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Vic Metro honour a handy marker for a Jet on the rise Late-blooming Western Jets ruck-forward Tristan Xerri is ecstatic after being selected to represent Vic Metro in the AFL under-18 national championships. Xerri, a product of Caroline Springs in the Western Region Football League, was so far off the radar three years ago that he was not considering a football career, let alone pulling on the Big V. “A few years ago, I was barely around the Jets or anything – I didn’t see this coming at all,” he said. “All throughout my juniors, I was never really going anywhere with my footy, but then I had a good season and had a call-up late [to the Jets squad]. “I’ve been lucky enough to play a few games with the Jets and had a good season [in the TAC Cup] last year. It means so much to be in the [Vic Metro] team – I’m rapt to be a part of it.” Growing up in Caroline Springs, Xerri had more envisaged a career in cricket. But as he started to fill out into his 202-centimetre, 95-kilogram frame, it became clear that football was where his talents lay.
Last season, Xerri announced himself with the Jets in the TAC Cup, before playing a pivotal role for Caroline Springs in its barnstorming run to the WRFL division 2 premiership. Much of Xerri’s development as a footballer and athlete can be attributed to his time with Lakeview Senior College. The 18-year-old is part of the college’s elite sports football program, which allows him to combine studies and football. Scott Korczynski, the program coach and coach of Caroline Springs, has been a major influence for Xerri. “It’s great, three days of the week being involved in the program,” Xerri said. “You get a weights program, work on your skills and you’re touching the footy every day. “Since I’ve been doing the program with him, my footy has definitely improved. Scott gave me the opportunity last year to play a couple of senior games for Caroline Springs and we ended up winning the flag in the seniors. “He’s had a huge impact throughout school and local footy and putting my name out there.”
Tristan Xerri gets a handball away under pressure for the Western Jets this season. (Damian Visentini)
Xerri’s selection for Vic Metro was all but confirmed when he produced a dazzling display in a trial game against Vic Country. It was in that game that Xerri truly came to believe he belonged. “That was huge for me,” he said. “Taking that first grab early in the game and slotting a goal, that probably lifted my confidence.
“I’m a bit of a confidence player – when I get one early, I just play off that.” Xerri’s great strengths are his contested marking and his versatility. He wants to develop into a modern day ruck-forward, splitting time between the ruck and key forward roles. It is a role that former AFL star Brad Ottens, an assistant coach for Vic Metro, played for Geelong and Richmond in his playing days, so Xerri is learning from the best. “I definitely want to impact the scoreboard, but at the same time doing my work around the ground and in the ruck,” he said. Xerri, one of four Western Jets in the Vic Metro squad along with Buku Khamis, Cameron Rayner and Lachlan Fogarty, is hoping to earn a starting role for the championship opener against WA at Domain Stadium on Sunday. “Playing against the best is all you can ask for,” he said. “That will be a great experience.” Lance Jenkinson
Young hoop leads by example By Lance Jenkinson Paul Tsapatolis is more than just the dominant centre that will lead Vic Metro’s title defence at the under-16 national basketball championships in Perth next month. Tsapatolis can be just as proud of his achievements off the court as he is with his basketball form on it - and that tells you all you need to know about his character. The 14-year-old from Point Cook is the stand out basketballer in his age group in Victoria, hence him being named captain of Vic Metro, but he is also a leader on and off the court and switched on academically in year nine at Maribyrnong College. That’s why Basketball Victoria awarded Tsapatolis with the honour of young athlete of the year for 2016. “It was a very big surprise,” he said. “When they announced my name, I had the biggest shock. “It’s about me collective as a person, as much as on the basketball court. “Coaches don’t just speak about on the court, they talk about off the court and how you communicate, what you do on your off days, do you do homework or do you party. “It’s the biggest award that I’ve had.” Tsapatolis will be a major presence for Vic Metro at the nationals. It is hard not to be when you stand at 205 centimetres, about six-foot-eight in the old language, at the age of just 14. Tsapatolis knows that height alone is not enough in modern basketball, so he is working tirelessly to evolve into a do-it-all modern day centre. “With the centres in this generation, it’s not like back then with [former NBA great] Shaquille O’Neal, where you had to be big and dunk over anyone and just rebound and you don’t have to shoot,” Tsapatolis said. “Now it’s a lot like [current NBA stars] DeMarcus Cousins and Marc Gasol, especially the European centres, they can do everything, they pass, dribble, rebound, score, shoot threes and have to be as much as a guard as a centre.” Tsapatolis will relish the chance to captain Vic Metro. He was part of the gold medal-winning under-16 Big V team last year - the first bottom-age player to take to the court for that team since top NBA draft pick Ben Simmons. Already, Tsapatolis’s leadership has shone through, as teammates pick his brain for information leading up to this year’s tournament, starting on July 8. “To make it again and be captain is even better as it means I’m going on the right path,” Tsapatolis said. “The players will come to me and ask what it was like last year and what they should do off court to prepare. 86 BRIMBANK & NORTH WEST STAR WEEKLY \ JUNE 13, 2017
Paul Tsapatolis has a massive future ahead in basketball. (Damjan Janevski)
“They ask for advice from what I picked up last year.” Tsapatolis has already spent time at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra. He is hoping to land a full time position at the AIS down the track. Of more immediate concern is to perform for Vic Metro, which is sure to be attended by basketball scouts from Australia and beyond. “If the under-16s nationals work out well and I do dominate, I presume I’ll get offers from AIS coaches,” Tsapatolis said. “There’s always scouts, Australian coaches come down and people live stream stats and watch the games.
“If you dominate this year, it means you are the best in your age group in Australia, so then Australia tryouts will come up, where you’re competing against the age above.” While the dream of Australian under-age representation and ultimately a professional basketball career is what Tsapatolis is striving for, he is quick to point out that he still has four years left as a junior and intends on using every minute to refine his game before taking the next steps. He loves going to work every day in the Maribyrnong College’s athlete development program, and feels blessed to work with a host of coaches both inside and outside of the
program, including Brian Vaughns, Shane McDonald, Ash Arnott, Andy Lim, Dom Linossier, Warwick Giddey, Phillip Dernehl and long time mentor Peter Fleming. “I do appreciate all their help,” Tsapatolis said. Tsapatolis is the June nominee of the Deeble Deeble Rising Star Award. The award, hosted by the Sunshine Western Region Sports Club and Star Weekly, recognises young athletes from the western suburbs who have achieved outstanding results at state and/ or national levels. Tsapatolis will receive $1000, donated by the Yarraville Club Cricket Club, and other prizes to assist him in achieving his sports goals.