The physical side of getting picked
Rep teams, state squads, academies and drafts — how the talent pathway works in six Australian sports, what gets measured along the way, and what separates the athletes who move up from the ones who stall.
Your first month is free, with nothing to pay today. Then A$24.99/month, cancel any time. On the App Store and Google Play.
In every Australian sport pathway, selectors pick on skill and game sense first. The physical qualities that separate athletes at the next level are much the same everywhere: an engine that lasts the game, speed and power, strength for contact and landing, and availability — staying free of the soft-tissue injuries that cost a season.
All four are trainable, and all four are built months before the trial that measures them.
Choose your pathway
AFL
The AFL talent pathway from club footy to the draft — Talent League, U18 championships and the Combine — and the physical gaps that separate players.
See the pathwayRugby league
The rugby league pathway in NSW and Queensland — Harold Matthews, SG Ball, Jersey Flegg, Cyril Connell and Mal Meninga — and the physical side of each step.
See the pathwaySoccer
The soccer pathway in Australia — SAP, NPL youth, A-League academies and national youth teams — and the physical qualities that separate players.
See the pathwayNetball
The netball pathway in Australia — state 17/U and 19/U teams, the National Netball Championships and Super Netball — and the physical side of each step.
See the pathwayBasketball
The basketball pathway in Australia — U16, U18 and U20 National Championships, the Centre of Excellence and NBL1 — and the physical side of each step.
See the pathwayCricket
The cricket pathway in Australia — Premier Cricket, the U17 and U19 National Championships and state programs — and the physical side of each step.
See the pathwayFour things the athletes who move up do differently
They train months before the trial
Selection happens on a date. The strength, speed and aerobic base that show up on that date were built in the block before it — usually over the off-season, when everyone else was resting.
They stay available
You cannot be picked from the sideline. Eccentric hamstring work, the Copenhagen adductor programme and structured warm-ups all have published evidence behind them for reducing injury in football codes — see the sources.
They know their numbers
Testing is the language coaches and selectors share. An athlete who tests every four weeks arrives at a club testing day knowing their trend, not guessing it.
They train in the right order
Aerobic base before repeat efforts. Strength before power. A program that trains everything every week improves nothing in particular — which is why Train Smart periodises by season phase.
Not on this list?
Train Smart also programs rugby union, hockey, boxing, MMA, gymnastics and dance — each with its own sessions, prehab and testing battery, periodised to its season or competition block.
Get ahead before the season does
Your sport, your season and your testing battery — built into one program, with the weight to put on the bar on every set.
Your first month is free, with nothing to pay today. Then A$24.99/month, cancel any time. On the App Store and Google Play.
- Install itFree to download on iPhone and Android.
- Tell it how you playYour sport, your season, the nights you train and the kit you have. No account needed.
- See your week, then start freeYour program is built before you pay anything. Start the free month to unlock it, and cancel any time in your store settings.