By Liam Twomey
THE School Sport Victoria under-15 AFL side conquered all before them at the recent State Championships held in Canberra.
They won the final against Western Australia by five goals to cap off a great tournament and secure their place as the best under-15 side in Australia.
A big part of the victory was thanks to three Maribyrnong College students, Peter Wright, Dillon Rainbow and Touk Miller.
The three boys were named in the All-Australian team for the tournament, which is made up of the best-performed players from all over the country.
Victorian Sports trainer and Maribyrnong College teacher, Brendan Parkes was impressed with how the team performed over the championships.
“It was a very good carnival. The team gelled really well together with minimal preparation. I think they only had about three training runs together and a couple of practice matches,” Parkes said. “Dillon Rainbow played every game and he was very dominant. He got best-on-ground in one of the games.
“Touk Miller was a very consistent performer, playing onball and in the midfield. He was very good inside, really hard around the stoppages, which was fantastic.
“Peter Wright played in the ruck and they played him down forward as well. He did some great contested work and kicked some goals so he was good all round.”
The boys will travel to South Africa next year for the inaugural Australian School Boy Tour. They will be based in Johannesburg and take part in a number of educational and cultural tours.
They will also take part in three football matches while on tour against South African representative teams.
Rainbow, who plays for Bacchus Marsh, said it was great to be able to play in the Vic Metro side with some of his Maribyrnong class mates.
“It worked out to be an advantage for us, our ruckmen Peter and Touk were really able to dominate the midfield,” Rainbow said. “Touk knew where Peter was going to tap the ball because they have played a lot together and we were able to bust out all the clearances over the carnival.”
The All-Australian team will meet in January for a pre-season training camp in Perth before setting off for South Africa.
Despite the camp likely to involve a lot of hard work, Rainbow can’t wait to get over there.
“I’m looking forward to it. More than anything to be able to go somewhere else and train in some different conditions,” Rainbow said. “I’m just over the moon right now, words can’t describe how excited I am.”
A number of current AFL players such as Chris Judd, Luke Ball and Jobe Watson have been through the same process as the Maribyrnong College boys.
“It’s a stepping stone to firstly, the under-16 Vic Metro team and these boys will be looking to try and break into that side next year,” Parkes said.
Rainbow is pleased he is following in the same footsteps as some of the AFL’s elite players.
“Playing in these competitions and knowing that AFL players have been through the same thing is great. It means that we can see the steps that they have taken and try to do what they have done to get to the top.”
