By Nick Creely
Despite the disappointment of having the NAB League Boys and Girls seasons cancelled in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, a string of Dandenong Stingrays and Gippsland Power youngsters will be pushing hard to realise their AFL and AFLW dreams after being named in the AFL’s National Combine lists.
The powerful Stingrays, based out of Shepley Oval, have produced countless league footballers, including Justin Leppitsch, Aussie Jones, Jeff White, Stephen Milne, Brendan Fevola, Chris Newman, Matthew Boyd, and more recently top draftees Tom Scully, Luke Parker, Tom Lynch, Adam Treloar, Dylan Shiel, Lachie Whitfield and Jacob Weitering.
And now the next wave of exciting footballers is coming through the ranks.
Six Stingrays – Abbey Jordan, Jess Matin, Tyanna Smith, Zoe Hill, Clayton Gay and Will Bravo – have been selected to take part in the combine, in what could be a strong year of draftees for the NAB League club out of Shepley.
The AFL last week released a list of 94 players from around the country who will test themselves at the combine, which will be held in each state over the coming weeks.
At this stage, a Victorian combine date has not been set due to the ongoing pandemic and restrictions in place for metropolitan and regional Victoria.
From the outset of 2020, Stingray pair Bravo and Gay have been billed as potential draftees, and despite not getting the chance to get some footy under their belts this season, are strong chances to be snared in the AFL draft later this year.
The pair were both named for the Vic Country hub in 2020 in a sign that they will have plenty to offer at AFL level, with Bravo, a strong midfielder, and Gay, a potential utility with the ability to make an impact at either end of the ground.
In terms of the girls’ program, Jordan, Matin, Smith and Hill have all impressed in their time at the Stingrays and are part of an 82-person combine list across the country.
The NAB AFLW draft will be held on Tuesday, 6 October with clubs to participate in a web conference.
For the Power, who have produced some wonderful league footballers, including Greg Tivendale, Leigh Brown, Bob Murphy, Sean Dempster, Brendon Goddard, Jarryd Roughead, Dale Thomas, Scott Pendlebury, Dyson Heppell and Anthony Mcdonald-Tipungwuti, they have also got plenty of participation with seven players named in the list.
From the boys, Ryan Angwin, Sam Berry and Zach Reid have been named, while for the girls, Grace McRae, Megan Fitzsimon, Nikia Webber and Shanara Notman are expected to make their way onto AFLW lists.
Zach Reid, a tall defender from Leongatha, could be taken inside the top 10 in the upcoming draft, with the 202cm natural athlete primed to make an instant impact at whichever club calls out his name.
