The pathway to elite level sport is often littered with challenges and obstacles and as any recruit or coach will tell you there is only a very small percentage of athletes who make it to the top.
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Talent alone is no longer a prerequisite for success. Professional sport today requires a tough mental attitude to go with skill, commitment, discipline, drive, sheer hard work and a lot of self sacrifice.
One young man who possesses all these qualities and more is Raymond Terrace’s Logan Badger, who is making his way through the representative ranks playing in one of the toughest positions (hooker) on the field of one of the toughest of contact sports – rugby union.
At 15 years of age, Badger has his sights firmly set on his dream – to one day play for the Waratahs and hopefully progress to the Wallabies. But he is also sensible enough to understand the long and winding road to success.
“You have to start from somewhere and right now it is just small steps at a time,” said Badger, who is a strapping 183.5cm tall and tips the scales at 100kg.
“I love the game and respect the game and right now I am enjoying whatever representative experience I can.”
Badger began his sporting journey as a rugby league player but switched to union about four years ago. As Raymond Terrace does not have a senior union club, the Year 10 San Clemente High School student joined the highly respected Wanderers club.
The code switch paid off for the rugby recruit when he was selected in the Waratahs Generation Blue under-16s 1st XV team, which will be competing at the National Rugby Championships being held at Southport School on the Gold Coast starting on September 30.
The firsts will come up against some of the best young rugby players in NSW, Queensland, Western Australia, Victoria, ACT and Fiji. A merit Australian side will be named at the conclusion of the championships.
To make it this far Badger had to qualify through his home club Wanderers onto the Hunter juniors, followed by NSW Country, NSW Combined Catholic School and NSW Schools 2nd XV.
“First of all I enjoy the game but I also enjoy meeting new players and going away with my rugby teammates,” Badger said. “I realise there’s a lot of hard work to do and currently I am training two, three times a week in the gym as well with a rugby sevens program.”
Badger trains at Raymond Terrace CrossFit under the guidance of mentor Mitchell Cox, who described the young man as an excellent and dedicated trainer.
“I am sure he will go a long way in sport,” Cox said.
