Aus gets new youth tournaments
Australia is to introduce a new competition for representative senior sides and will also introduce two youth tournaments, starting in February 2014.
The Australian Rugby Union has identified 24 centres, from Cairns up in Queensland to Perth in the far west to produce Under-15 and Under-17 teams for the Junior Gold Cup. Each of the 24 centres will produce a squad of 30 players for each of the age-groups, thus giving opportunities for some 1 500 top junior players, chosen after trials involving some 3 000 players..
The teams are divided into two conferences, North and South, each divided into pools of six teams each.
The competitions will start at Ballymore in Brisbane on 14 February 2014 and build to semifinals on 30 March 2014 and finals on 5 April 2014.
Junior Gold Cup manager, Hugh Carpenter, said the championship is designed to deliver the future stars of Australian Rugby. He said: “As part of a player’s long term development, the Junior Gold Cup will provide a solid pathway to assist our talented players in their Rugby careers.
“The competition will give kids across the country access to high quality Rugby competition and development opportunities.
“This will provide a consistent approach for players who aspire to play professional Rugby in the future.”
The Junior Gold Cup has been established in addition to existing club and school programs, allowing boys from all sporting backgrounds Junior Gold Cup.
