Ben Volavola signed to Waratahs for 2013

Southern Districts rising star Ben Volavola has today signed with the HSBC Waratahs. One of four up and coming Shute Shield youngsters invited to join the squad for the first two weeks of pre-season training, the 21-year-old fly half impressed new head coach Michael Cheika and will now take the final place in the HSBC Waratahs Extended Playing Squad for next season. “All four players did exceptionally well to come in and perform as they did,” said Cheika of invited club talents Hamish Angus (Warringah, 22), Toby Browne (Randwick, 23), Ben Volavola (Southern Districts, 21) and Peter Samu (Randwick, 20). “They worked exceptionally hard and gave everything in the small window of time they had with us. “It’s hard to make a decision on such a short timeframe but Ben stood out as the type of player that we want to bring on. He grew as the two weeks progressed and from what we’ve seen of him, which was mostly in attack, he looks to be a dangerous player capable of taking it up levels.” Hearing the news from Cheika on Friday, Ben said he couldn’t quite believe it. “I was so excited but I couldn’t quite believe it – I was up against three other real quality players. “When I told my mum she screamed on the train, she was really happy. My girlfriend started crying! I just couldn’t wait to get back here. Everyone has been so welcoming and made us all feel comfortable. “My aims at the moment are just to have a big pre-season, learn from the experienced guys like Berrick Barnes around me to become a better rugby player and hopefully get the chance to play Super Rugby in 2013.” Included in the squad predominantly as a flyhalf, it was Volavola’s performances in the Southern Districts’ 15 jersey that earned him this chance. “He shone enough at club level last season – out of position,” said Cheika. “We’ll look at him in both positions while he’s here.” Despite having only one contract up for grabs on this occasion, Cheika also confirmed that he would pursue further opportunities for club players to be a part of the NSW squad, working with a recruitment network from within the NSW rugby community to establish a pathway to the NSW side from the Sydney Premiership and NSW country ranks. “We represent the state as a whole. These boys all really deserved this opportunity and we’re definitely looking to keep the club scene attached as much as possible. Growing our talent the best we can from within and giving deserving up and coming youngsters from this state a chance at professional rugby is an important part of what we’re about,” said Cheika. Ben Volavola Position: Flyhalf Club: Southern Districts Age: 21 Height: 191cm Weight: 96kgs Representative honours include Australia U20s and NSW A. Backed up his inaugural year in the Sydney Premiership this year with a series of stand out performances in the Shute Shield this season after making his debut in round 12. A highly skilful player, able to play fullback and flyhalf. 2013 HSBC WARATAHS SQUAD 1 Adam Ashley-Cooper (Northern Suburbs) 2 Ollie Atkins (Sydney University) 3 Berrick Barnes (Sydney University) 4 Peter Betham (Sydney University) 5 Tom Carter (Sydney University) 6 Cam Crawford (Northern Suburbs) 7 Dave Dennis (Sydney University) 8 Kane Douglas (Southern Districts) 9 Damien Fitzpatrick (Eastwood) 10 Bernard Foley (Sydney University) 11 Grayson Hart (Southern Districts) 12 Michael Hodge (Sydney University) 13 Michael Hooper (Manly) 14 Rob Horne (Southern Districts) 15 Sekope Kepu (Randwick) 16 Tom Kingston (Sydney University) 17 Pat McCutcheon (Sydney University) 18 Brendan McKibbin (Eastern Suburbs) 19 Drew Mitchell (Balmain) 20 Wycliff Palu (Manly) 21 Greg Peterson (Manly) 22 Tatafu Polota-Nau (Parramatta) 23 Benn Robinson (Eastwood) 24 Paddy Ryan (Sydney University) 25 Jeremy Tilse (Sydney University) 26 Lopeti Timani (Southern Districts) 27 Sitaleki Timani (Southern Districts) 28 Lachie Turner (Eastwood) 29 John Ulugia (Southern Districts) 30 TBC Extended Player Squad 1 Jed Holloway (Southern Districts) 2 Luke Holmes (Warringah) 3 Sam Lane (Manly) 4 Matt Lucas (TBC) 5 Ben Volavola (Southern Districts)