Four Far South Coast Falcons will take on the national stage this week.
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Tamika Millard, Alanna Dummett, Makayla Morris and Jorja Moore will all represent the ACT Brumbies at the rugby union Youth Nationals to be held in Brisbane this week.
“The experience so far has been heaps of fun and totally worth all the travel,” Tamika said of the opportunity.
“We are all excited to compete at the nationals, we’ll be playing in Brisbane over three days with a combined team from Canberra, Batemans Bay and locally Pambula and Quaama.”
Falcons coach Scott Harris said he was immensely proud of all four of the girls who made the cut.
“It’s fantastic to see them get this level of opportunity, but also the recognition for their hard work,” Harris said.
“I’m very proud of them, they’re showing what dedication and hard work can lead to and I wouldn’t be surprised if they got picked up for the Australian side.”
It has been a tense couple of months after eight Falcons were nominated in an extended training roster, that was cut to the final 12 just last week.
“Eight of the girls were in the mix and we’re so happy to see the talent down here getting the chance to shine.”
The selection process included a number of tournaments but also training sessions at least twice a week – sometimes a three or four-hour drive away for the local contingent.
“We’d all like to thank our parents that have put in the effort with all the travel over the past eight weeks,” Tamika said.
Having performed on the national stage before, the girls said they were just eager to experience the competition and put their best foot forward.
But Harris said it was no small feat the girls had made it to the competition.
He said selection assured their ability among the top 120 under 17s players Australia-wide in rugby union.
“They have come from different codes, but they all have a background in rugby and they’re all incredible natural athletes,” he said.
“From the Falcons point of view, we’re incredibly proud to see how they’ve been able to stand up and shine at this level of competition.”
With ever-improving pathways for young women, Harris said there was massive potential for the girls to advance to bigger things.
“You see players like Millie Boyle and excelling in the competition and they could very well follow in her steps,” he said.
With opportunities for national selection or the upcoming Youth Olympics “they’re in with a shout, they’re role models and great young women,” Harris said.