Three Far North teenagers are relishing their first taste of football professionalism with new AFL franchise Gold Coast Suns.
Sam Michael, Peter Yagmoor and Frazer Eaton, who are members of the Suns Talent Academy, have been invited to train with the club until February.
The trio are on modified programs similar to that of the Suns AFL Draftees and will train five-and-a-half days a week with the playing group.
It is a huge opportunity and one not lost on Michael, who was nuzzling after his first session on Monday.
The 17 year old, who was a Hawks junior in Cairns, is now based in Brisbane playing for the Redland Bombers in the state league.
Michael said his first experience with the Suns left an impression. “It was absolutely brilliant,” the 198cm, 95kg key-position prospect said.
“All the players were very welcoming. I have that connection with Cairns players like Charlie Dixon and Jarrod Harbrow and that helps you hit the ground running.”
Michael, who will tour overseas next year with an elite AIS/AFL academy squad knows what elements of his game he wants to improve on while training with the Suns.
“I want to work on my work rate off the ball, work on my speed and agility and work on getting all round improvement,” Michael said.
“Training with them will lift my professionalism and it will help me compared to the other guys in my age group who aren’t doing the same thing. This will help my game a lot.”
Meanwhile, AAP reporter Nathan Ablett is expected to rise to “another level” alongside his brother Gary after being selected by Gold Coast with the top pick in the AFL pre-season draft yesterday.
But suns football manager Marcus Ashcroft believes Ablett’s AFL resurrection can’t be solely be attributed to his famous brother’s arrival.
Nathan Ablett, who was a member of Geelong’s 2007 premiership team before walking out on the AFL, played a handful of games for the Suns’ VFL team in 2010.
“We have seen glimpses of his best throughout the year in the VFL. What we want to see is those glimpses more often; to play the consistent footy we know he can. But the signs we have seen have been quite promising.
Last Modified on 10/05/2011 16:34