Academy member Felix Rogers fell in love with Australian Rules in the most unexpected theatres.
Born in the UK, Rogers played soccer as a kid before moving to Australia and taking to the native game with aplomb.
On a trip from Darwin to his mother’s home city of Perth, he’d seen a familiar oval ball kicked around ovals, parks and street sides all along the west coast.
“We were always getting sent West Coast Eagles footballs, it’s lucky I’m not an Eagles fan!” Rogers said.
“We saw a lot of kids playing AFL everywhere we went, including a game in Broome where many of the kids played in bare feet.”
The family moved to Sydney where his fixation on the game began and grew.
He continued with soccer but, soon enough, week nights were suddenly dominated by training sessions (and basketball games) once Australian Rules was written into the weekly schedule.
And Sundays he’d pull on the jumper for St Michael’s in the local Lance Cove competition.
Taking a deep breath, the promising junior knew something had to give and chose the Australian game over the international game.
The seed was planted.
“AFL had become pretty important to me by then,” Rogers added. “I really hope to play for the Swans one day.”
He’s certainly on the right path as an up-and-coming member of the QBE Sydney Swans Academy.
If you think it’s all been smooth sailing for this dedicated 14-year-old though, you’d be wrong.
After hearing about the academy and then setting his sights on a place in the U/10s squad in 2013, his hopes were dashed after being overlooked.
His disappointment was evident, but underneath the setback a resilience and determination was spawned.
“I was very disappointed as I thought I had done pretty well but there were so many kids down there,” rogers admitted.
“And, in hindsight, I realised my basic skills, especially my kicking, probably needed more work.”
What was Rogers’ next move?
Instead of dropping his head, Rogers used the setback as motivation and got to work.
“I actually trained specifically for the trials with my Dad and worked on improving my kicking,”
“At the next trials, as well as trying to execute my skills, I tried really hard to stand out with my effort.”
It worked: Rogers earned a place in the U/11s the following year and has been a standout in every age group since.
“It was great to have my ability as a footballer validated by my selection alongside a lot of other good players,” he said. “I gained a lot of confidence from that.”
He can also gain a lot of confidence from the fact the coaches and talent scouts are standing up and taking notice.
“Felix is without doubt a standout prospect in our U/14 age group, “Chris Smith, General Manager of the QBE Sydney Swans Academy, said.
“I have no doubts his performance has been motivated by his initial setback. He is a great example or someone who used his initial disappointment in a positive way.”
Rogers is repaying the faith ten-fold, continuing to work tirelessly on his skills and own development as well embracing the challenges set by the academy.
This work ethic ultimately helped him earn the NSW Combined Independent Schools Sports Council (CIS) U/12 Player of the Year Award as well as representative honours at the 2016 and 2017 Joss State Trials.
“I think missing out that first year has made me appreciate the opportunity even more,” Rogers said.
