Here is our first diary entry of the 2026 Saints Academy Tour, proudly sponsored by ASW Solicitors, as our team landed in Sydney and got straight to work!
After setting off at 3 am on Sunday, the players and staff landed in the capital city of New South Wales on Monday, 5th October, around 6:30pm local time. With the stopover in Doha in Qatar, the full travel time was 24 hours, so and headed over to their accommodation after meeting one of our key tour organisers, Dave Woods. ‘Woodsy’ has been a key man in each one of our Academy tours, so it’s wonderful to have him helping out our lads once again!
After some needed shuteye, the Saints woke up, most around 4:30am, ready to get to get the day started. They got straight to work on Tuesday morning, visiting the Penrith Panthers’ Rugby League Academy facility (Nectr Rugby League Academy), before running across to former Penrith & New South Wales player Mark Geyer’s gym. It was a fantastic experience for the players, who were able to learn from someone with a wealth of experience in the game while also getting a taste of how professional athletes approach their training.
The team then took to the field to work on core skills as they prepare for the first match of the tour against Balmain District on Saturday afternoon.
After those hard-worked sessions to shake off any jet lag, the Saints paid a visit to the Panthers Penrith Leagues Club, where the J.J. Giltinan Shield was on display following the NRL side’s minor premiership success by topping the regular season table. Furthermore, the Panthers’ four successive Grand Final trophies were also on show.
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Our youngsters then returned to their accommodation to get tidied up and changed before heading into Sydney’s city centre for some sightseeing and a visit to the world-famous Sydney Opera House.
Just as important as working hard on their rugby is some downtime whilst on tour, and our lads had a go at some aqua golfing – a driving range in front of some water. Thank goodness some of these young men can play rugby, because professional golfing might not be for them…
The hard work continues in earnest, with four matches ahead for the Saints Academy to get excited for.
