An Australian U16s Merit Team has been announced following the inaugural U16s National Championships that were held earlier this year in Queensland. Two sides from QLD and NSW and sides from ACT, Victoria, WA and Fiji contested the week long tournament in late September, with QLD Red defeating NSW I 21-12 in the final. QLD and NSW players dominated selection in the merit team, with 12 and 9 players picked respectively, while ACT and WA both had one player each selected. Australian U16s Merit Team: Number Name Team 1 Nick Jones New South Wales 1 2 Sam Finocharrio Queensland Red 3 Bradley Kuhn Queensland Red 4 Tom Hooper New South Wales 1 5 Zephaniah Tuinona Queensland Red 6 Lance Bagon Queensland Red 7 William Roach Queensland Red 8 Joe Brial New South Wales 1 9 Lachlan Albert New South Wales 1 10 Carter Gordon Queensland Red 11 Tolutai Koula New South Wales 1 12 John Connolly New Sout