JACKSON Kite has watched every Beerwah Bulldogs A Grade game since he was nine, and this year at 18 he debuted for that very team.
Just last year the second rower was playing in the Under 18’s Beerwah side, as well as representing the Sunshine Coast Falcons Under 18’s team both last year and this year, and said how great Falcons has been for his development.
“This is my second year playing Under 18’s for the falcons and the whole technical side of football you learn so much about,” he said.
“When you train three times a week you just learn so much and when you come back to club footy it just helps you so much.”
Kite reflected on how different it is playing A Grade compared to Reserve Grade, especially after training with the Falcons as well. “There’s so much more talk on the field in A Grade and the physicality is just on a whole other level, and this year my teammates just tell me where to go and what to do which makes it so much easier,” he said.
“All the boys in the A Grade team are supporting me and helping me out and my other coach Greg has been really supportive of me and has given me some confidence playing up in the senior level.”
The 18-year-old said playing for the A Grade Beerwah Bulldogs side has always been a dream for him, ever since he moved to Australia from New Zealand.
“I’ve been going down to watch the A Grade side every Saturday since I was nine years old, so it was pretty surreal to play to first game running out. It really was a very cool experience,” he said.
Although Jackson fell into rugby league as his family all played the sport as well, he said he loved the game and wouldn’t change anything.
“I’ve been playing rugby league since I was five years old and now I’m 18, and I’ve been at the Beerwah Bulldogs since I was nine,” he said.
“I’m from a league family so I just kind of got put into it, I just enjoy it because I love playing at a high level of footy and the mates that you get out of it.”
Kite also spoke about his dream to play in the NRL one day, and would like to play for the team he supports, the South Sydney Rabbitohs, if he had a choice.
The second rower debuted for the A Grade team in their round three clash against the Noosa Pirates in the 2023 season, after his Falcons season finished for the year.
