World Footy News

Just a warning to any of our readers that use Yahoo for their email. We've had some difficulty with Yahoo not passing on emails from worldfootynews.com, or delaying them by several days. If you have attempted to register with our website and did not receive your password then it is possible Yahoo did not release it to you - one would expect it to at least appear in a user's spam folder, but it seems Yahoo have a history of inexplicably locking out websites. So if you did not receive a response or think something was amiss, please contact us again, and perhaps try an email address other than Yahoo.

When the AFL announced that one of the teams partaking in the 2008 International Cup would be comprised of Israelis and Palestinians, a few voices in the international football community expressed skepticism. Whilst football competitions existed previously in Israel, there had been no major football news from the region in years. Some questioned whether the Peace Team's involvement in the tournament would lead to a football presence in Israel and Palestine afterwards or if it was simply an AFL publicity stunt. Positive news from The Peres Centre for Peace today, suggests that the AFL made the right decision.

The East Devonport Swans, who play in the Northern Tasmanian Football League, have scored an early coup in the lead-up to 2009’s NTFL season by signing two exciting players from Papua New Guinea.

Emmaus Wartovo and Willie Aisi were among the stars for the PNG Mosquitoes in last year's AFL International Cup grand final against New Zealand. The pair also played in Queensland last year on international scholarships, but returned home to PNG during the summer. According to an article by Martin Agatyn in local paper, The Advocate, “They are expected to arrive in Tasmania by mid- February, once details of their sporting visas are finalised. It is believed the signings will be the first time PNG nationals have played football for a Tasmanian club. Aisi is reported to be a speedy on-baller, while Wartovo is a handy forward who can kick goals.”

The Convicts concept sees teams of Australian footballers heading overseas for tours that involve football matches and sight seeing. We've followed their adventures closely, as they've travelled from South Africa to Europe to North America.

However 2009 is set to be a quiet one with no tours planned, after an initial look at China was scrapped. The Convicts' Anthony Nanfra told WFN that "I dont think it prudent to have a tour this year given the state of the economy", noting that players from Western Australia have been a big part of the tours and there are major employment worries from that group. Instead he is looking into some domestic opportunities and investigating options for 2010. We'll let you know when their plans solidify.

The Carlton Football Club has suspended Irishman Setanta O’hAilpin indefinitely following an incident where he was reported to have punched and kicked team-mate Cameron Cloke during today’s intra-club practice match at Visy Park. Setanta finished the 2008 season with an injury and questions over whether the club would take him into 2009, and his brother Aisake was de-listed. Setanta stayed on the Blues' list but now it appears he will face a significant period on the sidelines. The following is from a statement from the Carlton Football Club:

“Setanta’s actions were totally unacceptable, on or off the field, and we are bitterly disappointed in the incident with Cameron Cloke,” said Carlton CEO Greg Swann. O’hAilpin has been suspended from the Club until further notice pending an AFL investigation. He will not be involved in any club activities and will be required to train with the Northern Bullants while he is suspended. In addition he will undergo an anger management course with the Club Sports Psychologist.

Setanta is remorseful about the incident and has spoken with Cameron to apologise for his actions. He is aware that such an incident is completely unacceptable and, in particular, is a poor example to junior footballers. The Carlton leadership group was involved in the decision to suspend Setanta and have spoken to him in relation to the matter.

[youtube:_fJq0hEE7r0]

Go to USFootyNews.com for the top 10 US footy photos of 2008.

Not only was 2008 a big struggle for football in Tonga as the Tongan Australian Football Association (TAFA) attempted to get a team to the 2008 International Cup, but the fledgling league also suffered the cruellest of blows when two of its players suffered horrific injuries in a car accident just weeks before the trip to Australia. Both young men sustained life-changing injuries and have been the subject of fundraising efforts. Meanwhile TAFA ended up sending a side to the Cup but the decision was too late for the main event.

Sweden's Karlstad Dragons and Queensland's Noosa Tigers have teamed up to start the first player exchange program for an individual Swedish footy club.

While a few Swedes also played footy in Australia via a partnership between Powerhouse FC and the DAFL, the first Swede from a northern club to travel down under to hone his footballing skills under this agreement will be Mattias Ewald, who will arrive in Queensland in early February. Ewald's journey has created some interest in the local press, with the Värmlands Folkblad and online version of the Nya Wermlands-Tidningen both publishing articles in the past few days.

The Noosa Tigers, based on the Sunshine Coast north of Brisbane, play in the AFL Queensland state league. The AFLQ has grown in recent years to be the strongest league in the northern "rugby states", with a number of former AFL players playing or coaching.

The exchange was organised by former Dragons coach Kevin Anderson while visiting relatives last year, and supported by his company Maloo Inc.

Mattias will become the third Scandinavian we know of currently visiting down under for a kick of the footy, with Nicolai Secher and Chris Campion from the Denmark Vikings' IC08 squad currently in Geelong playing with the Thomson FC for 2009.

Despite the transfer of the West Coast versus Collingwood NAB Cup match from Cape Town to Subiaco, Perth, the two Western Australian AFL clubs, West Coast and Fremantle, are still keen to play an official match in South Africa in 2010.

In WA clubs set sights on African adventure by Digby Beacham in The West Australian, both clubs have put their case that they should return. The article states that:

The AFL is hoping to return to South Africa in 2010, although a final decision on whether a sanctioned fixture can take place overseas won’t be made until later this year.

and

Fremantle strategic partnerships general manager, Darren Beazley, has secured commercial partnerships with Nkwe Platinum, Continental Capital and Air Mauritius and [Fremantle chief executive] Rosich said the club intended to foster those contacts.

and

"We are sending a community development team to South Africa to our province, the North-West province, from February 12 to 16 and that will include a coaching clinic in the Limpopo province".

That's interesting, because Freo's zone, the North West Province, is a long way from Limpopo which borders Kruger National Park in the north east.

The Australian Football Association of North America (AFANA) is undergoing a change of leadership with Rob de Santos (Chairman) and Ann Solomon (Editor-in-Chief) leaving those roles after 13 years with the organisation.

Both have been there since the start, as AFANA has sought to promote Australian Football in North America and in particular has been a focal point for lobbying efforts to improve television coverage of AFL matches. de Santos and Solomon leave with coverage in North America in very good shape, via Setanta Sports and MHz Networks.

The Australian Rules Football League of Ireland will this year introduce a second division to its league, comprising reserve teams from the established clubs and new teams from around the Emerald Isle.

The move is hoped to make the creation of new clubs easier, with the league finding it difficult to expand in recent years due to start-up clubs struggling on-field against the powerful Dublin and Cork-based sides.

The ARFLI’s Ciaran O’Hara tells WFN that, while the ARFLI Premiership will this year see the same five clubs from 2008, the league is hopeful the second division could see the debut of the Kingdom Kangaroos, Mayo Mariners and Galway’s Midwest Magpies, in addition to the rebirth of the Clare Crows and Belfast Redbacks.

O'Hara also tells us the league is launching Rec Footy this year, as an avenue to taking the game to the nation's schools and colleges.

In international news, the Green Machine will this year take on Wales and Scotland for the inaugural Celtic Cup, as well as the return of the tri-series against Great Britain and Denmark.

In some respects the breakthrough that many of us involved in international footy have been awaiting has occurred. Papua New Guinea's International Cup hero, 17 year old Amua Pirika, has been signed by the Gold Coast Football Club, the proposed 17th club in the Australian Football League.

Pirika first came to prominence when he kicked three goals for PNG against a Queensland Colts side in the Queensland Under 16 championships in 2007. In 2008 he played for Nambour in the AFLQ Northern Area U18 competition, booting a league leading 65 goals. At just 17 he finished equal 11th in the 2008 Australian Football International Cup best player voting, and was 3rd in the goalkicking with 15. That included 4 in the semi-final against South Africa, previewing his grand final form.

Originally listed for IC08 as 184cm, he was obviously in a growth spurt as he was soon quoted at 190cm - certainly he played tall in the Cup grand final at the MCG (Mozzies at last in MCG thriller), taking several strong marks in an unstoppable burst, booting four goals in total to drag the Mosquitoes to a come-from-behind victory. And for tens of thousands of fans gathering for the following match, an AFL final between the Western Bulldogs and Hawthorn, he provided a great highlight, curling a check-side goal through the big sticks after the siren to put the icing on the cake of PNG's 8 point win.