U18 South Queensland Sharks at the Australian U18 Touch Championships recording a 100% strike rate through his seven matches at the Championships with a number of those tries coming from long range and as a result of Izaya Leato-Beckett using his impressive footwork through the middle of the field and then being able to comfortably outpace the cover defence over the remainder of the journey to the try line, on an number of occasions being over extended distances.

    Izaya Leato-Beckett is a bit of an enigma in terms of how he plays, he certainly plays what is in front of him. Izaya Leato-Beckett is adept at running himself and has a very good turn of speed off the mark and similarly can throw some superb passes to his support runners, but at the same time passes will go to ground because his team mates are sometimes not thinking along the same lines that he does or at the same speed.

    To that extent currently Izaya Leato-Beckett is a much better runner of the ball and can step off both feet and is quite strong for his size and will shrug off larger defenders if they try to go high and wrap up the ball. Izaya Leato-Beckett drifts across field very slowly and then just takes off through any gaps in a staggered defensive line utilising a quick and fast step and outstanding speed off the mark.

    Izaya Leato-Beckett normally carries the ball in his right hand away from his body and as a consequence of his height and long arms is regularly able to get off loads away as a result of keeping his right arm free from interference when contact is made with the defensive line and then being in a position to offload the ball across his body to his left or out of the back of his right hand to the right. In relation to the comments in the paragraph above, think of the Eels Brad Takairangi.

    Defensively Izaya Leato-Beckett is actually quite aggressive in terms of finishing off tackles and certainly seems adept at getting his hands between attackers and their support players and knocking the ball down. Izaya Leato-Beckett’s quick feet enable him to defend well especially against small light stepping attackers as he can mirror their movement and use his long arms to engage them before they get in too close to his body and use his normal leverage advantage against him.

    Izaya Leato-Beckett was to have played the remainder of the 2020 season as part of the Burleigh U20 Hastings Deering’s Colts squad is also U20 Colts eligible in 2021.

    Izaya Leato-Beckett with his height and size can seemingly play a variety of positions on a rugby league field including but not limited to fullback, in the centres as well as on the wing and also in the second row.

    Regardless of position Izaya Leato-Beckett is one of the more intriguing players new to the Burleigh Hastings Deering’s Colts squad in 2020 in terms of background, potential and physical and skill set available to him.

    With his height and speed Izaya Leato-Beckett has a playing style akin to that of talented Penrith Panthers rookie fullback sensation Stephen Crichton. Both have height and speed as well as the ability to negotiate their way through congestion when at first glance there did not appear to be any room to move at all.

    The scary part is that both Izaya Leato-Beckett and Creighton have the capacity to add additional muscle mass (a fair bit too) without at all impacting on their speed, balance and body control. Both also have outstanding hand eye co-ordination and spatial awareness.

    With continued rugby league experience Izaya Leato-Beckett could be very very good indeed

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    De’Ontae Perese. The exciting half has arrived in Australia from New Zealand to attend Keebra Park High School in 2020.

    In March 2020 De'ontae Perese was selected in the under 18 NZtag team (Kiwi Tag Blacks) that was due to compete in the Trans-Tasman Series.

    In 2019 De’Ontae Perese had an outstanding season both from a club perspective in the Auckland Open U16 competition playing for the Pakuranga Kingz and also being on the bench for the Samoa U16 side that had an historic win against the New Zealand U16 side in late 2019.

    For the Pakuranga Kingz in the 2019 Auckland U16 competition De’Ontae Perese finished as their leading points scorer including a big Round One match when he scored and kicked two conversions against the Papatoetoe Panthers.

    In addition to his 2019 achievements noted above, in 2019 De’Ontae Perese also started at half for the Auckland South U16 Auckland Region of Origin side in their three matches against the Auckland South Region of Origin side. De’Ontae Perese kicked two conversions in Match One of the three match series.

    Also in 2019 De’Ontae Perese was part of the U17 Counties Manukau training squad for the 2019 New Zealand U17 National Youth Tournament.

    De’Ontae Perese represented the Counties Manukau Stingrays U15 side at the 2018 New Zealand U15 National Youth Tournament playing in a match against the Wellington Orca’s and in two matches against the Akarana Falcons.

    In attack, De’Ontae Perese is a five eight who is a dynamic runner of the football who excels in taking on the defensive line with deft footwork around the ruck, looking to seek out bigger slower forwards when they are caught on the edge of the ruck, De’Ontae Perese also has a very good dummy which continues to be effective regardless of the frequency of its use as it is indistinguishable in process from when he is going to actually pass the ball.

    De’Ontae Perese does not however have blinkers on, and when his backline is set deep, he can see an overlap or a another play developing he will get the ball out quickly and effectively, using his solid passing skills from both sides of his body, where he will put the football out in front of his runners.

    De’Ontae Perese is able to impart a good spin on the ball, thus can get good distance on his passes whilst maintaining accuracy from both sides of his body he seems to get better distance when passing to the left hand side of the field.

    Assisting his play is the fact that De’Ontae Perese seems to make the decision what to do with the ball quickly thus enabling the ball to get out wide quickly. One aspect that is notable when you see De’Ontae Perese play is how he directs the team around the field, he is in charge of when and where the forwards run and also when he wants the ball to spread it out wide to his backline.

    De’Ontae Perese has a prodigious kick on him and seemingly also has good accuracy and presents as a 40/20 threat. Also his prodigious boot generates significant height on his bombs, and I mean they are huge bombs and again are seemingly quite accurate, his ceiling is that of his team’s primary tactical kicker moving forward, both from a field position and attacking perspective. De’Ontae Perese is also his school team’s primary goal kicker. I would suggest that he is likely to be his side’s primary goal kicker regardless of the level he progresses to into the future.

    Defensively De’Ontae Perese has decent size for a five eight, a facet which assists in him being a very effective defender for his position, in fact De’Ontae Perese is an asset to his team’s defensive pattern to the extent that he has the strength and technique to more than hold his own one on one against wide running forwards.

    De’Ontae Perese will be part of the Keebra Park Open School Boy side in 2020 for their Langer Cup and GIO Cup School Boy competitions and is U18 eligible in both 2020 and 2021.

    With his ability to quickly size up whether he should run or pass (and pass well for that matter) De’Ontae Perese has the ability to stay at five eight for the duration of his rugby league career.

    From a player comparison for De’Ontae Perese, I would consider Cronulla Sharks and New Zealand International halfback Shaun Johnson as a player with a similar playing style, maybe De’Ontae Perese does not have the same prodigious side step, but all other aspects such as the plus plus speed off the mark and plus top end speed seem to be on display when he has the ball in hand.

    De’Ontae Perese is an outstanding young player and is a great addition to the Gold Coast rugby league ranks.

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    Esmonde Parangi. The talented five eight has moved over from the Northlands Region of New Zealand (the region north of Auckland)to attend Keebra Park High School in 2020.

    In 2019 Esmonde Parangi was a trialist for the New Zealand U16 side playing for Team Fisher-Harris in the trial on the last day of the National U16 camp and kicking a conversion as his side defeated Team Papali’I 24 – 16.

    Esmonde Parangi played for the Northern Swords U17 representative side in 2019 at the New Zealand U17 National Youth Tournament, starting all four of their matches at fullback. Esmonde Parangi’s sole points of the Tournament came in Match Four when he kicked two goals against the Wellington Orca’s. Esmonde Parangi’s other matches at the U17 New Zealand National Youth Tournament were against the South Island Scorpions, Counties Manukau Stingrays and the Auckland Vulcans.

    Esmonde Parangi played in two competitions in the Northlands Region in 2019 being the U17 Sam McKendry Cup and the Adam Blair School Boy Cup.

    In the 2019 Sam McKendry U17 competition Esmonde Parangi played eight matches for Tautoro scoring two tries and kicking ten goals for a twenty eight point season haul. Esmonde Parangi scored against the Hikurangi Stags and Takahiwai Warriors and in the match against the Stags also kicked three goals. Esmonde Parangi also kicked four goals against the Hikurangi Stags in a late season match.

    Esmonde Parangi played three matches for Kaitaia College in the Adam Blair School Boy competition in 2019 finishing with twenty points from a try and eight goals. Esmonde Parangi’s try came against Okaihau College and he also kicked five goals in that match for a fourteen point haul. Esmonde Parangi also kicked three goals against Whangarei Boys High.

    In 2018 Esmonde Parangi was part of the Northern Swords side that played in the 2018 U15 National Youth Tournament playing in matches against Wai-Coa Bay twice, the Auckland Vulcans and the South Island Scorpions.

    Also in 2018 Esmonde Parangi, even though he was still U15 eligible played in five matches in the U17 Sam McKendry Cup scoring twenty points from two tries and six goals. Esmonde Parangi scored against the Takahiwai Warriors and Nga Puhi Toa.

    Esmonde Parangi was also the top points scorer and goal kicker in the 2018 U15 Elijah Taylor Cup competition finishing with eighty nine points from his ten matches, scoring in nine of those matches.

    Esmonde Parangi scored five tries which came in separate matches against the Tautoro Titans, the Portland Panthers, the Hikurangi Stags and in two separate matches against the Takahiwai Warriors.

    With the boot Esmonde Parangi kicked eight goals in a June 2018 match against the Portland Warriors (also scoring in that match with finish with twenty points) and seven goals in early July against the Takahiwai Warriors. In the match against the Warriors Esmonde Parangi finished with nineteen points with his sole field goal of the season coming in that match as well.

    In 2018 Esmonde Parangi also played two matches for Kaitaia College in the Adam Blair School Boy competition finishing with sixteen points from three tries and two goals with all of his points coming against Northland College in his first match for Kaitaia College that season.

    when he runs the ball, Esmonde Parangi is exceptionally quick and explosive, with exceptional speed, both off the mark and when he gets into open space, teams in his age group even in representative competitions, teams just could not handle him when he had the ball. Esmonde Parangi also can step off both feet exceptionally well and also has a great swerve whilst maintaining top speed.

    In addition Esmonde Parangi also has the ball playing skills to set up his support runners and get them lines to run into when defenders came out of the line to negate his time with the ball in hand. Esmonde Parangi obviously is a key target for defences but Esmonde Parangi understands that he cannot do it all himself and thus became adept at drawing defenders out of the line and putting his support runners into the subsequent hole. As his play making skills continue to evolve, the attacking possibilities in relation to Esmonde Parangi are endless.

    Esmonde Parangi can also kick in general play, more so tactical kicks to gain ground rather than attacking kicks such as grubber kicks or bombs. I do not think that he will be necessarily a team’s primary general play kicker, although that is not set in stone, but Esmonde Parangi has the skill set to be at the minimum and very good secondary option when the primary kicker is under pressure and only needs to work on getting his kicks away quickly to take full advantage of his kicking ability.

    Where Esmonde Parangi projects very well is in the defensive aspects of rugby league, in essence he is a very good defender for the half back position, this includes against opposing halves who will try to use footwork and evasion to beat him or against big wide running forwards.

    No matter who is running at him, Esmonde Parangi’s timing, strength, lateral movement and technique are all well above average even verging on plus, not just for his position but for his age group in general. His defence is an area that stands out when you watch him play in person.

    Esmonde Parangi will be part of the Keebra Park Open School Boy side in 2020 for their Langer Cup and GIO Cup School Boy competitions and is U18 eligible in both 2020 and 2021.

    With his ability to play right at the defensive line, getting the ball in his hands as much as possible is critical therefore for me Esmonde Parangi is a natural five eight although with his speed and ball playing ability I can understand why he has also spent time at fullback prior to 2019 and may well also spend time there in the future.

    From a player comparison perspective for Esmonde Parangi, the one player that does spring to mind is Brisbane Broncos and former Queensland State of Origin five eight Anthony Milford, as an exceptional talent who can do almost anything on a football field from an attacking perspective and is exciting to watch, when he gets the ball the level of anticipation rises as you cannot wait to see what he is going to do.

    Esmonde Parangi may potentially end up at a different position, being fullback but the elusive and explosive running ability on top of the presentation of sublime ball skills translate to a similar playing style to Anthony Milford at his best.

    Esmonde Parangi is an electric young player and is an outstanding addition to the Gold Coast rugby league ranks.

  14. #1229
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    Keano Kini. The dynamic half is a Titans contracted youngster from Auckland New Zealand who started in the halves for the Titans U16 side that played the U16 Newcastle Knights Harold Matthews squad in Coffs Harbour in January 2020. In the match Keano Kini operated on the right side of the field with fellow New Zealander and halves partner Levon Pure on the right.

    Keano Kini was acknowledged for his performance by Titans JTS Co-ordinator Matt Srama in his review of the match in a video on the Titans Official Site after the match especially taking into account that Keano Kini had only two or three field sessions with the rest of the team prior to the match.

    In March 2020 Keano Kini was selected to captain the under 16 NZtag Black team that was due to compete in the Trans-Tasman Series however that competition was postponed as a result of the pandemic.

    In 2019 Keano Kini played for Marist Saints in the Auckland U16 Open Rugby League competition even though he was impressively still U15 eligible.

    Keano Kini moved to the Marist Saints from the Northcote Tigers where he had previously played his entire junior rugby league with before the 2019 season. Keano Kini currently attends Auckland’s Rosmini College.

    In the 2019 Auckland U16 Open competition, even though he was still U15 eligible Keano Kini had some outstanding matches including scoring twenty eight points from three tries and kicking eight goals against Mangere East Hawks in Round One and eighteen points from two tries and five goals against the Te Atatu Roosters in Round Two.

    Being Marist Saints primary goal kicker meant that Keano Kini was one of the Auckland U16 Open competitions leading point’s scorers over the course of the 2019 season and try scorers for that matter.
    Keano Kini started at half for Marist Saints in their 24- 12 semi-final win over the Waitemta Seagulls to progress to the 2019 Auckland U16 Open Grand Final.

    In the 2019 Auckland U16 Open Grand Final Keano Kini started at half for Marist Saints against the Pakuranga Kingz with Marist Saints coming away with a 22 – 8 victory, with Keano Kini kicking three conversions from four attempts with his only miss being his first attempt of the Grand Final from wide out to the right of the uprights.

    Keano Kini also set up Marist Saints first try of the Grand Final. Early in the first half, Keano Kini, was operating on the right side of the field two off the ruck. After receiving the ball is space, Keano Kini ran at the line with the ball out in front of his body in two hands, accelerating as he went. Impressively Keano Kini ran at the gap between two defenders, drawing both before popping a great short ball to his right for his fullback to surge over.

    Also in 2019 Keano Kini started at half and kicked a conversion for the Auckland U16 side in their NRL curtain raiser in May 2019 against an U16 Future Warriors side at Mt Smart Stadium.

    Keano Kini was part of the Marist Saints side that toured Australian in July 2019 playing a number of matches including a match on the Gold Coast against a Keebra Park select side in prefect conditions on the Gold Coast at Keebra park’s school campus.

    To cap off an outstanding 2019, Keano Kini was selected in the New Zealand U16 side that played a TAO Samoa U16 side in Auckland in October. Keano Kini played the entire match at half for New Zealand and converted their final try with six minutes to go from directly in front as his New Zealand side went down 26 – 20.

    Even though he played the 2019 season in the Auckland Rugby League U16 competition and represented New Zealand at the U16 level, Keano Kini was still U15 eligible in 2019 and represented the Akarana Falcons in that age group in the 2019 New Zealand U15 National Youth Tournament.

    On Day One of the Tournament Keano Kini started at half and scored for the Akarana Falcons as they defeated the Wellington Orca’s 40 – 10. On Day Two Keano Kini once again started at half back as his Akarana Falcons side won 12 – 0 against the South Island Scorpions to be unbeaten after two matches.

    On Day Three Keano Kini had a huge match scoring a double and kicking four goals as the Akarana Falcons defeated the Northern Swords 48 – 4. In the Akarana Falcons semi-final clash against Wai Coa-Bay Keano Kini was once again at half and scored a double as the Akarana Falcons progressed to the Tournament final on the back of a 32 – 8 win.

    In the New Zealand U15 National Youth Cup Final against the Manakua Stingrays Keano Kini led his Akarana Falcons side from half back to the New Zealand U15 National Youth Title on the back of a 18 -6 win.

    At the conclusion of the Championship Final, Keano Kini was named the New Zealand U15 National Youth Tournament Player of the Tournament and was also named at half in the U15 All-Tournament Team to cap an outstanding week for the budding Titans super star.

    In 2018 Keano Kini represented the Akarana Falcons at the New Zealand U15 National Youth Tournament including kicking four conversions on Day One against the exceptionally named Wellington Orca’s.

    Rugby League recognition is not new to Keano Kini who in 2016 was named MVP of the U13 2016 ARL Jets camp, also making the merit squad from the camp and playing for the Auckland U13 side.

    2016 also saw Keano Kini named MVP of the Auckland Rugby League Regional Representative season.

    In addition to also dabbling in rugby Keano Kini is also an outstanding athlete being named U13 Auckland Athlete of the year for his exploits in other sports such as tennis and athletics.

    Incredibly Keano Kini attended a Titans meet and great session in 2014 at the home of the Northcote Tigers. Obviously the Titans players that were there made a positive impression that day on Keano Kini.

    Even though Keano Kini has plus acceleration off the mark and above average top speed, his primary focus on a football field is to direct his side around the field, putting his side where they need to be to maintain pressure on the opposition.

    Holding the ball out in front of his body in both hands enables Keano Kini to put doubt into the minds of the opposing defensive line and thus he can dummy and run if there is a gap in the defensive line or put his support runners into gaps or for that matter get the ball out to his back line as quickly as possible.

    Getting the ball out to the back line quickly is no issue for Keano Kini as he has a very good long passing technique which delivers the ball quickly and accurately to the right place. Keano Kini’s decisive nature also means that when the ball needs to get out to his back line he will get it out there quickly to give his outside backs as much space as possible to work with prior to contact with the opposing defensive line.

    In defence, due to his size Keano Kini is obviously not going to come up with the big hit but reads the play well and can more than hold his own when defending much bigger players and against players with similar size is very aggressive when finishing off his tackles and slowing the resultant play the ball down.

    Keano Kini is also very vocal on the field always talking and encouraging his side.

    Keano Kini is also a very good goal kicker with both good range and accuracy and as a consequence I would suggest that he is likely to be his side’s primary goal kicker regardless of the level he progresses to into the future.

    Keano Kini also has a very good short attacking kicking game with a positive being that he will go right to the line before dropping the ball to his foot, add to the fact that he regularly runs with the ball out in front of his body in both hands, he gives defensive lines a lot to consider, is Keano Kini going to kick, run or pass, a defensive line that anticipates incorrectly will be scrambling to recover before he makes them pay for their error in judgement.

    Like with his goal kicking Keano Kini has a real opportunity to be his team’s primary tactical kicking option going forward.

    Keano Kini’s season with Marist Saints in the Auckland Rugby League U16 Open competition came to a positive conclusion with their Grand Final victory and going forward Keano Kini should also be part of the Akarana Falcons side that takes part of the 2019 New Zealand National Youth Championships U15 tournament later in the year.

    Keano Kini will stay in New Zealand for the 2020 season lining up once again for the Marist Saints in the Auckland Rugby League competition, most likely in the U16 age group. 2020 should also see Keano Kini play in the New Zealand National U17 Youth Championships for the Akarana Falcons once again.

    Keano Kini has played half for the duration of his young career to date and there is nothing in the way that he plays to indicate any necessity for that situation to change.

    My NRL player comparison for Keano Kini is fellow New Zealander, Cronulla Sharks and New Zealand International Shaun Johnson as a comparison from a playing stand point. Like Shaun Johnson, Keano Kiri has a wicked side step and plus acceleration as well as the ability to lead his side around the field and put them where they need to be. Like Johnson Keano Kini is also a solid (if not better) tactical and goal kicker and is more than good enough to be his team’s primary opinion in both of those kicking categories.

    No one can predict the future but how Keano Kini’s game develops over the coming years will be something that I will be keeping a very close eye on especially in relation to his ball playing and game management skills which will be outstanding supplements to Keano Kiri’s already outstanding attacking skills.

  15. #1230
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    Jaimen Jollife. The front rower moved up from Sydney to the Gold Coast signing with the Burleigh Bears for the 2020 Queensland Cup season, but also received a train and trial offer from the Titans which as a result of his outstanding efforts at training and in the NRL trials Jaimen Jollife turned into a one year NRL Development contract with the Titans.

    Jaimen Jollife started Round One of the 2020 NRL Premiership from the bench for the Titans against the Canberra Raiders. In his NRL debut Jaimen Jollife more than held his one in his twenty six minutes on the field running for seventy metres (nineteen post contact), broke a tackle, played the ball at an average speed of 3.54 seconds and made fifteen tackles at a 93.75% tackling efficiency.

    Jaimen Jolliffe was initially named on an extended bench for Round Two against the Parramatta Eels but came onto the bench late after a Kevin Proctor hamstring injury. With limited preparation Jaimen Jolliffe played forty one minutes running for sixty two metres (twenty post contact), broke a tackle, played the ball at an average speed for 3.77 seconds and made thirty two tackles at a 88.89% tackling efficiency.

    Jaimen Jollife made an immediate impression on the Titans coaching staff being named in the Titans 2020 NRL 9’s 18 man squad. In the Titans opening match against the Canberra Raiders, Jaimen Jollife ran for twenty four metres on three runs and made six tackles at a 100% tackling efficiency. In the Titans quarter final victory over Manly Jaimen Jollife ran for fifty one metres from three hit-ups, broke a tackle and made three tackles at a 100% tackling efficiency.

    In total in the 2020 NRL Nine’s tournament, Jaimen Jollife played in two matches, ran for seventy five metres from seven runs, broke a tackle and made nine of his own.

    Jaimen Jollife started from the bench in the Titans first NRL trial of 2020 against Burleigh at Pizzey Park but when he came on was one of the Titans best running for a team leading 183 metres, a team leading seventy three of which were post contact, broke a team leading four tackles and made twenty tackles of his own at a 100% tackling efficiency.

    Jaimen Jollife also started from the bench in the Titans second and final NRL trial against the Brisbane Broncos in Redcliffe running for 102 metres (thirty eight post contact), broke three tackles, played the ball at an average speed for 3.39 seconds and made twenty three tackles at a 95.83% tackling efficiency.

    The Wagga junior has moved around a bit chasing his rugby league dream with his first stop being in Canberra as part of the Raiders 2014 U18 SG Ball side before moving to Sydney to be part of the Cronulla Sharks program, including playing one or two NRL trials in previous seasons and finally to play for the Newtown Jets in the New South Wales Canterbury Cup competition.

    After an outstanding season in 2019 with Newtown that included being named on the bench in the 2019 Canterbury Cup Team of Year, a Premiership and then an NRL State Championship after Newtown defeated Burleigh in the last seconds of their interstate match that preceded the 2019 NRL Grand Final.

    For Newton in the 2019 Canterbury Cup competition Jaimen Jollife played in all twenty six of Newtown’s matches including Finals and the Canterbury Cup Grand Final win over Wentworthville of course scoring just the one try which came in Round Fourteen against the Mounties.

    Jaimen Jollife started twenty five of his twenty six Canterbury Cup matches in 2019 in the front row and came off the bench in his other match which was against Penrith in Round Twenty One.

    In total in the 2019 Canterbury Cup competition Jaimen Jollife ran for the third highest number of metres in the competition being 3 885, 1 262 were post contact which was also the third highest in the competition, engaged the line on 373 occasions, once again the third highest in the competition, broke fifty three tackles, off-loaded the ball on five occasions and made the fourth highest number of tackles in the Canterbury Cup in 2019 with 760 tackles at a tackling efficiency of 90.5%.

    Jaimen Jollife’s 2019 Canterbury Cup per game averages included running for 137.9 metres per game (48.54 post contact) and making 29.23 tackles. On twenty occasions in 2019 Jaimen Jollife ran for in excess of 100 metres including 193 metres in Round Nineteen against the Wentworthville Magpies.

    Defensively in twelve of his matches Jaimen Jollife made more than thirty tackles including an incredible effort in Round Eighteen which saw him make forty seven tackles against the New Zealand Warriors.

    In the NRL State Championship Final Jaimen Jollife started in the front row against Burleigh playing forty three minutes in Newtown’s 20 – 16 last minute victory. He ran for 140 metres (forty post contact) from sixteen hit-ups, broke two tackles, played the ball at an average speed of 3.34 seconds and made nineteen tackles at a 100% tackling efficiency.

    2019 was the fourth season that Jaimen Jollife had played for Newtown after making his debut as a 20 year old in 2016.

    Running with the football, Jaimen Jollife has good footwork prior to the line and does not often just put his head down and run straight, but uses his solid footwork to try to work the gaps between defenders rather than trying to simply run over them. Jaimen Jollife does not have great speed off the mark or necessary great high end speed, but he will work hard and make the most of his ability. Jaimen Jollife actually does have a decent off load when he has impacted the defensive line as well.

    Defensively Jaimen Jollife is a solid hitter, usually aiming for just under the ribs and first intention is to lock up the ball to prevent offloads. One area where is quite effective whether he is defending on the fringes of the ruck or in the centre of the ruck including when he is defending at marker, is against smaller attackers who look to use their foot work.

    Jaimen Jollife has quite reasonable lateral mobility for a front rower and due to the fact that he also is not that tall, and is usually is able to wrap up smaller attackers without his tackles slipping up to around the head or neck too often.

    As noted above Jaimen Jollife has moved up from Sydney and was due to play the 2020 season with Burleigh in the Queensland Cup competition before he signed with the Titans playing in the opening two rounds of the NRL season as well as catching the eye of the Titans NRL coaching staff and subsequently represented the Titans at the 2020 NRL 9’s thus he is in the mix for future opportunities.

    Surely with his performances for the Titans before the 2020 rugby league season was put on hold, Jaimen Jollife is a prime candidate to be offered an extended NRL contract with the Titans for 2021 and beyond.

    At 187cm and 108kg Jaimen Jollife is solidly built and will stay in the front row for the remainder of his rugby league career.

    From a player comparison perspective for Jaimen Jollife, one player with a similar playing style from my perspective is Parramatta Eels front rower Nathan Brown, as a solid forward who will probably never be a star but will be a solid contributor to a team’s forward pack none the less


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