World Footy News

According to a recent edition of a Melbourne newspaper, following the 2007 AFL season, as many as four clubs will run community camps overseas, with South Africa the AFL’s recommended destination. Other countries that may figure in calculations are the US, England, Japan, China and Dubai.

Two overseas-born players from Pacific islands are resurrecting their AFL careers at new clubs. Samoan-born Aaron Edwards is blazing a trail with the Kangaroos at AFL level, while Fijian-born David Rodan is returning to form for Port Adelaide.

Zimbabwean-born Tinashe Nyatsanga took up upiring footy while at university in Geelong. After umpiring local Geelong and Bellarine Football League matches, he was one of the umpires able to officiate at the match between South Africa and the Clontarf Academy in Perth recently. An account of his trip is featured on the AFL website here, let's hope he's a sign of things to come in the increasing multiculturalism of Australian rules.

With a controversial summer behind it, the British footy season is about to begin in earnest with the new Aussie Rules UK seniors competition opening up with the Southern and Wales leagues on April 28th and the Northern league on May 5th, with the BARFL's first 2007 match also on April 28th (not confirmed) but the rest starting on May 5th. After a frenzy of meetings, emails and phone calls, the two separate leagues appear to have settled into their final configurations for 2007. We untangle the complicated web of which clubs ended up where and how the year is scheduled to unfold, and reveal that there is a glimmer of hope of the two sides working together in future.

After the PNG national under 16s side, the Binatangs, won the last two Queensland Country championships tournaments, the AFL Queensland has now invited them to the all-Queensland state championships. The following article appeared in the PNG Post-Courier newspaper:

THE Papua New Guinea Binatangs will for the first time participate in the Queensland State championships. AFLPNG operations manager Peter Cates said this was because the Bintangs had been the Champions of the Queensland AFL Country Championships for the last two years.

“Due to this outstanding performance they have been rewarded by the Queensland AFL, and from 2007 they will participate as part of the Queensland State Championship. They will also come under the close scrutiny of AFL talent scouts.”

The Under 16 Binatang team is : Joseph Yara (Highlands), Greg Aki (Highlands), Daniel Rufus (Highlands), Raphael Malau (Highlands), Nelson Kerowa (Highlands) Kenneth Buka (Kimbe) , Jalal Gori (Kimbe), Neville Kaiwa (Kimbe) Charles Nalong and Peter Labi; (Lae) David Meli, Amua Pirika, Willie Hayufa, Vagi Vaina, Gagu Kaiyage, Eddie Tilik, Willie Dasi, Garry Kele, Simon Meakord, Wingti Pena, Jolam Tonga, Ferdinand Musi, Garrett Masab (Port Moresby), Nathan Baramun (Buka) and Junior Kauri (Gulf).

In the latest round of Footy Shorts we report on the good form of Colm Begley leading to controversy in Ireland, with the young gun showing impressive form just 18 months since starting out in Australian Football. And there's the strange but apparently true story of thieves stealing water from a football club in Brisbane - perhaps not surprising given the degree to which drought is now hurting much of Australia, perhaps even to the point of threatening footy.

It appears the Australian Football League and the nations likely to attend the 2008 International Cup are considering whether to loosen the criteria that controls which players are eligible to represent a nation at the tournament. In the first two Cups the definition was very strict, though not always enforced as rigorously as intended. Options are now being considered which could widen the net considerably, to allow players who are simply passport holders for a given country. This has the potential to be a major issue with some countries likely to favour a free-for-all and others keen to maintain the status quo. Changes to the overall structure of the event are also on the cards.

AFL Samoa development officer Michael Roberts sees big potential for Aussie Rules in Samoa, so much so that he believes it could easily become the second biggest sport on the islands. At the moment, there are school tournaments with around 3000 primary school students and 250 high school students to be held this year, a ten-team senior league and test matches against Tonga planned at both schoolboys' and senior level.

In fact, Roberts believes the game is growing too fast for their limited resources, saying "we could easily have another 15 highs schools and 20 primary schools on our books if we could only man such programs". With 6 AFL matches televised on Samoan TV each week he estimates around 60,000 of the national population of 200,000 people will have been exposed to Aussie Rules by the end of 2007, with the only thing holding back increased expansion being a lack of funds.

James (pictured left) and Jared Brunmeier (pictured at end of story) hail from Wisconsin, but since December they have been in Perth trying to make the grade in the Western Australian Football League (the WAFL is a AAA league for footy). The Brunmeier boys are completing the second stage of the first year exchange program between the West Perth Falcons and the Milwaukee Bombers. The first stage saw Brett Cousins spending six months in Milwaukee helping the Bombers to their first ever Mid American Australian Football League (MAAFL) title. This is the second time in Australia for both boys. In 2005 Jared spent a few weeks with Kevin Sheedy as part of the Essendon/USFooty exchange program and played reserves for the Hampton Rovers in suburban Melbourne, while James played in Sydney's amateur league. Both boys represented the USA at the 2005 International Cup with James being named to the All-International team.

Update: both the brothers played for West Perth reserves this weekend (Saturday 21st April) with Jared named best on ground in the Falcons' loss to East Fremantle.

Since the establishment of the Dubai Dingoes and their recent Dubai 9s tournament, there has been a flurry of football activity in the Middle East - additional clubs have been formed, rumour of a preseason AFL match in Dubai has surfaced and now we have been informed that preliminary talks have taken place investigating the possibility of league in the region, spanning as many as five countries. WFN spoke to Gary Johnson about the Doha Kangaroos and the heights footy might reach in the Middle East.

The Sussex Swans were founded by Julian "Rooster" Clark in 1990 as the first BARFL club outside London. From the start the Swans have been a particularly British club, with the majority of players British born and providing many players to the national squad. As a result it would be fair to say the club has struggled for success against the dominant London clubs which have had a greater share of expatriate Aussie players. However this situation has forced the Swans to become more innovative. With a controversial northern winter coming to a close in which regional teams had to decide between staying with the BARFL or joining the new ARUK league, the Swans chartered a different course – expanding their numbers to play in both competitions, as well as greatly expanding their club's junior operations as one of the first British teams with a junior development officer.