D-Club helps young guns

JUST hours after watching their son Dyson make his NBA debut, Ricky and Brikkita Daniels were presenting D-Club 24/7 Fitness memberships to Bendigo’s Sports Star of the Year scholarship intake of 2022.

D-Club’s on-going support through a 12-month membership has played a big part in helping the scholarship recipients pursue their goals.

Boxing, canoeing, cycling, netball, Australian rules football, soccer, and basketball are the disciplines in which scholarship recipients of 2022 compete.

The group of 12 includes gun cyclist Blake Agnoletto who had a racing stint on Belgium’s roads this year, is aiming for another return to Europe next year, and is in Adelaide this week for track training.

Basketballer Dash Daniels, younger brother of Kai and Dyson, will be bound for Guam in November to represent Australia at the FIBA Oceania under-15 tournament.

On the boxing front, Sam Kay will head to Spain next month to compete in the 51-kilogram division at the World Youth championships in Alicante.

A big year for cyclist Belinda Bailey included the world championships in Wollongong, as Bendigo clubmate Nate Hadden also starred at track nationals, and had a racing stint on Europe’s roads.

Mia Harvey is another rising basketball star, as are Will Whiteacre at netball, and Sophie Hughes at canoeing.

Lila Keck and Lucia Painter are making their mark in footy, and are highly-touted prospects to play AFLW one day.

Soccer star Silver Bell Morris played at centre half as the Young Matildas won the ASEAN Football Federation under-18 championship in Indonesia, and has signed with national league club, Western United.

Another soccer gun, Ryan Kalms is in the national under-17 squad, aka Joeys. He’s playing for Melbourne City in the NPL under-18s competition, and at under-21 level.

The scholarship and sponsors function at Red Energy Arena included 94-year-old athlete Jack Davey, a Basil Ashman Hall of Fame member, as guest speaker. Davey competed in the six-mile race at the 1950 Empire Games in Auckland.