By JARROD POTTER
WITH a head-full of flowing dreadlocks and most importantly, enough footy skill to go around a fleet of midfielders, Berwick’s Jamie Plumridge is set to star when he dons the Victorian jersey next month.
Plumridge, 15, was able to go one better this time around after falling just short in his inaugural bid to make the School Sport Victoria (SSV) Australian rules football team.
After he just missed out on under-12s representative duties, he returned to local football and started compiling one of the best junior football resumes on record.
Realising his errors was another important factor for his recent success as Plumridge knew he needed to work on his tank.
“Made the last cut for under-12s and got cut the last time so I knew what I had to do this time,” Plumridge said. “Just needed to work really hard on my work-rate up and down the ground.”
On that burgeoning resume for Plumridge so far: three league best-and-fairest trophies – 2011, 2013 and last year in 2014 – on top of four club best-and-fairest awards, two-time interleague representative and a recent announcement that he was selected for the under-14 Dandenong Stingrays squad.
With a resume as studded as that, combined with his abilities pushing him to the top of south eastern junior football, there was little option for SSV but to select him for his inaugural nationals campaign, which Plumridge couldn’t quite believe when the school sports body contacted him.
“It’s a good feeling, but it hasn’t sunk in just yet,” Plumridge said. “They sent me an email then the next day they gave me a call.”
He hopes to add to the solitary, extremely lonely premiership medallion in an individual-award laden trophy cabinet.
The prolific centreman made the switch from Narre North to Berwick in the off-season and is reaping the benefits already of playing with his mates in a unbeaten side atop the South East Juniors under-15 Division 1 ladder.
The Fountain Gate Secondary College student wanted to thank his parents and Berwick and Narre North Junior Football Clubs for their support.
Plumridge will head to Geelong for the national championships from 18-25 July.
