Earlier this year, six Goulburn girls were named in the Canberra Raiders Under 18 Girls' squad.
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After two weeks in the national Under 18s Girls competition, also known as the Tarsha Gale Cup, Goulburn's young stars have proven a critical component of the Raiders' success.
Krystal Blackwell, Maddie Dodson, Madyson Tooth, Carly Wilkin, Ash Deaton, and Kaylee Roy have all impressed head coach John Hawke, who was unsurprised to see so many Goulburn girls make the side.
"I coached the [Monaro] Open Women's side last year and I know that Goulburn's always had a knack for really good sportsmen, let alone the girls," Hawke said.
"I had three or four girls in the open women's side last year, and the talent runs right through [the age groups]. Girls like Samantha Economos, Elly Hazelton, Jasmine Tooth; Goulburn's got a production line of women footballers."
With two rounds completed, Canberra sits on top of the Tarsha Gale ladder with two wins, over the Parramatta Eels and the Penrith Panthers.
Hawke was pleased that the girls hit the ground running, but emphasised the importance of focusing on the future.
"You always like to get off to a positive start," Hawke said.
"To get a good start, it's positive for confidence going forward but we're not getting ahead of ourselves."
Four of the Goulburn girls - Blackwell (who is also captain), Dodson, Tooth, and Wilkin - have started for the Raiders in their first two matches, and their impact on the side has been huge.
"In our team they're very important," Hawke said.
"Krystal's our captain at halfback, Maddie Dodson's our hooker, and Maddy Tooth's our fullback.
"They're key positions in the side and a massive influence going forward."
With these victories, the Raiders have already equaled their number of wins from the 2019 season. Ahead of a clash against the Wests Tigers this weekend, who lost their only match so far 44-6 against the Illawarra Steelers, Canberra will look to take their record to 3-0.
Hawke is not sure what to expect from Wests, but wants to ensure his girls can take advantage of their third home game in a row.
"We played [the Tigers] in a trial at the start of the year but it's very hard to judge what their final squad will look like," Hawke said.
"We're trying to get the confidence to back our ability to win every game we play.
"This will be our third game in a row at home, and following that we'll be off to Sydney. It's important to win our games at home."
Along with six girls in the Tarsha Gale squad, Goulburn has several in the 2020 Monaro Open Women's squad.
Hawke said such strong representation was "fantastic for a town like Goulburn."
The Under 18 Raiders girls will take on Wests Tigers this Saturday, February 22, at Belconnen Oval from 12pm.
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