Central Qld rugby league’s Jai Hansen elevated to North Qld Cowboys NRL Development Squad

The Cathedral College graduate has received a major boost that takes him a step closer to realising his childhood dream of playing NRL. Read about the exciting career development here.

Central Queensland's Jai Hansen is now training full-time with the North Queensland Cowboys' NRL squad. Photo: North Queensland Cowboys Media

Central Queensland rugby league sensation Jai Hansen is clearly making an impression at the North Queensland Cowboys.

The 19-year-old has been elevated to the club’s NRL Development Squad for the 2023 season, which means he trains full-time with the club’s NRL squad but sits outside the top 30 players.

Cowboys’ head of recruitment Dane Campbell said Hansen joined the club’s Young Guns program last year after graduating from The Cathedral College in Rockhampton.

He said Hansen had a “wonderful season” which culminated in his starring performance for the Townsville Blackhawks (a Cowboys’ feeder club) in their Hastings Deering Colts grand final victory.

“We believe that Jai has the game sense, training ethic and mental toughness to do very well over the coming years and he now gets the opportunity to train full-time with the NRL group and hopefully push to become a regular Queensland Cup player in 2023,” Campbell said.

Central Queensland's Jai Hansen has been elevated to the North Queensland Cowboys’ NRL Development Squad for 2023. Photo: Cowboys Media

“He has started the pre-season really well and is learning from our experienced players like Reece Robson and Jake Granville, which we believe will put him in a great position to start the new season.”

Hansen hails from Calliope and played his junior footy with the Calliope Roosters.

On his move to Rockhampton to attend TCC, he played his club football with Rockhampton Brothers.

He came through the Cowboys Rockhampton Academy while attending TCC and spent about four weeks at the club’s pre-season training at the back end of 2021.

He then made the move to Townsville.

Jai Hansen is now training full-time with the Cowboys’ NRL squad. Picture: Matthew Elkerton

The crafty hooker is now getting stuck into a gruelling pre-season with the NRL squad.

He’s savouring every minute of it, appreciating that his hard work gets him closer to realising his childhood dream.

“They’re really long, hard, challenging weeks but they’re enjoyable,” he said.

“You’ve just got to be a sponge and soak it all in from the NRL boys. They do everything to such a high standard - the way they look after themselves and prepare themselves for every single training.

Jai Hansen playing with the Townsville Blackhawks in the Hastings Deering Colts preliminary final.

“That’s a big one for us younger boys to realise that it’s as much about what you do off the field as what you do on it.

“It’s all the small things that will help you in the long run.”

Hansen said every player had been really accommodating but Granville, a fellow CQ product and 181-game NRL veteran, had taken him under his wing.

“He has been awesome. He’s there to help me out,” Hansen said.

“Every session he’ll grab me and do extra skills so it’s great for me to have someone with that ability to learn off.”

Hansen has plenty of fond memories of his footy days in Rockhampton.

Jai Hansen played three years with the The Cathedral College First XIII, captaining the team in Year 12.

Among the most special, though, were playing in the Confraternity Carnival grand final in the first of his three years in the TCC First XIII and leading the CQ Capras under-18s to the semi-final of the Mal Meninga Cup.

He said the Confro final was “an unreal experience”, while the honour of captaining the Capras was something he would never forget.

Hansen said making it to the NRL was his ultimate goal.

“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think about it every day,” he said.

“Football - I love it. Ever since I was a kid, it’s all I’ve ever wanted to do.

“Hopefully one day I get lucky enough to do it but at the moment I’m just taking small steps and seeing where they lead me.”

Originally published as Central Qld rugby league’s Jai Hansen elevated to North Qld Cowboys NRL Development Squad