IT appears as though Scone Thoroughbreds junior Henry Hall has the rugby league world at his feet.
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But, the talented front-rower is keen to stay grounded, even after being named in the NSW Country under-18 squad this week.
The team will play two games on tour in October; against Papua New Guinea Rugby League and the Gold Coast Titans on the North Coast.
“I was a little bit surprised by my selection,” Hall admitted.
“Greater Northern [Tigers] did well in the Laurie Day Cup – we ended up losing the semi-final 38-32, so we were only a converted try from the decider.
“However, I’m looking forward to it [tour].
“It will be a great experience; and make me play better footy.”
Although the teenager’s the only Upper Hunter representative in the side, he won’t be alone with fellow Thoroughbred, and seniors’ mentor, Aaron Watts named as head coach.
“That’s a bonus – he’s really good,” Hall said.
“I want to play first grade at Scone, it’s my goal, so it’ll give me a chance to impress Aaron, too.
“At the moment, I’m also part of the Parramatta Eels system.
“But, I’m not getting ahead of myself – I’ll just see how it all goes.”
It was a red-letter day for the Thoroughbreds in the opening round of the Hunter Valley Group 21 competition last weekend.
Scone pipped the Singleton Greyhounds 22-18 in the main fixture, while triumphing 48-0 (reserves), 24-18 (under-18s) and 28-0 (women’s league tag) in the other encounters.
“Yeah, it wasn’t a bad day for the club, especially at Singleton,” the 17-year-old said.
“It’s a big turnaround for the under-18s, too.
“We only won one game in 2017, so it was good to knock over last season’s grand finalists first-up.
“I think Scone’s the team to beat this year.
“We claimed the Scanlon Shield earlier in the month, however it would be better to win the premiership.”
The Thoroughbreds face the Denman Devils at Scone Park on Sunday, with the matches kicking off from 10.25am.