But Jack Peppernell alone has since been named in a NSW Country side.

The Country team lists were announced in April, shortly after the conclusion of the championships.

Selection in the Under 18s side came as a complete shock to the 16-year-old, who thought his age and size would count against him.

"I wasn't expecting it at all," Jack said.

"I'm a year young, and there's tons of good players in the comp. It was pretty surreal when it happened, but I'm feeling good."

The NSW Country Under 18s side will travel to the United Kingdom in November this year, where they will play three tour games against local sides.

Selections came off the back of the Country Championships. While the Monaro Colts did not make the finals of the Under 18 competition, Jack said that his form felt "alright" and that he was simply pleased to have earned a starting spot.

"It was alright, I was happy with just coming off the bench with Monaro," he said.

"I got the starting spot at the start of the year and worked off the back of that."

Once November arrives, things will move very quickly for the Country sides. Although dates are yet to be confirmed, players have been told that there is a two-day training camp to be held a week before they fly to the UK, meaning that Jack will have to hit the ground running.

"I'm training pretty hard for it, preparing," Jack said.

"I'm trying to put on some size at the gym, there's probably going to be some bigger boys over there."

As part of the Goulburn team in the Canberra Raiders Cup Under 19s competition, Jack is no stranger to facing off against players bigger than himself, and he said that it was good preparation for his trip to the UK.

Once he lands in the UK, Peppernell hopes to absorb as much experience as he can, and looks forward to playing against a different style of rugby league.

"It'll be a mad experience going over there and learning about their culture and how they play footy," he said.

"They'll probably play a bit faster, a bit bigger boys over there so it'll be a bit more physical as well."

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