Zac Hosking: I was sick of being overlooked
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The Advertiser
4 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Warriors put stake in Brisbane heartland with academy
Some of the greatest rugby league players to lace a boot have come out of Logan and now the Warriors are in prime position to snare the next crop. The fourth-placed Warriors will establish a training academy and community program in the city in Brisbane's south to offer an elite training and identification program and assist young people connect with sport and find career paths outside of footy. Cameron Smith, Lote Tuqiri, Corey Parker, Brad Meyers, Josh Papalii and Jaydn Su'A are just a taste of the elite stars to have been produced by the Logan Brothers junior powerhouse club alone. The Warriors have watched on as a suite of their best junior players joined Australian-based clubs on scholarships and moved into elite development systems. The great Benji Marshall was a trailblazer who attended league powerhouse Keebra Park High on the Gold Coast as a youth before moving into the Wests Tigers system. His move inspired a suite of players from New Zealand to follow suit and most of them were snapped up by NSW or Queensland-based clubs. The new academy at Logan will help reverse that trend and with the huge number of New Zealand-born migrants in southeast Queensland will give them great access to elite youth, not just from Pacific nations but also local talent. Warriors CEO Cameron George said the club would establish permanent staff in Logan to work closely with the community and find the talent that has proven to be abundant. "Logan is a nursery. It is a rugby league hot-bed," George said. "It is a strategic move, absolutely, but we have been offered opportunities on the eastern seaboard before but never taken them up. "The most important thing for us is to build better families and generations to come and when we came here and saw the Kiwi population that does live here there are plenty of fans here. The question I asked myself was: Why not? "We have 12 academies in New Zealand doing really well but that shouldn't preclude us from coming to Australia where we have a great connection with a huge fan base that grows all the time. "If we can make kids become the best version of themselves as possible we will be proud. If we can get two or three footballers out of here, boys or girls, we will be happy and extremely proud." George said the elite academy for boys and girls in Logan would provide a direct pathway to the Warriors NRL and NRLW teams. The Broncos, Gold Coast and most recently Dolphins have been in the best position to source juniors from their near neighbour Logan but now the Warriors are set to be a force. The partnership with Logan City Council is one that Mayor Jon Raven said should fit hand in glove. "Logan is the leading rugby league nursery in the nation and has one of the largest populations of people of New Zealand and Pacific Island descent outside of Auckland," he said. "The Warriors are known for their strong community connections and supporting development opportunities for young people, which are values we love here in Logan." Some of the greatest rugby league players to lace a boot have come out of Logan and now the Warriors are in prime position to snare the next crop. The fourth-placed Warriors will establish a training academy and community program in the city in Brisbane's south to offer an elite training and identification program and assist young people connect with sport and find career paths outside of footy. Cameron Smith, Lote Tuqiri, Corey Parker, Brad Meyers, Josh Papalii and Jaydn Su'A are just a taste of the elite stars to have been produced by the Logan Brothers junior powerhouse club alone. The Warriors have watched on as a suite of their best junior players joined Australian-based clubs on scholarships and moved into elite development systems. The great Benji Marshall was a trailblazer who attended league powerhouse Keebra Park High on the Gold Coast as a youth before moving into the Wests Tigers system. His move inspired a suite of players from New Zealand to follow suit and most of them were snapped up by NSW or Queensland-based clubs. The new academy at Logan will help reverse that trend and with the huge number of New Zealand-born migrants in southeast Queensland will give them great access to elite youth, not just from Pacific nations but also local talent. Warriors CEO Cameron George said the club would establish permanent staff in Logan to work closely with the community and find the talent that has proven to be abundant. "Logan is a nursery. It is a rugby league hot-bed," George said. "It is a strategic move, absolutely, but we have been offered opportunities on the eastern seaboard before but never taken them up. "The most important thing for us is to build better families and generations to come and when we came here and saw the Kiwi population that does live here there are plenty of fans here. The question I asked myself was: Why not? "We have 12 academies in New Zealand doing really well but that shouldn't preclude us from coming to Australia where we have a great connection with a huge fan base that grows all the time. "If we can make kids become the best version of themselves as possible we will be proud. If we can get two or three footballers out of here, boys or girls, we will be happy and extremely proud." George said the elite academy for boys and girls in Logan would provide a direct pathway to the Warriors NRL and NRLW teams. The Broncos, Gold Coast and most recently Dolphins have been in the best position to source juniors from their near neighbour Logan but now the Warriors are set to be a force. The partnership with Logan City Council is one that Mayor Jon Raven said should fit hand in glove. "Logan is the leading rugby league nursery in the nation and has one of the largest populations of people of New Zealand and Pacific Island descent outside of Auckland," he said. "The Warriors are known for their strong community connections and supporting development opportunities for young people, which are values we love here in Logan." Some of the greatest rugby league players to lace a boot have come out of Logan and now the Warriors are in prime position to snare the next crop. The fourth-placed Warriors will establish a training academy and community program in the city in Brisbane's south to offer an elite training and identification program and assist young people connect with sport and find career paths outside of footy. Cameron Smith, Lote Tuqiri, Corey Parker, Brad Meyers, Josh Papalii and Jaydn Su'A are just a taste of the elite stars to have been produced by the Logan Brothers junior powerhouse club alone. The Warriors have watched on as a suite of their best junior players joined Australian-based clubs on scholarships and moved into elite development systems. The great Benji Marshall was a trailblazer who attended league powerhouse Keebra Park High on the Gold Coast as a youth before moving into the Wests Tigers system. His move inspired a suite of players from New Zealand to follow suit and most of them were snapped up by NSW or Queensland-based clubs. The new academy at Logan will help reverse that trend and with the huge number of New Zealand-born migrants in southeast Queensland will give them great access to elite youth, not just from Pacific nations but also local talent. Warriors CEO Cameron George said the club would establish permanent staff in Logan to work closely with the community and find the talent that has proven to be abundant. "Logan is a nursery. It is a rugby league hot-bed," George said. "It is a strategic move, absolutely, but we have been offered opportunities on the eastern seaboard before but never taken them up. "The most important thing for us is to build better families and generations to come and when we came here and saw the Kiwi population that does live here there are plenty of fans here. The question I asked myself was: Why not? "We have 12 academies in New Zealand doing really well but that shouldn't preclude us from coming to Australia where we have a great connection with a huge fan base that grows all the time. "If we can make kids become the best version of themselves as possible we will be proud. If we can get two or three footballers out of here, boys or girls, we will be happy and extremely proud." George said the elite academy for boys and girls in Logan would provide a direct pathway to the Warriors NRL and NRLW teams. The Broncos, Gold Coast and most recently Dolphins have been in the best position to source juniors from their near neighbour Logan but now the Warriors are set to be a force. The partnership with Logan City Council is one that Mayor Jon Raven said should fit hand in glove. "Logan is the leading rugby league nursery in the nation and has one of the largest populations of people of New Zealand and Pacific Island descent outside of Auckland," he said. "The Warriors are known for their strong community connections and supporting development opportunities for young people, which are values we love here in Logan."
News.com.au
7 hours ago
- News.com.au
What Maroons' forward contender Kulikefu Finefeuiaki said to inspire the Ipswich SHS's latest Aussie schoolboy representative
At Ipswich SHS's pre-season launch of the school's rugby league season, Dolphins ace and Ipswich SHS past captain Kulikefu Finefeuiaki took current Ipswich skipper Xzavier Timoteo aside from a chat. They laughed and they joked, hamming it up on a celebration of the Ipswich SHS rugby league community. But two words of advice Finefeuiaki struck a match with Timoteo, the Sydney Roosters-signed prop who was named in the Australian schoolboys side last Saturday. One related to the importance of hitting Roosters pre-season training at the end of the year as fit as he could possibly be. The other piece of advice related to maintaining a good diet, which struck a cord given Timoteo was once a 'small, fat kid.'' 'I was. You can ask the coaches. I was very over weight in Years 7, 8 and 9,'' said Timoteo, a lover of his mum's lasagne and potato bake. But with encouragement from the Ipswich SHS teacher, Timoteo transformed himself into one of the most feared forwards in his age group. Indeed the coaches have helped make Timoteo into the player - and person - he is today. 'My coaches are more like my big brothers. They will always take time out of their day to help you,'' he said. Timoteo also has Finefeuiaki's desire to run hard, or 'run the bust'' as he calls it. 'I've learnt to do it. It (running hard) has come with confidence probably.'' With advice from Finefeuiaki ringing in his ears, Timoteo, the Souths Acacia Ridge Magpies junior, shone for the Queensland schoolboys recently and was one of five young Maroons to make the Aussie schoolboys side. The other were Mountain Creek SHS middle forward Jackson Koina (Parramatta), PBC SHS Kiwi centre recruit Antonie Verhoeven (Broncos), Marsden SHS hooker ace Hayden Watson (Storm) and Keebra Park SHS's New Zealand eligible fullback, David Bryenton (Canterbury Bulldogs, 18th man). The Australian schoolboys squad: 1. Cameron Bamblett (Parramatta Eels) 2. Filipe Fakauaho (Sydney Roosters) 3. Toby Winter (Newcastle Knights) 4. Dayne Jennings (South Sydney Rabbitohs) 5. Antonie Verhoeven (Brisbane Broncos) 6. Callum Grantham (Cronulla Sharks) 7. Toby Batten (The Dolphins) 8. Jackson Koina (Parramatta) 9. Liam Bell (Sydney Roosters) 10. Jake White (Cronulla Sharks) 11. Pheonix Godinet (Wests Tigers) 12. Darcy Smith (Sydney Roosters) 13. Thomas Dellow (Cronulla Sharks) Interchange 14. Hayden Watson (Melbourne Storm) 15. Roman Tuaimau (Canberra Raiders) 16. Xzavier Timoteo (Sydney Roosters) 17. Christoper Petrus (Parramatta Eels) 18. David Bryenton (Canterbury Bulldogs)
News.com.au
7 hours ago
- News.com.au
‘It's not good news': Storm face crucial call at halfback as premiership favourites deal with Jahrome Hughes' shoulder injury
Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy says his side won't be able to completely recover regardless of who comes in to replace Jahrome Hughes next week as the club sweats on scans to determine the severity of the halfback's shoulder injury. Hughes left the field just minutes into the second half of Melbourne's gutsy 34-30 win over the Roosters with the club confirming immediately that he'd dislocated his shoulder after landing awkwardly while making a tackle on James Tedesco. The reigning Dally M Medal winner was in agony and had to be helped off Allianz Stadium, with Melbourne's medical staff unable to put it back in. Confirmation Jahrome Hughes has injured his shoulder and won’t return tonight. He is going to hospital for assessment and pain relief. We will provide another update as soon as we can ðŸ'œ — Melbourne Storm (@storm) July 24, 2025 'He's gone to the hospital and the doctor has gone with him. We're not really sure (how bad it is) but it's dislocated and they couldn't get it (back) in here so he'll probably have to go under to get it back in,' Bellamy said after the game. 'Whether he's got a crack in it as well or whether (it's something else) we might not find out until tomorrow, but you'd like to think they'll get it back in tonight. 'It's not good news, but we're not sure the severity of it until he has an X-ray or a scan. 'I experienced it myself. I had both my shoulders reconstructed. 'I think the longer they're out, it's a bigger problem. The longer it's out, the more it stretches the ligaments and the muscles around the joint. I don't think it's overly good news.' Storm indicate Jahrome Hughes suffered a dislocated shoulder - textbook mechanism landing on outstretched arm. General recovery guide: - minimal structural damage/joint stable: trial rehab for 3-6 weeks - significant damage/joint unstable: reco surgery & 3+ months — NRL PHYSIO (@nrlphysio) July 24, 2025 Hughes has had shoulder issues in the past and will miss the rest of the season if scans confirm the worst. It would be a huge blow for the premiership favourites who bravely fought on without him as skipper Harry Grant stood tall with superstars Cameron Munster, Ryan Papenhuyzen and Nelson Asofa-Solomona also missing. Hughes had already set up a try and was starting to look threatening in attack before he was forced off, with the result moving them back into second spot for now. 'I reckon it was just getting to the stage of the game where he would have started doing a bit more running,' Bellamy said. 'The back end of the first half he started doing a bit of running and he was causing some issues for the Roosters defence. 'No one wants to lose their halfback. He's a massive part of our footy team.' Bellamy has two clear options for next week's game against the Eels, with Tyran Wishart and Jonah Pezet the men most likely to partner Munster in the halves. Wishart played five-eighth on Thursday night and filled in admirably in the halves last season while Munster was out injured, while Pezet is a more traditional halfback but has played just two NRL games off the bench this year after returning from a serious knee injury. 'We'll give someone else a chance,' Bellamy said. 'Munster should be back next week, and with 'Wish' and 'Pez', he's only a young kid who hasn't had much first grade experience at all. But he's a good organiser and kicker. 'We'll see what we think is best for the team. 'Mun' will come back in and then we'll go from there. 'We probably won't recover completely because he was the Dally M player of the year last year. However long he's out for, we're going to miss him.'
