World Footy News

There are still plenty of footy xenophobes out there who believe that Australian football should be played by Australians only. But anyone who has been involved with foreigners coming to the game seems to be quickly converted to the idea that the game shouldn't be restricted to those who live in Australia (which of course it is not). There is something special about sharing the game that has largely been a secret to the rest of the world, who for the most part take it up with great enthusiasm.

Luke Ball today wrote in The Age of his encounters with Collingwood team-mate Shae McNamara and surmises that the game can only be better off for the diversity that international expansion can bring. The following is an extract from that article Globalisation of our code can only make us better.

The other day, I was having lunch with our new international rookie, Seamus McNamara. Big Shae hails from Wisconsin, USA, and at 24 years of age has chosen to put on the backburner a very promising elite-level basketball career to try his hand at our great game. It's a gutsy move.

Like the much-publicised rugby league defectors, Israel Folau and Karmichael Hunt, Shae is a fantastic athlete, but he's a complete foreigner to our game and is learning the skills from scratch.

He's an interesting dude, with interesting and different views that - in true American spirit - he is not at all shy about putting forward.

One observation he made is about how humble and constrained Aussie rules players and coaches are when a microphone or camera is thrust in front of them - even to the point of them being ''phony'' (as he put it), or not showing our true personalities.

He went on to compare us with elite sportspeople in the US, and how they handle press conferences and interviews. Have a look at NBA superstars Shaquille O'Neal or Kevin Garnett on YouTube, he said, and watch as these and many other US sportspeople handle the ''pressure'' of a press conference a little differently to us.

In one interview, Shaq is asked about upcoming opponents, the Sacramento Kings: ''Right now I'm not worried about the Sacramento Queens … write it down, send it to 'em.'' Another pearler is his reply to a question regarding his age upon his move to the Miami Heat. Having admitted he is getting on a bit, he added: ''I'm like toilet paper, toothpaste, and other amenities, I'm proven to be good.''

Imagine Gary Ablett, Chris Judd or Nick Riewoldt taking a leaf out of Shaq's book. Wouldn't it be different if Ablett told the media that it wasn't his teammates that were making him a better player, but rather he feels unstoppable out there at the moment and right at the peak of his powers?

Or if Riewoldt, in the words of Garnett, told the media that he's ''so hot right now … anything's possible''. I'm pretty sure Roo wouldn't say that even if he could, but maybe stars who consistently perform at a high level should be granted a bit more leniency to say exactly what they think every now and then.

We may never see players pump themselves and their team up in our game. And for many people that's probably a good thing, because humility and grace are admirable qualities in footy.

Still, it's an example of the different perspectives that a guy from another part of the world can bring to a footy club.

We have seen players come from Ireland and make a great impression with their different skills and characteristics, and it is exciting to think clubs are now searching the world to introduce special talent to our game.

It is also very exciting to think that two of the very best rugby league players in the country have decided to switch to Aussie rules.

Let's put all the cynicism and squabbling about the financial aspect aside and support and encourage these blokes to pursue their aspiration to become elite players in our code.

If we can one day say that Aussie rules is truly a game that brings together players from all backgrounds, from all over the world - not just Australia - then we will all be better for it.

I look forward to the day when translators are required at media conferences because the next big thing in Argentine football has decided that the oval ball is the one for him.

It would be fantastic for Collingwood, and indeed the code, if Shae can continue to improve his skills and eventually break into the senior team.

It would be a super effort, and at his first press conference you would certainly know all about it.

Word would certainly spread fast over the Pacific, and who knows, maybe it would inspire more and more ''Shaq-like'' personalities to come here and have a go at Aussie rules. And if it does, let's make sure we embrace these different characters - in true Aussie fashion - and the different insights they can bring.

Luke Ball is a board member of the AFL Players' Association