Vegas Combine winners set to make their mark in NRL

US Olympic sevens star Adam Channel and Canadian rugby union representative Marcus D’Acre are set to join NRL clubs after winning the NRL Talent Combine in Las Vegas.

Channel, who represented the USA at last year's Paris Olympics and 20-year-old D'Acre were chosen after two days of skill and physical testing attended by NRL CEOS, coaches and talent scouts.

Columbian sevens representative Maria Arzuaga and Canada's Renee Gonzalez, who competed at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, were the two female athletes chosen from the NRL Combine.

All four will travel to Australia for two weeks to train and experience the game at an elite level, but it is believed NRL clubs are already interested in them staying on for longer.

A number of other athletes are in the sights of NRL and NRLW clubs, including 193cm tall London-born Jamaican rugby sevens winger Jack Rampton, injured USA three-time Olympian Nicole Heavirland and 18-year-old Kahea Pahulu.

D’Acre and Channel trained with the Sharks twice last week and enjoyed a team dinner with players ahead of the Combine, which involved 50 male and female athletes hoping to earn a two-year NRL or NRLW contract.

The pair trained with Cronulla on Tuesday and Thursday, impressing Sharks players and coaching staff with their skills and attitude.

“It was awesome, the guys were so welcoming,” said D’Acre, who is 198cm tall and weighs 98kg.

“The physicality was something that I've never experienced before. At the beginning of training the coach said it was 70% and I could see that escalating as the practice went on, which is pretty cool.

“We had dinner with them as well so that was wicked, just getting to know some of the guys and about their backgrounds in rugby league.”

At just 20 years-of-age, D'Acre is young enough to play Jersey Flegg this season while he learns the finer details of the new code.

Channel, who is from Los Angeles, represented the United States at last year’s Paris Olympics and is a member of the national rugby sevens team.

He trained on the wing in the opposed session and was full of admiration for Sharks winger Ronaldo Mulitalo.

“It was an unbelievable experience, just to be put into a training environment with them where they trained at such a high level,” Channel said.

“There was a lot of contact, it was very high intensity so it was such an incredible experience.

“The boys were super helpful, super welcoming, and the coaches were incredible as well, so I am very thankful to have the opportunity.

“They pretty much asked what position we felt comfortable playing and both of us obviously said out on the wing or centre, just to kind of get a feel for it.

“It went really well and the thing I loved the most was the intensity and the physicality that they trained with. It was constantly at the 70% or 80% level and I believe if you train hard, you play hard, so I think that was really admirable.”

Channel, who follows the Broncos, has a New Zealand-born grand-mother so he is eligible for a Kiwi passport.

The 27-year-old is friends with All Blacks rugby sevens star Moses Leo, who has joined the Storm this season, and he visited the club’s facilities while in Melbourne after playing in January's World Rugby Sevens tournament in Perth.