44 elite schoolboys start camp in Goroka

Normal, Sports
Source:

The National, Monday 08th April, 2013

 By GABRIEL LAHOC

THE PNGRL Foundation will host its first national schoolboys’ elite development camp at the National Sports Institute in Goroka today.

It will feature 44 talented junior rugby league players selected from the national schoolboys’ championship held in September along with 12 coaches.

PNG Rugby League Foundation chief executive officer Brad Tassell said there would be enormous talent on display in the four-day camp.

Included for the first time at the elite camp will be two coaches each from the Simbu and Enga, who joined the national schoolboys programme this year.

“The camp features the best kids selected through the national programme in 2012 who followed a pathway from their local competitions through to the zone and national championship to selection into the national elite squad,” Tassell said.

“The squad will go into three camps this year as well as an international tour and we firmly believe we have some superstars and future Kumuls being developed through this programme,” he said.

Tassell said the PNGRLF was dedicated to the schoolboys programme and would work closely with Team Kumul and the PNGRFL to provide a pathway from the schoolboys elite squad into Junior Kundus, Emerging Kumuls and Team Kumuls programmes in the future.

Development manager Shane Morris and Arnold Krewanty will run this elite camp along with strength and fitness coach and trainer, Jason Tassell.

“The kids who have been in this programme for the past two years are now already at the significantly higher skill level than other kids the same age playing in PNG,” Krewanty said.

“They have a high level of understanding of what is required at an elite level and their attitude has been positively changed

“We have no doubt that in the next three years these kids will be the future Kumuls players and will graduate into Team Kumul programme with a higher level of skills and attitude than ever before.

“The youth of our nation are the key to the future successes and we are committed to ensuring they grow as not only rugby league players but future leaders of our nation,”