Zanesville rookies ready for debut

For Aaron Hammers and Austin Dunn, the weekend can’t arrive soon enough. Although a weekend tournament might seem quite common to many seasoned veterans, it will be these rookies’ first taste of league action.

“I am really looking forward to it. I’ve been preparing for this for a long time. It’s exciting to know it’s finally here and all the hard work will pay off,” explained Aaron “Spanky” Hammers in an interview Monday.

This weekend’s action kicks off Friday in Zanesville and will continue with the “War in Worthington” tournament on Sunday. Although the jury is out on just how well the new teams and players will do, several league reports say that the next generation of RCB recruits could be the best yet.

“We’ve heard a lot of great things about this next group of athletes,” explained Andrew Wood, Director of Player Relations. “As new teams see action, you start really getting an idea of the talent level waiting to join in. I have no doubt these guys will be able to compete at a professional level.”

Optimism aside, there are several stories of promising young careers cut short by the pressure of the game. Wood offered some insight into the challenges rookies face.

“It’s a different kind of game. People you would expect to be extremely skilled end up not having as much success as they anticipated, others rise above expectations; it’s a different type of skill-set, that’s what makes it fun.”

As for those about to begin competition, the anticipation is almost too much to endure. Cameron Walker, a player just getting into the game summed up the emotions of several young athletes:

“I can’t wait for Friday, it’s going to be sweet.”



Posted on May 26th, 2007 by kyle and filed under Coverage |

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