ARTICLE COURTESY OF COFFS COAST ADVOCATE
By Brad Greenshields
TAKING the first intake of footballers in the QBE Sydney Swans North Coast Academy through their paces yesterday, former premiership coach Paul Roos said that there’s no restriction on which players can qualify for a spot.
“There’s nothing specific other than them being talented boys,” Roos said.
“It’s just great to have this first night which is fantastic.”
Yesterday, 11 boys including Coffs Coast players Jordan Perks, Tayler Perks, Sam Taylor, Jake Saunders, Brendan Norton, Kane Latham, Jack Mapleson and Jake Brown were shown some things to work on not only by Roos but also dual Brownlow medallist and Sydney captain Adam Goodes.
The first session at Novotel Pacific Bay Resort was a brief almost informal one but Roos was quick to point out that as time goes by the sessions will become bigger in intensity as well as size.
“We’re happy to add a lot of boys to this squad,” he said.
“As we see these boys play we’ll be adding boys regularly.”
The Academy caters for boys aged between nine and 18 and will ensure talented youngsters have a clear pathway to one day play for the Sydney Swans if they’re good enough
An Academy training centre has been established at Novotel Pacific Bay Resort where the Coffs Coast players will be coached each week by AFL experts such as Northern NSW regional manager Mark Heaney.
Yesterday’s group is a branch of the QBE Sydney Swans Academy, which also includes regional centres in the Illawarra, Hunter and Central Coast areas along with three centres in Sydney.
When it is fully operational, it is expected the QBE Sydney Swans Academy program will provide access to an elite AFL development program for 720 boys each year.
Last Modified on 11/02/2011 21:00