ALMOST two years of hard work has paid dividends for Orange Eagles basketballers Zak Simons, Jay Cole and Ben Matthews.
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The trio attended the Basketball NSW Talented Athletes Program (TAP) under-14 camp at Narrabeen Institute of Sport earlier this week.
They were originally identified as potential stars in late 2013 and, after adding substantially to their already impressive resumes in the period since, were selected to attend the two-and-a-half day camp, watched over by Australian under-17 coach and NSW mentor Mark Watkins.
The camp featured a series of rigorous tests and provided a thorough examination of the boys’ physical and mental prowess on and off the court.
“The boys deserved their recognition and place at the TAP camp,” said Grant Cole, the trio’s coach at local level. “These three boys push each other hard to get the best out of each other every time they play or train.”
From the TAP camp players are considered for Basketball Australia’s National Intensive Training Program, and Grant Cole said all three stood a chance of being named.
“If dedication and love of the game has anything to do with it, who knows?, they might just be lucky enough to represent their country in the not-too-distant future,” he said.
In 2013 the trio were selected for the Great Murray River Jamboree alongside players from New Zealand and Victoria.
In 2014 they attended the NSW under-13 All Star camp and were selected in 2015 under-14 NSW Country sides and the 2014-15 under-14 Western Reds Country Premier League team.
This year, they competed for NSW Country at the Australian Country Junior Basketball Cup and led Orange to an undefeated Basketball NSW Western Junior League under-14 title.
