Talented sportsman Mooney keen to dive head-on into swimming

Also a handy footballer at Marrar, the 15-year-old has generally stayed away from the pool during winter but will now stare at the black line year round as he looks to achieve his goals.

The tall teenager has been hard at work in the pool since October and that commitment paid off during the weekend's NSW Country Regional meet in Canberra, where he improved his national qualifying times tally to five.

He will race in the 50m, 100m and 200m freestyle at Perth in April, as well as the 100m butterfly and 200m individual medley.

"Myself and the coach (Gennadiy Labara) have set goals and I've got to work hard for them all year round," he said.

"That's what I've been doing (taking winters off), but now I'm starting to focus a lot more on swimming.

"I can't give up footy just yet, I still love it and I'll still be playing.

"I'm very excited, it's good to see the hard work the coach has been putting into me paying off."

Wagga Swim Club assistant coach Billy Nicholson said Mooney's determination since his return to the pool has been encouraging.

"You can tell he's loving it at the moment. He said to me before the weekend that he's keen to have a good hit-out, I loved hearing that," Nicholson said.

"He can definitely reach that national open level, Olympic trials and that type of thing.

"You can see he's grown into his body and he's looking a lot stronger and smoother in the water now.

"A lot of swimmers have the ability and not the mental approach, but he seems to have both which is a positive sign."

Nicholson expects Mooney to compete in all five events he's qualified for in Perth, and Mooney is targeting a podium after making the finals of the 100m and 50m freestyle in his nationals debut last year.

"I'd love to get a podium, we're working for that," Mooney said.

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