Even the most devout Magpie fan would admit that Putney’s season hasn’t got off to the start they were hoping for – going down to the Hawks and Wildcats. But their fortunes turned around when they snared a three point win from the London Swans to record their first win for the season. The result puts them back with the rest of the field to challenge for higher honours later in the season.

Such morale boosting wins can sometimes be the catalyst for great positive change, and Magpie supporters would be feeling that positivism right now.

In other results, the Wandsworth Demons kept their perfect season start intact with a solid 39 point victory over last year’s premiers, the North London Lions. The win keeps them on top of the ladder as the only undefeated team after three rounds.

The Paris Cockerels made a huge statement in their Round 8 match against the Toulouse Hawks, downing the team many felt would challenge for this year’s flag by a commanding 84 points. The final margin of 107 to 23 certainly indicates a gulf between the sides that for most of the season have been seen as one and two on the pecking order. Now the Cockerels can set course for back to back flags with the confidence they can more than match the Hawks.

The match also sets up a fascinating final round clash where the Hawks are again Paris-bound to take on the Cergy-Pontoise Coyotes. A win will restore the Hawks standing as a premiership threat, but a loss to the Coyotes will see them drop as low as fourth place if the Paris Cockatoos win as expected against the Strasbourg Kangourous.

Just four rounds in to the new AFLCNE season and it is becoming clear that again the Manchester Mozzies will be the team to beat for the 2016 flag as they hope to continue their dynasty. But this year they have a new rival with the Wolverhampton Wolverines equally impressive, and equally damaging. Both sides sit undefeated and so far both have been devastating.

Last weekend the Wolverines took on last year’s grand finalists, the Sheffield Thunder crew. Depleted since last year, the Thunder were no match for the rejuvenated Wolverines – a team benefitting from improved numbers and to some degree the addition of former Birmingham Bears players. The result was a 197 point win in a lopsided game.

The North London Lions have kept their perfect start to the 2016 season intact with a solid 28 point victory over the Wimbledon Hawks. They now have two wins from two starts to share top billing with the Wandsworth Demons. It is a great way to begin their title defence after taking out the 2015 premiership.

The West London Wildcats were pounced on last weekend by the Demons, but they made amends this round with a huge 132 point trouncing of the Putney Magpies. The win sees them sitting in third place on the ladder, but with the best for and against percentage in the league.

 

In the following story published on the RugbyFinity website, the latest in a continuing line of Irish recruits in the AFL, Conor Glass, spoke about his views on the differences in Gaelic football and Australian Rules football and pondered his prospects as a Hawk.

HAWTHORN’S Irish recruit Conor Glass says he doesn’t have issues kicking an AFL football but predicts it will be some time before he debuts.

As reported by www.worldfootynews.com in 2014, the Hawks were long interested in bringing Glass to the club as an international category B rookie.

 

 

It has been all, action across Central and Northern England as the new 2016 AFLCNE season has begun with the opening rounds and Lightning Rounds played over the past two weekends. Despite losing the Birmingham Bears prior to the season, but gaining the new Merseyside Saints, the competition is already intense. The following article from the AFLCNE website gives a brief look at the new season along with the scores to date.

 

With Lightening Rounds and the first full round of the season undertaken last Saturday we’ve seen some big scores posted early in 2016.  With the Huddersfield Rams winning by 148 pts against the Tyne Tees Tigers you’d have thought it would be biggest winning margin of the round not the smallest!   The Manchester Mosquitoes chalked up an astonishing 165pt victory over last year’s Grand Finalists in the Sheffield Thunder. But even they were outdone by Wolverhampton’s win over league new boys the Merseyside Saints, with the Wolverines winning by 289pts - 50.23.323 to 5.4.34.

French US college basketballer Stanislas Heili tells Lindenwood University about last week's AFL US Combine experience and what the future might hold.

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Meanwhile fellow Combine triallist Omari Gudul has put the call out to Twitter looking for Australian rules players "to come run with me" in San Angelo, Texas.

With just one game in the CNFA French Australian Rules football competition this weekend, the finals teams have been decided. The Toulouse Hawks will again be there, along with both Paris teams, the Cockerels and the Cockatoos.

But the clash between the Cergy-Pontoise Coyotes and the Perpignan Tigers was the fight for fourth place. Sadly for the Perpignan Tigers they will not be in their maiden finals series after going down to the Coyotes.

The final score saw: Cergy-Pontoise Coyotes 16 13 109 d Perpignan Tigers 3 10 28

Croatian International Josip Habljak's stats for his fourth game for Sturt SANFL club reserves, in a top versus bottom clash against Norwood were understandably not as impressive as last week where he was named amongst Sturt's best, no doubt because of his lone hand job in the ruck (31 hit-outs).

Sturt again lost this match 17-11 (113) to 6-4 (40). Josip's Champion Data stats has him recording two kicks, five handballs - three effective, one uncontested and one contested for a total disposal count of seven. He took one uncontested mark and recorded four handball receives. He was second ruck this game for 15 hit-outs for five clearances. He laid two tackles and had one each free kick for and against.

The Wandsworth Demons didn’t waste any time sending messages to the rest of the AFL London competition about their intentions for the 2016 season. With Round One being played last weekend, the Demons kicked of their year with a rousing 17 point win over league powerhouse, the West London Wildcats. One round is not a season, but the Wildcats have been making a habit of grabbing any silverware not nailed down. Their Champions League victory coupled with their pre-season cup win had them pencilled in again as early favourites for another title by many.