World Footy News

Heading into the half way point of the Ontario Australian Football League season the contenders are starting to separate themselves from the pretenders, and many clubs start to set themselves for a serious run into September action. Many of the clubs have a lot of work to do while others will be looking to keep the momentum going as they build towards September.

At this stage the clear benchmark in the competition is once again coming from Humber South where the Etobicoke Kangaroos have continued with the form that led them to their first ever premiership in 2008. After recruiting a number of strong players, the boys in blue and white will be the team to beat in September.

Sitting in second, the Toronto Downtown Dingos have started the season in great fashion and sit at 5-1. Despite having a relatively easy draw to this point, playing the bottom sides more than once, their forward line has shown enough to worry opposition coaches.

In an unusual position, the Toronto Eagles for the first time in a number of years find themselves in a position other than the top of the ladder. The word around the league at the start of the year suggested that too old, too slow would describe the Toronto Eagles for the 2009 season. How silly some critics can be. The Eagles have the experience and skill to match it with the best and will once again feature heavily in the finals.

The surprise packet of the season has been the revival of the Hamilton Wildcats who look to be on track for September action, and judging by their close losses to the recent powerhouse teams of the Toronto Eagles and Broadview Hawks, they won’t just be there to make up the numbers this year.

The perennial bridesmaids, the Broadview Hawks are once again looking a shell of their former self this year and although beating lower teams, seem to be a class below the Etobicoke Kangaroos and the Toronto Eagles once again and will be looking to find some ticker if they hope to get their hands on their first Connacher Cup.

It’s tough to say, but the Central Blues' form to this point would have to come as a disappointment. After entering the competition 3 years ago, the Central Blues have consistently improved and after a great win against the Guelph Gargoyles in last year’s finals, the Blues were expected to take the next step and join the power teams of the league. However they find themselves sitting at 3-3 and asking questions about what they’ve got to do to compete.

Another disappointing team so far has been the Guelph Gargoyles, who after suffering a close loss to the Central Blues in last year’s elimination final had recruited heavily and were also tipped to be pushing the big boys around. However with just 1 win from 6 rounds the wheels have well and truly fallen off the cart. The team has shown glimpses of brilliance and may still push for the 6th (i.e. finals) spot on the ladder, but every game from this point on is becoming more and more critical.

The Toronto Rebels have started a rebuilding process and have blooded many new players in the first half of the season. Rumour has it that the coaching department is very pleased with the progress of some of the boys and we can expect to see an improvement in results on the scoreboard in the second half of the season. If things turn out they are only 2 games out of the 6 and may contend yet.

Likewise the High Park Demons are blooding new talent and setting themselves up for future years and will be hoping to gain valuable experience and a few wins throughout the second part of the season.

New boys in town the Ottawa Swans are still searching for their evasive first win in the big league, and although in patches they have shown themselves to have the talent to do it sooner rather than later, it is their consistency which needs to be worked on to compete at this level.

In its inaugural year, the OAFL’s Division 2 has been great to watch so far, and a rampaging success amongst the bookies with upsets galore. The Quebec Saints have stamped themselves as a contender, and I don’t think it will be long until they take the next step to the Div 1 competition. The Broadview Hawks are yet to lose a match, but the Etobicoke Kangaroos, Toronto Eagles and Central Blues are hot on their heels.