U18 GIANTS Academy squad announced

U18 GIANTS Academy squad

The Greater Western Sydney GIANTS have announced their Under-18 Slater & Gordon GIANTS Academy squad for 2012 featuring players from across the regions of Western Sydney, Riverina, Murray and ACT/South Coast.

The players were selected following the U18 Joss State Zone Trials, which were held recently in Coffs Harbour.

Slater & Gordon GIANTS Academy Manager, Lachlan Buszard, said the standard of football had risen across the zone and he is excited at the talent within the squad.

“Impressively the Western Sydney Zone has 11 players selected which is a great sign of the improvement in the Western Sydney region, and certainly was evident in their recent performance at the Joss State Zone Carnival where they won more games than ever before,” he said.

“We’re really pleased to see that we have such a great mix of talent coming from every corner of our zone with each region thoroughly represented.”

The Slater & Gordon GIANTS Academy is a partnership between the GWS GIANTS and Slater & Gordon, which aims to nurture young talent aged between 14 and 18 years across NSW, ACT and the Northern Territory.

GWS GIANTS Head Coach Kevin Sheedy thanked Slater & Gordon for its commitment to this important partnership.

“The Slater & Gordon GIANTS Academy is a great opportunity to develop young, homegrown talent from New South Wales and the ACT and it would be wonderful to think that in a few years from now some of these young players will pull on a GIANTS jumper,” he said.

Slater & Gordon General Manager, Hayden Stephens, said some of the game’s greatest champions had come from NSW, including Paul Kelly, Shane Crawford, Wayne Carey, James Hird and Alex Jesaulenko to name just a few.

“We are looking forward to helping discover some more great champions through the Slater & Gordon GIANTS Academy, players that will go on to living out their dreams on the field and growing as capable young men off the field,” Stephens said.

“We are extremely proud to see so many players selected from the GIANTS regions to play with the 2012 Slater & Gordon GIANTS Academy.

“Alongside the GWS GIANTS, we want to see all these young men meet their full potential and we will be working hard with these players, their families and the local communities to ensure they maximise every opportunity being part of Slater & Gordon GIANTS Academy.”

The Slater & Gordon GIANTS Academy squad will take on the Sydney Swans Academy in a series of matches on March 25, April 20 and May 13.

The Academy Series forms part of the selection process for this year’s NSW/ACT RAMS side which will compete in the U18 NAB AFL National Championships.