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Article Name: The Middle Prince
Magazine: Big League
Writer: Peter Badel
Pages: 2 Pages

Cowboys 'young gun' finds himself in a selection triangle

SCOTT Prince - the kid in the middle of the Paul Green-Noel Goldthorpe selection debate at North Queensland - remembers a time not long ago when his bedroom wall was plastered with posters of Laurie Daley and other superstars he was desperate to emulate.

For an anassuming teenager from the Queensland country town of Mt Isa. where toughness is born not bred, a glossy picture of a noted hero was seemingly as close to the big time as one would get. For Prince, an inaugural Cowboys schlorashi[ holder. it got much better than that.
The 19-year-old, in his second season of first grade, will never forget the day his dreams of a top grade start became reality ... his debut was against childhood hero Daley. And what's more, the unfashionable Cowboys won.

Now the pint-sized pivot is embroiled, wiht big money buys Goldthorpe and green, in the Cowboys selection triangle that saw QLD Origin half Green demoted to the bench.

And such is coach Tim Sheens' opinion of the Junior Kangaroo that he says the No. 6 spot is Prince's and the two more established stars must fight between them for the No. 7 jersey.
"My attitude is to play Scotty at five-eighth for the rest of the year because we're out of the running and the time is ripe to give him some experience," said Sheens. "Green and Goldthorpe my have to fight for the number 7 jumper.

"Scott's on track to be a very good first-grader. We're talking about a 19 year-old with very limited experience but he's the best second reciever in the club."

For the quietly -spoken Prince, it weems like yesterday that he was thrust into the surreal situation of facing revered champion Daley and the star-studded raiders.

It was as much an eye-openerinto the ways of the world as confirmation of his elevation to the big time.

"It's been a dream come true for me," smiled Prince. "The freaky thing is because I'm so young I am out there playing against my idols Laurie Daley, whom I used to watch on TV as a kid. I was really nervous playing against Laurie, but we beat Canberra 14-12 so it was a great start.
"The first year was a big learning curve. First Grade was 10 times faster than anything I've experienced and it was a real shock going to the different stadiums and cities. Especially seeing the Opera House, that was a big thrill for someone from a country town.

"I feel more relaxed when I play now. Before, everything was going at 100 miles an hour, but I'm understanding the game and picking things up every week."

Prince, along with fellow locals Paul Bowman, John Buttigieg and John Doyle, represents the future of the fledgling Cowboys. He is one of the few players to graduate from North QLD's 'Young Gun's' development program, and is earmarked as the club chief strike-weapon will his skill, speed and zip.

Local identity, clearly, means plenty to Prince. When the Brisbane broncos, QLD's premier sporting team, promised to fund his schooling in return for his signature, Prince rejected them and trialled for North QLD.

His dad, Les, has lived in Mt Isa his entire life and worked on the mines for the past 27 years. He introduced Prince to the rock-hard terrain of the region's grounds and the unforgiving nature of bush football, where skill is paramount as survival.

"I played for Townies for 10 years but I was going to give the game away because it was dying in Mt Isa," Prince said. "Only a couple of guys were showing up to games and the games were very dirty. It was typical bush footy and the refs had no control. people say it's tough, but I didn't know any different.

"I was offered a scholarship with Brisbane, but I really wanted to play with the Cowboys because it was closer to home and there was a better chance to play first grade.
"Initially, I missed out on a deal with the Cowboys. They used to send officials to watch the 'young guns' play and every year would pick up two or three guys. I didn't make the first batchand never thought I would, so I'm happy to be here now."

Sheens, who coached Daley at canberra, has nutured Prince slowly since joining the club in 1997. He has utilised his talents widely, namely full-back and five-eighth with stints at dummy-half, but believes Prince is best suited to the five-eighth role.

"He's 18 months away and 30 first grade games from being a real quality first-grader," Sheens said. "There are things he will learn as he plays more football, but he's a good kid who is very coachable, works hard at his game and listens to what I say. As coach, I can't ask for more than that."

Prince has made most of his impact this year from the interchange bench. But he says he has no problems handling five-eighth at the lowly-placed Cowboys, under mounting pressure to perform after seasons of mediocrity.

"I'm happy to handle the position. Having 'Goldy' and the coaching staff there makes it easier," Prince said. "I've got a lot of respect for Tim. I go to him after games and ask how I went. I think he likes me doing it because it shows I'm willling to learn.

"He doesn't say much befoe a game, he just taps you on the back as you run out. I think he's got faith in me.