World Footy News

“We all know someone that is suffering from a mental illness.” Clark said.

 

If there was one thing that was learned last week being witness to the 2017 AFL National Male Kickstart & All Nations Championships it was that the multicultural game is growing in numbers and standards. The future of the game’s growth both in Australia most likely overseas could get a huge boost as the multicultural carnivals drive growth.

This claim is highlighted rather dramatically by the growth since the 2015 carnival in Cairns. At that event the team numbers were smaller, as was the playing field. Fifteen players a side played on a makeshift mini-field within the larger Cazaly’s Stadium. It looked very much like the set up for junior matches.

Fast forward to 2017 and the All-Nations competition (made from teams where player’s ancestry of themselves or their parents was having been born overseas) and teams played 16 per side, no wings and on a full sized oval. Not only that, but the standards of play were a far cry from the tournament in Cairns.

The ALFA Lions from Lyon in France have achieved something that even their most hardened supporters find absolutely amazing – thy have reached the 2016/17 CNFA Grand Final against the Paris Cockatoos. Undefeated all season, this pride of Lions played their first finals match against the Paris Cockerels and won their way into the big one.

It speaks volumes for the effort and dedication of the Lyon team that created this club only a few years ago and have already climbed to within breathing distance of a premiership. Back in the early 2013/2014 season, when the club first played in league matches, one of their founders, Charles Bernigaud made the proclamation “but we are an ambitious team, be aware of this.” What followed was two wooden spoons and a sixth placing, yet that ambition has shown itself clearly this season.

 

The recent 2017 AFL National Male Kickstart & All Nations Championships were not just a place for players to show their wares. It was also an environment where young umpires were able to continue their development journeys. During the course of the championships, David Rodan – former Richmond, Port Adelaide and Melbourne footballer and current AFL goal umpire – spent time speaking to the boys to tell them of umpiring pathways. Also, Mathew Nichols, a current AFL umpire with almost 300 AFL games experience, spent the event teaching and mentoring the new breed.

Both were willing to speak to World Footy News and talk about the opportunities for umpires, and how important this tournament was to the development of umpires. 

 

David Rodan: David, you played in an elite environment as a player and you have also witnessed first-hand elite level umpiring. How does that prepare you to help grow our new batch of young umpiresω

The 2017 National AFL Male Kickstart & All Nations Championships have been completed at the Blacktown International Sportspark at Rooty Hill in Sydney’s west. For the second consecutive year the mighty Western Australian teams have won both titles. For the Kickstart program the result sees the state remain the only winners of the Kickstart Championships since its inception.

On a beautiful, sunny morning, the All Nations Grand Final kicked off. South Australia had performed well in the early stages of the carnival and were rated as a strong chance to upset the team from the west. Early signs were good as they held a narrow lead during the first half to go in tightly locked at half time.

The 2017 Kickstart and All Nations Championships gave a unique ability to sit in a coaches box of an elite junior competition and listen to what coaches and the off field crew discuss before, during and after a game. There is insight her for any coaches. World Footy News thanks the Victorian All Nations team for allowing us to be front and centre during a game.

Jamie Pi knew that he had a talented team of players under his guidance. Results might not have yet validated that, but results aren’t everything. Sometimes it is the process and the journey that gets people’s attention. It was certainly the criteria that Jamie and his coaching team were most interested in.

The Victorian All Nations team was playing against South Australia in the final match of the day. It was a chance for the team to honour their game style and the instructions given by the coaches. The set of goals was written on a whiteboard and would be reviewed as the match went on.

Before the game the players were given their instructions by Jamie and his team. Team Manager and Assistant Coach, Junior Oneone, was giving advice and encouragement along with Victorian Kickstart coach, Peter Dye, and the omnipresent, ubiquitous David Rodan – the team’s Project Manager.

 

Media Release From The Australian Football League

The AFL is pleased to announce the 2017 Boomerangs and World Team squads to compete at the 2017 NAB AFL Under-16 Championships on the Gold Coast in July.

Selected by AFL Club recruiters following the 2017 AFL National Male Diversity Championships held in Blacktown, the respective squads of 25 young men has been chosen based on school attendance, leadership skills, and football ability. 

 

The AFL Flying Boomerangs program is a personal development and leadership program for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young men aged 14-16 years old, supported by Rio Tinto. Meanwhile the World Team is made up of the best upcoming AFL multicultural players from across the nation.

Round 4 of the 2017 AFL Season kicks of in Perth tonight where the West Coast Eagles host the Sydney Swans at Domain Stadium.  Tomorrow night the first Good Friday match will take place between North Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs at Etihad Stadium.

The full international broadcast schedule can be seen below.

In addition to the TV networks you can also subscribe to the Watch AFL service that will give you live access to all the matches and more (outside Australia only).  You can access that service by clicking on the link here or the  Watch AFL banner below and paying the subscription fee.

 

MATCH	DATE	TIMESLOT	MATCH	VENUE	LOCAL TIME	GMT
1	13-Apr	Night	West Coast Eagles vs. Sydney Swans	Domain Stadium	18:10	10:10
2	14-Apr	Twilight	North Melbourne vs. Western Bulldogs	Etihad Stadium	16:20	04:20
3	15-Apr	Day	Melbourne vs. Fremantle	MCG	13:45	03:45
4	15-Apr	Twilight	GWS GIANTS vs. Port Adelaide	UNSW Canberra Oval	16:35	06:35
5	15-Apr	Night	Carlton vs. Gold Coast SUNS	Etihad Stadium	19:25	09:25
6	15-Apr	Night	Adelaide Crows vs. Essendon	Adelaide Oval	19:10	09:40
7	16-Apr	Day	Collingwood vs. St Kilda	Etihad Stadium	15:20	05:20
8	16-Apr	Twilight	Brisbane Lions vs. Richmond	The Gabba	16:40	06:40
9	17-Apr	Day	Hawthorn vs. Geelong Cats	MCG	15:20	05:20

One of the most endearing images from the 2017 National AFL Male Kickstart & All Nations Championships was former Port Adelaide Power premiership coach, Mark Williams, standing beside a young African player on the All Nations oval after a match stepping him through the basics of how to kick. As this story is being typed he is doing it again with a young Queensland indigenous player.

In a decorated career spanning playing days in the SANFL (West Adelaide & Port Adelaide) and VFL (Collingwood & Brisbane Bears) and a variety coaching, assistant coaching and his most recent specialist coaching role in the AFL with Richmond (Head Development Coach), Mark knows the coaching game backwards, forwards and sideways. The son of the “father of Port Adelaide” – Fos Williams – Mark holds one of the finest pedigrees in football. It is that pedigree he is bringing to the championships, coaching the coaches and watching over the players.

Micky O, as he if commonly referred to, has had an incredible journey in AFL football and is in a unique position to share his vast experience with the next generations of footballers. At the 2017 National AFL Male Kickstart and All Nations Championships Michael did exactly that when asked to motivate the boys with a talk about his background.

 

The following story is taken from a transcript of his presentation to the players during the championships. Not a pin drop could be heard as Michael entranced his audience.

 

 

I’m originally from Adelaide and moved to Sydney as a 17-year old to play footy with the Swans. I’m from a little place called Salisbury in Adelaide where I spent a lot of time at the Central Districts footy club. I guess the journey to get to Sydney has been a pretty tough one.

 A huge round of footy in Nauru on the weekend saw the top of the table clash decided by a goal and the other two matches by five points.  The Magpies cemented top spot with their 6 point win over the Bombers with Kenneth Oppenheimer kicking three goals for the winners.  Both sides will play off again next week, this time in the Qualifying final for a spot in the Grand Final.

FRIDAY APRIL 7, 2017
CATS SCRATCH DOGS IN A THRILLER
It was a tight and tough contest from the outset as players went in hard. The contest was tough as both teams tried hard to gain control but nothing could separate them going into the last quarter. Going with a slight breeze in the last quarter, it was the Cats that won most of the ball and kept the game in their half for most of the quarter.

But despite winning more possessions in the last, the Cats squandered their opportunities frequently missing easy shots at goal. The Bulldogs were more accurate and with young player Blame Maaki kicking 2 goals in the last quarter, they remained dangerously close.

In the dying minutes Cats dangerman Shawn Kemp Maaki slotted a goal from a tight angle to take the lead and they held on to win by 5 points in a thriller.