World Footy News

Three women in Edmonton tried out Aussie Rules at their local club, the Edmonton Emus. Two of them are now competing in this year’s International Cup Women’s Division with the Canadian Northern Lights.

Karyn Huxley was more familiar with Canadian football - she was a member of the Edmonton Eskimos cheer team for three years. But after marrying her Aussie husband, Cameron, she was introduced to a new kind of football. After becoming bored with dancing, Huxley wanted to try something different and gave footy a go. She accepts that as a contact sport Aussie rules has a physical aspect, but for her footy is fun game, more about stamina and running. There’s also the social and community aspect of football, and she really likes the family vibe at the Emus.

Also playing with Edmonton are Neda Dalili and Lucy Nolan. Nolan was born in Australia but was unfamiliar with the rules and had never played the game before moving to Canada. She started playing out of curiosity after meeting coach Tristan Waldock having a kick about in her local park, and soon found the game addictive. Unlike non-contact sports which she found frustrating, Nolan found the perfect sport in Aussie Rules, and likes how everyone gets to kick, catch, pass and tackle.

Nolan has now been playing Aussie Rules for three years and she introduced Dalili to the game. Dalili, who goes to school with Nolan, had never heard of Australian football before joining the Emus. After her friend got her interested, Dalili first checked out Aussie Rules on YouTube before taking the plunge and coming along to an Emus training session. She initially found it similar to basketball because of the running, jumping and bouncing skills, and soon got into the game.

Now Dalili and Nolan are both members of the Canadian national team, the Northern Lights, who are coming to Australia this August for the International Cup. Dalili has previously played for the Northern Lights against the USA Freedom in the Parallel Cup. She was initially surprised when they asked her to play as she never thought she would get the chance to represent Canada in sport, but admits she had more of a chance because Aussie Rules is still a new sport in Canada.

Tristan Waldock has been running the Edmonton club for the past three years. Now he has also taken over the coaching duties of the Northern Lights team after serving as an assistant last year. He is convinced the Northern Lights can win the International Cup. The team is arranging to meet a week early in Australia so they can really get to know each other and work on their game plan. He thinks this will give them the edge over other teams who are only arriving in Australia a few days before their first game. But the Northern Lights are facing a touch line up against the USA Freedom, Irish Banshees, Papua New Guinea and the AMI (Australian Multicultural/Indigenous) team.

The Edmonton Emus train on Monday and Thursday evenings from 6pm at William Hawrelak Park. They are constantly looking to recruit new members and are open to beginners interested in trying out the sport. Anyone interested should email edmontonemus@gmail.com or contact them through their Facebook group or via twitter. The Emus also have an affiliated men’s team, the Edmonton Wombats, who can be contacted on their Facebook group.