World Footy News

Last weekend a squad of talented Scottish footballers, selected in the national Scottish Clansmen team, boarded flights to Madrid to take on the Spanish Bulls at the Universidad Autonoma de Madrid (Autonomous University of Madrid). It is the first match of an agreed two year deal between AFL Scotland and AFL Espana which will see the Spanish team travel to Scotland for the rematch in 2015.

Whilst there is still some conjecture about the final score, it appears that the most accurate is a victory to the Scotland team over Spain 77 to 27.

Players in the Scottish team came from established clubs, the Glasgow Sharks, Edinburgh Bloods and Aberdeen Eagles (who are not competing in the SARFL this season) as well as newer or emerging clubs including the Kingdom Kangaroos and Falkirk Silverbacks (Martin Bell being a Glasgow Shark who is now putting together the fledgling Falkirk team). Also in the squad were players currently lining up with the Copenhagen X-Men in the DAFL and also the Wimbledon Hawks from the AFL London competition.

The squad selected to play for the Scottish Clansmen included Martin Bell, Alexander Clark, Daniel Connor, Daniel Collett, Michael Douglas, Cameron Goodall, Bryan Martin, Tom McAra, Mark McFarlane, Chris McGookin, John McIntyre, Robert McKinlay, Scott O'Hara, Gus Thomson, Michael Woodrow, Lisle Young.

The Spanish team was made primarily from players who represented the nation at last year’s Euro Cup in France, and marks the first major game since then for the national team. It is certainly a good sign that there is still interest in a Spanish team remaining active at an international level, albeit on a part time basis. But with further development of teams in France and Portugal there may be additional opportunities become available for the Bulls.

The Spanish team enjoyed wins at the 2013 Euro Cup over both Austria and Iceland, proving that the talent is already available but just needs more opportunities, such as this match, to develop further.

Similarly, the opportunity for more international matches for the Scottish Clansmen can only assist the continued growth and development of the game in Scotland, with the experience gained helping not only the national team but filtering down to the clubs across the country.