AFL Sydney is pleased to announce the final team for the 23’s representative side to take on the Black Diamond at Newcastle Sportsground on Saturday afternoon.
GWS GIANTS Academy coach Chris Hughes takes the reign of the 23’s for the 3rd successive year and will be looking to take his record to two and one with victory over the Black Diamond, a region he represented himself in former days.
After leading his charges to an impressive win over the Farrer Football League in 2012, Hughes went agonisingly close to masterminding a huge upset last year over one of the strongest Riverina open sides in years. Whilst the 2013 program was a huge success, falling in the final minutes has spurred Hughes on this year to take his record to two victories.
Hughes described his 2014 team as a "unique" group, but one he has the utmost faith in, "We don't have any overly tall players but the players selected can play above their height. We have a good balance of inside and outside players which will hopefully see us win first use of the footy. Being 23 or under, all of these players are super fit and run extremely well".
When asked about how the 2014 program has run, Hughes was pleased with the players commitment, "The side has been very keen since their initial selection in the 40 strong squad. Myself and the coaching staff have been extremely impressed with the players professionalism and maturity for such a young group. They have trained with intensity and some aggression – always a good sign".
"The players are excited and proud about their opportunity to represent the league and we won't be giving in at any stage," Hughes beamed.
This will be the third meeting between the AFL Sydney 23’s and the Black Diamond and the side is hoping to keep the perfect record over the northern rivals in tact. The first encounter was a 40 goal shootout as current Swans star Dane Rampe kicked 8 goals as an 18 year old to help AFL Sydney to a 3 goal victory while 2010 saw a 50 point rout at the NSW Country Championships.
Hughes is well aware that the Black Diamond competition is far stronger in recent years and is under no illusions of the task at hand, "We know they have chosen a strong team and are expecting a strong, hard bodied opposition who are able to run. The team are coming off an impressive win against the Farrer League last year, they are confident and are playing us on their home turf. They are definitely sitting in the box seat and I believe that the game will be a tough and physical match, especially within the first 15 minutes".
Hughes and his coaching staff of Daniel Lynch, Mark Maher and Tracey Kick will be reminding the players of the honour of wearing the jumper and hoping that being involved in games like this will shape them for the future, "Apart from trying to chalk up a win, the players will gain a new respect and understanding of what it is like to play quality opposition, being surrounded by quality team mates and soaking up the fact that they are representing Sydney AFL on the biggest stage".
"I hope that this then propels these guys to play the best football they can and then onto bigger things both inside and outside of football," Hughes concluded.
The match will be played at 1pm this Saturday 7th June at Newcastle No.1 Sportsground however for those unable to make the trip you will be able to catch all the action which will be streamed live at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMNR3h6qK_o
The final team line up is below:
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Pidgeon
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Jordan
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Holroyd Parramatta
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Cahill
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Matthew
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Holroyd Parramatta
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Mayne
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Bryce
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Holroyd Parramatta
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Cook
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William
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Illawarra
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Washington
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Hayden
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Manly Warringah
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Bosschieter
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Nathan
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Manly Warringah
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Parsons
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Charlie
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North Shore
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Schacher
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Daniel
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North Shore
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Moraitis
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Theo
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Pennant Hills
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Widmer
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Ted
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Pennant Hills
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Young
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Matthew
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Southern Power
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Green
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Thomas
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St George
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Green
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Harrison
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St George
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Killworth
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Dominic
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St George
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Cass
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Joshua
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Sydney Hills
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Smith
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Evan
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Sydney University
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Johnson
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David
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Sydney University
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Foote
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Alex
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UNSW/ES
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McKinlay
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Jack
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UNSW/ES
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Blackburn
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Wayd
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Western Suburbs
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Lemme
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Mathew
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Western Suburbs
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Sands
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Levi
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Western Suburbs
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Last Modified on 05/06/2014 23:51
