World Footy News

As Nic Naitanui and Israel Folau have become household names across Australia, eyes are swiftly turning to the Pacific as the next frontier for international AFL talent. Eddie Burton, the AFL’s Development Officer in Solomon Islands talks to a group of young players leading the charge of AFL in a country that just eight years ago was on the brink of collapse.

Former Geelong Football Club captain Ben Graham continues his NFL punting odyssey tour of the US this week, having signed on with the Detroit Lions.

Having punted in USAFL states of New York (Magpies), Arizona (Hawks) and Louisiana (Baton Rouge Tigers), Graham now finds himself in the footy-barren state of Michigan after the Lions sacked Robert Malone the fill in punter for the injured Ryan Donahue.

If Donahue does not come up from injury this week Graham will punt with his fourth NFL club.

This Saturday (Nov 19) sees an exhibition match with the Solomon Islands AFL National Select squad take on the Toll 'Barbarians' at the St. Josephs Tenaru School.

The day is titled "THE BIG MEAT PIE".

Festivities commence from 1pm, and first bounce is at 2pm.

Unfortunately, the Solomons AFL are not in a position to send a full squad to the South Pacific Cup tournament in December. They are endeavouring to raise funds from this event to send a few young boys over to represent the SIAFL in a combined side.

The day will include a BBQ and drinks, live music and a jumping castle among other activities. Interestingly, there will be a signed GWS guernsey up for auction.

Presently Eddie Burton is looking for a 2nd umpire for the day. Eddie can be contacted in the Solomons on +677 7579338.

The Canterbury Cobras went through their second successive undefeated campaign to claim back to back championships in the AFL New Zealand Senior NPC held at Wellington at Hutt Park.

The tournament featured great facilities and great weather and was well supported by the Wellington AFL organizing committee. Led by League President Mark Langdon and Secretary Margaret Lavery, their efforts were rewarded with a most enjoyable weekend.

NZ Championships in a major tournament year, whether previously the Arafura Cup or currently the International Cup, always see a host of new faces. The commitment to preparing for these major International tournaments means that many players cannot afford the tie, money or absence from their home commitments to again prepare for a tournament which involves further dedication to training and costs such as flights and accommodation, which are generally self-funded. This is of course are two edged sword in that of course you would wish for the best of the best to be at every tournament but this has never been the case. The obvious benefit is that a host of new players often get to represent their province for the first time, and this is always done with great pride.

There were a few firsts for the weekend with a twilight game introduced to provide travelling teams with flexibility in regards to arrival times.

Bill Robert has his latest Stateside Footy Episode 14 now online. The Boston Demons host the New York Magpies in Lexington, MA. In the Keegan Heavey Memorial Game, dedicated to the memory of a recently deceased club member.

Bill Robert has his latest Stateside Footy Episodes 11-13 now online, and these episodes feature two Aussie Football matches: the first being Womens Footy and the inaugural home game of the Boston Lady Demons as they take on the New York Lady Magpies. The second match is a match between the New York and Boston men's reserves.

 

Youtube footage of the program can be seen below.

The spotlight of CHOGM has left Perth and the football focus shifts to the new year but the background behind the two teams that contested the recent CHOGM Cup deserves further attention.
 
Both teams are involved in Perth’s annual Harmony Cup. The WAFL is the instrument for football in WA and has entered into a relationship with WA Education that’s producing results for all stakeholders. The following is from WAFC Emerging Markets Manager, Paul Mugambwa, better know as a South Fremantle Bulldogs player.

In March 2010 the West Australian Football Commission (WAFC) formed a partnership with the Edmund Rice Centre to develop a multicultural football team that could develop participants skills and knowledge of AFL and eventually assist them joining local community clubs. 

Through this partnership the Edmund Rice Lions were formed and the team consisted of young men aged 14 to 23 from culturally and linguistically diverse (CaLD) backgrounds. The Lions were more than just a football team. While participants were able to develop their skills and knowledge of AFL they also developed leadership skills, team building, self confidence and a sense of belonging. In their first year the Lions trained 2-3 times per week and competed in more than 8 AFL matches over 5 months. Over the course of the 5 months the Lions had more the 75 participants with 30 regular players. At the end of the first year more than 10 players made the transition from the Lions team into local community clubs.

Several years ago AFL South Africa established their base at Senwes Park (formerly Sedgars Park) in Potchefstroom.  In summer it's used for cricket and in winter for Aussie Rules (or FootyWILD as it's known there), just like hundreds (maybe even thousands) of grounds across Australia.

But it still no doubt comes as a surprise to Australia's top cricketers when they find themselves looking at AFL merchanise when they arrive at Senwes Park for a tour match.  Brydon Coverdale wrote about the ground and the growth of Australian football in South Africa in a recent article for Cricinfo, which covers cricket around the world.

See Australian rules in South Africa.

The Leeds Minotaurs are England's newest footy club, having been formed by expat Australian student Rhys Long after an ad posted in Leeds' Walkabout Bar on AFL Grand Final day brought a barrage of interest from potential fans and players.

Since then, the Minotaurs but in a valiant effort in their debut match against neighbours Huddersfield Rams, and are planning to take part in a tournament with Manchester, Sheffield and Wolverhampton at the end of this month.

The HANZ-UP programme is a community based football programme organised between the Hawthorn Football Club and AFL New Zealand. The alliance allows Hawthorn to promote the game in New Zealand, whilst AFL New Zealand has the opportunity like no other international football organisation to engage the local juniors in a variety of football activities, including Auskick programmes, school competitions, and clinics with Hawks players.

 

  

The TV promos before the second International Rules Test at Carrara on the Gold Coast were about ‘intensity’, an Australian team needing to ‘settle the score’. They would do it by pressure, tackling and hitting harder, within the rules.

They also tagged key players, including Tadhg Kennelly who was tagged by Sydney Swans teammate Ben McGlynn.

That reality led to numerous spot fires in the third quarter with three Australians and two Irish yellow carded and off the bench for a time.

In fact, it was Irish skill which still trumped the Australians - better high marking! (as when Kieran Donaghy outmarked Ben Griggs near the Irish goal), astonishing evasive skills, lay-offs of the ball under pressure with the speed of the Harlem Globetrotters, and precise kicking.

Although the Irish did not race away in a scoreless first few minutes, they inched towards a slight lead at the time. Steven McDonnell, the highest scorer in the history of the series, kicked an Over (above the cross bar) from the boundary line in the last minute of the quarter, Ireland taking a 12-8 lead into the break.

As an Irish commentator said, the Irish were handling the tackle better than in the past, particularly important for players who normally play a non-tackling game. In contrast, from early in the game Australia’s Mitch Robinson looked like he was angling for a prize fight next year with Barry Hall.