THE under 16 Western Rams may have been outclassed by their Manly Warringah Sea Eagles rivals on Saturday, but coach Kurt Hancock still sees a bright future for his young players.
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Saturday’s match at Dubbo was the final chance for 31 Western Rams hopefuls to press their claims for a place in the squad for this year’s Country Championships.
Bathurst Panthers talents Dylan Miles, Mackenzie Atkins, Harry Hopkins, Nathan Ward, Kevin Large, Brad Fearnley and Nic Barlow, plus St Pat’s winger Jack McCloud, pulled on the green and white.
The Sea Eagles proved too slick as they ran out 56-4 winners, the benefit of training together as a squad on a regular basis clearly highlighted.
Many players who wore the maroon and white will undoubtedly go on to impress in the NSWRL junior representative competitions, which start next month.
But Hancock feels many Western Rams have the potential to shine on that level as well.
"We are starting to get a bit of recognition out here now with the junior program we've got,” he said.
"It's really closing the gap on the Harold Matthews and SG Ball in Sydney, which is a real positive for the bush kids.
"We're not far off, the different is we can't get to training four-five times a week because of the travel.
"I wish they [Western] had this sort of program when I was a kid coming through. Now if they do go down to Sydney, they are going to be ready from the word go.
"The effort from the kids so far has been great … they have got their diaries that they have to fill out each week as well - with this program they are getting a real insight into what it is going to be like down in Sydney.
"I've been really happy with the way the program has been run, it's a real credit to Western Division.”
The under 16s Country Championships will feature regional teams from across New South Wales and unlike the seniors, they will use a round-robin pool format as opposed to a knockout.
It is a draw which Hancock is a big fan of and he feels his young Rams have the potential to do well.
"This year, the way the comp is set up, it's not just one knockout game, the kids get to play at least three games, so it's more exposure for them,” he said.
"If everything goes right I think they will do well at the Country Championships, but you've got to have that bit of luck as well.
“These are a really good group of kids, but it could be a really good age group across the state as well.”
