WRAS Golf Duo Rory Elphick and David Kang, following their Div 3 gold medal at Academy Games
From April 11th to 13th, over 100 athletes, coaches, and managers from the Western Region Academy of Sport (WRAS) joined the state’s most promising young talents at the 2025 Your Local Club Academy Games in Tamworth. Organized by the Northern Inland Academy of Sport (NIAS), this event marked the first year of a three-year tenure in Tamworth.
With participants from 11 Regional Academies across New South Wales, more than 1,500 athletes and their families competed in this prestigious tournament. WRAS athletes demonstrated exceptional talent and skill across the weekend competing against some the best regional talent across the state. The excellent results from our squads are captured below:
Basketball
Both WRAS U16 Boys and U16 Girls Basketball teams secured 3rd place following their competitive round robin and finals match ups. Th U16 Girls defeated North Coast Academy of Sport (NCAS) 48-42 in their 3rd playoff game, with the U16 Boys defeating NIAS 76-56. Mia Richardson was also named in the All-Star Five team for the girls.
The WRAS Basketball squad is sponsored by UAA
Golf
Following Friday and Saturday’s stroke play Rory Elphick finished tied 10th and David Kang 39th in the overall Boys Category. In team match play on Sunday, the WRAS duo playing in a combined team secured the Div 3 gold medal wrapping up a great weekend on the greens.
Hockey
The WRAS hockey squad were also amongst the medals with the U16 Girls and U18 girls finishing 3rd, while the U18 Boys fought hard in all games to finish 6th. The squad worked tremendously hard across the two days, showcasing the exceptional talent in our region against some high-quality opposition.
Netball
Ava Francsico (Div I) and Brianna Watton (Div II) were named the MVPs for WRAS following the conclusion of the netball round robin and finals matches for their excellent individual performances. Netball umpires Charlotte George and Mia Lewis were also successful in gaining their National B Badges following their games over the weekend.
The WRAS Netball squad is sponsored by Greater Bank
Triathlon
Ania Cole secured 3rd place in the Youth Female category during Saturday’s individual races, with saw Halle Potter and Flynn Wolfe qualify for the B Final, and Ania Cole and Matilda Wylie raced in the C Final. In the Sunday Team Events, the WRAS Youth relay team combined with Western Sydney finished 6th, with the Junior WRAS relay team finishing 7th.
The success of the 2025 Your Local Club Academy Games is made possible through the support of major sponsors, whose commitment to youth sport and regional development is instrumental. We would like to thank Clubs NSW (Your local club) who are celebrating 20 years of supporting this event, NSW Office of Sport, Tamworth Regional Council, Regional Australia Bank, The University of New England, Wests Entertainment Group, Tamworth Toyota, as well as our media partners NBN News and the Super Radio Network (2TM AM, 92.9 FM).
Full results from the tournament can be found on www.academygames.com.au.