As the 2018 season arrives for the AFLCNE (Australian Football League Central and Northern England), a new dawn rises on a reshaped league. The competition will see just five teams do battle with Sheffield Thunder and the Tyne Tees Tigers missing from the roster. It leaves just five teams to battle out the new season – but those five will make it a battle royale.

This weekend sees the start of the 2018 home and away season. The Huddersfield Rams are hosting the first two matches. The Rams take on the Nottingham Scorpions in the opening match, followed by the Wolverhampton Wolverines up against the Merseyside Saints. Last year’s premiers – the Manchester Mozzies – have the opening round bye.

The season shapes as a fascinating battle, in part because of mathematics. Five teams don’t fit into a final four come finals time which will make for a huge contest – a little like musical chairs – where one team misses out. This will mean that every game is valuable, percentage paramount and a run to the finish that will see teams going all out.

Footy has arrived for 2018 across England and Wales, commencing this weekend. AFL England has released the following press release to fire up the footy-loving public ahead of the first matches for the season proper.

 

London and Central & Northern England Leagues Kick Off This Weekend

April 26, 2018 – AFL England are looking forward to the start of the 2018 season ahead of the

opening weekend of fixtures. Both the AFL London and Central & Northern England leagues have

their first round of fixtures this weekend, ahead of an exciting ten rounds of competition.

 

Here are the defending premiers in each division, and their 2017 Grand Final results:

Australian teams took the victory honours in both the men’s and women’s matches on ANZAC Day at Villers-Bretonneux in the 10th incarnation of ANZAC Cup matches. AFL Europe’s Facebook page contains many pictures from the day s well as the following brief overview.

“Things started bright and early this morning for our Australian Spirit and French National sides with players attending the Villers-Bretonneux Dawn Service along with thousands of others to pay their respects on the 100th anniversary of the 2nd Battle of Villers-Bretonneux.”

“Following the service the teams completed the traditional march through the town before arriving back at Stadium Timmerman to begin the 10th Annual Anzac Cup matches.”

“Both the men's and women's matches were hard fought from the first bounce but eventually saw the Australian Spirit sides pull away to take home both trophies. Thanks again to O'Neills Sportswear for providing the incredible matching team kits for the Australian and French sides.”

Whilst there are still some games and last minute fiddling to go, the four finalists for the 2017/18 CNFA season are locked in. Recent victories for both Paris Cocks teams (the Cockerels and Cockatoos) have not only given them sufficient breathing space to guarantee finals, the have also ensured that reigning title holders – the ALFA Lions – will not get a chance to defend their title.

The Parisian duo will be joined by the Cergy-Pontoise Coyotes and Toulouse Hawks in the battle for this season’s premiership honours.

The result is a glowing endorsement for the decisions in recent years to split the Cocks into two teams, with the Cockatoos already enjoying premiership success, as well as the Toulouse Hawks. After taking a back seat last season to help get the Toulouse-based Aviators under way, the Hawks have returned to their dominant best this season. Now there are three Paris teams (counting the Coyotes) and two in Toulouse – all but one of them will contest this season’s finals.

The AFL Tribunal sat last night to hear the charge laid against Essendon’s Conor McKenna from the weekend’s Match Review. 

Irishman Conor McKenna, Essendon, was charged with serious misconduct against Tory Dickson, Western Bulldogs, during the second quarter of the Round Two match between Essendon and the Western Bulldogs, played at the Etihad Stadium last Sunday.

The incident was classified as serious misconduct and McKenna plead guilty to biting Dickson on the neck while on the ground near the boundary line after Dickson ran McKenna down and tackled him. 

 

 

 

The AFL Tribunal will sit at 5.30pm tonight, Tuesday April 10 Melbourne time, to hear the charge laid against Essendon’s Conor McKenna from the weekend’s Match Review. 

Irishman Conor McKenna, Essendon, has been charged with serious misconduct against Tory Dickson, Western Bulldogs, during the second quarter of the Round Two match between Essendon and the Western Bulldogs, played at the Etihad Stadium last Sunday.

Based on the available video evidence and an investigation from the AFL, the incident was classified as serious misconduct. It is alleged that McKenna bit Dickson while on the ground near the boundary line after Dickson ran McKenna down and tackled him. 

Under the Tribunal guidelines, serious misconduct is referred directly to the Tribunal and there is not the opportunity for an early plea to be offered.

 

 

Ireland now has a new European champion whilst the West London Wildcats have completed an amazing four-peat performance to take out the 2018 AFL Europe Champions League tournament held yesterday in Amsterdam.

The West Clare Waves downed the Wandsworth Demons comfortably to take the women’s title, whilst the Wildcats downed the host team – the Amsterdam Devils – to take the men’s title.

Men’s Grand Final: West London Wildcats 5 4 34 d Amsterdam Devils 2 2 14
Women’s Grand Final: West Clare Waves 5 2 32 d Wandsworth Demons 0 3 3

Across an enthralling day’s action, 17 men’s and 7 women’s team did battle to see which club, as opposed to nation, was the best in Europe. Since the inception of the competition in 2015, the West London Wildcats have proved to be the best men’s club in Europe, winning each championship. This year saw them raise the bar higher again for other clubs to match their dominance.

Callum Twomey from the www.essendonfc.com.au website wrote this article in the lead up to the 2018 AFL season, looking at the journey of Irish Bomber, Conor McKenna. Since that time, McKenna has been one of Essendon’s best players in both of their games to date against the Adelaide Crows and the Fremantle Dockers. On Sunday, he is primed to take on the Western Bulldogs with his Bomber teammates. 

In Ireland’s Gaelic competition, players very rarely switch clubs. They join the county side that is most local to them, where they've grown up, and stay there for the rest of their careers. 

"Wherever you're born you play for," explains Conor McKenna, who left Ireland aged 18 to pursue an AFL career with Essendon. 

 

"Basically back home it's like if you are born in Essendon, you play for Essendon. If you are born in North Melbourne, that's where you play.

Riley Brettell from AFL Europe has put together the following preview of the upcoming tournament in Amsterdam. The original story can be found on the AFL Europe website at: http://www.afleurope.org/champions-league-2018-tournament-preview/  

The best 24 Australian Football teams in Europe are set to march on Amsterdam this week ahead of the AFL Europe’s 2018 Champions League tournament, which will see close to 400 players represent club sides from 14 different nations to vie for European supremacy.

 

The 9-a-side event will be held on Saturday, April 7th at the Sportpark de Eendracht, with 54 matches across the day to decide the champions across both men’s and women’s divisions and making for one of Australian Footballs premier international spectacles.

The new AFLG season draw has been released for the 2018 season in Germany, and as part of the excitement, it will feature the league’s newest entity, the Württemberg Giants. The team is a union of the Stuttgart Emus and the Freiberg Taipans – two separate teams coming together as one under the banner of the Federal State of Baden-Württemberg of which Stuttgart is the capital.

The union gives a great opportunity for the Giants to be immediately competitive, drawing on a player pool and historic connection to the game. The new Württemberg Giants hit the ground running, featuring in the first match and round of the new season. The play the Dresden Wolves in Stuttgart/Freiberg this weekend in a round robin opening draw which also features the Rheinland Lions.

It is certainly an historic opening round, and also points towards being an even and exciting start to the 2018 AFLG season.