U18 NZ Kahus squad to play Australia

The U18 New Zealand Kahus squad to take on the Australia Youth Girls team has been selected.

The Under 18 New Zealand Kahus are New Zealand’s premier female team, and the target for every young woman who plays in the AFL New Zealand High Performance programme.

The matches will take place on the 4th and 6th of October, at Parrs Park in Waitakere, and will be played in conjunction with the U18 New Zealand Hawks series against the Victorian Amateur Football Association. The matches will be 9 a side.

The team first played in October 2013, in a three match series against the Australia Youth Girls. Their programme for 2014 has been expanded this year to include a series against the U18 Woomeras, who are the best young Indigenous female AFL players from Australia, to take place in December.

The 2014 U18 NZ Kahus squad includes a group of players from the 2013 team. Led by AFL New Zealand Female Player of the year Setareh Brown, the experience of this group of players will be crucial across the series.

Aorere College has provided a strong contingent of players, including 2013 returnees Hope Schuster, Marie and Maria Aleni.

Tayla Cross and Kiana Lang are also back for their 2nd series, representing their school Albany Junior High School. Kayla Paniora from Western Springs is another who debuted for New Zealand last year.

For the new players, the series is an opportunity to pull on the New Zealand jersey, and represent their country in a trans-tasman battle.

The coach of the team, Lisa Roper, has strong experience of playing and coaching with the Wollongong Saints in New South Wales, and will be a huge asset in the development of the New Zealand Kahus. She will be assisted by New Zealand Hawks player Michael Gregson, and AFL New Zealand High Performance coach Jamie Hunt.

Many of the players were scouted through the Hawks Cup programme, a Secondary School competition that sees schools compete against local rivals in regional cluster tournaments. Entries are currently being accepted for the 2014 Junior Hawks Cup, which will be held in term 4.

Many of the players in this team have been strong representatives for their school in this competition, especially the Aorere College players, who won the Auckland Senior Female Hawks Cup earlier in the year.

Under 18 New Zealand Kahus Squad

 Under 18 New Zealand Kahus vs Australia Youth Girls Fixtures

Game 1: October 4th, 12.00pm. Parrs Park, Waitakere.

Game 2: October 6th, 1.00pm. Parrs Park, Waitakere.

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