'He talked me into it': Friendship lures Doyle back home

But when one of his his best mates, Harry Lewington, began talking to the 17-year-old about a return to the Tamworth FC ranks, Doyle couldn't say no.

"He talked me into it," Doyle said.

"We started playing the [Northern Inland Football] program together way back when we were like eight years old, and we play cricket together for North Tamworth now."

More than 18 months ago, Doyle stepped away from football to focus on rugby and his newfound passion for bouldering.

The Tamworth-based lad plays union for Calrossy and was a member of the Central North team which contested the State Championships last weekend.

Additionally, he took up bouldering just over a year ago at the suggestion of one of his teachers, Bindi Eather, who is the wife of Ten4 Bouldering CEO, Chris Eather.

Though his schedule is full to the brim, and often requires Doyle to attend multiple training sessions in a night, he wouldn't have it any other way.

"I try my hardest to compete in everything and play to the best of my abilities," he said.

This dedication appears to be genetic - Doyle's younger sister and brother both play a variety of sports, while his father still takes to the field in both cricket and Oztag.

But despite the family's clear athletic affinity, their home life is relatively free of competitive quarrels.

"There's a bit of banter I guess, but we're not too competitive," Doyle said.

"We're all focused on different sports, so we're pretty encouraging of each other."

Having been convinced to reconnect with Tamworth FC - for whom he played as a junior - Doyle's first game back with the club took place today.

Fresh from a rugby match on Friday night, Doyle played in the forwards alongside Lewington, and impressed coach Rob Jeffrey.

"I think we found a new combination up front with him," Jeffrey said with a grin on his face.

"He played rugby last night and then came out and ran 90 minutes today, it was good."

Despite an impressive effort from the team as a whole, particularly in the second half, Tamworth FC couldn't stop the OVA Mushies from running away to a 3-1 win.

It was OVA's 39^th straight match without a loss, but Jeffrey was exceptionally proud of the effort his young team put in against the top-ranked side.

"It was always going to be tough, but I'm more than happy with our young fellas," Jeffrey said.

"It's a rebuilding year, and seven of our players are under 19. So ... it was really good."

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