Townsville teen Layne Prince will debut in the Queensland team at Sunday's Next Gen 7s finals in Sydney just 13 months after making the switch from touch.
The 16-year-old Indigenous schoolgirl from Pimlico State High is treading the well-worn route into sevens that so many of the country's top players have in the past.
Pace, elusive footwork and comfort with ball-in-hand are skills that are obvious from the outset when watching her at training.
Prince also has a footy pedigree through uncle Scott Prince, the former Queensland State of Origin rugby league halfback who built a decorated 300-game NRL career with the Brisbane Broncos, Gold Coast Titans, Wests Tigers and North Queensland Cowboys.
Young Prince is at the start of her career, having been spotted at a touch tournament by Dylan Blackman, the Queensland Rugby Union's Indigenous Strategy Manager.
"Dylan saw me play at a couple of touch tournaments and I played my first rugby at the Ella 7s in Tuggerah (on the NSW Central Coast) last year," Prince said.
"The thing that got me interested was how much space there is on the field to create and the similarity of skills you can transfer from touch.
"Understanding the different positions, tackling...the more you play, the more you get used to it.
"My competitive side comes from mum and dad (Shae and Stephen) with their background in touch."
Prince is a wonderful example of the philanthropic reach of the QRU Foundation.
Support from a donor meant the funds were there for Prince to be flown to Brisbane for a full training schedule last week to gel in a new team under Next Gen 7s coach Shannon Parry.
"Layne has been on the radar and I got to take away for the Global Youth Sevens tournament in Auckland last December," Parry said.
"Funding through a donor made it possible for her to get down from Townsville because a big piece was giving her that training exposure before we could pick her. The Queensland Academy of Sport has helped with Layne coming down a second time this week and it's right timing, right place with the Next Gen 7s in Sydney this weekend.
"You want to give chances to as many good regional kids as possible. Layne has electric footwork, she reads the game well, she ball plays and she got that competitiveness."
Prince already feels a comfort with some familiar faces in Queensland's young team. Aimee Henry and Madison Pomerenke were teammates at the Global Youth Sevens and she's played in Indigenous teams with Rhani Hagan and Reese Orcher.
Prince's Kalkadoon mob are from the Mt Isa region.
"It's really good to see Rhani and Reese making a mark. Sometimes we don't get the chance to be on the big stage," Prince said.
"We have a lot of good skill and natural talent that gets overlooked in a way. And that's the same for a lot of girls who don't get the opportunity to be looked at like you do in Brisbane."
For Sydney, Zoe Waters can also look forward to an overdue debut. She is a high-impact player who has put injury worries behind her.
Charlie Brigstocke has played Next Gen 7s for the ACT Brumbies but this will be her first outing for Queensland.
(* debut)
- Aimee Henry
- Carys Dallinger
- Charlie Brigstocke*
- Emmisyn Wynyard
- Evie Sampson
- Layne Prince*
- Leilani Hills
- Madison Pomerenke
- Matilda Vial
- Reese Orcher
- Rhani Hagan
- Zoe Waters
