Report written by Paul Timms
The Brothers Bulldogs Under 15’s had 8 of our superstars head to Cairns to compete in the state championships last week.
In the boys division lead by our own Leon Black as Captain saw some amazing performances from our lads who walked away as regional champions finishing 6th defeating Darling Downs and North Queensland in their games before being beaten by a very strong play off for 5 v 6th place with Metropolitan West. All of our boys performed so well both on and off the field. They did the club, their families and themselves very very well.
Riley Cooper missed out on representing Wide Bay for the u12 Championships three years ago do to injury and played very strong games in both back and forward line. His mammoth kicks and footy IQ saving many goals.
Charlie Steele played mostly in the tricky Centre Half Forward position and was awarded Best on Field for Game 1 v Darling Downs with his speed and skills on full display.
Ari Lacey has been dominant in U14 this year and was selected at Centre Half Back, only to have the heart breaking injury last week. Whilst missing out on game time, he supported his team mates on the sidelines and got involved in every other possible way, watching every game closely and being every bit the team mate. We were so proud of his attitude and could see the fire burning within him for next year.
Levi Lacey made an impact in the forward line, presenting well and gaining in confidence from game to game. He brought the crowd the their feel scoring a magical 40 metre snap to put the boys up in the game v North Queensland in slippery conditions.
It is hard to believe that Lebron has only been in the game for his second season after playing in the u12 Rep Team last year he was our youngest player. He displayed courage and confidence in all the games getting moved around to use his speed and strength including many ruck contests against giant opposition players.
Hugo showed the results of his hard work over the past couple of years to provide a cool head under pressure, putting himself in the right spaces to get a stack of possessions and set up some wonderful passages of play. In the final minute of the North Queensland game he pushed for a 75 run from the centre to the goal square to save a sure goal right on the line. He was selected to play for Queensland in the U15 Team in the upcoming National Championships.
Leon Black was selected as Captain for the carnival and showed that he was the right choice for the role. As a leader, Leon was phenomenal. He played the game with such intensity winning the hard ball and contesting at every opportunity then settling himself to put his team mates into space. We lost count of his second, third and fourth efforts. As a player, he was outstanding and everyone agreed that his leadership on the field was beyond compare making sure that the boys also supported the girls games. He really made the club proud.
Brothers Bulldogs represented by Nikita, Maylee & Kiera at the U15 Girls Queensland Schools AFL Championships
Report written by Kristine Clarey
Recently 3 of our bulldogs female under 14 team members travelled to Cairns to compete in the Queensland Schools AFL Championships for Wide Bay. Nikita, Maylee and Keira. Nikita was named captain and Maylee Vice Captain for the tournament. Both girls showed their leadership on field. They played 4 games over the 4 days of competition and came away with an even score card of 2 wins 2 losses. While only having very limited prior championship training the girls all gelled well and played together as a team. Most of the team have been together since U12 and have developed lifelong friendships from this as well. While none of the team gained selection to Queensland, Maylee and Nikita did attract the eyes of selectors to put them into contention.
The three girls brought their individual strengths to the team. Keira with her in and under attack on the ball to clear it from the pack. Maylee with her outstanding rucking and ability to compete around the ground to get the ball. Nikita with her marking, kicking and ability to find targets. For Nikita and Maylee this was their last time representing Wide Bay as there is no older age group for the AFL competition, which is a pity. Nikita was voted MVP by her team mates.
