Plenty of young football talent all through region

THE future is bright for Territory football, and that goes for the remote regions and Central Australia.

These were the sentiments of AFLNT talent manager Simon Hargrave after the NT Thunder Academy AFL and AFLW League Championship Challenges at TIO Stadium on Friday night.

The boys’ match was a draw, Team Jeffrey kicking 9.3 (57) to Team Rosas’ 8.9 (57).

And in the girls’ game, Team Baird triumphed 12.5 (77) to 8.5 (53) over Team Ponter.

But it was the amount of bright young talent from all around the region who participated in both games which really impressed Hargrave.

“For the girls’ game, we had 18 players come up from Alice Springs and some from Katherine,” Hargrave said.

“And the boys had nine from Alice Springs, four from Tennant Creek, three from Katherine, four from the Tiwi Islands and one from Gove. We’ve got plenty of talent here in the Territory who can go to the next level, and we’re looking forward to seeing what these kids can produce as part of our program over the next two to three years.”

There was no shortage of standouts from both games. “Sandy Brock is back from Perth (playing for Peel Thunder in the WAFL) and he held firm down back,” Hargrave said.

“Riley Stone and Brodie Grace were also impressive, and Tadgh Evans kicked three goals for Team Jeffrey, which was captained well by Thomas Clarke in the midfield.

“Erini Gikas, Kyanne Campbell and Grace Whittaker stood out in the girls’ game.”

Attention now turns to the 2021 AFL Combine on October 9.

Territory products, and Thunder Academy and Allies squad members Andy MonizWakefield and Ned Stevens will take part.

Moniz-Wakefield is a star for Nightcliff, and is part of Melbourne’s Next Generation Academy program. Stevens has stood out for Waratah and was selected as part of the Gold Coast Suns’ Next Generation Academy program last year. “It (both players being invited to the Combine) will not only be great motivation for our other NT Thunder Academy players to aim to secure a spot on the next two Combine lists, but also give the next generation of Territory players something to strive for,” Hargrave said.

Moniz-Wakefield enjoyed a fine 2020-21 NTFL season with eventual premiers the Tigers, kicking 10 goals and finishing in his team’s best six times.

“Andy reads the play very well and his commitment to improve is very good,” Hargrave said.

“He’s not afraid to ask a lot of questions and he trains six days a week.”