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IC14 Preview: Garudas soar into international footy

  • Wednesday, July 30 2014 @ 10:20 am ACST
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International Cup 2014

Indonesia may debuting at the International Cup but the country has a footy history that has been passed along to squad given the honour of representing their massive nation.  This is a massive step for footy in Indonesia and also the future of footy development for Asian nationals.

The Country and Australian Football.

Indonesia is a sovereign state in South East Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising some 17,000 islands with a population of over 238 million people, making it the world's fourth most populous country.

Indonesia lies between latitudes 11°S and 6°N, and longitudes 95°E and 141°E. It consists of 17,508 islands, about 6,000 of which are inhabited. These are scattered over both sides of the equator. The largest are Java, Sumatra, Borneo (shared with Brunei and Malaysia), New Guinea (shared with Papua New Guinea), and Sulawesi. Indonesia shares land borders with Malaysia on Borneo, Papua New Guinea on the island of New Guinea, and East Timor on the island of Timor. Indonesia shares maritime borders across narrow straits with Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Palau to the north, and with Australia to the south. The capital, Jakarta, is on Java and is the nation's largest city.

The Indonesian archipelago has been an important trade region since at least the 7th century initially with China and India when Buddhist and Hindu Kingdoms flourished. Indonesian history has been influenced by foreign powers drawn to its natural resources. Muslim traders brought the now-dominant Islam, while European powers brought Christianity and fought one another to monopolize trade in the Spice Islands of Maluku. Following three and a half centuries of Dutch colonialism, Indonesia secured its independence after World War II.

Despite its large population and densely populated regions, Indonesia has vast areas of wilderness that support the world's second highest level of biodiversity.

Indonesia has at least 150 active volcanoes, including Krakatoa and Tambora, both famous for their devastating eruptions in the 19th century. The eruption of the Toba supervolcano, approximately 70,000 years ago, was one of the largest eruptions ever, and a global catastrophe. Recent disasters due to seismic activity include the 2004 tsunami that killed an estimated 167,736 in northern Sumatra and the Yogyakarta earthquake in 2006. However, volcanic ash is a major contributor to the high agricultural fertility that has historically sustained the high population densities of Java and Bali.
 
Footy in Indonesia had its genesis when in 1995 the Jakarta Bintangs were founded by ex-pat Australians. The Bali Geckoes followed around 1997, again with mainly ex-pat Australians, later establishing the Bali 9’s competition. In 2008 the Borneo Bears were established in Balikpapan, similarly by ex-pat Aussies. In 2009 the Bintangs, Geckoes and Bears established AFL Indonesia with plans to further develop footy amongst native Indonesians. On Anzac Day 2013 an all Indonesian Jakarta Garudas* played an all Indonesian Borneo Bears also in 2013 a full –time Development Officer was appointed.  Australia Day 2014 the Garudas and Bears played the Bintangs (mainly ex-pats) in a one day tournament where well over 130 people attended.
 
Indonesia’s  IC Debut:  Thoughts on the draw from Adam Norton: Garudas Team Manager.
           
Indonesia's first AFL International Cup campaign will be challenging as the Garudas are new to competing in tournaments of this magnitude. However, Indonesia are sending a dedicated squad of lightning fast, agile, aggressive and highly competitive players. Expect the Garudas' game plan, fitness and intensity at the footy to turn heads within the International Footy community,
 
Game One: Being drawn against Nauru for the first match at the AFL International Cup will be the initial hurdle the Garudas will encounter on the field. Currently Nauru are 5th overall in the International rankings (WorldFootyNews.com, 2013) and are the highest ranked squad Indonesia play during the seeding rounds after finishing 6th overall in IC11. The Nauru squad are seasoned campaigners and footy is highly developed there so the Garudas are aware that they will again bring their A-game. The Indonesian-National team will be fired up and switched on to tackle the Nauru squad 100% from the first until the last bounce
 
Game Two: Fiji were the Division 2 victors in IC11, so again the Garudas' squad are anticipating a tough hitout. Generally the Fijian squad bring with them some large formidable bodies. Although some 50-60kg Garudas have been known to rag-doll tackle  bigger Australian expat opponents more than twice their size. So expect the Garudas to utilise their intensity, aggression and speed to provide the best chance at being successful in this contest.
 
Game Three: Indonesia will play France, who were runner up in Division 2 at IC11. Goes to prove that there are no easy matches in the AFL International Cup. This match will coincide with the AFL's Community Round, which will see the Indonesia Garudas playing at Digger's Rest. The Garudas will need to dig deep, show their pride in their country and push themselves to the limit for this match.
 
Garudas Squad
 

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No. Name Position Years playing Club
1. Yossy Alberta Taehuttu (C) Mid 4.5 Jakarta Bintangs/Cileunsi Tigers
2. Timbul Kukuh Santisa (VC) Fwd/Mid 2 Borneo bears
3. Bugi Permnan Def 6.5 Jakarta Garudas/Bogor
4. Ilham Bachtiar Utility/Ruck 3 Jakarta Garudas/Bogor
5. Bambang Suminarto Utility/Ruck 1 Jakarta Garudas/Bandung
6. David Hasudungan Sihombing Utility 4.5 Cileungsi Tigers
7. Michael Anwar Mid 4.5 Jakarta Bintangs / Cileunsi Tigers
8. Rotama Agus Simanungkalit Fwd/Def 2.5 Cileungsi Tigers
9. Frenky Warumu Fwd 2.5 Cileungsi Tigers
10. Ibadurrohman FWD/RUCK 5.5 Jakarta Bintangs / Jakarta Garudas
11. Putra Arjani Def 3 Jakarta Garudas
12. Michael Alexander Latupeirissa Def 2.5 Cileungsi Tigers
13. Dimas Adi Prasojo Mid 4.5 Jakarta Bintangs / Jakarta Garudas / Depol
14. Hariyanto Fwd 11.5 Jakarta Bintangs / Jakarta Garudas / Depok
15. Mahenra Gilang Saputro Mid 1.5 Borneo Bears
16. Egy Dwi Tanto Fwd 1.5 Borneo Bears
17. Sulaiman FWD/DEF 3 Borneo Bears
18. Busah Bala RUCK/DEF 3 Borneo Bears
19. Vincent Halim FWD/MID 1 Jakarta Bintangs / Jakarta Garudas
20. Rama Yuda Yulianto Def 1.5 Borneo Bears
21. Hasanema Ziso Daichi FWD/MID 2.5 Cileungsi Tigers
22. Handri Susanto FWD/MID 3 Bali Geckos
23. Dillah Syah Nufkul Abdillah FWD 5.5 Jakarta Bintangs / Jakarta Garudas
24. Yamin DEF 1 Borneo Bears
25. Agus Mansyah DEF 1 Borneo Bears
26. Cody Halliday FWD 1.5 Altona Vikings
27. Richard Wood MID/FWD 5.5 Guilford Grammar / Borneo Bears
28. Bayu Pratama MID/FWD 1.5 South Melbourne Districts
29. Boy Sabar Pasaribu (Coach) Def 8.5 Jakarta Bintangs / Jakarta Garudas
 
Support Staff
National Coach - Boy Sabar Pasaribu
Assistant Coaches - Adam Bray and Shane Kruger
Team Manager - Adam Norton
Assistant Team Manager - Dean Reardon
IC14 (Indonesia) Chairman & Treasurer - John Eddy
Transport & Accommodation Manager - David Edwards
Committee Members/ Additional Support Staff - Iain Shearer, Chia Sabbatucci, Cath Eddy, Peter Wallace, James Moore, Brenton Harris, Drew Styles, plus several support staff based in Australia and countless others who have been involved with the AFL development program in Indonesia for many years
 
*Garuda: a large mythical bird, or bird-like creature, or humanoid bird that appears in both Hindu and Buddhist mythology