St George Illawarra Dragons duo Joel Thompson and George Rose have both been named in the NRL ‘Academic Team of the Year’.
The Indigenous All-Stars representatives were also recipients of the NRL Indigenous Academic Excellence Awards at the NRL’s Community and Player Education Awards held at Sheraton on the Park, Sydney on Friday.
Thompson is presently studying a Diploma of Community Services at TAFE Illawarra whilst Rose is undertaking a Graduate Certificate in Commerce at the University of Sydney.
Furthermore, Dragons NYC ‘Player of the Year’ was named in the NYC ‘Academic Team of the Year’ for his Bachelor of Sport and Exercise Science studies at the Australian Catholic University.
The NRL Community and Player Awards, now in its ninth year, honours grassroots clubs and members, together with NRL and NYC players excelling in their educational and community endeavours.
The Dragons were also honoured by being awarded the NRL Club ‘Community Program of the Year’.
The Dragons were applauded for their initiative SCORE Dragons, a community program run alongside the Disability Trust Illawarra and the Illawarra and South Coast Junior Rugby Leagues.
The program creates an all-inclusive environment for young people aged 12-23 living with various levels of disability.
