Aspiring seniors to thrive in U21s

INJECTING an under-21s competition into the Intrust Super Cup will have major development implications not just for rugby league’s up-andcoming players, but the game as a whole.

That is the opinion of Townsville Blackhawks coach Dave Elliott, who said the extra year of progress would put his players on a path to higher honours.

When the pandemic ripped away the chance for the under-20s to charge towards the Queensland title, Elliott said it opened a window to an anxiety-riddled period for his graduating cohort.

For those who would not get an opportunity to push for ISC squad selection one final time, their futures and NRL prospects were clouded in uncertainty.

But Elliott said ever since Jack Johnson, Curtis Dempsey and Dan Martin were informed they would get another crack in 2021, the spring in their steps had returned.

And for the younger players who will play against even more senior opponents, he said that exposure would raise the level of competition and was a move he hoped remained permanent.

“In the past we’d finish our 20s season and the next time you see them as 21-year-olds they develop again physically,” Elliott said.

“I’m not sure if it’s another growth spurt or they’re at a spot they’re ready to fill out, but physically it will be a lot tougher.

“They’re really just learning to play the game when they leave it (the 20s program), so I think that will be a really big positive in the way our players manage the game and how they develop their skills.

“When you’re a young bloke you really want to play against the best opposition … the 21s will raise the whole standard of that competition.

“You’re starting to see the best out of a 20-year-old then you have to sort of let them go and transition, but you could potentially take them to another level in that extra year.”

The biggest hurdle Elliott said his players had to overcome when the health crisis took hold was how they navigated their way to professional football.

He said some felt as though their final chance to impress senior teams was gone.

This became a particularly bitter pill to swallow, after the likes of Johnson had played for the Blackhawks ISC side in the pre-season and showed enough promise to please coach Aaron Payne.

Those concerns were relayed to the QRL prior to the decision on the under-21s competition being finalised.

Elliott said those responses formed part of the sport’s governing body’s final determination of the 2021 season.

“Just talking to them on the phone and text messages, they’re jumping out of their skin, I haven’t seen them so excited for a pre-season,” he said.

“They were ecstatic to get that opportunity to play together again, and for our blokes who were looking at transitioning out they were over the moon.

“They never got to play with each other; every pre-season is a hard slog but we really knuckled down because we were disappointed with how we exited the year before. We worked extremely hard, we hadn’t lost a trial game … against Ipswich we won 54-0.

“Coaching is all about relationships and building connections with the players, so to see those boys get another opportunity is really pleasing.”