Southern Tablelands Football Association footballers to play in National Youth Championships

They were Caolan Hazell, Ziggy Schipper and former Crookwell junior player and former Southern Tablelands Football Association (STFA) representative player Ava Nicholson.

Caolan was selected to represent the Boys u15 Country Team while Ziggy was named to play for the u16 team at the National Youth Championships at Valentine Sports Park from October 2-6.

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Both will want to achieve positive results and showcase their skills with the hope of gaining future national team selection.

Boys Football NSW Player Development Manager Philip Myall said selecting the squads was an incredibly challenging task due to the amount of talent in the state.

"After an extensive and rigorous process, we feel with have selected some exciting and highly talented squads that will proudly represent NSW in this prestigious competition," he said.

"Their hard work, determination, and exceptional skills have earned them a place in these squads."

The selection process for teams spanned multiple months and events including Talent Support Program (TSP) matches, regional game days and tournaments.

Ava will also play in the National Youth Championships in Wollongong from October 9-13 after being selected for the ACT State u14 team.

To gain selection, she had to beat 60 other players in the first stage which was then narrowed down to 30 players and then the final squad of 16.

Although she has yet to find out her position, she plays mainly as a striker for Canberra United's Academy u14 team.

As well as her selection in the ACT State Team, Ava was also selected in the ACT Futsal team to play in the National Futsal Championships later this year.

In 2022, Ava was named in the Mackillop Team to represent the Catholic Schools of Parramatta, Wollongong, Canberra/Goulburn and Wagga Wagga in the Primary Schools State Championships.

She was also awarded the Rising Star award in the STFA in the same year.

Her former u12 representative coach Lindsay Cosgrove said her selection was "well deserved and a reward for the many hours of extra training she put into her game".

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