AFL North Coast’s best juniors have been putting in the hard years over the Christmas and New Year’s period as part of a representative program.

Northern Heat players had excellent fitness testing results during a training session at Armidale.

Having been provided with a strength and conditioning program by Heat coach and former Sydney Swans staffer Matt Pine, the players knuckled down during the break and ground out the sessions.

Last weekend’s testing provided tangible results for the players to see the improvements made and to renew their focus ahead of the 2023 season.

In addition to the fitness testing, the squad worked hard in contested sessions with an emphasis on fast ball movement and second efforts to support the player with the ball.

These drills reflect modern AFL game play and are the way that the two squads will be asked to play in matches on the Gold Coast on Saturday 18 March.

Prior to the Gold Coast matches, a training session will be held at the Wiigulga Sports Complex at Woolgoolga on Saturday, 25 February.

This session will see the two squads continue to build on the game play principles that they have been introduced to throughout the program.

The Northern Heat representative AFL program comprises the best players from the North Coast and North West regions in Under 15 and Under 17 squads.

Players are selected into the program based on their performance at the Northern NSW Challenge.

This off-season program exists to extend the representative pathway for the players of the regions and provide them with a further avenue to build their game ahead of transitioning towards senior footy.

By Aiden BURGESS