By JARROD POTTER
ONE of the best 35 young footballers in the country.
It’s quite the glowing recommendation three Dandenong Stingrays’ TAC Cup footballers have received after earning their tickets to the United States last month as part of the NAB AFL Academy Level Two Squad.
Put through their paces in a high-intensity training program at the elite sports facility – The IMG Academy, in Bradenton, Florida – Gach Nyuon, Kieran Collins and Jacob Weitering were drilled, tested and evaluated under the watchful eyes of Academy coaches and AFL club recruiters alike.
With 14 club interviews at the 10-day camp and benefitting from the hard slog of the training program, Nyuon, 17, from Springvale South, feels pretty fortunate to have been given the chance to take his football to the next level before the start of the season.
“I reckon I was pretty lucky – the advantage we have over the other players that aren’t in the academy, the facilities we use and the coaches we get, we’re very lucky and I’m just trying to take in and learn as much as I can,” Nyuon said.
“They pretty much taught us to push a lot harder – you can take more than you think your body can take if you actually push yourself that little bit extra.
“All the hard work pretty much, with a little support from the boys you can achieve a lot.”
The program carries on from the now defunct AIS-AFL Academy and while the players didn’t participate in an exhibition match this time around, the benefits of the camp were enormous for the trio who are set to star in this year’s upcoming TAC Cup.
A knee injury kept Nyuon – a 200-cm ruck/forward prospect – from playing most of last year, but with a full pre-season under his belt, coupled with his Academy training program, Nyuon hopes to excel and make a big impact whether in a Stingrays or Vic Country jumper.
“Didn’t play much footy last season, had a few injuries, so I just want to play a full season with the TAC Cup and hopefully play some games at the nationals too,” Nyuon said.
“Everything is fine and pre-season is going well and running pretty smooth – we’ve got some practice matches for Stingrays coming up in a couple of weeks.”
Affiliated with Narre Warren Football Club in the newly formed South East Football Netball League, Nyuon’s local ambitions this season are to get back to Fox Road if he can find a free weekend in an extremely hectic football schedule.
The Dandenong Stingrays commence their 2015 TAC Cup season on Saturday 28 March against the Gippsland Power.
