THE St Ambrose College conveyor belt has produced yet another international rugby player.

Appleton 17-year-old, fly half Mark Atkinson, has been selected for the England RFU under-18 side and has already earned a contract with the region's top club Sale Sharks.

Mark has led the Hale Barns Catholic Grammar School to one if its most successful seasons, winning 13 of 14 games on the tough Northern circuit and reaching the last 16 of the prestigious national Daily Mail Cup.

The 6ft 4ins,15st 10lbs young goliath has scored over 20 tries and enjoys an immaculate place kicking record.

He said: "I will do everything I can to become a professional rugby player and believe I am in the very best place to succeed.

"Since I have joined Sale Sharks I have enjoyed the intensity of the training and know that I will now be putting to one side some activities that teenagers traditionally enjoy.

"For example I trained every day over Christmas aside from Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day and even then I had itchy feet."

St Ambrose College rugby coach Paul Rush said: "Mark has all the physical attributes needed by a modern rugby player and, as importantly, he has a great rugby brain with fantastic vision.

"He has been an inspirational leader and a great lad to have around the camp."

Mark said his strengths were in attacking open play and his role model had been Johnny Wilkinson.

"I don't suppose I am obsessive about goal kicking practise, but I can see that Johnny Wilkinson has set the standards for all English youngsters to follow."

After his A Levels this summer, Mark is hoping to study History and Philosophy at Manchester University, deliberately picking a local university so he can continue to develop his career and his skills with Sale Sharks.

In the last decade St Ambrose College has produced two full internationals in England prop Michael Worsley and Irish back row Dylan O'Grady, as well as a trio of players who represented their respective nations at youth level, England fly halves Matthew Simpson and Tom Foley and Irish scrum half Charlie Mulchrone.

The current first XV led by Mark Atkinson play Barnard Castle, which produced the Underwood brothers, Rob Andrew and Matthew Tait, in the last 16 of the Daily Mail Cup on Wednesday, kick off 2.30 pm at their Altrincham Road playing fields in Hale Barns.

Admission is free and all rugby fans are welcome.