World Footy News

Newly appointed Western Sydney coach Kevin Sheedy (pictured with New Zealand captain Andrew Congalton during the 2008 International Cup) has laid out the welcome mat for international talent.

As the new AFL club began to take shape there were small signs here and there that the AFL intended to focus heavily on the many immigrants that make up western Sydney. This made a stronger international connection a natural match, especially at a time when both non-AFL driven and AFL driven international growth has seen the first products of a new wave of non-Australian footy players begin to emerge. The introduction of international rookie lists, the AFL-AIS side touring and the upcoming Oceania tournament, along with some countries having a youth focus at the International Cup and the introduction of a World XVIII at the 2010 AFL Under 16s, have all pointed the way forward.

Newly signed Collingwood International rookie Seamus McNamara can be seen in action in this latest Youtube video. The video covers some of his trialling with Collingwood previous to the signing announced today - please be advised the Shae's stomach contents will appear during the film. The footage is just a small part of the upcoming Yellow Magic documentary.

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The Collingwood Football Club today announced it has signed American Seamus McNamara to a two-year international rookie contract. The 24-year-old, who hails from Milwaukee in the US state of Wisconsin, is a powerful athlete who stands 204 centimetres and weighs 104 kilograms.

McNamara trialled with the Magpies in Melbourne back in September, and returned on the weekend to commence pre-season training with the team, after accepting the club’s contract offer. Collingwood’s national recruiting manager Derek Hine told http://collingwoodfc.com.au that McNamara could develop into a ruck or key forward option.

Last Saturday November 7th saw Germany's Frankfurt Redbacks travel south of the Alps, to the town of Lainate, near Milan, to take on the Italian national team. The game, won by the Redbacks by a solitary point, was the official match of the Italian National Aussie Rules team on home soil.

Thanks to Armando Colombo from the AFL Italia for this report. Full story includes a link to match highlights on YouTube.

Will international footy change the way the game is played in Australia, from the MCG to Subiaco, from Football Park to the Gabba and on large and small grounds around the country?

This article explores the possibilities.

The Ottawa Swans Australian Football Club is seeking applications for the position of Head Coach for the 2010 season. The Head Coach requires strong leadership qualities and is counted on to develop an excellent on-field product and to inspire team members to perform at a consistently high level .

The following are the minimum expectations of the Swans Head Coach in 2010:
- A strong commitment to develop Australian football in Canada's National Capital Region ;
- A focus on the development of first and second year players ;
- A full commitment to the position for the entire 2010 Ontario Australian Football League season, including pre-season planning, training, the regular season, and playoffs ;
- Knowledge and understanding of Australian football;
- Excellent written and oral communication skills in English (communication skills in French would be considered a strong asset ); and
- An ability to write detailed match reports.

Four-time AFL premiership coach and Australian Football Hall of Fame member Kevin Sheedy (and great friend and spruiker of the international aspects of our game) was today announced as Head Coach of Team GWS.

In announcing Sheedy’s move to Western Sydney, AFL Chief Executive Officer Andrew Demetriou said the appointment of the coaching legend, who had coached Essendon for 27 years and four flags was the most significant appointment in the campaign for the 18th AFL licence to bring a team to Greater Western Sydney by 2012.

Mr Demetriou said the Team GWS had a significant challenge to meet the criteria as set by the AFL Commission and that Sheedy would have a role in both the development of the on-field and off-field structure of Team GWS. “This is a generational decision and the success of AFL in Greater Western Sydney won’t be known for 25 or 30 years but with a population of two million people, the AFL is serious about this venture and today’s appointment of one of the biggest names in AFL demonstrates our commitment to this region,” Mr Demetriou said.

2007 Brownlow medalist Jimmy Bartel and Bulldog Tim Callan will tomorrow return from India, where they have spent time assisting charity Red Dust. Red Dust is a, "non-profit health promotion charity that seeks to improve the health and well-being of disadvantaged youths in remote communities." They are based in Australia but are, "globally focused".

Bartel and Callan worked for five days at a slum in Bapatla, a remote town in Southeastern India (in the same state as Hyderabad), conducting sports clinics, "as a means of developing rapport with the children, before encouraging them to attend afternoon classes focusing on hygiene and other life skills."

An article about their journey, which was completely independent of AFL India, appeared in the Geelong Advertiser, prior to their departure.

The minor rounds of the 2009 JAFL season have finished in exhilarating fashion with the makeup of the Top Four not settled until the final seconds of the final match.

Heading into the final round, the top two teams, the Eastern Hawks and the Tokyo Goannas, would play off to decide the minor premiers. The Tokyo Goannas earned that honour by running out 14.9 (93) to 7.13 (55) victors.

WFN is pleased to announce that our snapshots for South American countries involved in Aussie Rules are now complete.

They can be accessed through the pull down menus at the top of the page, under Countries.

More regions will follow later in the year.

Sudanese immigrant Majak Daw continues to create interest as the AFL Draft approaches (November 26). Big in athleticism but raw in football skills with only 4 years in the game, there appears to be growing discussion in media and AFL club circles suggesting that rather than be a rough chance to be rookie listed, he may in fact be picked up in the main draft, possibly even quite early.

AFL clubs are increasingly confident that with full time coaches and full time players, inexperienced athletes can be fast tracked into good players. Although he wasn't invited to the main draft camp, Majak Daw attended the Victorian state screening and posted impressive statistics; a 70-centimetre standing vertical jump would have put him third at the main camp in Canberra, a beep test of 13.6 (compared with the best tall forward at 13.3) and 3.03 seconds for 20 metres (quicker than the tall forward mean).

On top of that is the prospect of what is being billed as the first African to play in the AFL and the associated attention that may bring. Technically, there have been others listed by AFL clubs who have had African heritage, such as Caucasian South African-Australian Luke van Rheenen and (more successfully) Essendon's Damian Cupido. But in the popular imagination, a tall and very dark skinned African-born player has not been seen before at the game's top level.

Daw is very much aware of the growing hype and the potential to inspire other African immigrants to play Australia's indigenous game. But meanwhile he continues with his studies and plays the waiting game. "I reckon I've got a bit of a chance, but I'll wait and see. If it happens, I'm happy to be the first Sudanese to play AFL".

An in-depth discussion in The Age is Majak Daw: one giant leap.

See also our previous articles Multicultural camp trials, Sudanese immigrant a chance for rookie listing and Majak receives scholarship.

A team from the English city of Sheffield took the field for the first time in 2008 - with the student-based Sheffield Thunder completing a handful of games in the ARUK Central Division, before pulling out of the league due to the pressure on the squad of combining running the footy club with university commitments.

Aussie Garth Nevin, previously of the New York Magpies, recently took over the reins at the Thunder and is planning to get the club onto the pitch full time in 2010.