World Footy News

The 2008 Faststream Spring Invitational will take place on April 12 and 13 at the new Broward County Cricket complex in Lauderhill, Florida, USA. The $US 70m complex was completed in November 07 and this will be the first time that it has seen competitive footy. The tournament will see some of the best matches that we will see before Nationals in Colorado.

The tourney will be the 2008 debut for 2007 National Champions, the Denver Bulldogs, the number 4 team in the country (by our reckoning) the New York Magpies and the number 3 Baltimore Washington Eagles. Taking on 3 of the top 4 USFooty teams will be hosts, the Florida Redbacks (combined with the Fort Lauderdale Fighting Squids). This will also be the final trial for the US Revolution as the coaching staff looks to get the team ready for the AFL International Cup in Melbourne and Warrnambool.

Squids veteran, Joshua Goodstein, is confident that Florida will be able to match it with the big boys of USFooty. “This year we will be teaming up with Tampa to create the best side from Florida possible. Part of our model of growth is to stand at a division 2 level team in the next 3 years, which we feel very confident about. A ground to call home has really helped us out. Our first trip as a team to nationals really helped open the guy’s eyes to how far we were from Division 1 competition and helped us develop the plan to get there. This tournament is our first real step into determining our current standing in the grand scheme of things.”

However, Goodstein and the Squids have their work cut out just getting the tournament organized, let alone putting a competitive squad on the field. “It's difficult to juggle all the permits, the vendors, the organization and still have time to train and play. It gives us all a great respect for what the AFL pulls off on a weekly basis and what USFooty does each year at Nationals. We've managed to get to the point now where it’s all just assembly and the event itself. The guys down here have really stepped up and are looking forward to it,” says Goodstein.