The Zagreb Hawks are planning to host this year's CEAFL championships on May 3rd. While the list of attendees is still unconfirmed, this year could include teams from Switzerland and the Dubai Heat in addition to previous attendees possibly to return from France, Germany, the Czech Republic, Austria and defending champions the Finland Icebreakers.

This would be the first time Croatia has hosted the event, with the home team Knights already in training. The Zagreb Hawks club has seen a steady increase in player numbers at training and has started holding an intra-club series between the "Hawks" and the "Saints".

With the Hawks and Saints playing a metro game on the first weekend of every month, there is a possibility that there may be two clubs in Zagreb as early as next year.

Further north in Helsinki, the Finland Icebreakers have also increased their number of domestic games in the lead-up to this year's IC, with the Helsinki Heatseekers and Halikko-Salo Juggernaughts playing matches against new sides representing Espoo and Turku.

The Sydney Swans latest Gaelic football recruit from Ireland, Brendan Murphy (pictured), has played his first game of Aussie Rules, taking part in a reserves grade trial match against the New South Wales ACT Rams.

"It's a moment I'll never forget, with my brother here watching on and all the boys here to support me," Murphy said. "It was great to get a game. In training you can only develop so far but in a match you learn so much more. I was just loving it out there, I could have played another match". He also slotted his first goal in Australian Football.

You can read more about Murphy in Irish rookie makes his debut, and he is obviously enjoying some craic with compatriot Tadhg Kennelly, as evidenced by their new hair cuts in Irish stars shave down.

The Putney Magpies are continuing the tradition of British clubs touring Europe for pre-season tour matches with a clash against the Flying Dutchmen in Amsterdam on April 13th.

The Magpies' first European tour will also be the first British club tour to the Netherlands. Joining the Dutchmen on the day will be players from the Brussels Saints, a club who have been quiet of late after a strong few seasons around 2005-06.

The North London Lions and West London Wildcats have been trailblazers in the touring tradition and this year will again be heading across Europe.

The Lions are heading to Berlin to take on the Crocodiles on the weekend of April 5-6th, with the Wildcats visiting Copenhagen on the same weekend to take on the Denmark Vikings, keen to start their IC preparations with a strong showing.

The Wildcats have visited Copenhagen, Stockholm, Barcelona and Croatia over the past four years, each time having a good hit out with the locals. The Lions have played in cities including Madrid, Strasbourg, Glasgow and Dublin.

The Catalan Australian Football League has rebounded this season, returning to four teams after 2007 saw the league go back to only Valls and Barcelona fighting it out for the title.

The founder club Belfry Valls will be joined by a second team from the town, dubbed the "Valls Fire". The Barcelona Stars have been renamed the Cornellà Bocs (Catalan for "Goats") and the fourth team will be based in the tiny nation of Andorra, situated high in the Pyrenees Mountains between France and Spain.

The first round sees the Bocs take on the Fire on March 9th, followed by Belfry versus Andorra on March 16th.

In addition, interested parties are hoping to start teams in Pamplona and Valencia, two cities located not too far from the Catalan league.

The Catalan metropolis Barcelona is currently the likely host city for this year's EU Cup, to be held in October. Organisers are hoping for a delegation from the AFL to make an appearance, the event being just after the US Nationals where a few big names have been attendees in the past.

The French footy season kicks off in earnest on March 15th with a clash between the French national team and a German selection in Strasbourg. The game will mark the first appearance of players from the new Bourdeaux Bombers, who will join their counterparts from the Strasbourg Kangaroos and Paris Cockerels for the encounter. Kick-off is at 5pm, with free entry for spectators at the Hautepierre Sports Centre.

The Bourdelais will then back this up with their first home match, hosting Barcelona in early April, while Strasbourg have a match scheduled against the Flying Dutchmen in the coming months.

The weekend of July 5th has also been earmarked for the French national club championship, with Paris, Strasbourg and Bourdeaux possibly to be joined by a new club from Montpellier. The new club would be the second to have existed in their area of France, not far from Perpignan where the short-lived St Esteve Saints existed a few years ago.

More information at the internet home of French footy, FootballAustralien.com.

Pearce Hanley is the Brisbane Lions' latest Irish recruit and already is being favourably compared to Colm Begley who played 19 games last year for the Lions.

Hanley is interviewed by the Queensland Courier Mail talking of his homesickness for County Mayo in Ireland's west and the challenges he has had adapting to the oval ball.

He makes the point that the only real challenges are adapting to the oval ball and tackling, but that otherwise Gaelic football and Aussie Rules "are nearly the same".

Hanley was the Barassi medallist as best player in the 2006 Under-17 International Rules series. The loss of such top young talent from Gaelic Football has been cited as one reason for abandoning the under age series by the GAA, and losing Hanley would have been a particularly painful blow.

On that score, GAA fans can console themselves with some of Hanley's comments - that returning to Ireland a better footballer and playing for his club and county in the GAA remain his long term ambition. However it is early days and whether he will still think that way once he tastes AFL finals action and other attractions of the land down under remains to be seen.

Six players from the Nottingham Scorpions have been named in the 30-man squad for the Great Britain Bulldogs' 2008 International Cup campaign.

Last week the Nottingham Evening Post ran an article speaking with some of the players, as well as GB Coach and Scorpions founder Charlie Kielty.

With their 2008 season fast approaching, the Australian Rules Football League of Ireland have signed a two year sponsorship agreement with Specialist Mortgage and Australian Tax Services, with an option for two more years.

Under the agreement the Super 9s will be known as the Smats.net Super 9s and the Premiership will be known as the Aussieproperty.com Premiership.

The Irish have also launched their new "Irish Footy Record" newsletter, available by contacting arflipr@yahoo.com.

In other Irish news, the new club in County Kerry has been officially titled the Kingdom Kangaroos. Irish International rep and former Leeside Lion Denis Kennelly has the club preparing for their first season in the Irish Premiership and they are hopeful that their new site at www.kingdomkangaroos.com will help in their recruitment drive.

Denis, cousin of Sydney's Tadhg Kennelly, has been busy converting his fellow Kerrymen to the cause and is keen to hear from anyone who would have an interest in joining the fledgling team. He can be contacted by e-mailing kingdomkangaroos@gmail.com.

Collingwood's latest Irish recruit, Kevin Dyas, was interviewed for the Collingwood internet TV channel. He talked about the recruitment process and the inspiration provided by countryman Martin Clarke. The next few weeks for Dyas will speak loudly of the recent rapid changes in the internationalisation of Aussie Rules - consider that he is a recruit from Ireland, about to head to South Africa for high altitude training and community clinics, then heading to Dubai for a NAB Cup match against Adelaide (the squad will split, so it will depend on which group Dyas stays with).

The video interview can be viewed here, and the text can be read in Clarke success gives Dyas confidence.

The Australian Rules Football League of Ireland are organizing a one day Invitational 10-a-side cup for August 30th for Footy clubs around the Globe.

The competition will provide a opportunity for an end of season trip for clubs, as well as an opportunity for some more footy for those not involved in the International Cup. The ARFLI are keen to hear from clubs anywhere who would like to enter, enjoy some footy and the Irish Capital's famous nightlife.

There are direct flights to Dublin from most major European cities, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Washington, Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Orlando, Tampa and Toronto.

ARFLI will assist all participating teams in obtaining accomodation. Clubs interested in attending should e-mail arflipr@yahoo.com to register.