World Footy News

Most people enjoy a feel good footy story where a football team that has fallen off the radar for whatever reasons rises again like a phoenix and returns. The story is even better when that club goes on to enjoy great success. For the Aarhus Bombers in Denmark, that s exactly what has been happening in the background – the phoenix is rising and time will tell if that success follows.

But according to Morten Merhøj, founder of the Odense Lions and currently driving the Bombers to rise again, his version of the Aarhus Bombers will be bigger and better that previous models.

“[The] Aarhus Australian Football was started back in 1996. Before then you had to travel to Aalborg or Copenhagen to play. After a meeting at the local Australian bar, the Billabong Bar, the club was founded. Many people were at the meeting, but three men was the driving forces: Grant, Jason and Dean.”

“[The] Aarhus Bombers joined DAFL Premier League the year after and had almost 10 years of great results and victories before losing players and having to find another solution [to remain competitive]. Australian Football never stopped in Aarhus, despite the club not participating in the Premier League. Players from Aarhus played as Jutland Shinboners, Randers Dockers and Aalborg Kangaroos, so once again you had to travel outside of Aarhus to play.”

“Despite it being 22 years since the club’s first meeting, many of the Bombers from back then were quick to react when the rumour about a relaunch made its way around town. With the sport growing in western Denmark, more volunteers at league level and development funds were available to help Aarhus. It did not take long to recruit some former Bombers and DAFL personal to the project. More people have since then announced their support to make the Aarhus Bombers fly again. The initiator was Morten Merhøj who currently plays for Odense Australian Football.”

Morten adds that, “Aarhus is the second biggest city in Denmark and it is the sports capital of the country, so it seemed foolish not to have a team there. I have been involved in the creation and re-start of two clubs before. Odense I started from nothing with only one person to help me in the beginning. Copenhagen Giants was a team who were on a short pause, and they only needed someone to be a catalyst and help them along before they quickly found momentum and made it to the DAFL semi-finals that year.”

“Aarhus is somewhere in between. A lot of players and supporters in Aarhus are eager to help, but there is no proper setup with a field, playing gear, footballs and a big enough playing group. This is what we will grow and solve in the beginning so we can harvest the potential Aarhus has.”

“There is still a long way to go before Aarhus Bombers are back, but it is looking really promising. There is a lot of work being done to build stronger bonds with the local university to make recruiting easier and get the word out about the comeback of the team in red and black. The first goal is to get weekly training sessions in Aarhus so that locals can train and play in the city once again.”

“Having done all the paperwork, the club is now working with the council to find a field to be the new home for the Bombers. The club is patient and knows that success won’t come straight away, but one thing is for sure - when the Bombers set their minds to something, things happen, and they will happen with explosive results. The Danish Australian Football League should prepare themselves because here comes the boom!”

It is going to be fascinating to see if that “boom” is powerful enough to put the Aarhus Bombers back where they once were in Danish footy. Nevertheless, it is a commendable effort to date that can only be good for the club the league and the game of Australian football in Denmark.