TIZZANO READY TO RUMBLE

It's been a tortuous route to the top for the Wallaby flanker, who now has the British & Irish Lions in his sights...

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IN A team meeting room at the Western Force HQ sits a group of the state's finest young rugby talent. They're gathered for an aspirational talk on what it takes to become a pro rugby player and, ultimately, a Wallaby.

One of the kids faces a big decision. A keen Aussie Rules footballer and rugby diehard, 15-year-old Carlo Tizzano has been offered a place in the WA State Rules squad as well as the WA rugby squad. He can't do both.

Tizzano's raw sporting talent is obvious but his on-field energy doesn't sit well in the school environment. 'Disruptive' is a word that often comes up, so much so that eventually he is asked to leave Perth's Hale School.

But disruptive in Tizzano's case does not equate to unfocused; in fact, from an early age he has set his own goals. And the teenager has 'Wallaby' at the top of the list. So from the moment the Western Force Academy reps spell out how these youngsters can follow a pathway to Test rugby, Tizzano's mind is made up.

Rugby's gain will be the AFL's loss.

"It was pretty easy for me.

Every year as a young guy I set my goals," he says. "What pushed me towards rugby was that I could see the pathway to become a Wallaby right there.

"With AFL you got an email that you'd been selected and just went to training a couple of times a week; it wasn't like being sat down with a professional programme.

"Rugby we were training four times a week; I liked the whole process. We're not a rugby state but have had a pretty professional rugby programme going on here, especially for junior age groups." A decade on, he is starring for the Force and, as the knockout stage loomed, top try-scorer in Super Rugby Pacific; he's also a proud wearer of Wallaby gold. He has ticked all the boxes - but he's had to dig deep along the way.