Santa delivered an early Christmas present for a handful of local Otzag players.
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Following their impressive performances at last months nationals at Coffs Harbour, Abby Schmiedel, Brodii Ingram, Paris Knox, Tiarn Baylis, Daniel Sullivan, Mandy Sullivan, Tiffany Walsh, Tim Walsh, Liz Thomas, Garth Pennefather and Gunnedah’s Jacqui Jones learnt this week they are to don the green and gold at next year’s World Cup in Coffs Harbour.
Schmiedel, Ingram, Knox, and Baylis were selected in the Tagaroos 20s womens side, Daniel and Mandy Sullivan, Tiffany and Tim Walsh and Jones the mixed seniors, Thomas the 35s masters women and Pennefather the 55s mens.
There could be a few more too when the tournament rolls around next November with Belinda Fleming, Joey Sullivan and Nathan Steinbeck named as shadows for the mixed seniors, Hope Martin the 20s women, and Emma Carrigan, Libby Welsh and Racheal Schmiedel the women’s masters.
A tremendous advertisement for the talent Tamworth is producing, Tamworth Oztag Co-ordinator Pam Potts said the fantastic result was a reflection on the Northern NSW Bears’ success at the nationals.
“Out of the seven teams we took to nationals five got through to the quarter finals,” she said.
“To be to get the majority of teams through to the quarter-finals when back in the day we struggled to make quarter-finals is great.”
And a sign they are “closing the gap”.
She said several of the selected contingent have played for Australia before, but there are a few new faces too, which is great to see.
Baylis is one of those that will be pulling on the green and gold for the first time.
Only new to the representative scene, with the nationals just her second tournament, she was shocked to find out she’d made the side.
“I was very surprised. I didn’t really expect to get looked at let alone get picked,” she said.
At work when the side was announced, it wasn’t until she returned one of the multitude of missed calls she had received that she learnt the exciting news, although she didn’t initially believe it when she was told.
Schmiedel (Abby) has played for Australia twice before, although she hasn’t yet got to experience being part of a World Cup campaign.
“It’s exciting,” she said.
It will be her last hurrah in the 20s too moving up to the senior mixed next year.
Defending their national title, the Bears 20s narrowly missed out on the final going down by a try in their semi-final.
The 35s masters women also made it through to the semi’s where they were beaten by perennial heavyweights Vipers.
“It was a good team effort and we had a good bunch of girls,” Carrigan said.
She previously played for the open mixed Australian side about 10 years ago.
The Bears senior mixed went one step further, finishing runners-up.
Pennefather meanwhile played for Souths Sydney team after being picked up from the player pool, and had a great tournament. Not only did his Souths side win the title but he was also named their players player.
