The four AFL New Zealand Premiership sides have retained a satellite player for the 2017 Competition.
The criteria is based on players located at satellite venues including, Northland, Bay of Plenty, Waikato and Taranaki born 1998 or older.
Jackson Rolleston
18 year old Jackson Rolleston from Waikato has been retained by the Northern Suns.
Jackson is a tall athletic player with an outstanding vertical leap. These attributes came in handy for the Suns last season after losing fellow tall Mitch Ryan early in the 2016 competition.
At 189cm tall, Rolleston will continue to play a bigger role as he continues to mature as a footballer for the Suns in 2017. He is expected to feature in “Team of the Week” more often than not and this will also help him with his representative aspirations.
Sean Andrews
Waikato based Sean Andrews has been retained by the Central Giants for the 2017 AFL New Zealand Premiership.
Andrews played in the forward line during the 2016 competition and his strong hands and accurate goal kicking made him a solid addition to the Giants.
Sean currently travels up to Auckland each week to play for the Manurewa Raiders in the local competition and new Giants Head Coach Rob Malone is looking forward to having an experienced player up front who can lead the way in 2017.
Te Kopa Tipene-Thomas
Fast running Midfielder Te Kopa Tipene-Thomas will once again pull on the Western Crows guernsey in 2017.
From the small town of Moerewa in Northland, Tipene-Thomas was first discovered through talent identification at Bay of Islands College and is one of the youngest players to represent the Senior NZ Hawks.
The 19 year old was dominant for the Crows and played a handy role for them winning the Inaugural Premiership through his running ability, elusiveness with ball in hand and his sharp skills.
His achievements include; 2014 U16 Player of Year, 2014 International Cup squad member and 2015 U18 Player of the year.
Charles Barnes
The Southern Saints have retained Charles Barnes from Taranaki as their Satellite player for 2017.
Charles is a quiet achiever who lets his actions on the footy field do the talking. Hard running, skillful and athletic, Barnes is an all round footy player who can slot into any position.
Coach Warwick Kain will utilise Barnes in what could be a potentially dominant midfield for the Saints in 2017. Could be a smoky for the International Cup in Melbourne in 2017 if he can transfer his ability with solid commitment.
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