Sharks sign medal winner after stellar season
FRESH off his best and fairest campaign in the QAFL, gun midfielder Ryan Banks-smith has thrust himself into the VFL mix.
Having dominated the 2022 season for the Aspley Hornets, Banks-smith will join the Southport Sharks as he eyes off higher honours with the Sherrin.
The 21-year-old midfielder finished the QAFL year averaging 27 disposals a game.
He won the Grogan Medal as the competition’s top player before the Hornets shocked the previously undefeated
Broadbeach to lift the silverware in the grand final.
Banks-smith has already tasted Vfl-level football in the past, playing for Aspley in the 2021 competition coming from Tasmania’s state league prior to that.
Within the Sharks ranks, he will link up with fellow new recruit Matt Mcguiness after the pair played together in Tasmania.
“It will be great to play footy with Matt again. He is not only a good footballer, but he is a great person,” Banks-smith said. “I think I am good enough to play at this level, and I want to have another go at it.
“The list at Southport is full of very good footballers. I’m pretty excited to learn off blokes like Jacob Dawson.
“You see the way they train and how they go about it, and it makes you want to be a better footballer.”
Southport coach Steve Daniel confirmed it was the weight of Banks-smith’s performances in the QAFL that earned his rise into the Sharks system.
“Ryan is a very promising player,” Daniel said.
“We were impressed with his year in the QAFL and are very excited to have him on our list for 2023.”