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  1. #1321
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    Ray Puru. The talented Titans linked PBC student started on the right wing for the PBC Hancock Cup School Boy Grand Final side that went down in heart breaking fashion 26 – 24 to Marsden State High School who kicked a penalty goal after the final siren.

    Ray Puru scored an impressive double in the match with the first of his two tries coming early in the second half when he produced an outstanding in and away to beat the Marsden left winger down the blind side to dive over in the right corner. The play appeared to be a set move from the back of a scrum with Will Saunders picking up the ball from the back of a scrum ten metres out before getting it quickly and early to Ray Puru to turn his speed and elusiveness into an outstanding try.

    Ray Puru’s second try came late in the match when his scintillating speed was on display once again. Ray Puru was on the end of a PBC backline movement starting in their own territory. Ray Puru had to back track to take the long pass to his wing around eighty five metres out from the Marsden SHS line. When he spun around after collecting the ball Ray Puru exploded down the right touch line beating the initial desperate Marsden defenders with sheer pace. To beat the fullback Ray Puru produced and outstanding left arm fend and then was able to dive over ten metres in from the right corner post to level the scores at 24 all.

    Ray Puru also scored in Round Four against Forest Lake State High School when he crossed in the left corner untouched from ten metres out after some good work in his inside by hooker Will Saunders. The second half of the match also saw Ray Puru make an outstanding run after fielding a kick off. Ray Puru took the ball near the right touch line bring the ball towards the centre of the field before stepping off his left foot to beat the initial defensive line before he was brought down after a thirty metre effort.

    Ray Puru also scored in Round Three against Coombabah State High School when he was on hand to get the ball down in the right corner after diving full stretch to get his hands on the ball after the Coombabah left side defence misjudged a PBC kick to the wing, allowing Ray Puru to get to the ball just before it went touch in goal.

    In early October 2020 Ray Puru was part of the Titans Gold Coast based U14 side that played a trial match against a Titans NRRRL U14/U15 squad with the match being played at Cbus Stadium, giving the young players a great experience with the players wearing Titans jerseys for the match.

    Ray Puru’s speed plays very well on a rugby league field and he is exceptionally quick down the sidelines with a good in and away to beat defenders on the outside and will not get caught from behind if he gets into open space.

    In addition to his speed Ray Puru seems to have the ability to “freeze” his direct opponent with his ability to step off both feet before accelerating around them usually on the touchline side although his situational awareness and innate understanding of where the touch line is means that he understands when he should cut back inside thus not to risk being forced into touch.

    I really like the way that Ray Puru runs at full speed regardless of the situation. When he has made a break Ray Puru runs at the full back at full pace and does not look to be too cute by trying to out think the opposing fullback. By running at speed directly at the fullback, Ray Puru, not only stops the lateral momentum of the fullback but also reduces the time that the fullback has to make a decision on how to defend against Ray Puru.

    Like most of the modern day wingers Ray Puru also has the ability to find the try line in some unlikely situations where it appears that there is no way he could possibly get the ball down without going into touch. His straight line speed would be considered plus plus, Ray Puru is just incredibly quick both off the mark and when he is in motion.

    Ray Puru has very good hands low to the ground on grubber kicks or when defenders drop bombs and uses his reach to get to the ball quickly before defenders. Ray Puru will also chase general play kicks with vigour trying to improve the effectiveness of his teams kicking game as well as gaining better field position for his team as the opposition are forced to use up tackles to get out of their own territory.

    Ray Puru just seems to have the uncanny ability to take advantage of even the most remote opportunity to score, which ultimately is a trait that is naturally occurring rather than a process or mindset that can be taught or developed in any significant way.

    In addition Ray Puru is also deceptively effective running out of dummy half trying to gain field position when bringing the ball out of their own territory. Normally running to the right of the play the ball (Ray Puru is a left winger to be fair), Ray Puru just seems to almost always make the initial defender miss.

    In terms of running the ball back from kicks, similairly Ray Puru just seems to make the initial defender miss often. What I also like in terms of kick returns is that Ray Puru does not jog after the ball, thus allowing the defence to converge, Ray Puru sprints after the ball to collect it and then makes an immediate decision whether to look to run around the defensive line if it is a short line or is staggered or just run the ball directly into the defensive line to make as much ground as possible.

    Defensively one area that Ray Puru has impressed me is his ability to defend against any size opponent, from small quick opposing outside backs to big strong powerful centres or backrowers running wider of the ruck in his direction.

    Ray Puru seemingly has more strength that his size and body shape would dictate, and he uses this strength to move up and hit just under the ribcage, redirecting the momentum of the ball carrier and thus eliminating the attacking threat in the short term.

    When he is outnumbered from a defensive perspective, Ray Puru has the ability to mirror the movement of the attacker with the ball and hold off committing to the tackle, thus forcing the attacker to commit to a course of action (either run the ball themselves or draw Ray Puru and pass.

    This attribute of Ray Puru’s puts the pressure back onto the attacker and puts Ray Puru in a far better position to negate the paly himself or at the very least buys Ray Puru’s team mates time to come across in cover defence. Ray Puru is just a smart defender in all types of situations and that holds him in very good stead into the future.

    Regardless of where and how he defends Ray Puru sets a good base and uses his leg strength to direct his strength through the core of his body into his opponent. Ray Puru just intuitively knows how to defend from a timing and technique perspective and rarely loses contact with the attacker once he has engaged them defensively.

    Ray Puru uses this contact to redirect the momentum of the attacker towards the touch line. Ray Puru also gets low and this is able to get underneath any fend that is looking to hold Ray Puru off from him initiating contact with the body of his opponent and thus further disrupt his momentum.

    In 2021 Ray Puru will move up to the PBC Walters Cup school boy rugby league squad and will also be pushing for a spot in the QSSRL South Coast school boy U15 representative squad.

    Even though he spent time on the wing in 2020 Ray Puru seems destined to end up as a lightning quick elusive fullback with more than enough ball playing skills to play as a second receiver in attack on either side of the field.

    From an NRL player comparison perspective for Ray Puru, think along the lines of former North Queensland Cowboys and Queensland State of Origin fullback Matt Bowen as a fullback with exceptional pace and footwork who is also courageous when it comes to defending against kicks and his defensive duties.

    Both have Ray Puru and Matt Bowen have strength and courage that belie their size and both just have an amazing knack of finding the try line on a regular basis as well as making the impossible look routine, something that Ray Puru did on a number of occasions ins 2020.

  2. #1322
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    Will Saunders. The talented Titans linked PBC student started at hooker for the PBC Hancock Cup School Boy Grand Final side that went down in heart breaking fashion 26 – 24 to Marsden State High School who kicked a penalty goal after the final siren.

    Throughout the Grand Final Will Saunders took on the giant Marsden forward pack and was the deserved scorer of PBC’s first try of the match, when from close range he darted out of dummy half to the right of the play the ball to force his way over ten metres in from the left corner post.

    Will Saunders was also heavily involved in PBC’s try early in the second half when he picked up the ball from the back of a scrum ten metres out before getting it early to Ray Puru down the blind side for the flying winger to score in the right corner. The play seemed to be a perfectly performed set play by PBC.

    Will Saunders was at his nippy best in Round Three of the 2020 Hancock Cup competition against Coombabah State High School when he darted to his right out of dummy half from around three metres out and was able to get the ball down with two defenders trying to hold him up.

    Will Saunders also scored for PBC in their Round Two match agaisnt Keebra Park State High School. When PBC put in a clearing kick from their own territory, Will Saunders followed the kick through down the centre of the field. Keebra Park could not retrieve the ball on the full, letting it bounce and it was taken by PBC down the right touchline and Will Saunders was correctly positioned to get the inside pass to run twenty metres to score around fifteen metres to the right of the uprights. If Will Saunders had not chased the kick as hard as he did, PBC and of course himself would not have scored the try.

    In early October 2020 Will Saunders was part of the Titans Gold Coast based U14 side that played a trial match against a Titans NRRRL U14/U15 squad with the match being played at Cbus Stadium, giving the young players a great experience with an added bonus that the teams played the match in Titans jerseys.

    Will Saunders is an extremely talented all round hooker, who excels at all three critical aspects of the modern day hooker, those being his distribution out of dummy half, selective running out of dummy half and defending in the centre of the ruck.

    In terms of his distribution out of dummy half, Will Saunders is efficient in his passing and there is little wasted movement as he passes in one motion off the ground rather than two distinct movements like many hookers where they first stand then pass.

    In the games that I have seen there is no discernible difference between his passing from either side of his body, and his passes are crisp and flat and also Will Saunders can pass a reasonable distance off the ground when the first receiver is standing a little wider of the play the ball.

    Where Will Saunders is also extremely effective is leading his forwards onto the ball, he passes in front of the forward ensuring no loss of momentum to the run. In short Will Saunders is a very good game manager from the hooking position.

    Where Will Saunders really stands out in terms of attacking play, is his speed out of dummy half, he is extremely quick and has exceptional footwork to take advantage of tiring forwards, using a step off both feet.

    Will Saunders wins a lot of penalties by running at forwards who are offside, if the offside forward is called out of the play he has the speed to break into open space and has the pace to make it difficult for the cover defence to get to him.

    Around the try line Will Saunders is also very good at making the right decision whether the go himself for the try line or pass, where he gets down low and drives with his legs. Due to the pace that Will Saunders plays the game at and his speed he is always available in terms of backing up in the centre of the ruck, when forwards get their arms free.

    Will Saunders’s defence for a hooker is exceptional, for a smaller forward Will Saunders is a hard hitter and 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 opposing forwards backwards and is also very good at slowing the play the ball down.

    Will Saunders’s intensity means that he will track the play across and thus is in a good position when the ball is passed back inside. Will Saunders literally tackles everything that moves in the centre of the ruck.

    In 2021 Will Saunders will move up to the PBC Walters Cup school boy rugby league squad and will also be pushing for a spot in the QSSRL South Coast school boy U15 representative squad.

    Will Saunders certainly projects as an 80 minute hooker, who will be known for his organisational and distribution skills as well as his courage and determination. Will Saunders is not a flashy player but he is undoubtedly appreciated by his team mates due to his calm and measured approach to how he plays the dummy half role and the courage he shows in leading by example when taking on much larger opposition continually.

    Will Saunders is by no means a big rugby league player but is a tough, hard all effort type of dummy half and on that basis a player comparison to Newcastle Knights and former Cronulla Sharks hooker Blayke Brailey is a more than fair and appropriate one from my perspective.

  3. #1323
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    Tyler Small. The talented Titans linked PBC student started at left centre for the PBC Renouf Cup School Boy Grand Final side that went down in heart breaking fashion 10 – 8 to Marsden State High School with Tyler Small scoring PBC’s sole try of the match late in the second half to get PBC on the board before a late try to Marsden State High School in the left corner saw PBC lose in heart breaking fashion after their great fight back.

    Tyler Small’s try came when he chased through a well weighted kick from the PBC half, Tyler Small fly through to take the ball on the full and then stepped off his left foot to get around the Marsden State High School fullback and as a consequence he was able to bring the ball around to put it down directly behind the left upright to make the conversion far easier for five eight Tyler Wright.

    Tyler Small not only had a very good 2020 Renouf Cup Grand Final but also had a number of stand out matches in the regular rounds of the Renouf Cup including an impressive three try effort against Wavell State High School in Round FIve.

    In the Round Five match against Wavell the first two tries that Tyler Small scored were very similar. On both occasions Tyler Small, playing left centre, was on the end of PBC backline movements receiving the ball in open space and crossing in the left corner with one of the tries described coming in each half.

    Tyler Small’s third try of the match was a fraction different than the other two. Tyler Small followed through a stab kick to his side of the field, being the left, timing his run to get to the ball taking it above his head between two Wavell SHS defenders and pushing forward to score as the two defenders closed in.

    In Round Four of the 2020 Renouf Cup against Forest Lake State High School Tyler Small scored a double as PBC proved too good for their Brisbane West based rivals. Tyer Small’s first try came in the opening minutes of the match when he chased through a grubber kick to the left side of the diving on the ball in the in goal before the Forest Lake defenders could defuse the kick into the in goal.

    Tyler Small’s second try of the match, which came in the second half also resulted from Tyler Small chasing through a PBC kick. For his second try however Tyler Small chased through a long kick out of PBC’s own half, with Tyler Small getting to the ball in the clear twenty five metres out from the Forest Lake line and he was able to bring the ball around to score under the posts.

    Round Three of the 2020 Renouf Cup saw Tyler Small score a further hat trick against fellow Gold Coast school Coombabah State High School, with the first of Tyler Small’s tries coming when he backed up a break from PBC left second rower Sam Stephenson who got a pass away to his left to Tyler Small who ran twenty metres to score.

    Tyler Small’s second try resulted when he ran a perfect hard straight line through the Coombabah State High School defence forty metres out from the line, producing a left foot step to beat the initial cover defence and then Tyler Small ran diagonally away from the fullback to score next to the right uprights.

    Tyler Small’s completed his hat trick when he backed up a break from his fullback to get the ball from his right to score in the left corner of the field.

    Tyler Small added a further try in Round Two against Keebra Park State High School when he backed up a break by Sam Stephenson receiving the ball forty metres out and Tyler Small’s speed allowed him to bring the ball around to put it donw under the posts.

    Tyler Small started the 2020 Renouf Cup school boy season off with a bang scoring a double in Round One in a tough loss to eventual Grand Final opponents Marsden State High School. Tyler Small’s first try of the match (and season) resulted from a straight hard run through the Marsden line before he produced a perfectly executed left foot step to beat the fullback and bring the ball around to put it down ten metres to the left of the uprights.

    Tyler Small’s second try resulted when he loomed up to the left of PBC left seond rower Sam Stephenson taking the ball fifity metres out and accelerating down the left touch line and Tyler Small was able to bring ball around to put it down near the left upright.

    In total in his six 2020 Renouf Cup matches (including the Grand Final) Tyler Small, starting all of them at left centre, scored twelve tries to finish with a 200% try scoring strike rate.

    In early October 2020 Tyler Small was part of the Titans NRRRL U14/15 side that played a trial match against a Titans Gold Coast U14 squad with the match being played at Cbus Stadium, giving the young players a great experience including playing the match in Titans jerseys.

    In relation to club rugby league in 2020 Tyler Smart played in the Group 18 U14 competition for the Cudgen Hornets. The Cudgen Hornets finished the 2020 season with one win and nine losses, finishing with a -128 points differential, scoring 96 points and conceding 224. Post the season, Tyler Small was named the 2020 Cudgen Hornets U14 Group 18 Best Back.

    Tyler Small’s main ability when you see him play is his foot work, it is absolutely outstanding at left centre. He can step off both feet and put multiple combinations of steps together in a short space of time and a small radius to get out of difficult situations and still make ground.

    Tyler Small’s speed off the mark would have to be considered above average and whilst his top end speed may not necessarily be elite he can sustain it over an extended distance. He also has a solid low centre of gravity type build and also a decent fend complicating the task of defending against him.

    Regardless of where Tyler Small receives the ball he is a sound attacking player. If he gets an off load from a forward through the middle he is through the gap before the defence can react, if he gets the ball in space out wide he makes it difficult for the opposing defender to get a clean shot at him. Seemingly like all modern day outside backs Tyler Small has exceptional body control enabling him to score some impressive tries along the touchline as a result of outstanding balance and body control.

    Defensively Tyler Small uses his size to good effect, he drives with his shoulder into his opponent and has very good timing in terms of when to come out of the line and certainly has the speed to readjust and chase if his timing is slightly off and Tyler Small’s opposing centre gets on his outside.

    Tyler Small has the body control to redirect quickly and mirror the movement of the opposing attackers and anticipate what vector the attack comes from and understands when to allow the attacking play to develop in from of him and when to come out of the line to disrupt the attacking play prior to its formation and execution.

    In 2021 Tyler Small will move up to the PBC Hancock Cup school boy rugby league squad and from a club rugby league perspective will play for the Cudgen Hornets in the 2021 Group 18 U15 competition. Tyler Small will also be in line to represent the Group 18 U15 representative side at the 2021 New South Wales Country Age Championships.

    Tyler Small is a centre pure and simple and an outstanding one already at that, thus for me there is absolutely no reason a coach would even consider moving Tyler Small to another position now or in the foreseeable future.

    For me Tyler Small’s style of play remains me of Penrith Panthers and New Zealand International centre Dean Whare. Like Whare, Tyler Small is an outstanding strike centre and a very good defensive one as well which even at the NRL level is a difficult combination to find.

  4. #1324
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    Jykoven Torrens. The talented young right second rower, hooker or centre had a great start to the Group One U13 rugby league competition for Casino RSM scoring three tries in the opening two rounds. Jkyoven Torrens turned his impressive start into a heck of a 2020 Group One season as a whole.

    In Round One against the Ballina Seagulls Jykoven Torrens scored a double starting the match in the centres and he added a further try against the Kyogle Turkeys in Round Two after moving into the second row.

    Jykoven Torrens moved to hooker in Round Three against Grafton but that did not stop his try scoring feats as he scored a double but Casino RSM went down 26 – 14 to the Ghosts.

    Jykoven Torrens stayed at hooker for Round Four against South Grafton and dominated scoring four tries as Casino RSM defeated the Rebels 42 – 4. Also starting at hooker in Round Five against Kyogle Jykoven Torrens scored once again in a 30 – 16 loss.

    In Round Six against Clarence Coast Jykoven Torrens once again started at hooker and scored a hat trick however Casino RSM went down 30 – 22 to the Magpies. Jykoven Torrens added a further two tries to his tally as Casino RSM went down 34 – 20 to Ballina in Round Seven.

    Jykoven Torrens’s exceptional 2020 season continued in Round Eight when he added a further double in a 24 – 12 loss to the Ballina Seagulls. Jykoven Torrens also started at hooker in Round Nine against the Grafton Ghosts.

    In the final regular season round of the 2020 Group One U13 competition being Round Ten, Jykoven Torrens started at hooker once again and scored four tries as Casino RSM defeated South Grafton 40 – 4.

    In total in the 2020 Group One U13 regular season competition Jykoven Torrens scored twenty one tries from just ten games to finish the regular season with a 210% strike rate.

    Jykoven Torrens was also outstanding for Casino RSM in the 2019 Group One U12 competition playing in eleven matches and was a multiple try scorer as well.

    Jykoven Torrens played the 2019 U13 Group One rugby league competition for Casino RSM and in 2021 Jykoven Torrens will play in the Group One U14 competition.

    Jykoven Torrens also had a great 2019 year from an athletics perspective at Casino Public School including making the schools athletics team for the North Coast Regional Athletics Championships.

    At the Championships Jykoven Torrens was named the Senior Boys Champion after winning the 200m and 800m events and he was also a member of the Casino Public School 4 x 100m relay time that took all before them winning each of their races, including the final. Also in the 2km race, Jykoven Torrens ran a solid time of just on ten minutes.

    Post the North Coast Regional Athletic Championships, Jykoven Torrens was selected in the North Coast Team for the New South Wales PSSA State Athletics Carnival in both the North Coast 4 x 100m relay team for the 100m sprint individual event.

    In the 100m event, Jykoven Torrens made the sem-finals, before running 12.77 seconds in the race to quality for the U12 100 metre NSW State Final. Jykoven Torrens ran 12.99 seconds in the final to finish a very credible seventh.

    As part of the North Coast 4 x 100m relay team, Jykoven Torrens and his team ran 52.58 seconds to quality of the U12 NSW State Final, running 54.09 seconds in the Final.

    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 Jykoven Torrens, he runs a superb inside or outside shoulder line and his excellent footwork enables him to step off either foot to enable Jykoven Torrens to cut back against the movement of the defensive line to take advantage of gaps back on the inside of his direct opponent.

    Jykoven Torrens also has above average (to plus) speed for a second rower, not just off the mark but also when he is in clear space, when he makes a break Jykoven Torrens is more than capable of going the distance and normally easily out paces the cover defence.

    Jykoven Torrens 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.

    Jykoven Torrens in schoolboy rugby league 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.

    Jykoven Torrens also waits until the last possible second to off load the ball and most of the time he does not telegraph his pass to enable defences the readjust before the ball is passed.

    On a lot of his runs Jykoven Torrens 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.

    Whilst his ball running skills are the first thing that you will likely notice when seeing Jykoven Torrens play his defence is equally effective even though it may not be as noticeable at first glance.

    Defensively Jykoven Torrens has a hard edge to his play and his initial contact is more than sufficient to redirect the momentum of the ball carrier either in the centres or when defending in the forwards. Jykoven Torrens sets a very good base which he uses to explode into the ball carrier looking to use their own momentum against them.

    Jykoven Torrens good situation awareness also enables him to be well positioned when he is defending against smaller quicker players on the fringes of the ruck and he endeavours to minimise the time available for the opposing attacker to generate speed and to utilise their footwork.

    Jykoven Torrens 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 he will hold his ground to let the play to develop in front of him before committing to a specific defensive course of action.

    Jykoven Torrens played in the 2020 U13 Group One rugby league competition for Casino RSM and in 2021 Jykoven Torrens will play in the Group One U14 competition once again for Casino RSM.

    Age representative sides start at the U14 age group in New South Wales Country thus in 2021 Jykoven Torrens, I am sure will push for a spot in the Group One U14 representative side for the 2021 New South Wales Country Age Championships.

    Jykoven Torrens can play both in the centres and in the second row effectively and his future will surely be in one of those two positions, it is just a matter of which one. In the interests of completeness it should be noted that Jykoven Torrens also spent time in 2020 for Casino RSM in the U13 competition at hooker and performed exceptionally well there.

    For me a current NRL player with similar attributes and a similar playing style to Jykoven Torrens North Queensland Cowboys utility forward Reuben Cotter as a player who can transition between multiple positions in the forward pack although I think that just like Reuben Cotter, Jykoven Torren’s skill set plays slightly better in the second row taking all things into account.

    In saying that however Jykoven Torrens playing hooker and centre is certainly not a bad thing at all and can only help his career and development of his game overall in the long run. Skills and experience in different positions can only be a good thing for young rugby league players.

  5. #1325
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    Izac Geddes. The young second rower was part of the 2020 South Grafton Rebels U14 Group One rugby league side and had an impressive season in the Rebels Red and White colours.

    Round One saw Izac Geddes kick a goal against the Clarence Coast Magpies to get on the board from an individual points scoring perspective in 2020 before Izac Geddes scored his first try of the season in Round Two when he scored against Ballina. Izac Geddes added a double in Round Three against the Kyogle Turkeys to make it three tries from as many matches.

    Izac Geddes continued his outstanding 2020 Group One U14 season in Round Four scoring a double and kicking a goal as South Grafton defeated Casino RSM 14 – 10. In Round Five Izac Geddes started in the second row once again but South Grafton went down to their cross city rivals, the Grafton Ghosts 32 – 12.

    In Round Seven, once again against the Grafton Ghosts, Izac Geddes continued his run of starts in the second row for the Rebels in the U14 fixture before once again starting from the bench in the following U15 match.

    Round Six saw Izac Geddes start on the bench for the South Grafton Rebels U15 side on the bench against the Kyogle Turkeys, after the U14 match was a forfeit. In Round Eight against Ballina Izac Geddes was back in the Rebels starting side, starting in the second row as South Grafton went down 20 – 10. Round Ten saw Izac Geddes continue in the second row and kick a conversions as South Grafton defeated Casino RSM 18 – 0.

    Izac Gaddes also plays rugby, playing for the Grafton Redmen Junior Rugby Club in the U15 Far North Coast Junior Rugby competition.

    In Round One of the 2020 U15 Far North Coast Junior Rugby competition Izac Gaddes started from the bench as his Grafton side defeated Ballina 14 – 0. After being named to start on the bench once again in Round Two against Casuarina Beach, Izac Geddes was called up to the starting side late and in the match he kicked a conversion as Grafton won 24 – 12 to make it two wins from as many starts for the Redmen.

    Izac Geddes also started from the bench in Round Thee against the Lennox Head Trojans as well as in Round Six against Lismore. Round Seven saw Izac Geddes start in the front row for the Redmen against Casuarina Beach before moving back to the bench for Round Eight as the Redmen went down to the Lennox Head Trojans. The final regular season round of the 2020 U15 Far North Coast Rugby season saw Izac Geddes start from the bench against Wollongbar Alstonville in a 47 – 0 loss for the Redmen.

    Izac Geddes is a powerful aggressive ball runner who is adept at using late and quick footwork just prior to contact line which he hits with power and force in absolutely every hit up that he makes dropping his shoulder into the first defender that is looking to make the initial contact.

    Izac Geddes’s ability to get low to engage the defenders with his shoulder rather than allowing them to get in and under his ribs and also a substantial leg drive means that he drives defenders backwards even after they had engaged him with significant force rather than allowing them to impact on his momentum.

    In terms of ball skills, Izac Geddes was able to regularly get his right hand free to deliver offloads when engaged with the defensive line especially when he was running one pass up the ruck and deliver some very good offloads to his support runners.

    Once he is in space, Izac Geddes actually has very good speed, I would consider it above average when analysing his speed from a rugby league forward’s perspective, to add to the difficulties for the defensive line, he runs with a high knee lift and also has a powerful fend.

    Whilst his ball running skills are the first thing that you will likely notice when seeing Izac Geddes his defence is equally effective even though it may not be as noticeable at first glance. Defensively Izac Geddes has a hard edge to his play and his initial contact is more than sufficient to redirect the momentum of the ball carrier either in the centres or when defending in the forwards. Izac Geddes sets a very good base which he uses to explode into the ball carrier looking to use their own momentum against them.

    Defensively Izac Geddes hits very hard and is adept at making sure the opposition do not get quick play the balls. He also has a touch of aggression in his play and definitely finishes off each tackle that he is involved in. He is equally adept at defending in the centre of the ruck as he is defending on the fringes and his initial contact is more than sufficient to make an impact on the ball carriers momentum.

    Defensively the most impressive aspect of Izac Geddes’s play is his ability to make effective tackle after effective tackle. For the Titans over the last two NRL seasons he continually made up to three and four tackles in a row on multiple occasions and still back up looking to take a hit up the next set of six tackles.

    Whilst his stamina is impressive, so is his initial contact, he uses his strength and leverage to hit the ball carrier hard forcing momentum changes to the ball carrier. Izac Geddes is also adept at wrapping up the ball and preventing offloads as he uses his functional strength to engage ball carriers. Defensively in a covering role he is also very effective as even though he is a big strong forward he has very good catch up speed and a solid low tackling technique from a side aspect.

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

    Izac Geddes 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 he will hold his ground to let the play to develop in front of him before committing to a specific defensive course of action.

    For me with his speed and ability to attack on the fringes of the ruck, second row is seemingly Izac Geddes’s best position progressing forward through his junior rugby league career.

    Izac Geddes played in the 2020 U14 Group One rugby league competition for the South Grafton Rebels and in 2021 Izac Geddes will play in the Group One U15 competition more than likely also with South Grafton.

    in 2021 Izac Geddes, I am sure will push for a spot in the Group One U15 representative side for the 2021 New South Wales Country Age Championships.

    Izac Geddes may well also continue to play rugby in 2021 and if so will line up for the second season in a row for the Grafton Redmen in the 2021 U15 Far North Coast Junior Rugby competition if Izac Geddes continues in both codes.

    From an NRL player comparison perspective, with his line running ability and speed both into the line and once through the line, a more than reasonable player comparision for Izac Geedes is Titans NRL second rower/ lock Keegan Hipgrave.

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    Sam Stephenson. The powerful Titans linked left second rower was a constant handful for opposing sides in the 2020 Renouf Cup school boy side and Sam Stephenson was one of the reasons that PBC made it all the way to the Renouf Cup Grand Final. Unfortunately PBC went down in heart breaking fashion 10 – 8 to Marsden State High School with the Brisbane based school scoring a late try in the left corner saw PBC lose in heart breaking fashion.

    As noted above 2020 saw Sam Stephenson play for PBC in the 2020 Renouf Cup school boy competition, including starting at left second row in the Grand Final against Marsden State High School.

    Sam Stephenson was prominent for PBC throughout the regular season rounds of the 2020 Renouf School Boy Cup scoring or recording a try assist (on three occasions both) in each of the five 2020 Renouf Cup regular season rounds.

    In Round One as PBC went down to eventual their Grand Final opponents Marsden State High School, Sam Stephenson showed the rest of the competition what they would be up against when in the first half he broke the Marsden Right side defensive line with a powerful run that started in his own territory and was able, under heavy pressure get a great pass away to his left on the halfway mark to centre Tyler Small who ran fifty metres to score in a tough 44 – 20 loss.

    Round Two as PBC defeated Keebra Park State High Schol 22 – 20 saw Sam Stephenson score a try as well as recording another try assist. The try assist resulted from powerful surge to break through the Keebra Park right side defense around seventy metres out with Sam Stephenson charging forty metres down field before drawing the fullback and passing to his left to send Tyler Small away down the left touch line.

    Sam Stephenson’s Round Two try came in the second half. PBC threw the ball from one side of the field to the other, Sam Stephenson received the ball as PBC started to through the ball back to the right, shaking off one attempted tackle before veering to his right and charging fifteen metres to score five metres to the left of the uprights.

    Sam Stephenson added two tries and two try assists to his outstanding 2020 Renouf Cup season in Round Three as PBC defeated Coombabah StateHigh School 40 – 12.

    Sam Stephenson’s first try assist of the match came after he broke through the Coombabah defese around seventy metres out before drawing the fullback and passing to his right to his half back who was able to score under the posts. Sam Stephenson’s second try assist came after another long break, this time starting sixty metres out with Sam Stephenson charging down field and then drawing the fullback and passing to his left to send Tyler Small away to score.

    Sam Stephenson’s first try of the match came thrugh sheer brute strength and power. Sam Stephenson took the ball from a PBC penalty tap ten metres out from the Coombabah line and charged straight and hard to crash over five metres to the left of the uprights.

    Sam Stephenson’s second try of the match was scored near where he put the ball down for his fist one. After sending the ball to the right, the ball came back to the ball, finding Sam Stephenson in space and he ran twelve metres to dive over.

    PBC defeated Forest Lake State High School 22 – 4 with Sam Stephenson scoring and adding another try assist in Round Four. Sam Stephenson’s try assist was as a result of a one armed offload to his left winger to score after Same Stephenson broke through the line.

    Sam Stephenson scored in the match when he broke through the line on the left side of the field, before veering to his left away from the cover defence to score ten metres in from the left corner post.

    Sam Stephenson finished off the 2020 Renuf Cup regular season in Round Five against Wavell, PBC won the match 28 – 12 with his fifth try of the season when he did what he had done all season and that was to break through the oppositions right side defence. Agaisnt Wavell, Sam Stephenson broke the line from around thirty metres and was unstoppable on his way to score PBC’s first try of the match.

    In early October 2020 Sam Stephenson was part of the Titans Gold Coast based U14 side that played a trial match against a Titans NRRRL U14/U15 squad with the match being played at Cbus Stadium, giving the young players a great experience in Titans colours with the added bonus that they played in Titans jerseys.

    In 2019 Sam Stephenson played for Burleigh in the Gold Coast Rugby League U13 Division One competition starting the Grand Final against Helensvale at left centre. Unfortunately Burleigh went down in the Grand Final 26 – 22.

    In taking into account his Grand Final loss Sam Stephenson had an outstanding 2019 Gold Coast U13 Division One season which saw him finish with 100 points from fifteen matches and finish second on the competitions try scoring list in the regular season.

    In only one game in the regular season being against Ormeau did Sam Stephenson not score in 2019, scoring twenty four tries in his other fourteen games for a strike rate of 160%. Sam Stephenson also kicked two goals in Round One against Coomera to hit the 100 point on the season mark.

    Sam Stephenson recorded four tries in consecutive rounds against Ormeau and Southport as well as scoring a hat trick against Coomera mid-season.

    Sam Stephenson also scored three doubles coming against Coomera in two matches and Ormeau with tries against Currumbin twice, Nerang, Runaway Bay twice and Ormeau accounting for the remainder of his 2019 tries.

    Also in 2019 Sam Stephenson represented the Gold Coast Vikings U13 representative side at the Hill Stumer Championships which were held in Ipswich with Sam Stephenson named on the bench for the Vikings.

    In 2018 in the GCRL U12 Division One competition Sam Stephenson recorded a 100% strike rate from fourteen matches.

    Sam Stephenson is a powerfully built young left second rower, which makes him quite difficult to tackle as Sam Stephenson is also adept at dropping his shoulder into defenders as he impacts the defensive line.

    There is no subtlety to his game, Sam Stephenson runs straight and hard, with the only concession to this being a slight step off his left foot in occasion prior to impacting the defensive line. One thing that Sam Stephenson does do will however is continuing to pump his legs once his initial momentum is halted by the defensive line.

    Sam Stephenson makes more metres than he should as a result and also forces defending teams to commit multiple defensive assets to stopping his forward progress. Sam Stephenson is also adept at getting a quick play the ball regardless of the number of defenders that are involved in tackling him.

    For a big strong young man Sam Stephenson also has impressive speed, I would say in the plus category for a second rower, when he breaks through the defensive line and is also very good at setting up his support runners once through the initial defensive line.

    This was easily seen in 2020 playing for PBC in the Renouf Cup when Sam Stephenson was able to set up centre Tyler Small on more than one occasion after Sam Stephenson had broken through the initial defensive line.

    Like his attacking game, Sam Stephenson’s defensive methodology is simply constructed and enacted. Sam Stephenson moves up and hits the ball carrier as hard as he can, as often as he can, full stop. Sam Stephenson is best suited to defending in the centre of the ruck and that is where you will almost always find him and for a powerfully built young player.

    Sam Stephenson moves well in terms of moving up and back in defence. His lateral movement is also actually quite reasonable for a big second rower as well.

    In 2021 Sam Stephenson will move up to the PBC Hancock Cup school boy rugby league squad and will also push for a spot in the South Coast school boy U15 QSSRL representative squad as well as continue to play for the Burleigh Bears in the Gold Coast rugby league U15 Division One competition.

    Sam Stephenson played the 2019 season at left centre for Burleigh but in 2020 played exclusively at left second row especially for PBC in the Renouf Cup school boy competition and with his size, speed and strength it seems likely that Sam Stephenson’s move to the second row is now permanent.

    An NRL player comparison for Sam Stephenson is one of the easiest I have ever considered with his game eerily similar to that of North Queensland Cowboy and former Queensland State of Origin second rower second rower Coen Hess, both a tall powerfully built players with outstanding speed and mobility for their size.

    I think that sometimes big powerful players like Hess and Sam Stephenson are unfairly critiqued if they don’t make breaks or score every time that they touch the ball heck opposing teams are always keyed into the danger that they pose and adjust accordingly.

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    Zane Harrison. The northern New South Wales youngster is currently a member of the Titans Tweed Heads based junior academy.

    The exciting Titans linked Tweed Heads Seagulls and PBC five eight/fullback was one of the reasons that PBC made it all the way to the Renouf Cup Grand Final. Unfortunately PBC went down in heart breaking fashion 10 – 8 to Marsden State High School with the Brisbane based school scoring a late try in the left corner saw PBC lose in heart breaking fashion.

    In 2020 Zane Harrison played fullback for the Tweed Heads Seagulls U14 side in the Group 18 junior rugby league competition with the Seagulls going through the ten regular season rounds undefeated, scoring 316 points and conceding just 64 to finish the regular season with +252 points differential from their ten matches to record an average winning margin of just above twenty five points. Post the season Zane Harrison was named the Tweed Heads Seagulls U14 Group 18 Best and Fairest.

    As a result of their outstanding season the Tweed Heads Seagulls U14 side qualified for the Grand Final against the Tugun Seahawks. Tweed Heads prevailed in the 2020 decider 30 – 4 with Zane Harrison being named Player of the Match.

    Zane Harrison was a deserved Player of the Match in the Grand Final after a three try assist and a long range solo try performance.

    Zane Harrison’s first try assist came early in the first half when he threw a long cut-out pass to his left right onto the chest of his left winger who dived over out wide. Zane Harrison’s second try assist came on the same side of the field when he took the ball right into the line before sending a pass to his left to put his left centre over.

    Zane Harrison’s final try assist of the Grand Final came late in the match when once again he threw a perfectly weighted pass to his left winger once again who ran twenty metres to score near the left corner. Whilst all three of Zane Harrison’s try assist’s came when he was playing on the left, Zane Harrison also had some good moments whilst operating on the right (Zane Harrison literally moves from side to side to identify the best opportunity) including a great short ball early in the match to his right second rower who almost scored from twenty metres out. Zane Harrison set up a try on the opposite side of the field two play the ball later.

    Zane Harrison put an exclamation mark on the Grand Final with a ninety five metre solo effort. Off a Tweed Heads scrum win ten metres out from their onw line, Zane Harrison received the ball on the right side of the field, two passes off the scrum win, producing a great show and go to beat the Tugun defensive line and simply proved too quick for the cover defence running ninety five metres to score.

    As noted above 2020 saw Zane Harrison play for PBC in the 2020 Renouf Cup school boy competition, including starting at five eight and operating on the right side of the field in the Grand Final against Marsden State High School.

    In early October 2020 Zane Harrison was part of the Titans NRRRL U14/U15 Invitational squad that played a match against a Titans Gold Coast based U14 side, with the match being played at Cbus Stadium, giving the young players a great experience and in a Titans jersey as well.

    Zane Harrison 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 Zane Harrison’s running style looks just effortless and perfectly balanced and is undertaken at speed.

    It is hard to put in words just how talented Zane Harrison 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.

    Zane Harrison 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 Zane Harrison steps, regardless of the size of the step or in which direction there is absolutely no loss of speed or momentum as Zane Harrison 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 Zane Harrison 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 Zane Harrison can exploit.

    Zane Harrison 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 Zane Harrison 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.

    Zane Harrison 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 Zane Harrison 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 Zane Harrison.

    Zane Harrison 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 Zane Harrison 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.

    Zane Harrison 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 Zane Harrison’s side of the field.

    In 2021 Zane Harrison will move up to the PBC Hancock Cup school boy rugby league squad and will also push for a spot in the South Coast school boy QSSRL U15 representative squad.

    Zane Harrison will also likely to play for the Tweed Heads Seagulls in the Group 18 junior rugby league competition, in 2021 in the U15 age group. 2021 should also see Zane Harrison represent the Group 18 U15 representative side at the 2021 New South Wales Country Age Championships.

    Zane Harrison spent considerable time in 2020 both at five eight and at fullback and he has the speed, body control, elusiveness and ball skills to have an outstanding future at either. If I am forced to make a call I can see Zane Harrison’s skills and athletic ability translatelate 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 on either side of the field. I think that Zane Harrison has a dynamic future in the custodian role but he also has outstanding potential in the halves.

    From my perspective, a talented, unselfish attacking player with similar attributes to Zane Harrison is North Queensland Cowboys and former Melbourne Storm fullback Scott Drinkwater. Like Drinkwater, Zane Harrison 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, Zane Harrison has the skill set to play multiple positions and play them very effectively over the course of a match or season.

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    Maverick McCarthy. The exciting Titans linked PBC second rower was one of the reasons that PBC made it all the way to the Renouf Cup Grand Final. Unfortunately PBC went down in heart breaking fashion 10 – 8 to Marsden State High School with the Brisbane based school scoring a late try in the left corner saw PBC lose in heart breaking fashion. Maverick McCarthy started the Renouf Cup Grand Final at right second row.

    Maverick McCarthy was prominent for PBC throughout the regular season rounds of the 2020 Renouf Cup including scoring tries in Rounds One, Two and Five against Marsden State high School, Keebra Park State High School and Wavell State High School respectively.

    Maverick McCarthy’s try in Round One against Marsden State High School was an impressive individual effort. After receiving the ball around forty metres out Maverick McCarthy stepped off his left foot to beat the first Marsden defender and break into space before suing a left arm fend to get rid of the fullback comfortably to score about ten metres to the right of the uprights.

    In Round Two against Keebra Park State High School, Maverick McCarthy received the ball around twenty metres out and two passes off the ruck, immediately shrugging up an attempted tackle around his chest before breaking away down the right touch line to easily out pace the cover defence and he was able to bring the ball around to put it donw approximately fifteen metres to the right of the uprights.

    Maverick McCarthy scored his third and final try of the 2020 Renouf Cup competition came in Round Five as PBC defeated Wavell State High School 28 – 12. Maverick McCarthy, playing on the right, burst through the Wavell defensive line around twenty metres out before beating the fullback by stepping off his right foot to beat the fullback.

    Maverick McCarthy played the 2020 Community Rugby League season with the Tugun Seahawks in the Group 18 U14 competition including starting the Grand Final at right second row but the Seahawks went down 30 – 4 to a red hot Tweed Heads Seagulls side.

    In totol in the 2020 Group 18 U14 competition the Tugun Seahawks won seven matches, drew one and lot two, scoring 196 points and conceding 112 to finish the regular season with a +84 points differential.

    In early October 2020 Maverick McCarthy was part of a Titans NRRRL U14/U15 squad that took on a Titans Gold Coast based U14 side with the match being played at Cbus Stadium, giving the young players a great experience and in a Titans jersey as well.

    In 2019 Maverick McCarthy made the Gold Coast Cyclones U13 representative side for the Queensland State Junior Championships with Gold Coast finishing runners up in the competition and Maverick McCarthy coring a double against Brisbane Blue in a Cylcones 55 – 0 win.

    Post those Championships Maverick McCarthy was selected in the Queenslands Country U13 side that drew 17 all at Ballymore with a Queensland City side.

    Maverick McCarthy was also selected in the U12 Gold Coast Cyclones U12 side in 2018.

    In 2021 Maverick McCarthy will move up to the PBC Hancock Cup school boy rugby league squad and will also push for a spot in the South Coast school boy QSSRL U15 representative squad.

    I am not sure that I can characterise in words just how hard Maverick McCarthy runs, he just flies at the line at full speed (which is significant) and drops his shoulder into the first defender who looks to engage him and then he keeps pumping his legs, which enables him to break through the initial tackle or at worst gain significant ground post contact. These traits and the fact that Maverick McCarthy can absorb significant punishment and maintain his running line and balance. .

    For me however Maverick McCarthy is fat more than a player who just runs straight and hard, he has good late footwork prior to the defensive line, which is why he is so damaging on the fringes of the ruck and also is developing his off-loading skills on an exponential curve.

    For his size Maverick McCarthy has above average to plus speed and when he breaks through the defensive line has the speed to convert his own breaks into tries on a regular basis as was evidenced in 2020 with PBC in the Renouf Cup.

    Defensively Maverick McCarthy has a very good front on tackling technique with his shoulder and rarely gets caught front on in relation to the initial contact. Maverick McCarthy has developed the requisite skills to work through his progressions when defending one on one against smaller players on the fringes of the ruck.

    In those instances Maverick McCarthy maintains his balance and does not rush forward but waits until the attacker commits to a course of action and then mirrors the action to affect the tackle.

    In 2021 Maverick McCarthy will move up to the PBC Hancock Cup school boy rugby league squad and from a club rugby league perspective will play for the Tugun Seahawks in the 2021 Group 18 U15 competition. Tyler Small will also be in line to represent the Group 18 U15 representative side at the 2021 New South Wales Country Age Championships.

    With his speed, both off the mark and over extended distances definitely in the plus category for a forward I think that Maverick McCarthy has the attributes to be very effective in the second row (likely on the right) for a number of years if not for the duration of his rugby league career.

    Maverick McCarthy has outstanding physical attributes and a rapidly developing skill set and it is just a matter of time for him to figure out how best to use them to dominate on a rugby league field and when he does opposition teams regardless of quality should look out.

    From an NRL player comparison perspective I would consider a player comparison for Maverick McCarthy with Penrith Panthers destructive second rower Viliame Kikau as more than accurate and appropriate. Both Maverick McCarthy and Kikau are exceptionally destructive on the fringes of the ruck and take a power of stopping by defences who have to allocate multiple resources to achieve that task. I appreciate that they play on opposite sides of the field, but the similarities in relation to their speed and power running are certainly there for all to see.

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    Cooper Nelson. The electric young fullback or centre played for the Mullumbimby Colts in the 2020 Group 18 U14 competition and was named 2020 U14 Group 18 Player of the Season such was the quality of his season.

    Mullumbimby finished third in the 2020 Group 18 U14 competition with five wins, a draw and four losses from their ten games, scoring 196 points and conceding 160 to finish with a +36 points differential.

    The recognition that Cooper Nelson received in 2020 was not the first that he had received (and likely not the last) with in 2018 Cooper Nelson being named the Mullumbimby Colts Mods Player of the Year.

    Cooper Nelson is also an outstanding track and field athlete being named Far North Coast Athlete of the Year in 2018 (12 years) and 2019 (13 years) and in 2019 was also the Mullumbimby Public School Cross Country 13 Years Age Champion.

    In 2018 at the Far North Coast Athletics Championships Cooper Nelson won the 100 metres (13.49 seconds), long jump (4.66 metres) and the 200 metres (27.95 seconds). Cooper Nelson also came second in the shot put (10.42 metres) and third in high jump (1.32 metres).

    Cooper Nelson’s style of play is that of a wide running centre with above average to plus speed for the position. Cooper Nelson is exceptionally 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, making it almost impossible for the cover defence to catch him once he is open space.

    Defences had all sorts of trouble trying to contain him in the Group 18 U14 competition in 2020, both in terms of him taking the ball up into the centre of the ruck, but he was almost untouchable when he ran on the fringes of the ruck and Cooper Nelson used his foot work to beat defenders with a variety of moves, including a 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 young player who causes nightmares for a defensive line.

    For a player of his size, Cooper Nelson 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.

    When you see Cooper Nelson play, the first thing that you will notice is his speed which is in the plus plus category and plays that way on a rugby league field. His speed is one of, but certainly not the only reason for Cooper Nelson’s success. When you add in his elusiveness, Cooper Nelson is a nightmare for opposing defences.

    In relation to his elusiveness the thing that makes it play even better is Cooper Nelson’ss ability to change direction with no loss of speed, this enables him to use the sideline exceptionally well with an in and away. When the opposing defender’s momentum slows just for a split second, Cooper Nelson is away down the sideline and will not get caught and also regularly also beats the fullback who no matter how fast they are cannot recover the ground.

    Cooper Nelson is aggressive in defence and due to his natural strength is more than capable of defending one on one and can and will stop even the biggest opposing players in their tracks. His speed and lateral movement means that he will not be beaten by light stepping halves trying to take advantage of tiring back line players, Cooper Nelson also does a very good job of keeping his hands down in situations where he is tracking smaller, quicker players. Cooper Nelson also has a quite a good defensive technique and thus does not use purely brute strength but timing and technique as well to be effective in defence.

    In 2021 Cooper Nelson will line up for the Mullumbimby Colts in the Group 18 U15 competition as well as playing school boy rugby league for Mullumbimby State School. From a representative perspective, Cooper Nelson will be in iine to be part of the 2021 Group 18 U15 representative squad for the New South Wales Country Age Championships.

    One thing that you can not teach is speed and that is what Cooper Nelson has in spades. It is not just speed however that makes Cooper Nelson such a talented rugby league player, he also has an outstanding step and swerve as well as the natural ability to just be in the right place at the right time, which is yet another skill that can not be taught.

    It is for the reasons noted in the commentary above that Cooper Nelson has an outstanding rugby league career in front of him either in the centres or at fullback. Cooper Nelson just looks a natural on a football field and if he can have a bit of luck with injuries etc. the sky is the limit for the talented young young man.

    Cooper Nelson is not a giant of a centre from an overall size perspective, relying more on guile and outright speed and elusiveness to be a try scoring threat and to that extent an NRL player comparison to South Sydney Rabbitohs centre or winger Campbell Graham is more than a reasonable and appropriate one.

    Both Graham and Cooper Nelson are not the giant centre that the modern game seems to currently (or certainly did) crave but they are smart as well as cunning and ultimately very very successful at finding their way to the try line even when on first glance their chances appeared unlikely when they initially received the ball.

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    Sam Longabandi. The rangy second rower played for the Tugun Seahawks in the 2020 Group 18 U13 competition having an outstanding season including being named 2020 Player of the Season and was also named Player of the Match in the 2020 Group 18 U13 Grand Final in Tugun’s 28 – 24 tough loss to Byron Bay/Lennox Head.

    Tugun finished the 2020 Group 18 U13 regular season competition undefeated, winning all ten of their matches, scoring 368 points and conceding just sixty to finish the regular season with a +308 points differential.

    In 2019 Sam Longabandi was part of the Currumbin State School side that won the NRL Development Cup (U12) 32 – 6 against Frenchville State School with Sam Longabandi scoring a double in the first half and he could have had a third but unselfishly passed to his fullback after he had broken through and had the try line at his mercy.

    Sam Longabandi does not necessarily get back deep to run onto the ball but uses his above average speed off the mark to generate significant speed and momentum to hit the defensive line with. When he breaks into open space Sam Longabandi has above average to plus top end speed for his position and will not try to get too fancy in open space, if he does not have support to draw and pass to, Sam Longabandi will take the fullback on and look to run directly over him and if he is tackled look to get a quick play the ball rather than to try for a spectacular play.

    When standing a little wider of the ruck, Sam Longabandi can run multiple routes including both an inside or outside shoulder route depending on the defensive methodology of the opposition and also uses his lateral mobility to cut back on the inside of his play maker to great effect if the central ruck defenders do not track the ball across field. Even when running in the centre of the ruck however Sam Longabandi ’s feet are always moving and he never sets himself up as an easy target for the defensive line to target.

    Defensively the best way that I can describe his tackling style is that he tackles hard, Sam Longabandi has an exceptional front on tackling technique in relation to both his head and body placement and he is able to generate significant force into his opponents body, he really does explode into the ball carrier and is aware of his fellow defenders and if one is going low he will go high and visa versa.

    When defending against smaller nippier runners on the edge of the ruck, Sam Longabandi gets low and mirrors their lateral movement aiming the subsequent tackle around the waist rather than the chest area where it is easy for tackles to slip up to around the head area.

    Sam Longabandi will line up for the Tugun Seahawks once again in 2021 in the U14 age group where he will be one of the best players in the competition once again. From a representative perspective, Sam Longabandi will be in iine to be part of the 2021 Group 18 U14 representative squad for the New South Wales Country Age Championships.

    With his size and speed combination to is hard to envisage Sam Longabandi playing anywhere but the second row as his rugby league career goes from strength to strength. I would think that potentially for the next couple of seasons Sam Longabandi could also play in the centres such is his speed and skill set, and that would not be a bad thing to get that exposure, but ultimately I believe that Sam Longabandi will carve out an outstanding rugby league career as a second rower.

    I would argue that former Brisbane Broncos, Queensland State of Origin and Australian International back rower Matt Gillett is a very good comparison with the way that Sam Longabandi plays. Like Gillett, Sam Longabandi is a hard running hard tackling young man with great leadership skills and a tough hard aggressive clinical and calculating edge to every aspect of his game. I would argue however that Sam Longabandi has a fait bit more speed than Matt Gillett.

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    Chad Jones. In early October 2020 the front rower was part of a Titans Group 18 U16 Invitational side that played a trial match against a Titans squad with the match being played at Cbus Stadium, giving the young players a great experience with an added bonus that the players from both side wore Titans jerseys.

    In the 2020 Group 18 U16 competition Chad Jones played for the Cudgen Hornets. In the regular season in the 2020 Group 18 U16 season, Cudgen won two games and lost eight, along the way scoring 138 points and conceding 244 to finish with a -106 points differential.

    Post the competition of the 2020 Group 18 season, Chad Jones was named as the joint Cudgen Hornets Junior Representative Player of the 2020 season.

    Chad Jones started the 2020 season as part of the Northern Rivers Titans U16 Andrew Johns Cup squad starting in the front row in three of the four matches that the Titans played in the front row and was also named to start Round One in the front row against the Parramatta Eels but that match was washed out.

    Chad Jones started in the front row against the Central Coast Roosters (Round Three), the Greater Northern Tigers (Round Four) and the North Coast Bulldogs in Round Five. In Round Two against the Newcastle Knights, Chad Jones came off the bench for the Titans.

    2020 also saw Chad Jones play one match for the Cudgen Hornets U18 NRRRL side being the final regular season round when he came off the bench against the Tweed Coast Raiders.

    In 2019 Chad Jones played for the Group 18 U15 representative side at the New South Wales Country Age Championships, playing primarily in the front row.

    Chad Jones is a big and I mean big strong front rower who is a powerful runner of the football, who knows only one way and that is straight ahead and can offload once he has impacted the defensive line or has crashed through it, in addition he is quite effective when his team is attacking close to the try line. Chad Jones can either take the ball himself, and when he gets low he is very difficult to stop or he can run as a decoy and attract defenders away from the real axis of attack.

    For a big front rower Chad Jones does actually have quite decent speed and footwork, certainly well above average for a player of his size. Chad Jones does however seem to carry the ball in his right hand away from his body which whilst it can make offloading easier once he engages the defensive line it can lead to a number of dropped balls when opposing defenders engage him.

    Chad Jones is obviously suited to defending in the centre of the ruck rather that the fringes and will understandably have some trouble with nippy runners out of dummy half. Chad Jones’s calling card though is the strength and power to effectively engage the opposing forward early in their run and use his natural strength to win the forward battle in the centre of the ruck.

    Chad Jones can defensively handle any one on one battle that presents itself. At times in games Chad Jones really does prevent opposing gaining any ground at all through the centre of the ruck at all.

    Chad Jones will play the 2021 season with the Cudgen Hornets in the NRRRL U18 competition and also look to break into the 2021 Northern Rivers Titans U18 Laurie Daley Cup side. Chad Jones will still be U18 in 2022 as well.

    Chad Jones is a front rower pure and simple, always has been and surely always will be, regardless of where and how far his career takes him.

    For me a solid NRL comparison for Chad Jones is current Wests Tigers and New Zealand International front rower Russell Packer as a front rower who regularly crashes head long into the defensive line but does have some subtle footwork which seems to get largely over looked, as for that matter is his solid defensive technique and impressive functional strength.

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    Ty Kilpatrick. In early October 2020 the front rower was part of a Titans Group 18 U16 Invitational side that played a trial match against a Titans squad with the match being played at Cbus Stadium, giving the young players a great experience with an added bonus that the players wore Titans jerseys.

    In the 2020 Group 18 U16 competition Ty Kilpatrick played for the Cudgen Hornets. The 2020 U16 Group 18 Cudgen Hornets finished the regular season winning two games and losing eight, along the way scoring 138 points and conceding 244 to finish with a -106 points differential. Post the season Ty Kilpatrick was named the Cudgen Hornets Group 18 U16 Best Forward and was also named as the joint Cudgen Hornets Junior Representative Player of the 2020 season.

    Ty Kilpatrick also played a number of matches for the Cudgen Hornets NRRRL U18 side in 2020 coming into the side after the competition was split into two (Northern and Southern Conferences) due to the Queensland border restrictions. Ty Kilpatrick’s first match was off the bench against the Murwillumbah Mustangs in the “new” Round One and he also started from the bench in Round Two against Bilambil.

    Ty Kilpatrick started the next three rounds at left centre being against Bilambil (Round Three), Tweed Coast (Round Four) and Murwillumbah in Round Five.

    In Round Six against the Tweed Coast Raiders, Ty Kilpatrick moved back to start from the bench and Ty Kilpatrick also started from the bench in the 2020 NRRL U18 Major Semi-final against the Murwillumbah Mustangs.

    Ty Kilpatrick came off the bench in the 2020 NRRRL U18 Grand Final playing right second row as the Hornets defeated Murwillumbah 28 – 16 in a bad tempered Grand Final.

    Ty Kilpatrick started the 2020 season as part of the Northern Rivers Titans U16 Andrew Johns Cup squad starting all four of the matches the Titans played in the front row and was also named to start Round One in the front row against the Parramatta Eels but that match was washed out due to heavy rain in the lead-up to the match.

    Ty Kilpatrick started in the front row against the Newcastle Knights (Round Two), the Central Coast Roosters (Round Three), the Greater Northern Tigers (Round Four) and the North Coast Bulldogs in Round Five.

    In 2019 Ty Kilpatrick played for the Group 18 U15 representative side at the New South Wales Country Age Championships, playing primarily coming off the bench and also represented Group 18 in 2018 at the U14 level.

    The long striding Ty Kilpatrick is at his best when he is operating in the fringes of the ruck where he can exploit gaps in the defensive line with his size and speed. When he runs Ty Kilpatrick is all arms, legs, knees and elbows and with his long stride and strong fend is a difficult proposition for defenders to handle in the context of getting him to the ground.

    Ty Kilpatrick’s leg drive and determination also enables him to be equally effective in relation to operating in traffic where he gets his body height low he can shrug off would be tacklers by dropping his shoulder into the defender just as he starts to commit to the tackle, Ty Kilpatrick can then redirect his momentum and proceed down the field post contact.

    In terms of overall speed, whilst a touch above average for his position, Ty Kilpatrick when in space will be caught by cover defenders but he is quick enough to maintain separation until he has progressively worked through his options and invariably makes the right decision with the ball.

    Defensively Ty Kilpatrick is adept at wrapping up the ball carrier and his initial contact is underrated as his primary function and goal is to wrap up the ball to prevent off loads. His stamina is such that you will see Ty Kilpatrick make multiple tackles in a short space of time and then immediately make himself available to take a hit up.

    Ty Kilpatrick will play the 2021 season with the Cudgen Hornets in the NRRRL U18 competition after playing a number of matches in that competition for the Hornets in 2019. Ty Kilpatrick will also be U18 eligible in 2022. Ty Kilpatrick is also a member of the 2021 Northern Rivers Titans U18 Laurie Daley Cup Squad.

    Evn though Ty Kilpatrick played in the front row and even in the centres in the NRRRL U18 competition I believe that as his rugby league career continues to progress Ty Kilpatrick will settle in the second row.

    With his mobility and hardworking mentality Ty Kilpatrick’s playing style reminds me of Penrith Panthers second rower Luke Capewell who it should be remembered has been 18th man for the Queensland State of Origin side on a number of occasions in recent season.

    Both are hardworking players who give everything they have every time that they step onto a rugby league field doing a lot of the little things well and will sometimes be unfairly overlooked by everyone but their team mates and coaching staff.

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    Cameron Bevan. In early October 2020 the young backrower was part of the Titans Group 18 U14/15 side that played a trial match against a Titans Gold Coast U14 squad with the match being played at Cbus Stadium, giving the young players a great experience with an added bonus that the players wore Titans jerseys.

    In the 2020 Group 18 U15 competition Cameron Bevan played for the Bilambil Jets and was named 2020 Group 18 U15 Player of the Year and well as playing in the Jets 14 – 6 Grand Final victory over Byron Bay/Lennox Head.

    In the 2020 Group 18 U15 regular season the Bilambil Jets went through winning all ten of their matches, scoring 242 points and conceding 72 to finish the season with a +242 points differential.

    For his age group Cameron Bevan is a tall athlete and this can be seen when he is running with the ball. In his hit ups Cameron Bevan carries the ball with pace and is very good at running on the fringes of the ruck.

    Cameron Bevan 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.

    One trait that stands out every time that you see him play is that Cameron Bevan runs with speed into the defensive line and his foot work prior to the line enables him to get partly through the line on a number of occasions. Cameron Bevan does not try to run over defenders, but he runs at the gaps between defenders and uses his running speed to break through if defenders only use their arms in the tackle.

    In relation to the defensive aspects of his game Cameron Bevan is an exceptional cover defender. With his above average to plus speed for his position he is able to track the ball across the field and be in a position to make the cover defending tackle if breaks are made.

    From a front on tackling perspective Cameron Bevan has a solid repeatable technique which he can use against attackers of any size. The keys to his technique are his timing and anticipation as well as correct head placement. So many defenders in either rugby or rugby league have no idea about head placement but Cameron Bevan is not one of them.

    Another impressive aspect from a defensive stand point for Cameron Bevan is the fact that he came make multiple tackles one after another and then still be in position to track the ball across the field, Cameron Bevan has exceptional stamina from an aerobic capacity stand point including the ability to consistently sprint short distances time and again in a short time span whilst maintaining his positioning on the field.

    Cameron Bevan will play the 2021 season with the Bilambil Jets in the Group 18 U16 competition and is also likely to get a number of opportunity to play in the Jets NRRRL U18 side in 2021. Cameron Bevan is also a member of the 2021 Northern Rivers Titans U16 Andrew Johns Cup Squad.

    With his size, speed, stamina and strength combination, Cameron Bevan is the ideal modern day rugby league second rower.

    In relation to identifying an NRL player that compares favourably from a playing comparison perspective for Cameron Bevan you need to look no further than Sydney Roosters and New South Wales State of Origin second rower Angus Creighton as a player who will look to run into gaps in the defensive line with speed and timing and who can defend either in the centre of the ruck or a little wider out as a foil for his half and five eight, a defensive minder if you will.

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    Shane Davis-Caldwell. In early October 2020 the talented fullback or centre was part of a Titans Group 18 U16 Invitational side that played a trial match against a Titans squad with the match being played at Cbus Stadium, giving the young players a great experience with an added bonus that the players wore Titans jerseys in the match.

    In the 2020 Group 18 U16 competition Shane Davies-Caldwell played a number of matches late in the 2020 season for the South Tweed Bears including the Grand Final with the Bears defeating Murwillumbah 20 – 16 in the decider.

    In the regular season in the 2020 Group 18 U16 season, the South Tweed Bears won seven games and lost three, along the way scoring 210 points and conceding 160 to finish with a +50 points differential.

    Prior to moving to South Tweed Shane Davies-Caldwell played a number of match for the Kempsey Dragons in the Group Three Junior Rugby League competition with his last match for the Dragons being in Round Six when he came off the bench.

    Shane Davies-Caldwell had a great start to the 2020 Group Three U16 season with the Kempsey Dragons starting the opening two rounds of the competition at half back and scoring in both as well as kicking three conversions in Round One against the Taree Panthers and a conversion in Round Two against Forster Tuncurry.

    Shane Davies-Caldwell started the 2020 season as part of the North Coast Bulldogs U16 Andrew Johns Cup squad starting at fullback in all five of their matches which were against Central Coast (Round One), the Parramatta Eels (Round Two), the Greater Northern Tigers (Round Three), the Newcastle Knights (Round Four) and the Northern Rivers Titans in Round Five.

    Shane Davies-Caldwell had a particularly successful match in Round Three against the Greater Northern Tigers when he kicked six conversions from as many attempts and also kicked three conversions in Round Four against the Newcastle Knights as well as kicking conversion’s in Round Two and Five.

    In late 2019 Shane Davies-Caldwell was selected in the 2020 New South Wales U16 Indigenous Squad. Also in late 2019 Shane Davies-Caldwell was named the 2019 Kempsey Dragons Rising Star Award winner.

    In 2019 Shane Davies-Caldwell played for the Group Two U15 representative side at the 2019 New South Wales Country Age Championships, including scoring a try and kicking three gaols in the 2019 U15 Trophy Final that Group Two won 22 – 6 against the Central Coast Roosters. Whilst Shane Davies-Caldwell wore the number one jersey in the match, he spent a significant portion of the match at right centre, and it was from that position in the second half where his try came from when he picked up a dropped ball by Central Coast to run fifty five metres to score untouched and in fact was able to bring the ball around to put it down in the goal posts.

    When he runs the ball, Shane Davies-Caldwell is exceptionally quick and explosive, with exceptional speed, both off the mark and when he gets into open space. Shane Davies-Caldwell also can step off both feet exceptionally well and also has a great swerve whilst maintaining top speed.

    On many occasions when he made a break, Shane Davies-Caldwell’s support could not keep up and thus he used his incredible footwork and speed to beat the opposing fullback by himself. There is nothing that Shane Davies-Caldwell cannot do running the ball and it is only now about developing his ball playing skills, which to be fair improved exponentially as this season has progressed to make his footwork and running ability even more lethal.

    In addition Shane Davies-Caldwell 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. He obviously was a key target for defences but Shane Davies-Caldwell 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 are endless.

    In terms of running the ball back from kicks, Shane Davies-Caldwell’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 Shane Davies-Caldwell is an absolute handful to tackle with his speed and evasion skills.

    Defensively in the fullback position Shane Davies-Caldwell does not make a huge amount of tackles but the ones he makes are the ones that need to be made. If an attacker runs directly at him, he will come forward to cut down the time the attacker has to make a decision and he will hit very hard and does not fall for a dummy in those situations.

    An impressive attribute that Shane Davies-Caldwell does have is ability to force attackers who are in open space to try to beat him down the side line. Shane Davies-Caldwell will stay inside the attacker and force him in the required direction and then use his timing, closing speed and anticipation to make the tackle, usually forcing the attacker into touch.

    Shane Davies-Caldwell will likely play the 2021 season in the NRRRL U18 competition for either Cudgen or Bilambil and starting in 2021 will have two years of U18 eligibility. Shane Davies-Caldwell is also a member of the 2021 Northern Rivers Titans U18 Laurie Daley Cup Squad.

    Even though Shane Davies-Caldwell played at half back early in the 2020 club rugby league season for the Kempsey Dragons, for me a better pointer to a potential future from a position perspective for Shane Davies-Caldwell was his play at fullback in the 2020 U16 Andrew Johns Cup for the North Coast Bulldogs.

    For me Shane Davies-Caldwell has a similar playing style to that of former Titan and current English Super League half/fullback Albert Kelly. Like Kelly, Shane Davies-Caldwell has the speed off the mark to be able to exploit gaps in the defensive line and also has a bit of unpredictability about him which keeps defensive lines honest especially when Shane Davies-Caldwell runs with the ball in two hands directly at the line.

    With continued development of his play making and passing skills Shane Davies-Caldwell has intriguing potential for the coming seasons. Shane Davies-Caldwell is a solid goal kicker as well and a developing tactical kicker who has the potential to be his side’s first choice kicker in both disciplines in future seasons.

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    Stevie O’Connor. In early October 2020 the young centre was part of the Titans Group 18 Invitational U14/15 side that played a trial match against a Titans Gold Coast U14 squad with the match being played at Cbus Stadium, giving the young players a great experience with an added bonus that both sides wore Titans jerseys.

    In the 2020 Group 18 U15 competition Stevie O’Connor played for the Tweed Coast Raiders. In the 2020 Group 18 U15 regular season Tweed Coast finished with five wins and five losses, scoring 186 points and conceding 136 to finish with a +50 points differential.

    In 2019 Stevie O’Connor played for the Group 18 U14 representative side at the New South Wales Country Age Championships, playing primarily in the centres.

    Stevie O’Connor is just a silky smooth runner of the ball who seems to glide across the field effortlessly and certainly has an extra gear in relation to the speed he possesses as well as plus speed off the mark and plus lateral movement as well.

    Stevie O’Connor also has the ability to stand up his direct opposite and then beat him with pace on the outside, something that is becoming increasingly rare in the modern game.

    When he gets the ball early from his inside play makers, Stevie O’Connor is incredibly difficult to deal with one on one, as whilst his speed has already been noted, he is also a powerful runner who has the power to also break tackles through sheer power and not just rely on his speed to beat his opponent, in short Stevie O’Connor has a myriad of moves to break through the defensive line regardless of the defensive methodology that they are incorporating.

    The one thing Stevie O’Connor also seems to be able to do well, is to step back inside without the loss of his speed or forward momentum, opposing defenders seem to push out quickly when he has the ball expecting him to look to beat them on their outside, if they come across to far, he has a very good step back side and if the inside defenders are not quick enough to cover across he has the speed to make a clean break in those circumstances.

    Similarly when an opposing defender looks to come out of the line quickly to put pressure on him, Stevie O’Connor’s his quick twitch feet means that he can step off either foot quickly to negate the attempt to cut down his time. In short Stevie O’Connor is a very talented attacking player who looks to beat his opponent with speed and guile rather than purely by brute strength.

    In defence Stevie O’Connor has good strength, but will certainly look to come out of the line to stop the attack before it has time to fully develop. He will show his opposite centre the sideline and is confident that his speed will enable him to get across to make the tackle.

    As Stevie O’Connor fills out and gains more experience he will become more effective defensively, not that there is all that much wrong with how he defends at present certainly in relation to the standard he is playing at.

    Stevie O’Connor will play the 2021 season with the Tweed Coast Raiders in the Group 18 U16 competition. Stevie O’Connor is also a member of the 2021 Northern Rivers Titans U16 Andrew Johns Cup Squad.

    Stevie O’Connor has the speed and elusiveness to stay in the centres for the long term although a move to the wing is not necessarily out of the question.

    If you are looking for a current NRL player with a similar skill set, I cannot go past 2021 Parramatta Eels signing and former Cowboy and Bronco Tom Opacic as a young player with a similar playing style, they both just seem to innately understand where to best position themselves to impact the play whether that be in attack or defence.


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