League: Prop to trial for Warrior juniors

Kawana Marsden

It just keeps getting better for Northland's Kawana Marsden.

Reaching new heights off the back of a good season with the Northern Swords, the 18-year-old prop was selected for NZ Universities to play Australia in a two-match series, and now he's been invited to join the Vodafone Warriors Under-20 pre-season train-on squad.

Warriors academy and pathways manager Duane Mann invited Marsden to take part in the six-week training programme with the Auckland-based NRL franchise, which starts this week.

"He's big, he's got good height and he moves well," Mann said of Marsden's physical attributes.

"We just want to compare him to the other boys we've got here and see how he goes."

The 18-year-old from Kaitaia has started catching the selectors eyes recently following several impressive outings.

These include his first test jersey where he turned out for the New Zealand Universities side.

After playing for the Muriwhenua Falcons in the domestic club championship this year, Marsden gained selection into the Northern Swords premiers side which contested the NZRL Premiership.

Turning down offers from several Australian-based NRL franchises over the past two months, Marsden is aiming high with his ambitions in the sport of rugby league.

"[It's about] getting an opportunity," he said of being recognised by the Warriors, and adding his main goal is to be in a grand final-winning team.

Marsden will stay in Auckland for the next six weeks, with the team to contest the 2016 Holden Cup championship to be named at the completion of the camp.