World Footy News

The Convicts amateur footy side are set to repeat their successful 2005 tour of South Africa with another venture there in February 2007. The tour is a great chance to support international Australian Football whilst having a great holiday and visiting parts of South Africa that many tourists miss out on. They're looking for just a couple more players to field a well balanced side.

The first Convicts tours were to Europe (2003) and South Africa (2005) and were organised by Brian Clarke. Several of the initial players have taken up the cause and planned a European tour for October 2006 and South Africa in February 2007. Unfortunately not enough numbers signed up for the Euro trip, but Convicts organiser Anthony Nanfra made it clear that no players were out of pocket, with deposits not made until tours are definitely on. The South Africa trip is looking in excellent shape, with only a few more players needed to round out the squad. Nanfra advises that all players and/or support staff are welcome, but a ruckman and key forward are definitely sought.

The tour will follow the successful 2005 trip which saw the team play three matches, visit Johannesburg, Soweto, Pilansburg Game Reserve and the world famous Kruger National Park, but this time also includes Cape Town. This author took part in the 2005 tour and certainly recommends it. As with several other members of the tour, I pre-arranged a different return flight so that I could organise my own extra visits to Cape Town, Swaziland, Lesotho, Zambia and Zimbabwe (Victoria Falls at least) and a day trip to the magnificent Chobe National Park in Botswana - again, all highly recommended. With cricket fields now available to AFL South Africa following a recent agreement with the local cricket association, this tour should be bigger and even better than the first. Stories from the 2005 Convicts tour are as follows:

Convicts too strong for Gauteng Province

North West Province tougher but Convicts win again

Kids clinics in South Africa a tour highlight

Convicts defeat South Africa in spirited battle

and the recent AFL-backed indigenous tour lead by former Essendon champion Michael Long: Indigenous Aussies take series 3 - 0 but South African footy a winner

and their goodwill visit with a Tanzanian gold medalist: Tanzanian marathon gold-medallist takes to footy

With the AFL throwing its weight even more strongly behind footy in South Africa, this tour should be a great experience and be a good chance to see how quickly the game is developing.

Visit The Convicts for all the details. Anthony Nanfra advises that players who pay the deposit before August 15th receive a free pair of Azuma edge footy boots, valued at $180.