ST GEORGE Illawarra Rugby League Club is celebrating the selection of four players who will wear Australian colours in next Friday's Anzac Tests against New Zealand.
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Former Shellharbour City Sharks forward Trent Merrin will be joined by team-mate Josh Dugan in the senior Test side, while former Albion Park-Oak Flats junior Drew Hutchison and fellow Dragon Euan Aitken, will be joined by another Albion Park-Oak Flats junior, Sydney Roosters Jackson Hastings, in the Junior Kangaroos.
Merrin was one of four forwards chosen on the interchange bench after untimely injuries robbed him of Test selection in 2013 and 2014.
"In primary school it was something I wrote down as one of my dreams and it's finally come true," Merrin said.
"[Football manager] Finchy gave me a buzz and filled me in and it was a bit emotional."
Selection is some type of redemption for Dugan who left Canberra Raiders in disgrace two years ago, but has since regained his place in the NSW Blues team and is playing outstanding football for the Dragons.
Hutchison is playing a leading role in the Illawarra Cutters team and continues his rise up the NRL ladder, retaining his spot in the Junior Kangaroos team, while Aiken has cemented a permanent spot in the Dragons first grade side in the centres.
