World Footy News

As is traditional, at the conclusion of the Asian Championships an Asian All Star team, now known as the Asian Lions is chosen. This year, in addition to the honour of selection, thanks to a donation from Big Rooster Footy, each player was presented with an all-star team jumper.

The 2008 Asian Lions are:-

Matt Jolly (Jakarta Bintangs) – Named Player of the Tournament. The current coach of the Bintangs, MJ impressed all with his hard running, commitment and desire for the ball. A midfielder, he was by far the highest possession winner for the Bintangs, and was a shining light in an otherwise disappointing Championships for the Jakarta side.
James Hope (UAE Heat) – The former Old Ivanhoe Grammarian, played in the key positions of Centre Half Back and Centre Half Forward. Strong in the air, and built to go through brick walls he provided a powerful presence.
Cam Hotton (UAE Heat) – a very mobile midfielder and half-back he initiated numerous attacks and showed great disposal skills.
Sam Troon (UAE Heat) – the former Old Scotch player was yet another dynamo in the Heat’s midfield. Ran hard all day.
Andrew Schauble (UAE Heat) – Anyone who played 167 AFL games for Collingwood and Sydney has to be a classy player. Was consistent at every outing.
Justin Hotton (Singapore Wombats) – Assistant coach of the Wombats, ‘Hotdog” played solidly in all Wombat encounters. Reads the play very well.
David Snow (Singapore Wombats) – an excellent on-baller who continually racked up possessions. Part of the Wombat engine room.
Ashley Martin (Singapore Wombats) – Current coach of the Wombats, played football at a high level, and it shows. Probably reads the game better than anyone else and his disposal skills are exemplary.
Sam Brewster (Singapore Wombats) - a very consistent player for the Wombats who always gives 100 percent. Worked very hard all day.
Matt Gallagher (Hong Kong Dragons) – Playing in his first Asian Championships but with plenty of experience in Australia, ”Gags” showed his fitness by running hard all day and was clearly one of the better players in the Championships.
Matt Baron (Hong Kong Dragons) – The Baron, reigning Club Captain for the Dragons led from the front. Showed all his experience in Asian Football.
Josh Ryder (Hong Kong Dragons) – played at a high level in Australia, very versatile player, who was particularly dangerous near goal.
Leigh Hughes (Bali Geckos) – very quick midfielder with good disposal skills. Continually set up Gecko forward thrusts.
Alex Winter (Bali Geckos) – another one of the run-and-carry type Gecko players. Very fit, and that helped him to provide a consistently good performance throughout the Championships.
Peter Muir (Bali Geckos) – one of the Legends of Asian Football, ”Gunny” did everything to try and help the Geckos over the line. Played primarily at Centre Half back, but scored one of the goals of the tournament after a long trademark run down centre wing.
Cameron Godwin (China Reds) – played predominantly in defence for the Reds and his size and strength saw him repel many attacks. One of the better big men in the tournament.
Greg Eggins (Vietnam Swans) – another good on-baller, with plenty of experience. Kept going all day.
Bruce Knox (Lao Elephants) – The Lao Elephants were the surprise of the tournament and “Fort” Knox at centre half back was their rock. A very good player, who was the defacto General of the Elephants side.
Michael Sammons (Thailand Tigers) – another speedy rover-midfielder, who stood out in an otherwise disappointing Tigers outfit.
Scott McDonough (Malaysian Warriors) – a lynchpin of the Warriors for years, the former Warragul player had an outstanding tournament, playing both forward and back.

Given the selection criteria which are based on the team’s final finishing position as well as overall player performance in the individual teams, mid-fielders and running type players dominate.

Big Rooster Footy manufactures football equipment for the international market. As well as the Asian Lions, the Singapore Wombats Juniors (Under 16s) uniforms were also donated by Big Rooster Footy. Four of the 5 international jumpers featured in the Australia’s Favourite Jumper Contest afl.com.au were manufactured by Big Rooster Footy.

Asian Lions jumpers (without the "All-Asian Rep Team" text) are available for purchase by clicking on the contact link at AsianAFL.com and using "ASIAN LIONS JUMPER" as the subject heading.