Kiwi growth continues

New Zealand has strong links to our game.

Australian Football has strong links with New Zealand dating back to the 1890s, when Australian players headed across the Tasman in search of work.

In 1901, there were 115 teams in a local league. New Zealand competed in the 1908 Jubilee Australasian Carnival at the MCG, beating NSW and Queensland.

The code all but disappeared for about 40 years until it was revived in the 1970s, with competitions established in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch.

New Zealand competed in the inaugural International Australian Football Championships in Darwin in 1995, losing the Grand Final to Papua New Guinea.

In November of 1997, the AFL entered into a three-year agreement with New Zealand AFL to develop the game in New Zealand. A strategic plan included a range of programs aimed at lifting the profile of the AFL and the code generally in New Zealand.

The major focus of the plan was to establish Australian Football in New Zealand schools, encouraging children to play in organised competitions.

It also aimed to strengthen open-age competitions by encouraging junior players to participate in senior club football, and establish New Zealand as a territory where potential AFL players could be recruited.

The plan also aimed to establish Australian Football as a recognised and accepted television and spectator sport in New Zealand.

As part of the strategy the AFL scheduled a pre-season match in Wellington in 1998, with Melbourne defeating Sydney in front of 8000 people at the Basin Reserve. Pre-season matches were also played in Wellington in 2000 in 2001.

In July of 2001, a New Zealand Under-21 team toured Australia, winning two of its five matches.

New Zealand AFL has a seven-member governing board, with the AFL appointing four of the members.

About 15,000 Kiwi school children have been introduced to the game in the past year. Auskick centres and structured competitions for 13-18 year olds are in place in four regions – Waikato, Auckland, Wellington and Canterbury.

After a long history and sporadic growth, all the elements are now in place to allow Australian Football to grow steadily in New Zealand.

The AFL’s focus on expansion continues, with AFL community camps to be held in New Zealand. The AFL is also considering scheduling pre-season games across the Tasman.

The New Zealand squad for the Australian Football International Cup includes 15 players from Auckland, 10 from Wellington, seven from Canterbury and three from Waikato.

Andrew Congalton, a member of the successful Auckland AFL NPC Championship team, will captain the team. Andrew has long been considered one of the leading players in the Auckland league.

The New Zealand Falcons played a game against Maffra Football Club from Victoria as a warm-up for this year’s event. It was the first match played by a New Zealand representative team on home soil.

Entering the tournament, the New Zealand team had a 14-11 win-loss record.

Melbourne Football Club will host the Falcons during their stay in Melbourne, providing first-class facilities during the course of the carnival.