BRIGHT FUTURES: Nine Downlands College students chasing their sporting dreams
With a talented group of young men and women coming through the grades, Downlands College boasts a plethora of young talent doing great things in sport. We catch up with nine students with amazing futures ahead. READ THEIR STORIES
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DOWNLANDS College has had a long history of producing sporting stars across a variety of areas.
With an extremely talented cohort of young men and women, we catch up with nine students aiming to follow in the footsteps of their alumni and do great things in the sporting arena.
MOLLY MCPHERSON (Year 12)
Taking chances is something Molly McPherson is embracing in her netball career.
The 17-year-old goal defence/wing defence combo player took her game to another level with her inclusion in a Queensland aged squad last year, something she is hoping to build upon.
“Last year I was named in the Queensland U17s squad, and this year I was an invitee for the U19s and I’m part of the Darling Downs Panthers team,” she said.
“It was really good (Queensland experience). I had never been to anything like that.
“I met a lot of new girls and learnt a lot of new skills. I hadn’t really experienced something like that before.”
McPherson said she is embracing the chance to get more time on court this season, particularly with a defensive line that boasts a wealth of experience and knowledge of the game.
“Having some of the older girls who are a lot more experienced, it’s good to learn a lot from them and have them on the court with you,” she said.
“It’s been really good. Last year I got a little bit (of court time), but not a lot which was expected.
“It’s been good to get a bit more of a chance this year. Because we do have such a strong defensive line it definitely keeps you on your toes and keeps you working hard.”
After getting a taste of Queensland and Panthers netball, she wants to continue that into a new year for both.
“Next year I’m still aiming to be part of the U19s squad again for Queensland, and probably the Panthers as well,” she said.
“A Sapphire (Series) berth would be really good for our region.
“If you’ve got talent, you still have to work hard.”
HARRIET LLOYD-JONES (Year 12)
When speaking of rising Toowoomba athletics stars, perhaps none shine brighter than Harriet Lloyd-Jones.
The 16-year-old has a national title to her name in her chosen discipline of steeplechase, and the chance to represent her country against international opposition.
“Last year I came first in Australia for the 2000m steeplechase,” she said.
“This year I was going into the race at nationals, but unfortunately got Covid so I missed out on racing this year at nationals.
“I was still considered for the team to represent Australia which was really good.”
She describes the thrill of claiming an Australian gold medal as an incredible feeling, on the back of an intense regimen to get her firing on the day.
“It was really amazing. It was very surreal at the start but then it was very exciting and very rewarding,” she said.
“Lots of training is involved. I train six days, there’s lots of hard work and early mornings.
“I love the competitions and the excitement it brings. It’s just so exciting when you hit your peak, you’re training well and you race well, it makes you feel good.”
Lloyd-Jones will head to the Oceanic Games in June in Mackay, an experience she can’t wait to be a part of, especially after a Covid setback.
“It’s very exciting. It will be my first time representing Australia,” she said.
“It was very tough not being able to compete at nationals, but I got through it and am getting back into it now.”
For Lloyd-Jones it was the influence of her coach that saw her switch to steeplechase, and the ultimate stage is a future dream she has one eye on.
“It was my coach. Her daughter Brielle Erbacher was very good at it,” she said.
“She went to worlds, and my coach said I should try it. I did, liked it and got into it.”
“Having a home Olympics, it could be a big achievement of mine in the future. But who knows. We’ll just have to wait and see.”
Nationals cross country in August
ERIN CHANDLER (Year 12)
One of the many dual-code talents present at Downlands, Erin Chandler is putting her name up in lights as she tackles anything in front of her.
Starting out in Rugby Sevens, Chandler has taken up the 15-a-side format in recent times, as well as rugby league.
It’s led the 17-year-old to Queensland representation in union and a spot with the Western Clydesdales in league, as she showcases her skills on a wider platform.
“I’ve only just started in the 15-a-side, but it is a lot of fun. There’s a lot less running than Sevens,” she said.
“Last year I trained with a few other Toowoomba girls in the Queensland Youth 7s squad. This year I was selected in the Queensland U18s Youth Women’s Reds team to play against the Waratahs and Brumbies.
“I got Covid so missed the Waratahs game, but played against the Brumbies in Brisbane. It was amazing, a good experience and the first time that team had actually existed. I got a lot out of it.”
Hailing from the town of Bringalily, Chandler boards at Downlands, and hopes the pathway for her and other regional talent can continue to improve.
“The Women’s Youth team feeds into the Super W, but unfortunately I’m a boarder and to be properly selected into that you have to play in the premier grade in Brisbane,” she said.
“They’re working on allowing more regional girls to be able to join that, and the U18s side would really help that.”
Chandler’s immediate ambitions include finishing her final year of schooling on a high, with a dream of wearing the green and gold on home soil.
“Finishing off grade 12 I want to make as many rep teams as I can,” she said.
“Especially school sport teams because I can’t do that after this year.
“I’m looking to go somewhere in my sport that can set me up for after school.
“The announcement of the 2029 Women’s World Cup looks pretty cool. That is the dream.”
KAYLIN VAN GREUNEN (Year 11)
A goal shooter with an eagle eye for goal, Kaylin van Greunen is enjoying a purple patch of form in recent years.
The 16-year-old has donned the maroon for Queensland, and this year claimed her biggest honour to date when being chosen in the Australian U17s.
It’s a big reward for the efforts of the Darling Downs Panthers representative, who is taking every opportunity coming her way.
“My biggest achievement is making the Australian U17s squad for 2022,” she said.
“Also being in my current Ruby Series squad and getting to represent the Darling Downs.
“So far (with Australia) it’s just been training and a camp coming up in July.”
The opportunity to be in an environment with the best young players in Australia has helped van Greunen to grow her game.
As has her involvement with the Panthers as a focal point of their attack, as her and the side continue to grow as one.
“I’m definitely learning a lot and it’s a lot of training with people I haven’t really played with before,” she said.
“Which is good because it helps me to meet new people and hear their experiences with netball.”
“It’s my third year of Panthers.
“I feel like I have a really good connection with all of the girls and it’s good fun.
“It definitely does help with the wins. Having that good connection and being able to support each other through hard games definitely help us.”
The big ambition remains working her way up to the level of Super Netball, but whatever the case, van Greunen wants to remain involved in sport.
“I do hope that I’m doing netball professionally,” she said.
“If that doesn’t work out, I’d love to be somewhere in that area, whether it’s physio or exercise science.
“I haven’t thought about it too much, but it is something I would consider studying.”
JONTE WALKER (Year 8)
Wearing the maroon on a national stage is something Jonte Walker has always aspired to do.
The 13-year-old short stop was able to make his softball dream come true last year, and he hopes there is plenty more to come in the future.
“I made the 2021 Queensland rep team and we went down to Canberra to represent,” he said.
“That was one of my lifelong dreams to represent Queensland.
“I’ve been to a number of state titles for both schoolboys and Toowoomba.”
A family connection helped Walker become involved in the sport, with a love of the game and the friends he’s made along the way keeping him in it.
“It’s always great and fun to go and represent something you love and I’ve made a heap of new friends,” he said.
“I started about eight years ago when I was four because my Dad played softball.
“When he started finding sports for us to do, I tried softball and played it ever since.”
Playing with Dodgers in the local league, Walker thrives in the big moments during his games, and he wants to follow in the footsteps of a number of locals who have gone to the highest level.
“I love the high intensity moments,” he said.
“From your position when you make that really big throw that can change the entire game. I love it when you get those moments and make that decisive throw.”
“I’d like to go all the way and represent Australia in the Steelers team.
“If I keep working hard, hopefully I can get there.”
“There’s a few of the men here that have represented Australia before. I’ve always looked up to them and that’s where I get my inspiration.”
RUBY BEASLEY (Year 11)
What started as a venture to learn a necessary skill has translated into a serious talent for Ruby Beasley.
Such is that talent, she had the chance to race on the national stage in recent times.
It was a major thrill for the 15-year-old, where she had to display a mental maturity beyond her years to pick herself up and record a PB.
“This year I qualified for the Australian Age Championships and qualified for the 200m and 400m freestyle,” she said.
“It was a good experience to be able to travel to Adelaide.
“When I got there I had the 200 first up, where the outcome isn’t really what I wanted.
“I had a few days break in between, came back to do the 400 with a really good mindset and ended up doing a three-second PB.
“It was a good feeling because you know that all the training paid off.
“It’s a great feeling with your coach when they tell you how good it was.
“I like the friendships that you make and the experience of going to comps.”
Early mornings are nothing new for swimmers looking to make their way in the pool, and Beasley has been able to take them in her stride.
“It takes a lot of work. We train eight times a week for about two hours,” she said.
“I get up at around 5am to get to the pool at 5.20am. I’ve gotten into the routine now.
“I started when I was young because my parents thought it was a life skill to know how to swim, and that’s how the journey started.
“I had a little break and realised I wanted to get back into it. When I was younger and made the DD team for the first time, I realised I could actually swim.
The young swimmer is taking a relaxed approach for her sporting future, as she looks to have fun along the way.
“For the next year and a bit I just want to enjoy the sport while I’m still in school,” she said.
“I’m not sure yet if I want to do it in the future. I want to do something, whether it be coaching or continue swimming.
TREVOR KING (Year 12)
While he is a relatively new face in Toowoomba, Trevor King is already making a big impression.
The 17-year-old front rower has excelled in the Downlands system since making the move from Gladstone, adding an incredibly special honour to his resume.
“Over the last 12 months I’ve made the Reds U16s, the Reds U18s Junior Academy and the Australia A Schoolboys,” he said.
“I was pretty surprised when I made it.”
King’s journey to the heights he has experienced in union started in a rival code.
He eventually made the switch as a young teenager, following in the footsteps of his father.
“I started playing rugby union when I was 12, but before that I played league,” he said.
“Dad used to play union, so I wanted to give it a go. I signed with a local club and it all went from there.”
What King enjoys most about rugby union is the camaraderie and mateship associated with the sport.
He said a dream would be to play at the professional level, and make Queenslanders proud by running out for the Reds.
“I love playing with my mates, enjoying the footy and the physicality,” he said.
“(Making these teams) motivates me to go further and to try and make a career out of it by doing something I love.
“Things have been going pretty well.
“There’s a few areas that I still need to work on. It’s taken a lot of work and early mornings.
“I want to enjoy the last few months of school and make lifelong friends. The ultimate goal is to play for the Reds.”
OLIVER COLTHUP (Year 9)
Endurance should well be Oliver Colthup’s middle name.
The 14-year-old multi-disciplined bike racer has been in scintillating form in recent times, solidifying his spot as one of the country’s most exciting young prospects on two wheels.
“I’ve won the Queensland Enduro Series three years in a row,” he said.
“I won the Downhill State Championships last year and the National Championships this year.
With competition over the long distances, Colthup has to remain as fit as possible to keep his stamina up, something he has been doing since he had a dream introduction into the sport just five short years ago.
“Heaps of fitness training (is involved). I just ride as much as possible. I’m with the TMBC (Toowoomba Mountain Bike Club),” he said.
“I remember riding in my backyard on a little kid’s bike and then once I moved up to a bike that had suspension, I moved onto mountain bike trails and really liked and enjoyed it.
“2017 was my first race in U11s at the Cross Country State Championships. I won that and it made me want to keep racing.”
At the moment he is enjoying the chance to travel around the state and country to compete, with a trip to New Zealand also on the cards later this year.
“The Queensland series is pretty much across the whole state, and the nationals were down in Tasmania.
“Later this year I’ll be heading to Cairns for Crankworx which is an international event and then another Crankworx in Rotorua.”
The allure of competing on the international stage is something that excites and inspires Colthup to keep working hard on the bike.
“I want to get on a factory race team and race World Cups and probably EWS (Enduro World Series) as well,” he said.
“I look up to Jack Miller. He’s an Australian and the most recent winner of it, and the previous winner of that for four years was Jack Hill who is also an Australian.
“I want to be like them when I’m older.”
LACHLAN ZIVIANI (Year 10)
Whether it be indoor or outdoor, opposition players have had a hard time trying to get the ball past Lachlan Ziviani.
The 15-year-old goalkeeper has experienced the highs of both forms of hockey over the past 12 months, winning numerous gold medals for both Queensland and Toowoomba.
“At the start of the year I went to the U15s nationals in Newcastle and captained the team to a gold medal,” he said.
“Just recently I went away for the Darling Downs U18s and made the Queensland Schoolboys as well.
“I made the Queensland indoor U15s last year, and hopefully the U18s squad this year.”
With a number of players coming through the grades together, Ziviani said he is grateful to be part of a strong local program.
“It’s a lot of hard work off the field, but with our coaching director Matt Cook in Toowoomba,” he said.
“I was about four or five when I started playing. My older brother played and it just went from there. It’s close to home and I’ve made a lot of friends through the sport.
“When I was a kid, everyone shares it (goalkeeper duties) around. I just liked it a lot and stuck with it ever since.
“When I made U12s Schoolboys as an 11-year-old, I developed through the Queensland Hockey program.
“We have a wonderful development through Toowoomba Hockey through our RCD’s, and lots of time on and off the field we’ve put in.
“The three years to me and above, we’re a very tight-knit group. From the U18s tournament in Cairns, five made the Australian Futures, and hopefully I can strive to do that.”
Holding his own in the net, Ziviani knows how important it is to maintain that position, which is why he is striving to better himself every time he takes the field.
“The biggest motivation is playing with the people you’ve played with, it’s always striving to do more than you did the last time,” he said.
“I try to be the best for myself, because I fight for such a low-numbered position, I have to be the best to play with the best.
Hopefully I can become a Kookaburra.”
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