Former Wallabies playmaker and current Panasonic Wild Knights assistant Berrick Barnes believes there's a special crop of players coming through the Queensland and Australian Rugby pathways right now.
Barnes got a first-hand look at the future as Australia U18s duo Finn Mackay and Trevyon Pritchard started in last week's Queensland Reds' hitout against the Japanese club in Toowoomba.
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Flyhalf Mackay was especially dominant, setting up five tries in the 59-19 win as the hosts ran away with the contest.
Both played massive roles in the Australians' pair of victories over the NZ Secondary Schools, with their current run against their Kiwi counterparts the best in over 40 years.
The pair are among over 40 younger players signed on special youth retention contracts supported by the Australian Rugby Foundation, with the aim to get players exposed to High Performance from a younger age through the Super Rugby U16s and U19s competitions, as well as Australia 18s and U20s sides.
Mackay and Pritchard are fresh off a big couple of months, and now the pair has caught the eye of the 51-capped former Australian flyhalf, with Barnes in awe of their ability while excelling for the Reds.
"Finn Mackay...that's as good a young 10 performance as I've seen in a long time," Barnes remarked.
"Yes, the team was going forward with the pack and Dre (Pakeho) were doing a really good job but the decisions he made, wow. If he's the fourth string ten, you've got some riches there.
"I watched a fair bit of Treyvon Pritchard in that under-18s and he's a rare talent and I think he's got a really good head on his shoulders too, he's very mature and humble and they're good qualities to have."
This, coupled with the likes of Dre Pakeho and James Martens impressing at the Australia U20s level, has Barnes excited for the future.
"I liked what Dre did, the way he carried the ball for them, and I think James Martins showed a lot at nine...He's a big body too, which is not common and as your fourth nine, that's some pretty good depth as well," he said.
"I think [Reds GM, High Performance] Sam Cordingley and the team here and what the lads have done with the 16s, 18s and 20s, you're building depth, and now it's about holding onto those guys and picking the right ones."
The Reds will play the Wild Knights at Ballymore on Saturday, with multi-time John Eales Medalist Marika Koroibete once again set to be in action.
"Marika's been great. He's a great trainer, good personality around the group," Barnes added.
"He has a good time off it as well and the boys really respect him and we're lucky we've got some really quality Japanese players as well."
