World Footy News

In great news for international footballers looking to make it to the game's highest level, Gold Coast have announced that Papuan Stanis Susuve has been listed alongside his teammate from the Mosquitoes, Amua Pirika, to join their squad. And the Gold Coast coach, former West Coast Eagles premiership player Guy McKenna, has expressed a hope that more PNG players will join the AFL-endorsed club in coming years. If either recruit is successful when the club debuts in the AFL in 2010 then surely AFL scouts will encourage greater investment in international markets. An AFL Papuan New Guinea press release follows.

AFL PNG joins in GOLD COAST historic celebrations

On an historic day for the AFL and for PNG football it was announced today that the AFL would grant a Licence to Gold Coast Football Club.

With the newly elected Premier of Queensland Anna Bligh, Gold Coast Mayor Ron Clarke and GC17 Chairman, John Witheriff looking on the CEO of the Australian Football League, Mr Andrew Demetriou, made the official announcement that the Gold Coast Football Club would receive the historic 17th licence to play in the AFL, to start in the elite competition in 2011.

The AFL took the opportunity at the inaugural GCFC jumper presentation to make the historic announcement on the Gold Coast today. The GCFC play their first match in the TAC U18 Cup on Friday.

Sitting proudly in the front of the room was Scott Reid, Chairman of AFL PNG and his wife Freda who saw two of AFL PNG’s young stars pull on the new Red & Gold colours of the Gold Coast Football Club.

Amua Pirika was signed several months ago after an inspired performance in the Final of the AFL’s International Cup which PNG won against New Zealand. Amua has trained hard through the summer and his strength and endurance have improved markedly. Unfortunately Amua pulled up slightly sore after Saturday’s last trial match and so he will have to wait another week or two to make his debut for the Gold Coast team.

However, in a wonderful outcome from the same trial match, Stanis Susuve was spotted by the GC17 coaching panel and was added to the GCFC list in a late decision. Stanis, who has been in Australia on an AFL PNG scholarship since 2006, had a wonderful U18 State Championships in February where he captained and starred for the Queensland Country Kookaburras.

From there Susuve was given the opportunity to play in last weekend’s GC17 trial match and was so impressive that he was signed by the club that afternoon.

GCFC coach Guy McKenna noted:

“We were impressed by Stanis' professional and determined approach to the match, the way he won the ball and of course even the crowd noticed the ferocity of his tackling and attack on the footy.

Stanis will play a lot of football for us this year. Today is a historic day for our club and the AFL and we are very glad that PNG has a stake in our club’s future.

We see Stanis and Amua’s International Scholarship placements as the start of a strong relationship between our club and AFL PNG. We hope to see a number of PNG boys wearing the Red and Gold for the Gold Coast Football Club in the future".

AFL PNG now has these two players at GCFC along with 21 others in Australia on Scholarships in 2009. Players are posted all across Australia in Victoria, Tasmania and Queensland at various levels, aged between 14 and 25 years old.

All of these players have come through AFL PNG’s successful B Mobile Development programs and the Coca Cola AFL PNG Binatangs will contest the Under 16 and Under 14 Queensland State Championships later this year.