WESTERN Australia has announced the initial squad for the National AFL Under 18 Championships to be played across June and July. The WA State Academy features 38 players, with a second intake of Under 18s players set to occur in the coming weeks. The announcement came in the same week South Australia announced its extended squad for the championships.

The West Australian side features a good spread of players from across all nine clubs with Claremont and Perth leading the way with six each, while East Fremantle has five. No club has less than three, with seven 17 year-old development players included in the side. Demons star Ian Hill has firmed as the state’s top draft prospect, but the team has good depth, and includes players from the West Australian National Under 16 Championship-winning team last year, such as livewire Rhai-Arn Cox who took the final mark of the match with seconds remaining and kicked a goal after the siren to win the game.

West Australian Football Commission (WAFC) Executive Manager Talent and Football Operations, Scott Baker, told the WAFC website that the players should be proud of their efforts.

“These players have all demonstrated great talent and ability and I congratulate them on being selected in the WA State Academy,” he said. “We look forward to working with each of them to help achieve their full potential both on and off the field. “We want WA to be the leading state for talent development  and are committed to delivering an Academy program that provides each player with the football and personal development opportunities to become key players and leaders of the future.”

Western Australia takes on South Australia in the opening game of the National AFL Under 18 Championships at Alberton Oval on June 3, before hosting Vic Metro at Optus Stadium on June 19. The championships conclude with games at GMHBA Stadium and Etihad Stadium on June 29 and July 4 against Vic Country and the Allies respectively.

Claremont [6]: Tyron Smallwood, Rylie Morgan, Jordan Clark, Thomas Baldwin, Jack Buller, Anthony Davis*

East Fremantle [5]: Jeremy Sharp, Trey Ruscoe, Trent Rivers, Dillon O’Reilly, Luke Jackson

East Perth [3]: Rhai-Arn Cox, Damon Greaves, Louis Miller

Peel Thunder [3]: Jarrod Fazioli, Jason Carter, Tyson Powell

Perth [6]: Ian Hill, Luke English, Sydney Stack, Ethan Hansen, Deven Robertson, Elijah Taylor*

South Fremantle [3]: Luke Moore, Kyle Hamersley, Regan Spooner

Subiaco [4]: Wil Hickmott, Luke Foley, Xavier Peacock, Mitchell Georgiades*

Swan Districts [4]: Joe Hinder, Graydon Wilson, Jake Pasini*, Riley Garcia*

West Perth [4]: Tom Medhat, Tom O’Donnell, Jaxson Prior*, Ryan Hudson*

*denotes 17s development players