World Footy News

The Japanese national Aussie Rules side, the Samurais, are touring Australia from the 4th to the 14th of August. The team will compete against amateur Australia sides Howlong, Box Hill North, Box Hill Super Rules and their final match against Melbourne Vietnam.

Saverio Rocca is likely to follow in the footsteps of Bennett and Graham and head to the NFL to try his luck as a punter. Rocca has been seen over the past few months at a Preston location practicing his punting. The potential move has been confirmed in the past week, with Rocca having his punting filmed at the Telstra dome to send to US scouts. Rocca may have already been trialling with an NFL club by now except that he has been trying to notch up 100 games in the AFL with the North Melbourne Kangaroos to ensure that his sons are eligible to play for the Kangaroos under the father son rule in the future.

The biggest footy clash of the season in Western Canada took place this weekend at Thunderbird Stadium, home of the University of British Columbia's Canadian Football team, as the Vancouver Cougars hosted the Burnaby Eagles, Seattle Grizzlies and Calgary Kangaroos for the West Coast Challenge. The Challenge was a revamped version of the BC Footy Cup, with the cup still on the line. This came on the heels of a successful tournament in Kelowna, British Columbia that put Vancouver/Burnaby and the two Calgarys (Canadians and Australians) against each other. This would be the first time however, that the clubs would meet as a whole.

Twenty two boys and girls aged 6 to 12 participated in two USFooty Kids clinics held in Arlington, VA on July 8 2006 and July 22 2006. Chris Adams and Denis Ryan (USFooty Kids National Coordinator) conducted the clinics with the help of players and coaches of the Baltimore Washington Eagles. Judging by the big smiles on the faces of the players, coaches and parents everyone had a great time!

Queensland Country showed New Zealand no mercy as they vented their disappointment at missing the Division 2 final of the Australian Country Championships. Played over a full time match length in good conditions, the reigning International Cup champions were sadly no match for their strong opponents.

A documentary entitled "Flying Boomerangs" will air on the ABC's Indigenous Affairs program "Message Stick", covering the tour by young Aboriginal Australians to South Africa to play Aussie Rules against local teams. A preview of the program is available at the National Indigenous Times website. "Flying Boomerangs" will air on ABC TV on Friday August 4th (6pm) and Sunday August 6th (1.30pm).

The 2006 Scania Cup saw 12 sides from across Denmark, Sweden, Belgium, Britain and Ireland converge on the southern Swedish town of Landskrona last Saturday, July 22. Nine hours of solid tournament footy later, the Reading Roos defeated the South Dublin Swans by 8 points to take home the trophy for the third year in a row.

Perhaps not unexpectedly the Australian Country Championships have provided a harsh reality check for supporters and officials of international footy. The 2005 International Cup winners, New Zealand, have gone down convincingly in their three qualifying matches against the top country footballers from around Australia.

Croatia hosted its first-ever footy tournament last weekend, with the Vienna Kangaroos and Czech Lions visiting Zagreb on Saturday July 22nd. The Croats repeated their form from the first tri-series tournament in Vienna, winning both their matches. Around 100 spectators attended the games, including some local press and the Australia ambassador to Croatia, Ms Anna George, who presented the trophies to the winning team.

This report courtesy of Kolja "the Croatian Crusher" Koracak.

The Australian Football Association of North America (AFANA) is conducting a poll aimed at footy fans from the US and Canada. They've also begun taking AFL Grand Final Party announcements for all parts of the world. This is a great resource for roaming Aussies and other Aussie Rules fans to make sure they enjoy the big day wherever they may be.

The New Zealand Falcons have arrived in Australia for their debut at the Wesfarmers Australian Country Championships. First up they've played a practice match against strong Victorian country team Maffra, before heading up to the Gold Coast where they will compete in the second division against top opposition, including a host of players with AFL connections. Australian eyes will view the Falcons as a measure of the strength of international footy.

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