AFL North Coast’s best juniors have continued to be put through their paces as part of the Northern Heat representative program.

The Heat players took a big step forward during the latest training session in Armidale, putting together the basics from earlier hit outs as the Heat style of play started to emerge.

The Heat players displayed the vital skills needed for winning football, as when they had the ball they were able to transition quickly up the field using handballs and overlap running to support one another, whilst in defence they were able to protect zones and communicate to ensure that all players were accountable.

It was a strong session for the Heat players as they started to put together the principles of earlier hit outs and see the modern systems of play emerge.

Heat coaching Coordinator Matt Anderson was extremely happy with the way the players worked during another gruelling session.

“We started with a challenging running drill where they really had to push themselves hard to keep going, then progressed into the ball movement work,” he said.

“Even in a fatigued state the players grasped the concepts quickly and put them into practice, which is a great credit to their coachability.”

The other element to the Armidale session was an introduction to the strength and conditioning program that they will be expected to undertake whilst the program goes into recess over the Christmas school holiday period.

Northern Heat Coach Matt Pine spent close to a decade working with the Sydney Swans and is delivering a very similar strength and conditioning program to local players.

“It’s really based on the AFL model so this is what AFL clubs will be doing in their pre-season and their off-season to set themselves up for next year,” he said.

Community Football and Competition Manager Paul Taylor said the Heat players were putting in the commitment needed to fully develop their talent.

“There’s no question about the players’ commitment – when you travel as much as we have to for the training sessions, and you’re doing it in the hot summer months out of season, the players and their families are showing incredible commitment to improve their games,” he said.

“I think we’re seeing an annual increase in the talent coming through, as our club competition grows year on year our talent pool deepens, and as our coaching programs at clubs and rep footy improves, that talent has the chance to be developed further, sooner.

“It’s very exciting to watch the code grow and develop.”

The next training session is on Saturday, 4 February and will include another round of fitness testing, so the players know they will need to make the effort with their strength and conditioning programs.

This will be the first of two sessions before both squads head to the Gold Coast on Saturday, 18 March to play practice matches against the Broadbeach Cats.

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