World Footy News

Australian co-captain and Brisbane Lions veteran, Chris Johnson, made a heart felt apology for his widely condemned actions of the Second Test in Melbourne. However it did not help him escape a 5 week International Test ban that means he cannot play till at least 2008. Rule changes are also likely to decrease the chance of similar incidents.

AFL club Carlton has moved Setanta O'hAilpin to their senior list for the 2006 season. After two years on the Blues' international rookie list, the former hurling star recruited from Ireland has been given his big chance. He joins Sydney's Tadhg Kennelly as the two Irishmen on AFL senior lists. All three of the O'hAilpin brothers are currently doing pre-season training with Carlton.

The decision to stage the Kangaroos versus Swans game in LA in January is being used as an opportunity for the USAFL to utilise the professional knowledge and skill-base of the AFL and those two AFL clubs, to further their own organisation and players.

The US Revolution will play a curtain-raiser to the Roos-Swans clash against the best Australians in the USAFL, on a weekend that will also feature a camp based on the AFL draft-camp and the inaugral USAFL National Players and Coaches conference.

The Hoganstand website has reported that Australian Football powerhouse the Brisbane Lions have signed two young Irish Gaelic football players from county Laois as international rookies. The Lions cite the loss of their retention allowance (a monetary allowance that meant their salary cap was larger than other clubs) has made them look further afield for a competitive edge in recruitment. With an Irish connection in mind, they have also indicated they wish to form closer ties with the Irish community in future, in Australia and Ireland. Both these issues bode well for the continuation of the broader vision that AFL clubs have displayed in the last couple of years as they turn their eyes overseas.

The first-ever Prague Cup was held last Saturday, November 5th, with two new sides in the Finland and Czech Lions taking to the field against the German Lions of Düsseldorf. In a three-game tournament, the Germans came out on top, defeating the Czech Lions 48-15 then combining with the Finns for a social third match against the Czechs.

In somewhat of a breakthrough for Australian football in New Zealand, the Kiwis have been invited to attend the 2006 Australian Country Championships. With Papua New Guinea and NZ both close neighbours of Australia, they are both benefiting from increased interaction with Aussie leagues. PNG has so far pursued a juniors pathway with AFL Queensland, and NZ now take a significant step towards their goal of being recognised as a football peer to the Australian states. As the championships pit region against region, the Kiwis will also bring some of their best Australian players, provided they are now based in New Zealand.

2005 will go down in history as the year Scotland probably had its first Australian rules Grand Final (unless the famous, though widely thought to be fictitious competition referred to be C.C.Mullen in his 1958 'History of Australian Football' actually existed), as the Edinburgh Bloods convincingly defeated the Glasgow Sharks 83-13 on a typical Scottish autumn day.

This was actually the SARFL's second season, with the Bloods also winning last year's competition though a Grand Final was not held. This report courtesy of Eddie McAvinchey of the SARFL.

During the second International Cup, staged in Melbourne in August, World Footy News spoke with New Zealand AFL General Manager Rob Malone. Originally from Western Australia, where he played for West Perth in the WAFL (he also had a short stint at St Kilda), Malone has a professional background in football administration, including Football Manager at West Perth and General Manager at Claremont. During the train trip to Wangaratta we discussed the quality of the Kiwi team and the challenges facing the game. Their following game against Samoa confirmed for this author that Malone's rating of his squad was on the mark, as the Falcons demolished what was an otherwise competitive unit, before completing the tournament undefeated. Below is a transcript of the interview and a link to the audio, however the latter is relatively poor quality due to background noise levels on the train. We'll bring you further exciting news about NZ footy in the next few days.

The entry of Australian Football to English schools was highlighted in a TV story on the Australian variety news morning program "Today" on Channel 9.

The segment follows on from the short commercial, and is still live at time of posting this story.

After all the preparation and build up to the big day, the Bakersfield club, US Footy's latest side, made their match debut. Other "local" Californian clubs joined them for their big day. This report from San Diego's Mike Russell (who travelled out and played on the day) with extra reporting by Brett Northey.

The Munich Roos handed out an 82-point drubbing to the Frankfurt Redbacks in the 2005 AFLG grand final played at the Frankurter Ostpark last Saturday, October 29. After having played the preliminary final against Hamburg earlier that day, the Redbacks managed just four behinds for the match, the Kangaroos' lineup with a large contingent of experienced Australians proving almost watertight in defence.

UPDATE - In response to this article, WFN has received some feedback claiming that Hamburg actually won the preliminary final over Frankfurt 13-10, but were disqualified. WFN is investigating the matter and will post an update when confusion has been cleared.

Australia dusted up the Irish in more ways than one with a second emphatic victory in the second and final Test of the 2005 series in Melbourne. After a fabulous display of fast skillful International Rules football in Perth, the second Test was marred by a melee and plenty of scuffles after Australian and Brisbane Lions player, Chris Johnson, delivered a "coat hanger" tackle on Irish and Tyrone player Philip Jordan.