Hills Independent #77 November 2021 | Page 36

SPORT

WITH PATRICK STAVELEY

Lucie Francis proving to be a triple threat

Sometimes in life there are people who are blessed with an athletic skill or if you ’ re a young triathlete like Lucie Francis , you ’ re blessed with three .
That ’ s not to imply that Lucie was automatically gifted with raw talent , she ’ s
Taking it all in her stride , Lucie Francis leading the pack .
had to work incredibly hard to get to the position where she is now at the age of just 15 .
After tagging along to one of her Dad ’ s triathlons , seven-year-old Lucie decided that she wanted to add to her running talent and improve her cycling and swimming to become a triathlete like her father .
Stating firmly that running is her strongest area of the three , Lucie said that she has ramped up her training in the pool and on the bike .
Her mother , Jane , explains Lucie ’ s recent history-performing in triathlons ,
“ Once she hit high school – they had ‘ all schools ’ – there were about 100 kids in that race and that ’ s from all schools across NSW . The next level is nationals and the top five go through . Lucie came seventh the first year and then in Year 8 came third .”
“ Lucie ’ s been to national events and cross country a few times . She ’ s competing in a national level across a few sports so she ’ s used to competing at the top , and wants to continue doing so .”
Competing in triathlons , especially at such a young age , sounds like such a daunting task but it ’ s something that Lucie gets a great deal of joy out of .
“ I like all of it ( competing in triathlons ), I ’ ve made lots of friends but it ’ s also heaps of fun racing . You ’ re so exhausted after but it ’ s really enjoyable . I feel like I don ’ t feel nervous until I ’ m right on the line . As soon as I start I ’ m fine ,” she says .
Jane Francis offers great credit to Western Sydney Academy of Sport triathlons coach , James Sweeney , for Lucie ’ s growth in the sport .
“ Being part of the academy helps because you not only have your home coaches but you also have academy coaches . James is a pretty amazing coach ,” Jane said .
“ A lot of people know him for his triathlon skills and his triathlon coaching skills . At the moment Lucie is training and competing and hopefully moving up into that NSW squad and moving forward . “ Lucie sounds shy and almost embarrassed when I bring up the prospect of her wanting to participate in the Olympics and World Championships one day . It ’ s obviously a dream of hers and with her confidence and level-headedness it ’ s definitely possible but she ’ s taking it one step at a time , focusing on her shortterm goal of making the NSW triathlons squad before she focuses on reaching the Australian squad .”

Western Sydney Wanderers primed and ready

The Western Sydney Wanderers are fresh and ready to get stuck in for the 2021-22 A-League season as they look to put previous COVID-disrupted seasons behind them .
It ’ s hard to imagine that as they head
Raring to go : the Wanderers are fired up and ready for a big season .
into their 10th season , the Wanderers have the task of avoiding missing the finals for the fifth consecutive season .
However , with the current squad on paper fuelled by a number of experienced and big name signings , the Wanderers sit in a good position heading into the season opener against their fiercest rivals , Sydney FC , on 20 November .
While a wealth of experience and talent has been lost to the Wanderers with the likes of Mitchell Duke , Nicolai Muller , Dylan McGowan , Patrick Ziegler , Bruce Kamau , Graham Dorrans and Jordan Mutch , among others all departing at season ’ s end ; replacements have been signed efficiently with players that have proved themselves in the A-League .
Wanderers defender , Tass Mourdoukoutas , speaks highly of some of his new teammates ,
“ We ’ ve brought in some real quality and experienced players and they ’ re going to help develop the younger ones as well .
I look forward to playing alongside them more . A lot of the players have won things and have had good careers so far and are looking to win more .
“ We want to push hard and do well and these are the sort of calibre players we need to bring in to the club . They each bring different aspects – leadership , skill , general ability and professionalism into the team .”
Australian Internationals , Rhys Williams , Terry Antonis and Dimitri Petratos lead the recruitment drive . Ex- Premier League striker , Tomer Hemed , starred for the Wellington Phoenix last season and still has plenty of goals in him .
Ivorian defender , Adama Traore , adds depth and experience to the left back role while Johnny Koutroumbis and Ramy Najjarine add some extra quality . New signings to the A-League are goalkeeper , Tomas Mejias , and forward , Keijiro Ogawa , who will be keen to showcase their talent to the Wanderers fans .
Mourdoukoutas admits the NSW lockdown was hard on the squad in the off-season ,
“ I think a lot of boys were a bit lost for a while , not being at training and what not so just to be back is huge . I ’ m privileged to play football as a job . We want to use it as motivation to push even harder and to realise how lucky we are to train out at Blacktown – an area that ’ s done it pretty tough as well as an LGA of concern .
“ t ’ s massive to be back for the whole group because they just know what people have sacrificed and what they ’ ve had to sacrifice in order to be back .
The Australian Under 23 ’ s star says the squad is excited for the Sydney Derby in Round 1 ,
“ It ’ s a huge deal . The group is raring to go . Everyone ’ s definitely ready and fired up for the big season ahead . It ’ s extra special in a derby I think , just more on the line for fans and players alike so it ’ ll be a big game I ’ m sure ,” Mourdoukoutas adds .

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