McKenna brothers team up for Queensland Latino

The younger brothers of former Queensland Maroons player Chris McKenna will team up this Saturday, May 21, at Noosa to represent the state in an Origin challenge with a difference.

Indeed, Johnny McKenna has been named captain and five-eighth for Queensland Latino, while David McKenna will play at fullback for the Sapos – the Latino word for Toads.

They will guide a team of players with heritage in the nations which comprise South America and Central America in the sanctioned QRL event with pride.

Like their older brother, who played more than 300 first grade games and represented Australia, Johnny and David have a long history of playing with the Wynnum Manly Seagulls club.

However, their family background is atypical in rugby league circles, with their father born in Ireland and their mother born in Guyana, a relatively small country in South America, wedged between Brazil, Venezuela, Suriname and the Caribbean Sea.

Guyana provides three players to the Queensland Latino team, with lanky speedster Claude Jackson on the wing.

The Queensland squad almost included a fourth Guyanese player – Kevin McKenzie – but the former Sunshine Coast state league player was injured in a workplace accident.

Other notables in the squad include Sunshine Coast Falcons underage representative Lachlan Santana, who comes from Cuban heritage, and Burleigh Bears hopeful Kody Albanil (Mexico).

Throughout the rest of the team can be found a mixture of Brazilians, Chileans, Argentinians and El Salvadorans.

The New South Wales team, the Cucarachas, will contain others from nations such as Peru, Nicaragua and Uruguay.

Several players, such as Brayden Jang (South Sydney), Dylan Concha Attard (Cronulla) and Christian Lopez (Bulldogs) have impressed enough to be involved with NRL junior representative programs.

Saturday’s contest at Noosa Pirates will kick-off at 7.30pm, preceded by six games between Noosa, Kawana and Pomona-Cooran.

The day will have a Latino flavour, with music and food to add cultural celebrations to the event.

Main image: David and Johnny McKenna. Photo: Supplied