World Footy News

Mid Canterbury Eagles have claimed back to back Premierships in the Canterbury AFL (in New Zealand's South Island) after ensuring the game was over by half time.

The Eagles opened up 21-point lead at the first break and by half time had extended their lead to 47-points, with the Christchurch Bulldogs failing to score in the second term.

The Bulldogs battled manfully and could rightfully use as an excuse the fact that four of their players were under 16 with a couple of 18-year olds new to the game. They sadly missed the bigger bodies of Todd Andrews, their absentee captain and young gun Craig Varcoe (collarbone), along with veteran Jason Beck who was nursing a strained calf. Unfortunately, they came up against a determined Eagles outfit that never took their foot off the accelerator to record a massive win.

Final Score: Mid-Canterbury Eagles 16.13 (109) def Christchurch Bulldogs 5.6 (36)