The 2008 Australian Football International Cup burst into life today at Melbourne's Royal Park. There was a festive mood in the air for Round 1, with three grounds set to go in dry conditions, almost touching on warm in the sun that often broke through the clouds. The NAB 150 Roadshow was on hand, a few bus-loads of school children were present, a handful of media reps, and music and commentary were playing. It would of course have been nice to see spectator numbers in their thousands, but clearly that will not be the case as long as matches are held on weekdays in Melbourne.
There were big wins to the favourites in Ireland (over Sweden), the United States (over Denmark) and New Zealand (over Japan), and a solid win to PNG (over Nauru). Other winners were Canada (over Finland), South Africa (over China) and Samoa (over India). Full match reports will follow over the next 24 hours, but what have we learnt about the various nations so far?
First up at 11am was Sweden taking on the might of Ireland. The Swedes slotted the first goal through good run and followed it up with some strong contests, suggesting they might be a handful at this tournament. That was where the tide turned, as the Irish Warriors stormed away to win by 78 points in an ominous display. At the same time the Kiwis were stamping their authority on the tournament, 89 point winners over a Japan outfit that was competitive around the ball but just couldn't penetrate. The third match for the early session had Canada destroy an undermanned Finland side by 124 points.