Towering rugby teenager Fritz Jahnke-Tavana a real standout
This towering, rugby union playing teenager is already making a name for himself and he still has some growing to do.
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At 198cm this teenager would have been hard to miss anywhere, let alone in a NSW country town.
Head and shoulders above others his age, Fritz Jahnke-Tavana had only just arrived in Australia when he turned up to a CHS Discover Day to play rugby in Orange last year.
“In walked Fritz and I started to talk to him. He’d only been here a couple of days,’’ said Gen Blue Pathway co-ordinator Matt Evrard.
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“We talented ID’d him and bought him into the under 16s last year.
“He is proof that any kid can make it through the pathways. It’s a real credit to him.”
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After moving to Sydney he started at Waverley College where he is currently is Year 10.
He was a member of the NSW team which made it to the grand final of the under 16s junior rugby championship in Canberra earlier this month before falling in the decider against Queensland.
The Blues were beaten 31-20 at the tournament where the next generation of Junior Wallabies and Australian schoolboys were on display — and being closely monitored by individual state academies, including the Waratahs and Brumbies.
And while he played for Sydney Roosters in the Harold Matthews under 16s this year, the teenager believes his sporting future will be in rugby union.
“I like it, rugby league, but my dad wanted me to focus more on rugby,’’ said Jahnke-Tavana, a member of the under 16s Gen Blue squad.
“I grew up playing union and I feel more familiar with it and confident.”
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Jahnke-Tavana was recently part of the winning Waverley College side which took on St Augustine’s prior to the Wallabies and Samoa Test at Bankwest stadium last month.
The quietly spoken Waverley College 16-year-old has big dreams to match his towering stature.
“I’d like to play eventually for Australia,’’ he said. “They tell me I still have growing to do.’’
A talented basketball big man, Jahnke-Tavana said playing the sport also helps his rugby skills.
“I really like the game,’’ he said.
“It feels quite natural doing both (sports).
“I get more ability from both of them and it’s great for reflexes.’’
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