By Anne-Marie Ebbels
The June long weekend is synonymous with representative football in the Yarra Valley, and this year is no different with numerous Healesville players from both the senior and junior club playing in representative games this weekend.
Cameron Nyko has been selected in the U18 Victorian Metro Squad and has been playing for Eastern Ranges U19s this year. Nyko is also the vice-captain of the Eastern Ranges team. In the first game, in Adelaide, against South Australia the Metro team was dominant in their first game on Sunday winning by 68 points. Nyko has another three games in the Big V throughout July.
Another Healesville local, Jeremy Newsome, has been selected in the U16 Victorian Metro Squad and he has put in some noteworthy performances in the games played showing off his talent in being able to provide overlap running and defensive intercepts. Newsome is also part of the Eastern Ranges squad.
Also at Eastern Ranges are Paula Pavic, Brylee Anderson and Cody Anderson. Pavic has starred in the last two Eastern Ranges games in the ruck and has been amongst their best players. Brylee Anderson has been part of the U16 Eastern Ranges squad which played earlier this year with some impressive results and Cody Anderson has been on the injured list, but is looking forward to a comeback later in the season, he was impressive earlier in the season in games played for Eastern Ranges.
Healesville also has more representatives in the Interleague Carnival playing against the South-East Football Junior League (SEJFL), Mornington Peninsula Junior Football League (MPJFL) and Frankston District Junior Football League (FDJFL).
Healesville is well-represented in the U18 girls team with 9 players selected; Sienna Crossman, Mia Erickson, Sarah Frazzetto, Ishie Stock, Indie Wraith-Tenson, Sophie Morris, Perry Byron, Teigan Ricky, and Megan Schelfhout. The girls had a dominant game against the SEJFL team in the blustery conditions on Saturday winning by 46 points, but went down to MPJFL under lights earlier in the week by 32 points.
In the U17 Boys, Healesville has 6 representatives: Tyler Barclay, Lucas White, Tarkyn Wyett, Liam Senti, Bailey Rutley and Oscar Moreton. The U17s have had mixed results losing to MPJFL by 13 points, followed by a big win over the SEJFL by 52 points.
Paisley Stock, Mia Cianci and Kiani Thomas are playing in the U16 Girls representative team and have so far have lost both games by 45 points against the MPJFL and SEJFL. The team is looking for a more positive result against the FDJFL.
The only Healesville representative in the U15 Boys is Sam Anderson. The U15s had a narrow 3 point loss to MPJFL in the first game and came up against a stronger SEJFL team to lose by 45 points.
U14 Girls have been outclassed this season by both MPJFL and the SEJFL with loss by 47 points and 50 points respectively. Healesville representatives Isabelle Newsome and Summer Caldicott have been putting a strong effort showcasing their talent despite the strong competition.
The first game for the U13 Boys was tough against the SEJFL. The windy condition at Mariott Waters made for a challenging game for the first-time representatives losing by 57 points. The U13 have another chance against the FDJFL to showcase their skills. Max Litchfield is Healesville’s sole representative in this age group.
All teams have one more games remaining in the carnival. Healesville football and netball are playing at home this coming Saturday with the football starting at 10.30am and the netball at 11.30am.
