Young rugby league players from the western suburbs dominate a combined-states team that will compete at the Australian under-18 schoolboy championships next month.
The team was selected during a Queen’s Birthday weekend tournament at which Victoria, Western Australia, South Australia and Northern Territory competed for the Sam Dovey trophy.
By winning two of its three matches, the Victorian side won the trophy for the sixth year in a row.
The best performers from all sides were named in 20-member squads for the school- boy championships.
The combined side will face three New South Wales-based teams, one each from the Catholic, private and state school sectors, and one each from Canberra and Queensland.
Apuanea Vaka, of Sunshine College, Amanaki Manu, of Victoria University Secondary College, Jamayne Taunoa-Brown, of Hoppers Crossing Secondary College and Rikki Turner, of the Grange P-12 College, will travel to Darwin for the championships in the July school holidays.
Coach Jamie Fardell said it was a great effort by each of the boys to be selected in such a strong team.
“A core group of these boys are in the Melbourne Storm under-18s,” he said. “We would love for Victoria to go to the Australian schoolboys by themselves in future.”
After Victoria’s Sam Dovey Trophy victory, Taunoa-Brown was named the tournament’s best player.
