The Jakarta Bintangs formed in 1995 and have since become a powerhouse of Asian footy. With a sizable expatriate Australian community, the Bintangs have been regular tourers around the Asia-Pacific region, winning the Asian Championships twice.

Junior football in and around Jakarta has had a few ups and downs over the years, with a league based around local Javans being held in the Pancawati area. This league - the West Java AFL - has since disappeared, a victim of the transient nature of the Australians and Kiwis who make up the majority of the Bintangs' membership base.

However it seems local footy is back in the area in a big way - a new development program kicked off around 3 months ago thanks to a grant from the Australia-Indonesia Institute and the placement of AYAD volunteer development officer Chris Bandy.

Around 4000 Indonesian school kids and quite a few expat kids have since taken part in clinics. Bandy is optimistic of seeing a local-run organisation off the ground in the near future, with a Jakarta school-based league of around 10 teams in regular competition, as well as resurrecting the West Java AFL. An Indonesian team at the International Cup may even be on the cards for 2012.

On Saturday 26 April, in front of a large crowd at Kanchanaburi, the Thailand Tigers defeated the Jakarta Bintangs by 31 points to win the prestigious ANZAC Cup.

The game was played in great spirit with neither side backing down in a contest, prompting former POW Bill Haskell to say, “We never expected the game to be this tough”.

Report courtesy of Brendan Cunningham from the Tigers.

One of the world's oldest football clubs, the oldest remaining Australian Rules clubs and the only club to bear the name of the game's spiritual home is currently in crisis. In terms of world footy, the Demons were pioneers in China, setting up a China partnership which has seen the game exposed to thousands of visiting exchange students, businessmen and a team represented at the International Cup.

The Melbourne Football Club, trying to celebrate its 150th year, is suffering from a major downturn in its fortunes at a time when it was already at a low ebb. On the field the Demons have had moderate success in recent years, following a curious phase of making the finals every second season like clockwork (1997 - 2004). That sequence then broke with three years in a row of finals action (2004 - 2006), but they crashed in 2007 (14th), are winless in 2008 (0 wins, 5 losses), struggling financially and the fact remains they have not won the VFL/AFL premiership for 44 years. The club is now very much "under the pump". This is apparently also having ramifications for their links with China.

The Lao Elephants, Asia's newest club, will host their first-ever home match this weekend with the powerhouse Jakarta Bintangs visiting Vientiane for a showdown.

The Elephants debuted late last year, traveling to Vietnam for a tournament against the Thailand Tigers and Vietnam Swans. While they went down to the more experienced Swans and Tigers, the Elephants performed fairly well on their first hit-out and will be hoping to build a reputation as a footballing outfit worthy of respect in the Asian circuit.

The match, to be held on April 19th, coincides nicely with the Lao New Year, giving visitors another reason to head to Vientiane to play some footy and soak up the celebratory atmosphere.

The Bintangs are one of Asia's oldest and proudest Australian rules clubs, with a number of former Bintangs spread around the world. One such is Rob Spurr, founder of the brand-new Santiago Saints in the capital of Chile. With a bit of luck, we'll have an update from Los Santos in the very near future.

For more information on the Lao Elephants or the match, see their website or email martysharples {at} hotmail.com.

Apparently China's answer to YouTube is YouKu, and Australian Football development staff in the world's most populous country have made sure footy has a presence on there. Uploaded videos include footage from a local training session with comments from development officer Tom Mattessi, and the ever-popular AFL clip that was shown at the 2005 International Cup dinner, featuring some of the game's incredible highlights including some of those by stars with international roots.

Also uploaded is an excellent ABC Asia-Pacific interview with the AFL's General Manager of National and International Game Development, David Matthews. The video highlights some of the issues the AFL face in terms of balancing domestic pressures with hopes of expanding the game. Of particular note was Matthews' estimate that there are around 35,000 footballers internationally (compared with about 650,000 in Australia) and his prediction that the international number could grow to 150,000 in the next ten years. That's certainly feasible, but nice to hear a key player at the Australian Football League stating it. He also refers to the potential of the game as an export for Australia - as business and governments realise this fact, hopefully they will increasingly support Australia's indigenous sport. Matthews estimated current international investment at around $1 million, compared with domestic investment of $40 million.

The piece also interviews likely China captain Zhao Yonggen and VFL/AFL greats Ron Barassi and Kevin Sheedy.

The full video is here. Not really necessary, but a Google translation is here. Thanks to AFL China's Andrew Sawitsch for the heads-up. The video's are loaded under the name AFL China.

Traditional rivalry in Japan is never greater than Tokyo vs Osaka, between the town of blue suits and power and the town of merchants and fun. The greatest rivalry in Japanese sport is between baseball’s Tokyo Giants and Osaka’s Hanshin Tigers. On the same weekend when the sluggers were slugging it out in Tokyo, the Tokyo Goannas went on a road trip to Osaka to take on the hometown Dingoes in the big match at Maishima Sports Island on Saturday April 5.

In August 2007, Japan's national side the Samurais toured Australia, playing four matches against local amateur sides. The trip Down Under has become an annual event for the JAFL. Read on for a report of the tour, courtesy of Hiroyuki Tohyama.

The following is promotional material from the Australia Network (formerly ABC Asia Pacific).

In conjunction with Australia Network's coverage of the 2008 AFL competition, Australia Network has launched the Australia Network AFL Dream Team Competition. The competition allows Managers to pick a Dream Team within a salary cap and test their talent spotting skills. As well as playing against the global pool of Managers, each indivdiual can establish a private Mini-League and compete against family, friends and work mates locally or from around the world. The Dream Team Compeition also includes a celebrity Mini-League. Each Manager is welcome to enter the "K-League", Kostya Tszyu's Mini-League.

Great prizes are up for grabs, including a PSP console, games and AFL jerseys. The winner of Kostya's Mini-League will win a pair of signed boxing gloves.

We would love for AFL supporters in Asia getting on-side. Details for the Dream Team Competition can be found at Australia Network AFL Dream Team competition. All the best.

The Tokyo Goannas and AFL Japan have released a great video documentary titled "History of Australian Rules Football in Japan".

Some of the footage goes right back to the late 1980s and includes some news headlines for the "Tokyo Bowl" VFL exhibition matches as well as AFL figures including Paul Salmon.

The video documentary, which is over 15 minutes long is a chronology in two parts, with the first focusing on the early years and the debut of the Samurais at the Arafura games and the second including progress from 2000 with highlights from the Samurai's 2002 and 2005 International Cup campaigns as well as more recent highlights such as Michito Sakaki's much publicised trial at Essendon.

Click on the links below to view the video from YouTube:

Part 1 (YouTube)

Part 2 (YouTube)