Kurri Kurri teenager Hannah Bourke has reached new heights following a whirlwind few weeks in state and national-level football.
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The 16-year-old captained her Northern NSW side to victory in the National Training Centre Challenge at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra from June 9-13.
Hannah’s outstanding individual performance scored her a position in a Football Federation Australia All Stars team along side Northern NSW and Emerging Jets teammates Ashley Brodigan and Annie Grove.
The challenge was a platform of identifying young Matildas as well as the under 17 Australian squad.
It involved teams from around the country, with Northern NSW only losing one game out of seven.
Triumph at the NTC Challenge led into a strong performance by the Kurri Kurri High School student in the school competition.
After representing Hunter at the Combined High Schools (CHS) championship, Hannah was selected in the NSW CHS 1 team and from that she was picked for the NSW All Schools team on June 21.
The All Schools squad will compete for the national title in late August.
The players will also be vying for individual positions in the Australian All Schools team.
To top off her recent strong performances, Hannah was also identified for a 41 person squad for the Australian under-20’s team.
A team of 23 will be selected on July 2, and Hannah said she thought she was in with a good shot despite being one of the younger athletes.
Speaking about all of her recent success, Hannah, who plays centre-back, said it came down to a combination of setting goals, hard work and dedication.
Hannah currently plays in the Emerging Jets under 17’s side in the PS4 NPL NSW women's first grade competition.
The year-11 student said juggling school with travelling, training and playing was a struggle at times, but that it was paying off.
“I’m really happy,” she said.
“It’s great to finally get recognised for all my hard work.”
Hannah is on track to achieve her long-term goal of receiving a contract to play football overseas.