World Footy News

Australian Football in Scotland is following the trend towards "metro footy" leagues seen in other countries, i.e. having a main club in a city also break up into smaller sides for a local league, without taking away from the city competing in a wider competition.

The Glasgow sixes league had been running for a year now and is a great way of playing footy in a semi competitive environment. The format is simple, two teams compete in a six a side game on a shortened pitch.  This year will be slightly different in that with increased participation teams have bigger numbers and so where possible if a game can be played 9-a-side or even 12-a-side then that shall be the format. Lessons were learnt from last year and this year the league has been reduced to three teams to help make sure teams had enough numbers to play a game without borrowing players from another team too much.

 

This year’s three teams are:

Mako Sharks. Captained by Adam Jack the Makos are reigning premiers playing in the black and white Collingwood jumpers.

Tiger Sharks. Captained by Scott O`Hara the tigers will be looking to improve from last year. Playing in the green and yellow convict tops.
 
Card Sharks. Captained by Robert, Magic, McKinlay. A new captain for the year Rob will be looking for a strong performance from his team. Playing in the white and purple Fremantle tops.

 
Two teams will play in a round with one having a bye, there are a total of 9 rounds meaning each team plays 6  games, 3 times against one another. The fixture list for the year looks like this.

 
March 4th Round 1
Mako Sharks vs. Card Sharks

March 17th Round 2
Card Sharks vs. Tiger Sharks

April 7th Round 3
Tiger Sharks vs. Mako Sharks

April 29th Round 4
Card Sharks vs. Mako Sharks

May 19th Round 5
Tiger Sharks vs. Card Sharks

May 29th Round 6
Mako Sharks vs. Tiger Sharks

June 17th Round 7
Mako Sharks vs. Card Sharks

July 17th Round 8
Card Sharks vs. Tiger Sharks

August 17th Round 9
Tiger Sharks vs. Mako Sharks

September 16th Semi Final

October 6th Grand Final


Again this year stats will be collected and awards handed out at this year’s presentation night Awards handed out on the night include :-

MVP Award, given out to the best, statistically, player in the entire season.

Goal Kicking award, given to the player with the most goals kicked in a season.

Sixes trophy and medals, given to the Grand finalists, the trophy given to the finals winner.

 
Glasgow Draft 2012

This year’s draft was public and held in PJ Champs Byres Road. It was a good night enjoyed by all, if it is any indication of how the year is to come it should be our biggest year yet!

The Draft was split into 12 Rounds where each round corresponded to a sub section of the Sharks playing group and each captain had one pick in each round he rounds listed below where completed quickly showing that the captains had already put some thought into who they wanted in their team.

 
Round 1

Captains Mate      
Captains will choose 1 player from their 2011 team to stay with the team

Round 2

Core pick 1
First choice for each team from the Core group

Round 3

Women's round   
First choice for each team from the Women's group

Round 4

Rookie's round 1  
First choice for each team from the Rookies group

Round 5

Core pick 2
Second choice for each team from the Core group

Round 6

Under 18's
choice for each team from the U/18 group

Round 7

Women's round    
Second choice for each team from the Women's group

Round 8

Rookie's round 2   
Second choice for each team from the Rookies group

Round 9

Core pick 3
Third choice for each team from the Core group

Round 10

Over 40's
First choice for each team from the over 40's group

Round 11

Aussies
First choice for each team from the Aussies group

Round 12

Buffet round
Captains will continue to pick in sequence until all players on the list are selected

 

The draft ended with the teams being finalised on the night as

 
Mako Sharks

Adam Jack (Capt.), Daniel Connor,
Gus Thomson, Hazel Stevenson,
Gareth Moore,Marc Mason,
Mark McFarlane, Stacey Hughes,
Steven O'Kelly, Paul Dalziel, 
Stephen Connor,Darren Chadwick,
Andy Butler, Mick Tonner.


Tiger Sharks
                                 
Scott O'Hara (Capt.), Alex Young,
Gary Bruce, Nicky Thomson,
David Smith,Neil Cooper,
Andrew McManus, Kirsty Gray,
Graham Wilson, Olivier Tresca,
Frank McManus, Andrew Dubojski,
Colin Brandsma, Grant Cunningham


Card Sharks
                                             
Robert McKinlay (Capt.), John McIntyre,
Martin Bell, Niamh Breslin,
Patrick Finnon,Campbell Hamilton,
Alexander Clark, Eileen Myles,
Derek Smith, Gerry Conachan,
Ross Thomson, Steve Thomson,
Andy Kingsey.


Sharks Super 6’s - a Coaches view

The 2012 draft for the Sharks Super 6’s was a great event held at PJ Champs on Saturday 25th February. This year players had been split into various groups in an attempt to even out the teams for the season ahead. A very successful recruitment drive over the winter coupled with the usually high retention of Shark players from the previous season meant that 41 players went into the draft

Below I’ve assessed the Squads and highlighted some players to watch out for.


Mako Sharks:

Team Overall
 
Last years Champions the Mako’s have added experience to their line up in the form of Darren Chadwick and Andy Butler. Chadwick will add to the already potent forward line while Butler will add experience and hard running to the midfield and defensive areas.

Under the pump
 
Daniel Connor, last year’s surprise packet was taken pick 1 under the Captain’s pick, Adam Jack overlooked last year’s Best & Fairest winner Andy Dubojski and fellow Aussie and gut running midfielder Steve Thompson to take Connor. It’s safe to say the pressures on him to deliver the goods this year for this selection to be deemed a success.

One’s to watch

Gareth Moore joining the Sharks this year Gareth’s Gaelic background has led to him picking the game up very quickly. Hazel Stevenson, Hazel has scored 9 point goals in both her matches this season and has also picked the sport up very quickly since joining in January.

What to expect

Providing they can keep their midfield fit and intact expect the Mako’s to make a very good go at back to back premierships.

Tiger Sharks:

Team Overall

Captain O’Hara has added to his crop of home grown talent from last year with the prize pick of Club Best & Fairest Andy Dubojski. His team will be better off with the experiences of last season under their belt. Gary Bruce has shown an ability to find the ball from the centre in the 2 intra-club matches this season add this to the poise of the experienced Dubojski and the Tigers forwards can expect to be busy.

Under the pump

Possibly Scott O’Hara, 2nd year as Captain and although an unselfish player who will fill a variety of roles for the team , this Season Scott must enforce himself as a key player for this team as well as a leader.

One’s to watch

Andrew McManus continues to develop well, his athleticism and ability to score goals from long range on the run will be something other sides will be watching. Graham Wilson first year player but has looked solid in defence in his outings so far, his bigger body will trouble some key forwards in marking contests.

What to expect

Expect the Tigers to be a lot more competitive than they were last season. They have some special individuals in their ranks the key aspect will be how well they gel as a team. On their day they will beat anyone, how often they play to their potential will be the only question mark.

Card Sharks:

Team Overall

New team for this season although they do retain a skeleton of last year’s Bull Sharks in their side, new team new Captain, Robert ‘Magic’  McKinlay will captain this side who look to be very strong and will certainly push for the premiership this season. Magic has taken top midfielder and previous Basking Sharks Captain Ross Thomson to bolster his midfield also recruiting Steve Thompson from last years successful Mako Sharks.

Under the pump

New team means a new start for all players and lessens the pressure, however the Sharks as a Club have high expectations for Alexander Clark, entering into his 3rd year with the club and still only 16 a lot will be watching his progress.

One’s to watch

Martin Bell continues to improve, many are expecting this to be a break out year for him. Patrick Finnon has impressed with in his few early season outings as well.

What to expect

Good run and carry, lots of shots at goal. This side have the potential to win the competition this year, a lot will depend on how often they can put their best players on the park.

Interviews were taken During the draft to see the footage click here

Match reports and game footage will be uploaded to World Footy News so keep checking back.