Colin Parkinson has been appointed coach of the NSW men's under-21 team and his wife, Louise, the side's manager while rising talent Ben Caruana is making his debut at elite level with the state's under-12 sub-junior squad.

And, the trio will head to the 2020 Nationals at Ballarat from March 30 to April 5.

"I'm excited to be representing the blue shirt of NSW," the young gun said.

"It's my first one [Nationals], so I'm looking forward to the experience."

As for Parkinson, he's a veteran of the format, which is contested every two years.

He made his mark, initially as a player, at the 1994 event at Walkaway, near Geraldton, in Western Australia.

Since then, he's participated in another four championships before adopting a mentoring role.

"It's good to have three reps from the same club involved," Parkinson said.

"Full credit to Ben, he's got a bright future.

"But, we're not totally alone - there are a number of other people from the area venturing to Victoria, too.

"NSW is certainly one of the strongest states.

"In 2018, at Perth, we made all 12 finals, winning seven titles and losing five.

"At least Ballarat is a bit closer than Western Australia this time around."

Having coached the junior boys for 14 years, Parkinson admits it was a natural transition to take over the reins of the under-21s.

"I'd been with the team from 2004 (at Albury) until 2018 (at Perth)," he said.

"And, the only Nationals we suffered a loss at occurred in 2006 at Camden.

"So, I enjoyed good success with the boys.

"However, a lot of them have progressed to the under-21s now - it makes sense to move up to that division.

"It's a pretty handy side; there's a number of new young blokes and some old heads.

"I'm hoping we'll do alright.

"I like both aspects [playing and coaching] - and being part of a team.

"I've coached guys who are now representing Australia, so it's nice to know I've played a role in their journey."