Ashley Hunter, 15 has a touch of brilliance about him
The Port Hedland touch rugby player’s uncanny knack to scoot around opponents hitting the mark for the team has been recognised by the Smarter than Smoking (STS) Country Sport Scholarship program.
24 September 2009
The Smarter than Smoking Country Sport scholarship counters the tyranny of distance by supporting talented young regional athletes to access training, competitions, development camps, coaches and facilities to improve their performance, and assist them to represent Western Australia (WA) and ultimately Australia.
The STS scholarship was a great introduction to WA for Ashley who has recently moved from Queensland.
"We weren't aware of anything like this in Queensland, so it's a great opportunity for a country kid to mix with the city kids and get a taste of the competition down there, we would be out of pocket without the scholarship," mother Susan Hunter said.
Ashley has played touch rugby for three years and is determined to make his mark in a sport which continues to grow in popularity and opportunities for players aspiring to elite levels.
"I want to maintain my position in the state 18s side over the next couple of years and to make the national team," Ashley said.
"The Smarter then Smoking money will pay for my trip to Perth for a two day training camp with the state squad and then help get me to Port Macquarie for the Australian titles."
Touchwest WA state regional manager Matt Bamford says Ashley's talent was immediately recognisable when he was spotted on the field.
"We first identified Ashley at the North West Championships last June when he attended a DSR talent development program, and since then he's come through the selection process to make the state 18s team," Matt Bamford said.
"Ashley does the basics very well, he moves very well and he's composed under pressure despite playing older people, we thought they were attributes that will transfer very well to the national championships in Port Macquarie."
The STS scholarship athletes will also have the opportunity to learn about areas such as nutrition, time management and goal setting, drugs in sport and athlete leadership through the Gifted Athlete Program (GAP) program developed by DSR and the Western Australian Institute of Sport (WAIS).
"It's a tough gig trying to make it to the top and any help the athletes can get along the way to develop a greater understanding of how to become an all round athlete is great," DSR manager Pilbara Nick Sloan said.
"It's an important aspect of the Smarter than Smoking scholarship to acknowledge the significance of balancing life skills with our emerging athletes' professional aspirations."
Approximately 3000 sub elite athletes have been assisted through a total investment of over $2 million since the STS Country Sport scholarship's inception in 1995.
A joint initiative between DSR and Healthway, athletes are selected on a state-wide basis against a set of performance categories designed to provide a pathway from a STS scholarship, into a regional academy like the South West Academy of Sport, and into the elite environment at WAIS.
Click on the link below to find out more about the Smarter than Smoking Country Sport Scholarship or email DSR acting high performance consultant Samantha Shields.
The Smarter than Smoking Country Sport Scholarship program is a joint initiative between the Department of Sport and Recreation (DSR) and Healthway to support talented regional athletes in their pursuit of state and national representation. 
Smarter than Smoking Country Sport Scholarships
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