Star Central Queensland cricketer Rowan Murray is bowling his way to the top.The road to the top is hard for all athletes, but it is especially hard for those who work full-time and are studying.

Star fast-bowler Rowan Murray, from Gladstone, hopes to one day play cricket for Australia, but in the meantime he is covering all bases (or should I say wickets) and undertaking a traineeship as a draftsman at WorleyParsons and studying an Associate Degree of Engineering externally through Central Queensland University (CQU).

The 17-year-old is also a member of the Queensland Academy of Sport and for 2 years has received a QAS scholarship.

"I have found being a full-time employee and studying externally very challenging, but as CQU is a QAS athlete friendly university it has allowed me to balance the time of being an athlete and a university student effectively," Murray explained.

"CQU takes into consideration the time I need to put into my sport and allows me the flexibility I need to complete the degree."

CQU is a member of the National Network of Athlete Friendly Universities, a national initiative of the Australian Institute of Sport. As a member of the initiative, the University has implemented policies to ensure elite athletes (who have been identified by some of Australia's key sports organisations) can successfully pursue a degree while maintaining their sports commitments.

A high achiever on the sporting field, Murray has also performed well in his studies this year achieving distinctions and high distinctions for a number of assessments this year.

Murray started playing cricket in 1998 and has represented Gladstone since in 1999 and Central Queensland since 2001. He has also represented Capricornia School Boys in Under 15 and Under 19 age groups since 2003, represented Queensland for Under 15s in 2005, represented North Queensland for U17s in 2006 and 2007 and is in the Queensland Under 17 representative team this year.

He is an extremely determined sportsperson who believes "hard work achieves results".

And there must be something in the blood of cricketers, because his favourite food is actually Weet-Bix - in fact he eats up to 12 a day.

Rowan Murray is definitely a name to look out for in the years to come.