UOW hosts Dragons, Steelers for preseason kick-off

The St George Dragons and Illawarra Steelers junior rep squads came together at the University of Wollongong on Saturday for the start of their preseason.

Both side’s SG Ball, Tarsha Gale Cup, and Harold Matthews Cup train-on squads were on hand for a day of testing and training.

Each of the club’s pathways coaches were on hand for the day as the players worked on their conditioning and contact whilst learning the expectations heading into the preseason.

A number of notable mentors were on hand including former Dragons Shaun Timmins, Luke Bailey, Kyle Stanley, Darren Nicholls and Tom Eisenhuth.

“Every year before we start preseason, it’s a good opportunity to bring our youngest and brightest talent in together,” Pathways & Operations Manager Travis Roche said.

“We do some screening and some testing and that just helps the strength and conditioning coaches in our pathways programs build good programs. All the way from the top down, it’s great to work with all the different coaches.

“It’s a very exciting time and a great time to be in the pathways for the Dragons. It’s just another opportunity for everyone to connect as a group. We’re such a big club, so to bring everyone together is what’s going to set us up for future success here at the Dragons.”