World Footy News

As was hinted in the recent story North Lanarkshire Wolves join Scottish party, yet another Aussie Rules team has entered the Scottish football scene, this time in the heart of Glasgow. As the game undergoes a radical and positive series of changes, the Greater Glasgow Giants are the latest to take advantage of this fertile period in the game’s history.

A recent interview with Douglas Hunter, Scottish Australian Rules football stalwart and architect of the new club, gives a good account of the need for the new club, the processes they are currently undergoing for their entry to the SARFL in 2015 and some idea of their dreams and prospects.

“The team will be based at the moment in Glasgow city centre until we know where most players will come from. Recruitment is mainly from Gumtree [social media site] and from Glasgow University. We have ten players at the moment including one Aussie, three former Clansmen national team players and one who also played in the first three AIS v AFL Europe Under 21 games. The rest are from Gaelic football, football, and rugby. The coach is me.”

“Our short term goals are to have friendlies before the end of September and to compete in an end of season tournament. Longer term goals are to establish the team in the national league and to have players play for the Scottish national team. [We also wish] to promote kids footy as well as ladies footy.”

“We aim to be a social club where the adult teams play for the enjoyment and also socialise together. The reason is that it's for the good of the game, as I believe the more teams in the national league the greater respect and credibility it will gain in the public domain. Having been heavily involved in two teams in Scotland already, and helping to grow the game over many years, I feel now that I have moved back to Glasgow I can now focus on growing a new Glasgow team. We believe there is the capacity for more teams not just in Glasgow but Scotland for this great game that I fell in love with.”

“We have a website up and running as well as the Facebook page. We are already sponsored by Malones Irish bar and the Greater Western Sydney Giants have agreed to let us use the name and are also sending us twenty guernseys. A big thank you to Lauren Sanford at the Giants for their generosity and assistance.”

The Greater Glasgow Giants will add yet another dimension to the Australian Rules landscape in Scotland. The tantalising prospect now exists of two Glasgow based teams (Sharks and Giants), Falkirk and North Lanarkshire as well as Edinburgh Bloods and the Kingdom Kangaroos, bringing the SARFL to potentially six teams, and seven if Aberdeen Eagles can return, in the not-to-distant future.

These are certainly very exciting times in Scotland for Australian Rules football.

For more information on the Greater Glasgow Giants, go to their website at http://greaterglasgowgiants.co.uk or visit their Facebook page at facebook.com/pages/Greater-Glasgow-Giants-ARFC.