THIS weekend saw the continuation of the Under 18 Academy Series, with mixed results for the Queensland sides across an even competition. More locally, the state’s Under 16 Academy Championships commenced, setting up what looks to be a competitive series.

Under 18 Academy Series – Round Three

For the Queensland academy sides, round three of the Under 18 Academy Series produced polar opposite results. The Gold Coast Suns Academy produced their first victory of the competition whilst the Brisbane Lions Academy were touched up by the Tassie Mariners.  

The Suns ran out 20-point victors over the Giants thanks largely to a blinder from possible father-son prospect Bailey Scott. At Broadbeach on Saturday, Scott notched a team-high 22 disposals, four clearances and  a goal in another strong showing in his third game of the Under 18 Academy Series. He is eligible to be drafted by three clubs (as well as having the option of entering the open draft), as the son of former Cat (132 games) and Kangaroos (111 games) player Robert Scott, as well as being a part of the Gold Coast Academy.

The Suns came out fast kicking three goals to zip in the opening term to help setup the win. Their second term was also strong for the homes side, kicking four goals to two, giving them a 46-20 lead at the half. The second half was much more competitive with the sides going almost goal for goal, but the Suns escaped as victors. They face the winless Northern Territory next round.

The Lions Academy were simply poor against the undefeated Tassie Mariners. The Mariners stamped their authority from the outset kicking four goals to one in the opening stanza. The second term was a scoreless one for the boys from Brisbane as Tasmania put through another four in the term to have an unassailable 54-6 advantage at the half. The second half was pretty much an carbon copy of the first as the Mariners never took the foot of the pedal to easily run out 110-14 victors in a day to forget for the Lions, who face the Giants next weekend.

Queensland Under 16 State Championships

Last weekend saw the 2018 Queensland U16 State Academy Championships get underway at Moreton Bay Central Sports Complex in Burpengary. It was the battle of the Story Bridge to get the championship underway between Brisbane North and South. Brisbane North walked away 35-point victors and must wait until Thursday afternoon to determine who they will face next, as do all other teams. Meanwhile, the representatives from the Gold Coast region had a comprehensive win in their opening game against Sunshine Coast-Wide Bay, getting up by 64 points.

The ladder will be determined at the conclusion of round one, thus deciding the match-ups for round two. Round three is the concluding round where first will face second, third plays fourth, and fifth takes on sixth to finalise the standings. The final game of round one will be at Maroochydore from 12:30 between the South Pacific and North Queensland.