World Footy News

After an earlier relationship may have seen the USAFL club Chicago Swans and the AFL's Sydney Swans drift away from each other, they have found each other once again.

The Sydney Swans website reports that: Long-time friend of the Chicago Swans and Sydney reserves coach Jared Crouch said the new affiliation was a relationship that benefitted both clubs. “For them, they want a little bit of support and for us it’s about getting our name and our brand out there and offering any help we can,” he told sydneyswans.com.au.

“(Australian Rules) football is actually pretty big in the US. Other clubs already have affiliations. There are the New York Magpies, the Nashville Kangaroos and Boston play in Melbourne’s colours, so it’s about getting our name and brand on that scene.” As part of the new affiliation, 'Windy City' native and Chicago Swans player Jason Wilhelm visited the Swans headquarters at the SCG last week, and was treated to a guided tour with Crouch.

 Please note that these details are correct at the time of publishing. WFN accepts no responsibility for any changes to these times by broadcasters. Please check local guides or afl.com.au.

2012 TOYOTA AFL PREMIERSHIP SEASON – ROUND 9 INTERNATIONAL BROADCAST SCHEDULE Friday 25 May – Sunday 27 May

 

AFL Samoa in conjunction with the Samoa International Cricket Association will be holding a combined sports day on Saturday June 2nd at the Faleata Cricket grounds. RAN ship HMAS Darwin will be in port and the AFL Samoa seniors will take on the Darwin crew from 2pm on the ‘bottom oval’.

2012 marks the 50th anniversary Independence Celebrations throughout the Pacific island nation of Samoa. Originally known as Western Samoa; since July 1997 as Samoa. Independence was achieved on January 1st, 1962, although the push for independence dated back to around 1908 with the establishment the Mau movement.

Tocumwal is located 257kms from Melbourne on the New South Wales border (the Murray River). The football club there like in many small country towns is struggling for numbers as the population has declined over the years and many young men move away from the town for employment in larger centres.

In a unique move to maximise player attendance at football training (which ensures they have numbers on the field come Saturday) the club is paying players to attend training Tuesday and Thursday nights, but they must also meet a few other requirements to assist the club.

The article on this novel approach in The Weekly Times can be read here

 

Hot off the presses is the official media release from the AFL promoting the South Pacific Under 16s squad for the 2012 NAB AFL Under-16 Championships between July 7-14.

With the continued expansion of AFL into NZ apay to view channel has picked up further AFL content for its Auckland audience.

Rather than it being replays of prior games the program will focus on local football from Victoria. Now in its fifteenth year promoting Victorian Australian Rules football, The Local Footy Show features stories from more than 280 clubs from across 16 leagues, with 11 leagues featuring in its full match-of-the-day coverage in 2011 alone.

It is highly likely ratings will not be enormous but nonetheless it shows a raised level of interest in our code.

For more plese see:- http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/CU1204...v-slot.htm

Good Morning America's viewers were today treated to Jeremy Howe's spectacular mark against Sydney on the weekend as their "Play of the Day".

 

The USAFL's Nolan Ellis was last night featured on Denver's local news following his selection in the World XVIII squad.

The AFL tells us that the full team will be announced in the next couple of weeks, after final acceptances of invitations from internationally based players.

Australian based players are reportedly progressing well in the selection process with a large number of nominations received, including some players still involved in State trials.

The last two years haven't been too kind to Australian football in North East England. The area was once a hotbed of the sport in the UK, with a strong, five-team league. However, by 2011 it had become a barren wasteland in footy terms, with all clubs bar one having folded due to a combination of factors including waining interest, lack of facilities and funding. The one remaining team, Newcastle Centurions, is currently on hiatus, meaning no football has been played in the North East since 2010.

This is soon to change with the formation of the Tyne-Tees Tigers, an amalgamation of the now defunct clubs Gateshead, Durham, Middlesborough & Hartlepool. The club is based in Newcastle Upon Tyne, but represents the whole North East region and as such draws players from Northumberland, Tyneside, Wearside and Teeside. A lot of work has been done over the past few months to get things up and running and the first training session will take place on Tuesday 22nd May.

The club won't be playing competitive football in 2012 as the AFL England leagues have all already begun their seasons. The short-term goal for the Tigers is to host a round of the AFL England Central/North West (C/NW) season on July 14th. In that round the Tyne-Tees club will compete in a social game against a team made up of C/NW players. The club's long-term goal is to join the C/NW league as a competitive team in 2013.

 With the selection of Tommy Walsh by the Sydney Swans this week a new Irishman comes into the AFL fold.  And along with the selection of in form Pearce Hanley, Zach Tuohy and Marty Clarke on Thursday night, Niall McKeever was named on an extended bench for the Lions match against GWS this weekend.  

AFL Media Release

The AFL is pleased to announce a partnership with Cadbury which launches the AFL’s official alternative version of the game – Cadbury AFL 9s.

To showcase the new touch version of AFL, an exhibition Cadbury AFL 9s match will be played on football’s biggest stage, the MCG tonight, Friday, May 18.

 The Cadbury Super Team will take on the Coles All Stars during half-time of the blockbuster between Collingwood and Geelong.

Captaining the Cadbury Super Team will be Alex Davis, partner of Collingwood star Scott Pendlebury and captaining the Coles All Stars will be Geelong Premiership captain Cameron Ling. 

Andrew Dillon, AFL General Manager of Game Development said Cadbury AFL 9s is easy to play, less physically demanding and offers a game where participation, enjoyment and safety are a priority. 

“Cadbury AFL 9s is a central part of our growth strategy that aims to have one million participants playing the game by 2016".