Sporting prowess runs in the Magnay family

While Queensland Reds flyer Campbell Magnay has been representing the Australian U20s at the World Rugby U20s Championship in Manchester, his younger brother Will has just been named in Basketball Australia’s Emerging Boomers team.

Eighteen-year-old Will, a scholarship holder with the Basketball Australia Centre of Excellence, will travel to China in June-July for two tournaments designed to give the players some valuable international experience as they advance through the national pathway.

The Emerging Boomers will face international competition in Serbia and Cameroon, while two teams from the Chinese Basketball Association, including the Liaoning Flying Leopards, will also compete.

Like his older brother, Will also played Rugby up until approximately Grade 9 at St. Joseph’s Nudgee College, when he made the decision to focus on his basketball. A decision that seems to be opening doors for him.

For Campbell, who admits that basketball was never really his forte whilst playing in the second and third teams at Nudgee outside of Rugby season, he’s over the moon for his younger brother.

“I’m really proud of Will, he’s worked hard for the opportunity and this is a great chance for him to develop his game,” Campbell said.

“I’m also a bit jealous of the fact that he is off to America for college after the tour.”

After the tournaments in China, Will will travel to Oklahoma, where he is now part of the roster for University of Tulsa, who compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

There are currently seven Australians playing in the National Basketball Association (NBA) - Andrew Bogut (Golden State), Matthew Dellavedova (Cleveland), Patty Mills (San Antonio), Aron Baynes (Detroit), Cameron Bairstow (Chicago) and Joe Ingles and Dante Exum (Utah) – and Will is chasing his dreams of joining this elite group of sportsmen.

Campbell says he has kept in regular contact with his brother whilst in England.

“Will has been watching our progress from afar. He likes to give me advice, but we’ve kept in touch since I’ve been in Manchester.”

With Will living in Canberra at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS), and Campbell based in Brisbane with the Reds, neither brother have had to much opportunity to see each other play this year.

“The last time I saw Will play was in some trial games for Queensland ahead of this year’s national championships.

“When he has a free weekend, Mum and Dad fly him up to Brisbane and he has had the opportunity to come to a few Reds games.”

While Campbell is happy to celebrate the success of his brother this week, he is also focused on the task ahead of the Australian U20s, as they prepare to take on New Zealand.

Having missed the opportunity to play against the Kiwis at Bond University, Saturday’s match provides Magnay with his first chance to unleash upon Australia’s traditional rivals.

“Once again I’m very excited this week for the potential opportunity to put the Australian jersey on again, pending selection,” he said.

“It will be an awesome experience to play New Zealand at the World U20s Championship, it’s an extremely tough fifth place play-off game.

“We have a chance to create history on Saturday, it would be great to be the first Australian U20s team to finish ahead of New Zealand at the tournament.”

Australia takes on New Zealand in the fifth-place playoff at 11:30pm AEST on Saturday.