Kyden raring to go in Shield
HIS dad is a Cowboys legend, but Centrals Tigers junior Kyden Tate will get the chance to make his own rugby league memories when the annual Laurie Spina Shield kicks off tomorrow.
Named after the club’s inaugural captain, the Laurie Spina Shield is one of the largest junior rugby league carnivals in Australia and will feature more than 70 teams of under-11 players travelling from as far as Torres Strait, the Northern Territory, and central and southeast Queensland.
Kyden has come through the junior ranks in Townsville playing in the Paul Bowman Challenge (under-9) and Gorden Tallis Cup (under-10) with his dad and former Cowboys centre Brent as coach.
Brent played 229 NRL games and won a premiership with the Broncos in 2006, but he described coaching his son’s team as his most rewarding challenge in rugby league.
“When the boys have a really good game, and I don’t care if they win, but if they play really well I walk away on a Saturday feeling really pumped,” he said.
“You just see how much fun they have. There’s a real excitement around the carnivals … everyone’s pumped about playing and you can see a real lift in them.
“It (coaching the juniors) is probably one of the most challenging things I’ve ever done, but also the most rewarding.”
The carnival also includes a signing session with the Cowboys on Friday with the final to be played as the curtain-raiser to the NRL clash with the Rabbitohs at 1300SMILES Stadium on Saturday night.
A host of current Cowboys players including Michael Morgan, Kyle Feldt and Jake Clifford have played in the Laurie Spina Shield on their journey to NRL stardom.
But Cowboys game development manager Liam Bartlett said the carnival had an emphasis on participation, with young footballers encouraged to enjoy playing the game with their friends.
“It’s awesome that the whole club is right behind this carnival and it shows the kids that it is bigger than rugby league,” Bartlett said.
Spina said he always loved getting out to the carnival to interact with the juniors.
“At this carnival winning isn’t everything, it’s about playing our great game rugby league,” Spina said.
“Some kids will spend more than 10 hours on a bus to get here.”
The Laurie Spina Shield kicks off at Jack Manski Oval tomorrow morning with the final to be played as the curtain-raiser to the Cowboys game at 1300SMILES Stadium on Saturday night at 6.15pm.