Josh Smith will represent Queensland at the under-16 nationals later this month.
Josh Stahlhut will also head to Perth on July 15 with the under-15 Queensland team while Matt Joseph is a chance to join him as he is a shadow player in the under-15 squad.
These selections come after Josh Sugden was picked as a shadow player in the Queensland under-18 squad so it has been a successful year for Darling Downs players looking to take the game further.
AFL Darling Downs development manager Keith Webb is ecstatic with the number of state representatives the region has produced this year.
“It’s been three years since we had anyone in and to have four get through to the squads (is good). That’s the most we have had in the last six years I’ve been involved with development in the area, so it’s great,” Webb said.
The goal for Webb now is to see these players remain on the Downs to boost the standard of the game in the area and the three younger players can progress through to the Toowoomba Crows who play in the AFL Queensland Under-18 Division One competition.
Smith trained with the under-16 squad in Brisbane yesterday afternoon while Stahlhut and Joseph have also been training once per week in Brisbane with the under-15 squad.
Stahlhut and Joseph have done especially well as they are the only country players selected in the under-15 squad.
They will head down to Brisbane next week for a two-day training camp.
The under-15 nationals run from July 25-31 in Perth.
Article by Ben Drewe (The Chronicle)
Last Modified on 29/09/2010 12:08
