NEW WAVE OF FOOTY TALENT

“WHY not try football, it seems like such a great sport.” That was the sentiment of first year player NTJFA’s Liana Freestone after her best-on-field performance for the NTJFA at North Hobart Oval yesterday. Liana and her teammates are the next wave of talented Tasmanian footballers coming through who were on display across the state — and who could be among our first players in a Tasmanian AFL team as momentum grows.

IT was only fitting with Tasmania being the talk of the football world that the state celebrated the sport with a feast of footy yesterday.

The creation of an AFL Project Team filled with some of business’s heavy hitters tasked with building an indisputable case for the state’s entry to the big league has caused waves in football circles.

Back home, though, it was the participants creating headlines.

In Launceston, Tasmania’s best under-25 players — those earmarked to lead the state into the VFL in two years’ time — had a dominating win over the Vic Metro under-25s with a six-goal win.

The story wasn’t so good at under-18 level, with the Devils going down by 38 points in a shock loss to the Murray Bushrangers, while the Allies — made up of the best under-18 players from Tasmania, NSW, Queensland and the Northern Territory — were trashed by 97 points by Vic Country in the national championships.

At North Hobart Oval, it was the state’s best under-16s showing off their talents in a good old-fashioned intrastate clash with, fittingly, a win apiece.

The NTJFA were far too strong for the STJFL, victorious by 68 points, while it was a thriller in the boys’ with the STJFL storming home from 13 points down at the last change to win by two goals.