What do the Bankwest Academy players do?
Many people might know someone who is in the RugbyWA Bankwest Academy but may not know exactly what they do as part of that program.
Being a member of the Bankwest Academy demands a lot of time, effort, persistence and commitment.
The Bankwest Academy boasts three levels with Level Three players aged 14 or 15 years of age, Level Two players aged 16 or 17 years of age and Level One players 18 years and above.
Level Three is the entry level of the academy and their first taste of an elite level athletic program, Level Two are preparing to compete against the best players in the country at the National U16s Championships or the National Division 1 Schoolboy Championships and the Level Ones are representing their local clubs in the Pindan Premier Grade and gaining exposure in the Perth Gold squad or Force A. They are the players we are looking to develop into Emirates Western Force players within one to three years.
It is the job of the Academy staff to develop athletes that are capable of becoming professional rugby players, not only in terms of skill, but also physically with size, strength, conditioning and speed. They are also trained to be functionally effective so that injuries are minimised and the players can reach their physical peak at all times.
In order to achieve at the highest level the players are expected to put in the effort and have the drive to succeed. During the off-season and pre-season, October through March, the level one’s and two’s will train five days a week completing three skills, four weights, two speed, two competency, and two conditioning sessions. The level three’s train four days a week.
During the season, that drops to two days a week so that the focus is on their club / school matches and State representation, should they be selected. During the season the Level 1’s are required to do video analysis of their games and establish areas where they need to improve. The feedback on a Monday relates to their performance on the weekend.
The results we are seeing now is a direct result of the effort put in by the players.
In 2011 we had six Australian Schoolboy representatives and of those six five were Academy players: Corey Thomas, Harry Scoble, Isaiah Mosese, Pat McCarthy, and Richard Hardwick. Scott Tolmie was the sixth.
Isaiah received an Extended Playing Squad Contract for the Melbourne Rebels and is currently playing for Norths in Sydney. Corey, Harry, and Richard are regular starters in the UWA Premier Grade side, whilst Pat McCarthy is recovering from shoulder surgery.
All these players are either 17 or 18 years of age and were identified at 14 years of age and have worked extremely hard to achieve that success. The other Academy players in that age bracket playing Premier Grade are: Kane Koteka and Brad Lacey (West Subiaco) and Luke Burton (UWA) while Lukas Birch has just returned from injury and is playing U20s.
These are the players who have potential to become professional rugby players. Due to the nature of the sport and selections they all won’t make it but it is very encouraging that we have a group of 17 and 18 year olds showing the required development and commitment to going to the next level.
Older members of the Academy who have already had experience at Emirates Western Force A level include: Keiran Stringer, Ryan Louwrens, Nick Haining, Oli Hoskins and Ryan Hodson (Cottesloe), Jake Ball (Palmyra), Ethan Carlisle (Perth-Bayswater), and Bruce Smith-Wright (UWA). Ryan Hodson made his Super Rugby debut with the Melbourne Rebels in 2012, and Jake Ball toured to South Africa with the Emirates Western Force.
Even though the ARU have centralised their Academy structures to Sydney and Brisbane, RugbyWA with Bankwest’s commitment to growing rugby in WA, is committed to providing the necessary development pathway here in Perth and hopefully the players who have shown loyalty to staying here will be rewarded with opportunities at the higher level.
http://www.westernforce.com.au/NewsE...6/Default.aspx
