My take on our top juniors

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Jack Kenworthy. (Updated) The young organising Helensvale Hornets U16 half back or hooker has already played a couple of matches for the Titans Development Squads including in February 2017 and was also part of the Gold Coast Green U16 side that played in the U16 Pre-season Challenge including scoring in Round Three against Brisbane Grey.

Over the course of the U16 Division One competition The Coombabah State High School student played in thirteen matches for Helensvale scoring three tries which came against the Ormeau Shearers in June, in the final regular season round against Runaway Bay and Helensvale’s Preliminary final loss to Burleigh.

Even though Jack Kenworthy has above average 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 Jack Kenworthy to put doubt into the minds of the opposing defensive line and thus me can dummy and run if there is a gap in the defensive line or put his support runners into gaps. He has improved as an organiser as he has moved through the age groups and should continue to do so as he matures and plays against better opposition and with better players on his own side.

His 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. Getting the ball out to the back line quickly is no issue for Jack Kenworthy as he has a very good long passing technique which delivers the ball quickly and accurately to the right place.

Jack Kenworthy is a reasonably solid general play kicker, who is reasonably accurate, however he does not have the biggest or most powerful kick and when he tries to kick too hard it usually finds a defender on the full, when he takes a bit off the kick his accuracy increases exponentially. He also chases his own kicks well, almost always leading the chase down field. Jack Kenworthy also has a decent short kicking game especially close to the opposition line. I am not sure that he will be a primary tactical kicker for a side, but he certainly will be an option to consider especially when talking about attacking kicks such as grubber kicks.

Defensively Jack Kenworthy has decent size for a half back, and probably would be considered a bigger half for his age group on the Gold Coast, a facet which assists in him being a very effective defender for his position, in fact he 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.

Jack Kenworthy will play the 2018 GCJRL season with the Helensvale Hornets in the U17 Division One competition as well as playing for Coombabah State High School in their various school boy competitions.

With his ability to control the pace of the game and direct his team around the field, Jack Kenworthy shapes as a talented rugby league half back going forward. I do note however that Jack Kenworthy has also played hooker at both club and representative level so it is not set in stone that he will not carve out a future at hooker.

From a player comparison perspective for Jack Kenworthy, 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.

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Cole Geyer. The talented young Currumbin Eagles hooker had an outstanding 2017 rugby league season both from a club and school boy perspective. For his Currumbin side Cole Geyer started at hooker in their 34 – 4 grand Final win over Burleigh scoring a try as well and Xavier Coates also proudly represented his school side being Marymount College in a number of school boy competitions including the GIO Cup when they lost in the last minute to Redbank Plains State High School in a great match.

Over the course of the U16 Division One season for Currumbin Cole Geyer played in twelve matches scoring eight tries. Cole Geyer had an outstanding start to the season scoring in each of his five games against Southport, Ormeau, Runaway Bay, Helensvale and Ormeau again. In the match against Helensvale, Cole Geyer in fact crossed for a double. Later in the season Cole Geyer also scored against Runaway bay and as noted scored against Burleigh in the U16 Division One Grand Final.

The Year 11 Marymount College Burleigh Heads student represented his school with distinction at the 2017 Queensland Independent Secondary Schools Rugby League (QISSRL) Carnival held at Padua College in Brisbane this year. Marymount College in fact were the Bob Linder trophy winners beating fellow Gold Coast School Aquinas College in the final and also the QRL Referees Fair Play Award Winners. In the QISSRL Carnival, Cole Geyer played in all six of Marymount’s matches scoring in a tough 16 – 8 loss to St Augustines College Cairns.

Cole Geyer’s best attribute is his passing skills from the dummy half position. His passing is effective from both sides of his body and leads his forwards onto the ball by putting the ball out in front of his runners so that they can maintain momentum. Cole Geyer does not have an overly long pass but his passing is accurate regardless of whether he is passing to a forward running the ball up or the half back looking to get the ball out wider. The stand out feature is the speed in which he gets the ball out of his hands at dummy half.

Cole Geyer is not a huge threat to run the ball out of dummy half but will take what he is given if the defence does not consider him a threat at any particular time. His initial burst off the mark is reasonable and he has decent feet to enable him to create space, but he does not have the top end speed to break clear of the defensive line if he gets through a gap either by accepting an off load or by exploiting a gap in the defensive line.

Cole Geyer’s first thought when coming into dummy half is to distribute the ball effectively to his support players. When close to the line he will dummy and get down low to the line when the opportunity presents but again this is a secondary consideration as he progressively works through his options in that part of the field.

In relation to his defence, Cole Geyer will get in front of opposing forwards and look to slow their momentum with solid initial contact. Cole Geyer is tenacious and courageous, because even at the U16 level there are some huge boys running around. Cole Geyer has very good endurance and projects as a hooker who will be able to play the full match without interchange something that he is already used to doing with his club side and School Boy sides.

Cole Geyer will be back at Marymount College for his senior year and will play for his school side once again in the GIO Cup, Titans Cup and QISSRL competitions. Cole Geyer will also play for the Currumbin Eagles U17 Division One and has been selected in the Tweed Heads Seagulls MM Cup squad for the upcoming 2018 season.

Cole Geyer is probably a fraction taller than your typical hooker but it has not stopped him at all being a very good distributor at dummy half and also being a more than solid defender. It is these attributes as well as his determination that has me convinced that Cole Geyer can develop into a very good hooker in coming seasons.

Cole Geyer for me has a similar playing style and mentality to talented Cronulla Sharks hooker Jayden Brailey. Both are incredibly hard working young players with a high level of endurance and heart in their game.

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Matt Kinchin. (Updated) He is a local young front rower who plays his club rugby league on the Gold Coast with Runaway Bay and over the course of the 2017 season played eleven matches in the U16 Division One competition and three in the U16 Division One competition.

In the U16 Division One competition, Matt Kinchin scored three tries from his eleven matches including a Round One try against Ormeau and tries in separate matches against Helensvale. In relation to his matches in the U17 Division One competition Matt Kinchin on all three occasions played in the U17 match after playing in the U16 match earlier. In the U17 Division One competition Matt Kinchin scored in his third and final match against Mudgeeraba.

In 2017 Matt Kinchin also represented Gold Coast Vikings Green in the South East Queensland U16 pre-season competition and after that competition was selected in the South East Queensland U16 Training Squad.

Previous seasons has seen Matt Kinchin make a number of U14 representative sides including the Vikings and South East Queensland. Matt Kinchin also started on the bench for the Titans U14 Development Squad late in 2015 against a giant Samoan side, a match which the Titans won 28 - 10.

In attack he is not going to break a large amount of tackles, or off load a miracle pass but he will go about his role which is to make ground in the middle of the ruck in an understated fashion. He does not have quick feet in terms of a step before the line but does use some subtle movement so as not to present himself purely as a straight running target. He just works hard including fighting to get quick play the balls over taking the ball up.

In defence he is not a big hitter, preferring to make sure that the tackle is made and is very effective both in terms of initial contact and also coming in a wrapping up the football, he also covers inside well when balls are turned back inside on the fringe of the ruck, even late in games when he has every right to be worn out, but he somehow wills himself to get there and make the tackle. When at marker he works hard and always gets out of marker quickly to put pressure on the kicker, but then somehow gets back quickly to take his turn to bring the ball out from his own territory. The one thing that will stand out once you have watched him play in a number of games is the amount of defence he does. After watching him in a couple of games, you will just shake your head, because you will notice that it is the Number 8 or 10 making yet another tackle.

Matt Kinchin will probably not stand out as he progresses up the age groups, which has nothing to do with his ability, it is just the way he plays the game. He will take hit ups and tackle all day and do all of the little things necessary to help his team succeed, including working hard out of the marker position.

Matt Kinchin will play at the U17 Division One level in 2018 for Runaway Bay and it will be interesting to see how many games he will play up an age group at the U19 level as in each of the last couple of years he has played a few matches up at a higher age group, which he again did in 2016.

In terms of position, Matt Kinchin is a front rower full stop nothing else needs to be said.

From a player comparison perspective a player with an incredibly similar playing style is new Gold Coast Titan Jarred Wallace as a front rower who will probably take a little while to develop but will be a hard working player who knows his role within a team and does not deviate from it regardless of the circumstances of the match.

Matt Kinchin will never be a star but will work hard to a team player and get the most of his ability. Young players with more natural ability will fall by the way side while Matt Kinchin will not due to his professionalism and understanding of his role and his understanding and adherence to it.

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Jayden Tuapawa. (Updated) The young forward from the Coomera Cutters junior rugby league club had a great 2017 season on the Gold Coast across two competitions being the U143 Division Two and U15 Division One competitions. As a result of his hard running style, he proved to be a difficult proposition for defences to handle, crossing for 14 tries from 15 U14 Division Two matches and a try from five U15 Division One matches.

In the U14 Division Two competition for the Cutters, Jayden Tuapawa scored a Round One hat trick against Mudgeeraba and also scored a late season hat trick against Helensvale. He also scored doubles in consequetive mid-season matches against Nerang and Jimboomba. Unfortunately for Jayden Tuapawa and his U14 team mates they lost their 2017 Grand Final 32 -26 to Mudgeeraba, that day Jayden Tuapawa started in the front row.

In the U15 Division One competition Jayden Tuapawa made his debut in May against Helensvale and had a debut to remember by crossing the try line that Friday night.

Jayden Tuapawa currently attends Keebra Park State High School and obviously is part of a strong schoolboy program.

Jayden Tuapawa’s style of play is that of a powerful wide running back rower with above average speed for the position. I would actually argue that in fact a better definition of his speed would be well above average to plus. 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, he has an extra gear again which is a plus attribute for such a strong powerful forward, making it almost impossible for the cover defence to catch him once he is open space and he can also finish off the breaks he makes himself as on occasion his support players have had trouble keeping up with him when he is in open space.

Defences have had all sorts of trouble trying to contain him this season especially early in games, both in terms of him taking the ball up into the centre of the ruck, but he is almost unstoppable when he runs on the fringes of the ruck and he 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 big strong powerful young player who can cause nightmares for any defensive line.

For a forward of his size, he runs with pace, strength and power every time he touches the ball during a game. For a young player, he seems to have a good understanding of when to off load the ball, currently most of his off loads occur when he is part way through the defensive line and can get his right arm free to pass to his outside support runners.

At this stage Jayden Tuapawa does not off load prior to the line, but again we are talking about a young player here, who is still developing his skills and understanding of the game. I do not necessarily think that offloading is ever going to be a major part of his game but if this attribute continues to progress it will compliment other aspects of his game.

He is aggressive in defence 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. Jayden Tuapawa’s 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. I have noted that he is aggressive and seems to want to win every one on one battle and he invariably does. He 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.

He will play the 2018 season with the Coomera Cutters at the U15 level.

From a position perspective, I cannot see a reason for Jayden Tuapawa to move away from the back row position where he is currently playing very good football. I appreciate that he played a fair bit of front row last season but I think that Jayden Tuapawa ends up in the second row when he has stopped developing physically.

From a style perspective, the one that stands out for me is Gavin Cooper, formally of the Titans and now a key member of the Cowboys forward pack, as a mobile, wide running backrower with some hardness to his game.

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Jayden Fazey. (Updated) He is a local young fullback from the Jimboomba Thunder junior rugby league club and over the last three or four years he has come on in leaps and bounds and whilst he may not be a “name” player in junior rugby league circles on the Gold Coast I would suggest that should change quickly.

In 2014 Jayden Fazey was playing with the Thunder in the U13 Division Three competition and since progressed through U14 Division One in 2015 the U15 level in 2016 and this season he played for the Thunder in the U16 Division Two competition.

This season for Jimboomba Jayden Fazey was only able to play in seven matches but still crossed for four tries including a late May double against Currumbin and early in the 2017 season he also scored against Beaudesert in Round One and Nerang in Round Three.

Over the course of the last couple of seasons, Jayden Fazey has been averaging around a try a game, including scoring 13 tries in 12 games at the U13 Division Three level in 2014 and in the U14 age group last season scored nine tries in only eight matches, but the most impressive part of his season was the last four matches he played in the 2015 where he crossed for 8 of his nine tries with a hat trick against Nerang, doubles against Robina and Currumbin and also a try against Runaway Bay. He has carried his form over to the 2016 season in the U15 grading competition, to be the leading try scorer through the grading rounds with 11 tries in seven matches including hat tricks against Robina and Coomera 2 as well as a double against Southport 2.

Jayden Fazey is a smooth player, who looks like he glides across the field picking and choosing his time to get involved and wants to have the ball in his hands when the game is on the line. He is very quick off the mark and when the ball is being brought out of his teams half he is always around the forwards looking for off loads.

Jayden Fazey also can play the way a lot of the current fullbacks play when they receive the football, “out the back” from the half/five eight. In those circumstances, he seems to currently runs more than he passes, but he is usually one of the better players in all of the teams that he has played on to date, thus I have no doubt that his passing and decision making skills will improve in these situations as he continues to play with ‘better’ players. The key thing for Jayden Fazey is that he has already this year shown that he will in the main make the right decision with the ball.

Jayden Fazey is making real progress in terms of identifying the defensive pattern in front of him and how it is adjusting to how the attack is unfolding in front of him. He is also very good at picking the right line to run without the ball so that his inside play makers are able to get the ball to him knowing that he is running the right line invariably into a gap.

Another attribute that Jayden Fazey has is his running out of dummy half, he takes off and tries to use footwork to beat the opposing forwards, he is especially good at this when one of his wingers returns a kick and he runs out of dummy on the next ruck, attacking the defensive line before it can be set correctly.

Jayden Fazey 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 grubber kicks as well. He will also take the responsibility to run the ball back himself rather than hand it up to his winger. When the kick goes to a winger, he is good at running out of dummy half prior to the defensive line getting set. In the game against Samoa, the conditions were difficult for fullbacks, thus I am not going to be critical but he normally has very safe hands.

In relation to his defence, one thing that stands out to me is that Jayden Fazey will not take a dummy from attackers running at him and he will stay with the ball carrier on all occasions. He seems to stand very shallow at fullback in defence, but with what I would consider above average speed he is able to compensate, also his fullback positioning is dependent on his teams coaching staff and thus I am absolutely not being critical when his positioning is almost certainly a coaching methodology issue.

Jayden Fazey is also a good talker from full back, you can hear him talking to his team mates about their positioning in defence and offering encouragement to continue to push to get back into the defensive line and make the necessary adjustments.

Jayden Fazey will play the 2018 season with the Jimboomba Thunder in the U17 competition.

From a position perspective, I think that based on his skill set and his exponential improvement over the last couple of seasons he will continue to play at fullback and continue his positive developmental curve and also continue to be a great team mate and member of the Jimboomba Thunder who are really developing as a club, with the likes of Jayden Fazey and Campbell Gray and Jack Barrow present.

From a style perspective, I think that a player who has a similar type of skill set is Brisbane Bronco and Queensland State of Origin full back Darius Boyd, as a player who moves well with or without the ball, has good anticipation and can create for himself or others from the fullback position.

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Syddarys Cassidy. (Updated) The giant young Coombabah State High School student was too much for the majority of teams that played in the QSSRL U15 Schoolboy championships in Cairns during the 2017 season and as a result Syddarys Cassidy was been named in the Queensland White U15 side for the ASSRL U15 Championships.

Syddarys Cassidy from a club stand point moved from Southport to play for the Helensvale Hornets for the 2017 season and played in five matches in the Yellow and Green. Late in 2017 Syddarys Cassidy was named in the 2018 U16 Gold Coast Vikings Training squad for the South East Queensland U16 pre-season which kicks off next month.

Syddarys Cassidy is a big powerful young man who whilst using his size to his advantage by running hard and straight, he does have quite decent footwork prior to the defensive line, which he uses to cut back behind the ball to take advantage of defenders who are slow to get back into the defensive line. Whilst he does not seem to offload the ball too often, when he does get his arms free he only passes when his support is in a better position, which is a sign of maturity for such a young player. He continually put his hand up all day to take the ball up and due to his agility for a big young man is able to generate quick play the balls so that his team can maintain or generate momentum.

From a speed perspective for such a big strong young man, Syddarys Cassidy actually has a more than decent first step to generate speed to impact the defensive line and also quick foot work that may come as a surprise to some for a young man his size.

In defence he uses his size and strength to make very solid initial contact and certainly can take on all opposing forwards one on one. He is not averse to looking for the big hit but does have a good front on defensive technique, maintaining decent leverage and reasonable agility and lateral movement when looking to tackle smaller opponents on the edge of the ruck, although clearly he is more effective in the centre of the ruck, as most rugby league forwards are. Syddarys Cassidy does however show flashes of above average lateral mobility which he uses to his benefit both in attack and defence.

Syddarys Cassidy will play for the Helensvale Hornets in the GCJRL U16 Division One competition in addition to his representative commitments with the Vikings and school bot rugby league commitments with the Titans aligned Coombabah State High School.

With his size, strength and power Syddarys Cassidy’s ultimate rugby league position was set in stone a few years ago, that being in the front row.

The way that Syddarys Cassidy handles himself on the football field reminds me of Sydney Roosters and New Zealand International forward Jarrod Warera-Hargraves as a big strong front rower with a skill set that belies the intimidating presence that he projects on the field, and you also add in leadership skills in the most demanding position on a football field, a good mix all round and plenty of raw talent to work with. Syddarys Cassidy really does have some skill and talent to work with as his rugby league career progresses.

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Kienan Tempest. The young custodian played the 2017 GBJRL season with Carina in the U14 premier Division competition as well as representing Brisbane Stingers Red and South East Queensland Green at the U14 level and from those matches was identified by the Titans and played recently in a Titans U15 Invitational side against the visiting Balmain Tigers on their annual North Coast tour not a bad effort at all considering the Balmain Tigers side had only one U14 player and around half of the Titans side played in various U14 competitions this season.

Kienan Tempset has also recently been selected in the 2018 U15 Queensland Emerging Origin squad.

In addition to playing sixteen matches for Carina in the GBJRL U14 Premier Division competition, Kienan Tempest also played two matches in the U15 Division One competition.

Earlier this season Kienan Tempest represented Brisbane Stingers Red U14’s and from there was selected in the South East Queensland Green U14 side for the Queensland Age Championships that were held in Toowoomba. In 2015 Kienan Tempest represented Queensland at the U12 level, scoring on Day One against New South Wales. On Day Two Kienan Tempest scored against Victoria and also scored a double and kicked a goal against Victoria in Queensland’s semi-final victory.

In attack his speed off the mark is the first attribute that you will notice when you see Kienan Tempest 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. Kienan Tempest 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.

Kienan Tempest 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.

At present due to his age and quality of competition, Kienan Tempest does not play as a fullback who receives the ball “out the back” from the half/five eight, but he is usually one of the better players in all of the teams that he has played on to date, thus I have no doubt that his passing and decision making skills will improve in these situations as he matures as a player. Kienan Tempest 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.

Kienan Tempest 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.

Moving forward to the 2018 season, Kienan Tempest will once again play for Carina in the GBJRL U15 Premier Division competition and also be in line for Met East selection for the QSSRL U15 championships.

From a position perspective, I would suggest that Kienan Tempest will continue to play fullback for the foreseeable future, although it will be interesting to see if he spends some time at halfback early in his junior rugby league career in an effort to accelerate the development of his ball playing and game management skills. I believe that Kienan Tempest could certainly handle the half back position comfortably.

I know that it is a huge call based in his form in the NRL finals series but I can see similar aspects in Kienan Tempest’s game to that of North Queensland Cowboy and Queensland State of Origin player Michael Morgan. I appreciate that they play different positions but both run with the ball out in front of their bodies in two hands putting doubt into the defence and have a knack of taking the right option at the right time to the immense benefit of their team.

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Daniel Butterini. (Updated) He is a local young fullback/wing from just south of the border, who is part of the Titans High Performance Unit and this year moved to PBC State High School as part of their Rugby League excellence program. Daniel Butterini was also part of the Titans U15 squad that played against a Balmain Tigers selection recently. In that match Daniel Butterini spent the majority of the game in the centres.

Daniel Butterini was selected this season in the South Coast U15 QSSRL side as well in 2017. Earlier in the 2017 season Daniel Butterini was also selected in the Group 18 U15 squad after representing Group 18 at the U14 level in 2016 where he played primarily at fullback in the New South Wales Country Age Championships.

In late 2015 Daniel Butterini was named on the wing for the Titans U13 development squad for their match against a Toowoomba U14 selection, but unfortunately he did not participate in the match due to injury. In 2014 Daniel Butterini was named in the NSW North Coast U12 rugby league side from the Burringbar Public School in Murwillumbah.

I will preface the discussion below, on the basis that the comments mainly relate to Daniel Butterini’s play on wing, I have seen him play fullback and centre in addition to wing, but on the basis that I think that his long term future will more than likely be on the wing, I will focus on my observations of him playing on the wing, mainly to the exclusion to his play at other positions even though aspects that have made Daniel Butterini a good fullback/centre will undoubtedly have a positive impact on his play on the wing, especially in terms of positioning and fielding kicks from a defensive positioning perspective.

Even though Daniel Butterini does not have great top end speed he is quick enough to take advantage of any space that he is given down the touchline by opposing wingers. One good think about his play in attack is that he stays on his wing and is regularly outside his opposite number allowing his inside players to be able to find him in attack and in the games that I have seen he stays back and does not over run the players that are inside of him.

Daniel Butterini seems to be aware of his skill set as he does not take chances with the sideline and does his utmost to ensure that he is not taken over the sideline and knows when to cut back inside rather than taking his opposite number on along the touchline.

In terms of defence, Daniel Butterini 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. Like most young outside backs though he will continue to work on when to come out of the line to cut down the time and space of opposing centre, against staying out on his opposing winger and when to drop back to cover the side line, his time at fullback and at centre has clearly helped in these situations in terms of positioning and when to tackle low compared to looking to when to wrap up the attacking player with a ball and all tackle.

In 2018 Daniel Butterini will play his club football at the U16 level in the Group 18 junior rugby league competition and as noted above will play representative football for his group as well. Daniel Butterini will also move up to the Open Division of school boy rugby league for PBC who this year made the Queensland GIO Cup semi-finals before losing in heart breaking fashion to Marsden State High School through a side line conversion with time running down.

From a position projection perspective, even though Daniel Butterini has also played at centre and fullback, probably more so than wing in truth, I think that ultimately he ends up on the wing long term. I would think that Daniel Butterini will continue to play his club football, school boy and at present representative football at either fullback or centre.

With his ability to be in the right position at the right time and decent to slightly above average straight line speed I think a future on the wing is beckoning, not as a highlight reel winger, but a solid and dependable one who will not let anybody down.

From a player comparison perspective for Daniel Butterini think of the Titans 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 like Anthony Don, Daniel Butterini always seems to be in the right position to exploit breaks or opportunities and convert them into points.

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Ethan Kane – (Updated) He is a local young utility back who has played a variety of positions in club, representative and Titans Development Squad football, including fullback, five eight and halfback.

Ethan Kane played the 2017 rugby league season with the Cudgen Hornets in the NRRRL U18 competition amassing 106 points from fifteen matches, coming from seven tries and 39 goals. With his 106 points Ethan Kane finished third on the NRRRL U18 points scoring list. Outside of Round One against Byron Bay when Ethan Kane scored a double all of his tries came in different matches against Murwillumbah on two separate occasions, Tweed Coast on two separate occasions and Evans Heads.

With the boot, Ethan Kane kicked five goals in a match three times, coming against Murwillumbah and Mullumbimby in consecutive weeks and Byron Bay later in the season. In the match against Byron Bay when he scored a double Ethan Kane also kicked four goals for 16 points for the match.

Early in the 2017 season, Ethan Kane was selected on the bench for the Open Maitland/Newcastle Diocese Representative Rugby League team. In 2016 Ethan Kane was part of the Gold Coast White CC Cup squad. Ethan Kane played a fair portion of the 2015 season at halfback, including playing at half for the Group 18 U15 side this year in the New South Wales Country Age Championships. It was a tough competition for the Group 18 side, but Ethan Kane did well, including scoring a try in the Plate competition.

Ethan Kane has previously represented Group 18 at the U14 level and also played a number of games for the Titans Development squads, at the U13, U14 and U15 age levels, including teaming with Dea Jarn Asi (who is now playing first XV GPS school boy rugby with Brisbane Grammar School) in the halves against Samoa in 2014.

Ethan Kane is quite an elusive runner of the ball and some good 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. His 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 Ethan Kane.

Ethan Kane 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. He 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.

Ethan Kane is a reasonably solid general play kicker, who is reasonably accurate, however he does not have the biggest or most powerful kick and when he tries to kick too hard it usually finds a defender on the full, when he takes a bit off the kick his accuracy increases exponentially. He also chases his own kicks well, almost always leading the chase down field.

Ethan Kane also has a decent short kicking game especially close to the opposition line, but on occasion his chip kicks can sometimes be a little too high. I am not sure that he will be a primary tactical kicker for a side, but Ethan Kane certainly will be an option to consider especially when talking about attacking kicks such as grubber kick. Ethan Kane has improved as an organiser as he has moved through the age groups and should continue to do so as he matures and plays against better opposition and with better players on his own side.

Ethan Kane is not the biggest player but even when defending in the front line will tackle using his shoulder which assists when defending against larger forwards operating on the fringes of the ruck. Whilst not the biggest he is strong and tough enough to effectively tackle one on one against opposing halves and with his solid speed and foot work he can cover a lot of ground as he tracks the ball across the field.

Ethan Kane is certainly not going to be a liability in defence for his team and is more than willing to take on bigger forwards. When defending at fullback in the past he forces the opposition to make a decision with the football rather than letting the attackers come to him with time on their side.

Ethan Kane is still eligible for U18’s in 2018 and will likely play once against for Cudgen in the U18 Nova Skills U18 competition and if he plays in the NRRRL competition, Ethan Kane should also get an opportunity in the first grade competition.

For me, Ethan Kane’s ultimate future lies at fullback with the ability to sweep around the back of the ruck using his solid footwork or his above average passing skills to put his supporting players into gaps created in the defensive line. He would also have the ability to pop up in supporting in the middle of the ruck, either running himself or looking for offloads from his forwards and use his footwork against big tiring forwards.

Ethan Kane’s game management skills have also taken a step forward this season and he looks like he is growing into a leader on the field as well. I know that he has played some five eight in the past but I think that ultimately his best long term position lies elsewhere.

From a style perspective, I think that a player who has a similar type of skill set is Brisbane Bronco and Queensland State of Origin full back Darius Boyd, as a player who moves well with or without the ball, has good anticipation and can create for himself or others from the fullback position.

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Logan Cootes. (Updated) He is a big strong Titans linked local young front rower who played in the 2017 MM Cup competition for the Tweed Heads Seagulls as well as for the Mudgeeraba Redbacks in the GCJRL U17 Division One competition.

For Tweed Heads in the MM Cup competition, Logan Cootes played in five of the six matches. Logan Cootes started the first two rounds from the interchange bench before breaking into the starting line-up in Round Three against the eventual MM Cup Champions the Wester Mustangs. Logan Cootes was also in the starting line-up in Rounds Six and Seven before missing Round Eight. Round Seven saw Logan Cootes cross for his only ty of the 2017 MM Cup competition when he scored against the North’s Devils.

For the Mudgeeraba Redbacks in the U17 Division One competition this season, Logan Cootes played in nine matches, scoring five tries, including doubles in consecutive matches in June against Bilambil and Runaway Bay and in late July, Logan Cootes also scored against Runaway Bay again. Logan Cootes also played for Coombabah State High School in the Super Six and GIO Cup School boy competitions.

The big strong young Mudgeeraba Red backs front rower was over the course of the 2016 GIO Cup competition a powerhouse for Coombabah in their charge to the Queensland finals which they unfortunately lost to Keebra in a golden point thriller. For Coombabah he formed a very good front row partnership with former Titans NYC front rower Luke Mastraionni and they continually made metres in the centre of the field against bigger and older forward packs, the game against Townsville’s Kirwan High School was a prime example of this. Another member of the underrated Coombabah pack was another Titans contracted player in second rower David Butler.

For the Mudgeeraba Red Backs in the 2016 U16 Division One club competition, he scored five tries across eight matches and also added two goals which came in the last match of the season against Southport. Interestingly all of his tries came in the last four matches of the regular season, including a double against Southport and also tries against Burleigh, Southport again and Ormeau. For Gold Coast Green in the 2016 CC Cup, Logan Cootes scored three tries being against Easts Tigers in Round One and again against the Tigers in Round Five and also crossed against Gold Coast White in Round Two. Logan Cootes only missed one match in the CC competition which as in Round Three and started every other match for GC Green, including their semi-final loss to Toowoomba. Logan Cootes also represented South East Queensland at the U16 level during the 2016 season, coming off the bench in a majority of those games.

From an attacking perspective he is a big young man who will run straight and hard, but at this stage of his junior career he does not have a great deal of footwork to utilise prior to the line to prevent defences from focussing on him without the threat of late changes of direction. Due to his size however he can absorb a lot of punishment and continue to make ground, but he is a little susceptible to gang tackles. Where he does show flashes of ability is in relation to offloads. During games he will pop some very good passes to his supports but he will continue to work on being more selective in his offloads. Regardless he does not shirk contact and seems the more physical the contest the more he enjoys himself.

In defence Logan Cootes is not an overly big hitter but definitely makes solid initial contact and is very effective at targeting the football in order to reduce the possibility of off loads. For a front rower his lateral movement is solid meaning that he can make tackles against smaller attackers running out of dummy half or on the back of off loads. Due to his aerobic fitness and relentless attitude, Logan Cootes covers inside well when balls are turned back inside on the fringe of the ruck, even late in games when he has every right to be worn out, but he somehow wills himself to get there and make the tackle when needed.

When at marker Logan Cootes works hard and always gets out of marker quickly to put pressure on the kicker, but then will be one of the first forwards back to take his turn to bring the ball out from his own territory. Logan Cootes is also disciplined in his defensive attitude and rarely gets penalised for holding down or having his hands on or near the football. His aim is to win the defensive battle and then be ready to make the next tackle.

Logan Cootes will be eligible again for the MM Cup competition in 2018 and has been selected in the Burleigh Bears MM Cup squad. . In relation to club rugby league, he will play in the Gold Coast Rugby League U19 competition in 2018.

Due to his size and solid foot speed and lateral mobility I am certain that he will stay in the front row, a position that he has seemingly always played

From a player comparison perspective, I would consider a player along the lines of current Titans front rower and Captain Ryan James as a big strong hard working front rower who looks to get a quick play the ball every time he takes a hit up and also ones that tries to dominate in defence.

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Kyle Fairbank. (Updated) He is a young backrower with a strong work ethic who played the 2017 season at the U16 Division One level for Runaway Bay for whom he played in thirteen matches crossing for a try against Helensvale late in the season.

Kyle Fairbank who is also part of the Titans High Performance Academy represented the U16 Gold Coast Vikings side in the 2017 U16 South East Queensland pre-season competition and as a result of his performances there also represented South East Queensland White at the U16 Queensland Age Championships and scored on Day Two in a 26 – 10 victory over Central.

Kyle Fairbank was also a member of the South Coast U15 QSSRL squad in 2016 where he was named on the bench after representing PBC in the trials. Over the years he has also made numerous junior representative sides at the U13 and U14 level for the Vikings. Kyle Fairbank stands out regardless of how many times that you watch him play is the intensity and effort that he puts in to every moment that he is on the field, both in attack and defence.

Kyle Fairbank is not the biggest young player 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, for example the Samoan pack in a 2015 U14 Titans Development Squad match were huge but he charged at them regardless. He 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 works hard when tackled to ensure he gets a quick play the ball to maintain the momentum for his side.

In addition, Kyle Fairbank has enough pace to be an effective runner of the football to effectively run the ball on the edges of the ruck. He is not exceptionally quick but quick enough to rush defenders to make a decision of when to commit to the tackle. Another area where he is quite effective is when he goes into dummy half to distribute the football, where he has a decent pass to both sides. Kyle Fairbank has not, to the best of my knowledge ever played hooker fulltime but is effective enough at distributing the ball when called upon.

In terms of his defence, Kyle Fairbank is a rare breed in that he has a very good low tackling technique, a skill he needs moving forward as he does not have the size to tackle huge opposition forwards ball and all, and is also an exceptional cover defender, in part because of the effort he puts in to track the ball across the field when opposition teams spread the ball wide.

Kyle Fairbank will look to come out of the line to look to put a big hit on, to look to motivate his side on occasion, but that is not his go, his forte is that of a young player with an exceptional low tackling technique who can use both shoulders, ensuring his head is always in the right position, thus limiting possible injury. Whoever was responsible to teaching him to tackle should be congratulated. It is a pity that the ability to tackle low with the correct technique is fast becoming a lost art in the game.

Moving forward, Kyle Fairbank will play the 2018 season at the U17 Division One level for Runaway Bay. For a young player he really throws himself into everything that he does on a football field. The question for some will be whether he is going to be big enough to continue to be effective in both attack and defence as he moves into the higher age groups of junior football, but I will not count him just yet out due to the effort he puts in to all aspects of his performance.

With rugby league likely to continue to trend to towards the adage that size of the forwards is the be all and end all, Kyle Fairbank is a throwback to the days when size was less important. He projects to be a smaller backrower who due to his aerobic capacity will be able to play the full 80 minutes, something that will become more important as the number of interchange continues to reduce over time.

A player comparison would possibly be someone like former Storm, Cowboys and Queensland State of Origin player Dallas Johnson, as a smaller player who will get absolutely everything out of the skills that he has both physically and technically.

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Kyah Watts. (Updated) He is a local young second rower from the Burleigh Bears junior rugby league club on the Gold Coast where he played the 2017 season at the U16 Division One level, including starting in the second row in the Grand Final which Burleigh lost 44 – 4 against the talented Currumbin Eagles. For Burleigh in the U16 competition, Kyah Watts crossed for a single try which came against Helensvale in Burleigh’s first final in 2017.

Kyah Watts is currently a member of the Titans High Performance Unit and has previously played for the U13 and U14 Titans Development squads.

2017 also saw Kyah Watts play for the U16 Gold Coast Vikings side in the U16 South East Queensland pre-season competition. In 2016 Kyah Watts was also part of the South Coast U15 side that competed in the U15 QSSRL competition where he was selected on the bench scoring three tries across four games. From there Kyah Watts was selected in the U15 Queensland White side for the U15 ASSRL national Championships.

In previous season he also made a number of representative sides including the U14 Vikings and the South East Queensland U14 squad, where he started on the bench for SEQ. For SEQ he scored three tries across the Queensland age championships, including a double against the Capricorn Capra’s and also a try against the North Queensland Marlins.

Kyah Watts’s style of play is that of a wide running back rower with quite good speed for the position. He quick off the mark and can maintain his top speed over a reasonable distance and also has a good fend and can step off both feet both in space and in tight situations. I would suggest that his speed could be considered above average for a second rower. The side step he has is not a big step but is quick and subtle enough to keep defenders off balance and prevent them from targeting him in relation to gang tackles.

Kyah Watts will also continue to pump his legs once he makes initial contact with the defensive line and will fight for every yard. Once his momentum is stopped, he will fight for a quick play the ball to maintain his team’s momentum, although on occasion he will rush the play the ball, but that will all come with experience.

Kyah Watts is a solid 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 stop even the bigger opposing forwards in their tracks and targets the area around the chest after setting a solid base to project his momentum into the ball carrier. He also has above average lateral mobility from his time playing in the centres and thus will not be over matched against smaller agile opponents operating on the fringes of the ruck where he looks to mirror there movement whether that is across the field or laterally.

Moving to the 2018 season, Kyah Watts will play at the U17 Division One level for Burleigh and he also been names in the Tweed Heads Seagulls MM Cup squad and will also be looking to break into the PBC Open side for the GIO Cup and Super Six schoolboy competitions.

Earlier in his junior career, Kyah Watts also played a fair bit of centre for Burleigh and Titans development squads but this year, seemingly transitioned full time to the back row, and I think that ultimately that is where his future lies, even though for the next couple of years he would likely still make a good fist of playing in the centres if the need arises.

From a player comparison perspective, maybe someone like former Titan Chris McQueen may be a good comparison to how Kyah Watts plays the game as a solid all round player who has a touch more speed than you would anticipate when he finds himself in open space.

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Blake Campbell. (Updated) He is a backrower from the Gold Coast Region who has been part of the Titans Junior Development set up for a number of years. Over the course of the 2017 season Blake Campbell played a number of matches in the MM Cup competition for Tweed Heads Seagulls and also played for the Runaway Bay Seagulls in the Gold Coast Rugby League competition.

To round out an outstanding 2017 campaign Blake Campbell has recently been selected in the 2018 Queensland U18 Emerging Origin squad which will be coming together from January 21 to 24 for their first training camp.

For the Tweed Heads Seagulls in the MM Cup competition Blake Campbell started all six of Tweed Heads matches in the second row and showed his try scoring ability crossing for four tries including a double in Round One against the Ipswich Jets, a try in Round Three against eventual champions the Western Mustangs and his final try of the MM Cup competition came in Round Six in the local derby against the Burleigh Bears.

In the red, white and blue of Runaway Bay in 2017 Blake Campbell has played eleven matches in the U17 Division One competition and also three matches in the U19 GCRL competition. At the U17 level Blake Campbell scored four tries and kicked four goals for 24 points in total including a Round Two double against Bilambil and also tries late in the season against Helensvale and Mudgeeraba. Blake Campbell made his U19 debut in May against Southport and has also played matches at that level against Mudgeeraba and Southport a second time.

In 2016 Blake Campbell played his football at the U16 level both in terms of club rugby league and in the CC Cup during the 2016 season. Blake Campbell as also involved in Coombabah State High School’s great GIO Cup campaign where he actually played on the wing in a number of games including a nationally televised match against Townsville’s Kirwan High School. Blake Campbell stellar play was rewarded in 2016 when early in the year he was selected in the Queensland Academy of Sport U16 squad, before being named in the interchange bench for the Queensland U16 team in their annual match against New South Wales. Fellow Titans players Geordie Brand and Laz Sua were also part of the Queensland team that night which took place as a State of Origin curtain raiser. Unfortunately the Queensland side lost 12 – 10.

In the CC competition for Gold Coast White in 2016, Blake Campbell crossed for four tries two of which came against Gold Coast Green in Rounds Two and Five. Blake Campbell also scored a double in GC White’s semi-final loss to the Toowoomba Clydesdales. In all of his matches in the CC competition for Gold Coast White Blake Campbell started in the second row. On more than one occasion Blake Campbell was mentioned by Titans High Performance Junior Co-ordinator Jamie McCormack as being one of his team’s best in the weekly update posted on the Titans Official Site during the CC/MM season.

From a club perspective, Blake Campbell played for Runaway Bay in the U16 Division One competition playing in six matches and contributing seven tries over the course of the 2016 season. Six of his seven tries came from doubles coming against Burleigh on two separate occasions and also against Mudgeeraba, with his seventh try coming against the Helensvale Hornets.

He was been in the Titans junior development system for a couple of years now, and is one of a number of talented backrowers in our system and certainly in the region. He has represented the Vikings and Kookaburra’s on multiple occasions in the different age groups over the last couple of years and is part of the Gold Coast Rugby League Academy program in 2015, and was part of the Titans U14 development side that drew 32 all against a giant Samoan team at the end of 2014 at Burleigh.

Blake Campbell is a wide running backrower with a very good turn of speed once he breaks through the line and will outpace all but the quickest cover defenders. He 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.

On top of those attributes, Blake Campbell is impressive at running good lines 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. Even though Blake Campbell is good on the edge of the ruck, he takes his share of runs in the middle where he uses foot work prior to the line so as not to absorb huge hits against, usually larger forward packs. He is also a disciplined player who rarely gives away penalties and also has good hands.

From a speed perspective his speed would easily be considered above average for a backrower and actually quite close to be considered in the plus category, both in terms of speed off the mark as well as sustainable top end speed. Clearly his pace was one of the reasons that the Coombabah coaches played him on the wing on occasion where he certainly did not let anybody down. His above average speed is also a reason why he is such a good cover defender.

Defensively Blake Campbell 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 he 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. Blake Campbell is quick enough to get to most outside backs in cover defence. Due to his speed and positional sense he is usually one of the first players down field in relation to kick chase as well.

The 2018 season will see Blake Campbell line up in the MM competition once again for the Tweed Heads Seagulls where he may even spend some time out in the backline depending on where he is needed especially with the forward pack depth that is likely in the Tweed Seagulls MM squad.

Blake Campbell upon completion of the MM competition will line up for the Runaway Bay Seagulls in the U19 competition and will also likely get an opportunity at the U20 Colts level for Tweed Heads as well. With his selection in the 2018 Queensland U18 Emerging Origin Squad Blake Campbell is also in line for selection in the Queensland U18 in 2018.

Even though Blake Campbell spent some time on the wing in schoolboy rugby league for Coombabah in 2016 for me he has played almost exclusively in the second row this season and that is where his future lies as a wide running second rower who knows how to get to the try line as well as a player who will do a lot of the little things well, such as chasing kicks, defending inside passes etc.

From a style perspective think of a young Ryan Hoffman currently of the New Zealand Warriors as a well-rounded backrower with the ability to break the line by himself or as a result of running a good line and then has the pace to finish things off consistently as well as being just as damaging defensively.

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David Butler (Updated). He is a local young front rower who has been part of the Titans junior development set up since he was 13 years old and played for Helensvale in the U17 Division One competition on the Gold Coast and startied 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.

Recently David Butler has been named in the Queensland U18 Emerging Origin squad and previously was named in the Tweed Heads Seagulls 2018 MM Cup squad.

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 Luke Mastroanni, 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 was part of the Championships winning Queensland side. He 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. His 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 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. He 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 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 to show the dedication and willingness of him to do what is necessary to help his team win.

David Butler will play the 2018 season in the MM Cup competition for Tweed Heads and post that competition will either play in the local U19 competition or make the immediate transition to the Tweed Heads Seagulls U20 Colts side. I would not bet against him moving straight to the Colts side even though the Tweed Heads Colts pack looks very strong.

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.

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Cooper Hornburg. (Updated) The tough hard working young Burleigh Bears forward played a lot of rugby league in 2017 including playing for Burleigh in the U17 Division One competition, in fact starting in the front row in their 36 – 10 loss to the finals loss to the Ormeau Shearers and also playing a number of matches for the Burleigh Bears MM Cup and U20 Colts Challenge sides. Not a bad achievement at all for a 17 year old. In 2016 Cooper Hornburg represented U16 South East Queensland Green in the Queensland Age Championships.

In the MM Cup competition for Burleigh Cooper Hornburg played five of Burleigh’s six matches, missing only Round Four. Copper Hornburg started four of his five matches from the interchange bench but started Round Three against the Central Queensland Capra’s at lock.

Cooper Hornburg broke into the Burleigh Bears U20 Colts Challenge side in Round Twelve and also played Rounds Thirteen and Fourteen coming off the interchange bench on all three occasions.

In the U17 Division One competition for Burleigh Cooper Hornburg appeared in eight matches, scoring in Round One against Mudgeeraba and also against Ormeau mid-season.

I saw Cooper Hornburg play in 2016 and whilst he was certainly a solid player then, he is almost a different player this season. He obviously has put on more muscle mass but he clearly has worked on his speed and flexibility. His speed and lateral mobility has increased and he is very very effective as a result.

Cooper Hornburg uses subtle footwork prior to the line and seems to targets the gaps between defenders and will actively seek out opposing forwards who are slow to move up. His movement prior to engaging the defensive line is actually quite impressive, from the moment that he receives the ball from the dummy half he is moving subtly from side to side thus not allowing defences to key in on him.

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

Cooper Hornburg also fights hard when tackled to ensure he gets a quick play the ball to maintain the momentum for his side. In addition, Cooper Hornburg has enough speed to be an effective runner of the football to run the ball on the edges of the ruck. He is not exceptionally quick but quick enough to rush defenders to make a decision of when to commit to the tackle.

I would consider Cooper Hornburg to be 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.

Cooper Hornburg 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.

Cooper Hornburg’s experience playing against players three years older than him will stand him in good stead into the future. The 2018 season will see Cooper Hornburg be a key member of Burleigh’s MM Cup side and he will also get more U20 Colts rugby league with Burleigh as well.

Whilst Cooper Hornburg has played mainly in the front row in his own age group, when he has played in the MM Cup competition and U20 Colts he has primarily played at lock, which is where I ultimately believe that he will end up. Cooper Hornburg is more than just a bash and barge type and can also run a bit wider of the ruck when necessary.

The Brisbane Broncos and Queensland State of Origin lock Josh Maguire is a great player comparison for Cooper Hornburg. Like Maguire, Cooper Hornburg, works all day both in attack and defence and when he least except in, he will produce a great offload to ignite his team.

I will admit that this year Cooper Hornburg has proved me wrong. Prior to this season I believed that his ceiling was that of a solid front row type who would put the ball under his arm and just take the ball forward. Cooper Hornburg’s ceiling is a lot higher than that.