South Warrnambool and Greater Western Victoria Rebels youngster Luamon Lual hopes to excite this season

The emerging 16-year-old from South Warrnambool and the Greater Western Victoria Rebels has his sights set on a big 2022 mixing local football appearances, the NAB League and with the Western Bulldogs Next Generation Academy (NGA).

Lual told The Standard he was itching to get on the park and play some football and show off his skills.

"I want to get through the season first, and play the best footy I can," he said.

"I like to think I read the game pretty well, and use my speed and running capabilities. I also really pride myself on my kicking so that's what I want to do this year."

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Lual is a relatively late bloomer to the sport, in fact it was only a few years ago he picked up a football.

"I started off with a soccer background, and some cousins convinced me to start playing footy, and ever since then I've really enjoyed it," he explained.

"I started in under 12s at South Warrnambool, so it's been pretty good so far. It's been good to be here at the club, there's a lot of good people and it's like family."

Ambitious and full of promise, Lual said he was desperate to return to the Bulldogs' NGA this year, a program run by the AFL and AFL clubs designed to increase the male and female talent pool of Indigenous and Multicultural players in the sport.

South Warrnambool export Jamarra Ugle-Hagan was drafted to the Bulldogs in the 2020 draft after being part of the academy.

"It's been washed for two years because of COVID, but I'm really hoping to get back into it this year," he said.

"I'm very privileged to be in it, there's so many great multicultural people with diverse backgrounds involved coming together to play footy and showcase their talents, and as we've seen Jamarra (Ugle-Hagan) was in it, so it should be pretty good.

"I'd love to get the same outcome as him."

Lual is currently training Mondays and Wednesdays with the Rebels and then jetting straight back home to train with the Roosters on the same night. His aim is to play plenty of NAB League football this season and get more senior experience in the Hampden league.

Lual said he was inspired by the Sudanese-Australian players currently playing or aspiring to play AFL football and pointed to Hawthorn gun Changkuoth Jiath as a footballer he wanted to play like.

The 22-year-old Hawks defender enjoyed a breakout season last year, something Lual watched intently.

"There've been a lot of great Sudanese players who have gone into the AFL which has really inspired me," he said.

"Someone like 'CJ', his speed is exciting, if I can have what he has, that'd be good. He takes the game on, and I'd like to do that too.

"But for now I'm taking it step-by-step at the moment and going through the process, but one day I'd love to make it to the AFL."

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