World Footy News

The 2018 Andes Cup has been won again by the Bogota Bulldogs from Colombia. It makes it three wins from three tournaments against the Santiago Saints representing Chile. The two nations are leading the way in growing Australian Football on the South American continent – more than a few nearby nations will be watching the result.

Their battle on the weekend saw one club (Saints) on the back of a long history playing the game in Santiago without regular competition up against the club (Bulldogs) that has seen the creation of the AFL Colombia competition this year. Their players had come off an entire local season and a couple of games from a new one. On face value, the Bulldogs probably had an advantage in sheer match play and conditioning.

After a dominant year, the Belfast Redbacks finished the job when they defeated the Galway Magpies to win the 2018 AFL Ireland premiership. Having gone through the home and away season undefeated, the Redbacks were expected by most to win the title. But the biggest job of all is producing when it matters on grand final day, and the Redbacks did that.

However, the Magpies made sure the Redbacks earned the premiership. The final margin was 39 points, set up by a brilliant first half by the Belfast team. At the main break, the Redbacks lead by 38 points at the Mallusk Paying Fields in Belfast.

According to AFL Ireland, “[The first half was a] tough physical battle with both teams giving their all across the ground. [There were] nine scores to six but the Redbacks [were] more clinical with their shooting so far and take a lead into the main change over. Very wet conditions to start but the rain has now stopped.”

The Japan Warriors Universities team have managed to notch up a second victory in their regular annual tour to Australia – this time defeating Box Hill North (41 – 33) in the second of two clashes against the Melbourne suburban club played on August 18th.

Goal scorers listed (on AFL Japan Website) for the Warriors in this match are: Horiguchi 2, Fuji 2 and Inagaki 1.

Tyler Ames was a standout player with the Denver Bulldogs of the USAFL. He then became part of an exchange program with the USAFL and is in his second season with the Montrose Demons. Recently we had the chance to catch up with Tyler.

Image Source: ntnews.com.au

Tell us about your first season (2017) at Montrose. Was it everything you hoped it’d be? Did you feel like you got better each week?

My first season was an amazing experience. It took me a fair amount of time to settle into the standard of the league and really learn where I needed to be positioned on the field. For most of the initial games, I really struggled getting around the ball and even started many games from the bench. I’m sure I was much like watching little kids play chasing the ball around the ground without getting much of the ball. Fortunately as the season progressed I really started to find my form a bit. I was able to get around the ball and impact plays with my size and physicality and was even able to snag around 6 goals for the year most of which came in the back half.

 

The following article was written by Christian Saggese for the Zuriost website in Switzerland. It looks at the efforts of the Winterthur Lions club to grow the game in the nation and potentially develop beyond the levels of lone Swiss clubs. This article is an imperfect translation from the original story written in German. To view the original article, go to: https://zueriost.ch/sport/2018-08-21/wir-wollen-in-der-schweiz-eine-liga-gruenden 

Australian football player from Winterthur

“We want to start a league in Switzerland” 

Does Switzerland soon have its own Australian Football Leagueω Winterthur are well on their way to putting this dream into reality.

Switzerland is soon to be richer by one sport. That is the wish of Stefan Burgener and Till Roost. The two Winterthurs founded the first Australian Football Club in Switzerland a few months ago under the name "Winterthur Lions".

The return to competition after a short recess for the SAFF (Stockholm Australian Football Federation) has seen the Norrtälje Dockers record a stirring 10-point victory to boost their premiership credentials significantly.

The catch-up game against the Blues has seen the Dockers inch ahead of the field into first place, just ahead of the Blues and Axemen. They can consolidate that position should they defeat the Axemen in their Round 7 clash this weekend. A loss, however, could prove costly, falling behind the Axeman and potentially the Blues as well if the Södermalm crew can defeat the last-placed Årsta Swans.

The September finals are now on the horizon and every match from here is of critical importance to the teams finishing in the top three. The minor premiership winner will go straight into the grand final, whilst second will meet third to decide the other premiership contender.

The following article from www.aflengland.org details the latest initiative to grow the game with a new league and competition to kick off later this year. The original article can be found at: http://www.aflengland.org/afl-england-launches-national-university-league/

Oxford, Cambridge and Birmingham Named as Inaugural Participants

League Runs November 2018 – March 2019 

AFL England are committed to growing the game of Australian rules football up and down the country; from grass-roots and junior projects, to major regional London, CNE and Southern leagues.  

That is why we’re delighted to announce the launch of the National University League (NUL) featuring teams from Oxford, Cambridge and Birmingham University, with a view to expanding to include sides from Cardiff University, Cardiff Metropolitan and the University of South Wales.

Whether you use the analogy of a strong wind blowing in from the Sahara, a tide relentlessly crossing the Mediterranean or a powerful new current flowing down the Nile, there is definitely something flowing into Egypt – a new game taking root in the land of one of the world’s oldest civilisations

Professor Mohammed Hashem from the American University in Cairo takes up the story. “Yes, AFL is alive and well here in Egypt thanks to our fantastic university and our great team. Egypt is rich in sports culture and the two predominant sports here are soccer and of course handball which the Egyptians are very good at on an international level.”

(Pyramids Picture Credit -www.mustseeplaces.eu)

Back in 2013 I wrote an article which promoted the value and merit of school footy (see School Footy – the Aussie Rules Nursery). The article considered how important the school footy nursery was to club football. However, it also considered many of the challenges faced by schools and clubs in keeping numbers sustainable. Another factor considered was the devaluation of school footy inasmuch as some sectors did not recognise the value of school football adequately.

Much has changed since 2013, and school football has risen to greater heights – at least in my experience. The increase in women’s and youth girl’s football has contributed to this.

Our own Pyramid Power girls in Cairns have taken the link between school football and club football to an unusual, but potentially game-changing place.

The new CNFA fixture for the 2018/19 Australian Football season has been released. With the Coupe de France kicking off in Bordeaux next month, the first round will commence on 20th October. The new season sees more changes, with a nine-team competition welcoming the Bayonne Toreadors to the CNFA.

Another significant change is the dropping of the Blagnac Aviators brand in favour of two Toulouse-based teams – currently under the monikers of Toulouse 1 and 2. The format will see nine rounds across the period October to May and a grand final in June. Again, there will be a mid-season break from mid-December to early March. The Coupe du Nord (North Cup) and Coupe du Sud (South Cup) will be played in February. The season gets under way a week after the Euro Cup in Cork, Ireland.

The most interesting addition is the Bayonne Toreadors. Bayonne is a small city located in the far south-west of France, in the Basque region. It sits some 30 kilometres from the Spanish border in an area with a long history of bull-fighting, hence the nickname “Toreadors”. The club has been developing in the background of the CNFA’s past seasons and they are ready to step up into the “big league” of French clubs.

In one of the biggest upsets of the season, and in a game described by some as one of the greatest grand finals in SARFL history, the Edinburgh Bloods have won the 2018 AFL Scotland premiership. In a dramatic match, the Bloods have come from behind to grab the title by just five points from the Glasgow Sharks.

Going into the game, many outside of Edinburgh believed that it would be the Sharks’ year. They lost just once for the season and defeated the Bloods earlier in the season. However, as has been proved many times before, grand finals are different beasts and nothing is guaranteed. The best team on the day will always beat the best reputation.

The day began with the women’s curtain-raiser match between the “Bloodenas” and the “Giant SheEagles”. The Bloodenas grabbed the early lead and kept that ball rolling with a 51-point victory. The final scores saw the “Bloodenas” 9 8 62 defeat the “SheEagles” 1 5 11.

Round 22 of the 2018 AFL Season kicks off Friday night Melbourne time with ladder leader Richmond hosting Essendon at the MCG. 

The full broadcast schedule for the round can be seen below.

In addition to the TV networks you can also subscribe to the Watch AFL service that will give you live access to all the matches and more (outside Australia only).

You can access that service by clicking on the link here or the Watch AFL promo shot on the left to register and by then paying the subscription fee.

Right now Watch AFL is offering The Finals Series Pass providing instant access and goes through to the 30th November 2018. This includes the Grand Final.. This pass includes all AFL Premiership season matches live and on replay, the Finals Series plus access to FOX FOOTY content.