World Footy News

Kangas forced to say more on Daw

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 21:20:41 +1100

Media and public speculation seem to have forced North Melbourne's hand in detailing reasons for his suspension announced today. The initial tactic of trying to protect Daw by giving almost no details has backfired with forums and news/sports station being innundated by suggestions as to what Daw's actions may have been.

The following statement is a press release from North Melbourne coach Brad Scott;

“Our main focus is to support Majak wholly and we take his welfare very seriously. The statement we released was generic for a reason, to attempt to protect Majak. There were no lies told, there was no cover up. I’m now being forced to clarify that statement because of disappointing rumours and innuendo.

“Let me be clear, Majak was suspended for two reasons only in that he breached rehab protocol by going out when he should have been resting his knee and because he lied to me about going out.

“Any other player would have been treated the same and until he complies with our standards and expectations, he won’t be welcome back into the group.

“I’ve been in constant dialogue with Majak and he is extremely remorseful. I know at heart, he is a terrific young guy and that’s why we will support him. We are not interested in hanging him out to dry. With a player of his profile, we can’t suspend him from the football club without people knowing, so we made the decision to release that information in the interests of being up front.

“Unfortunately, there is an element out there that want to bring Majak down and have seen fit to spread rumours about him.

“The other issues that have been raised, have absolutely nothing to do with his suspension and I have known about them for some time. He owes a player money, he is working to repay that player. It’s less than a thousand dollars and is a trivial matter. Majak’s conduct is completely above board and he has done nothing wrong in seeing the ex-girlfriend of a former player.

“There are some media organisations which want to hang him out to dry. He’s had to deal with some things which are unfair. He’s been racially abused at a VFL game. He’s had to deal with things that men of his age shouldn’t have to deal with and we also have to take into account his unique background having come to Australia from Sudan.” ...

Daw indefinitely sent to Werribee

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:50:17 +1100

Promising Sudanese rookie Majak Daw has been suspended indefinitely for breaching North Melbourne's team rehabilitation protocols and behaving in a manner unbefitting of the club’s culture and expectations.

North’s new leadership group has determined Majak will train with VFL affiliate Werribee Tigers until further notice. The club would not detail Daw's breaches and says it is not in a position to elaborate.

CEO Eugene Arocca and chief of football Donald McDonald spoke today at the Kensington Boxing Gym today, but gave no further details of the breaches. Daw was not present. The video of the press interview can be seen below.

The club said it will continue to support and work closely with Majak during his suspension. The suspension is set to be lifted when Daw can convince the leadership group he is back on track. ...

AFLG growing towards the future

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 20:56:13 +1100

Australian expatriate Kate O'Halloran is currently in Berlin, juggling her work as a journalist with completion of a PhD through Sydney University. She also recently came onboard to cover the Australian Football League Germany for World Footy News - read on for her latest article on the AFLG's origins and more recent developments which have seen the national league grow to six teams and the creation of local leagues in three separate cities.

AFL and Germany. Two terms barely used in combination, and not without reason. The game that has captured the heart of a nation in Australia barely registers a blip on the German media radar. This year saw one small exception: Andrew Walker’s spectacular grab over Essendon’s Jake Carlisle made its way onto popular news portal web.de, prompting an influx of comments asking what this ‘crazy’ sport was.

This small bit of publicity was a dream for the organisers and players in the AFLG (AFL Germany) league. For them, establishing an AFL following and competition in Germany is difficult, but not impossible, and much progress has been made. In October last year, the AFLG played its 9th grand final – between the Berlin Crocodiles and Rheinland Lions - in front of a crowd of around 500, and recorded its greatest ever participation numbers of around 300.

Julien Kann, vice-president of the league, is astonished at how far the AFLG has come. While the league began in 1995, it was really nothing more than a social game between some ex-pat Aussies.

‘It was more of a kick and giggle with a handful of ex-pats and a couple of Irish,’ he said.

‘They were very social events. Football was perhaps secondary!’

Julien Kann grew up in Australia and has a long history of involvement with the AFL. His father, Brian Kann, played for Hawthorn, is a board and life member, and social club president. Julien grew up one of four sons in a Hawks-mad family, but now devotes his time to being president of one of the founding clubs of the AFLG, The Munich Kangaroos. The Kangaroos were the first AFLG team to be established, quickly followed by the Frankfurt Redbacks. While games remained mostly social, this paved the way for more serious expansion to start. In 2011, the AFLG had six teams, with one more – the Leverkusen Wombats – likely to join in 2013. It has also spawned 3 metro leagues (in Munich, Berlin and Stuttgart) and contributed to the national German team’s steady rise up the international ranks (now ranked 13th overall).

Troy Pedder, who coached the national side in the Euro Cup in Belfast late last year, has personally witnessed the transformation in numbers and interest in AFL in Germany. ‘When I started I had 10 players that wanted to play and now we have over 40 top players trying to make the squad,’ he said.

Pedder played both junior and senior footy in Australia, but lost his spark for the game and eventually quit. Since coming to Germany however, the travel and friendship opportunities offered by the AFLG have drawn him back in. In 2011, he coached the national team, took the Berlin Crocodiles to their maiden AFLG Grand Final and founded the local, 4-team competition in Berlin. Pedder engaged in a fierce sponsorship drive to make the competition sustainable, and won the logistical support of 4 AFL clubs: the Dockers, Crows, Eagles and Demons after whom the Berlin teams are named.

On their best night for the season, the Berlin League was able to attract 55 players, none of which belong to the Crocodiles team affiliated with the AFLG. The league is competitive, but in such a foreign market, recruitment is key.

‘Winning is important but development is the driving body behind this league,’ Pedder said.

Although participation numbers in the AFLG have increased by 5-10% each year, recruitment remains an issue.

There are several reasons why recruitment is difficult, including quality and availability of grounds, difficulty in translating the rules to spectators, competition from more ‘traditional’ European sports, playing costs and risk of injury. Some progress has been made in all of these areas, but there is work still to be done. The Stuttgart Emus still play with a baseball mound on the wing of their field, for example. Nonetheless, one of the most persistent barriers – having mostly transient ex-pat players fill the teams – is slowly being eroded.

The Rheinland Lions - AFLG premiers for 4 out of the last 5 years - are testament to this fact. Coach and player Anthony Garland believes that their contingent of local German players (which at 75% is the highest in the league) is the secret to their success. Garland himself lived in Germany for 10 years before he even knew the AFLG existed. Having been involved with the AFLG for just two years, he has nonetheless seen vast changes in recruiting and promotion.

In his time, all sorts of strategies have been employed to get Germans into the game, but success is hit and miss. Garland noted that ‘almost 50%’ of Rheinland’s AFL team also play soccer, even though Kann argued that soccer players are often ‘intimidated’ by the physical nature of the AFL. For Kann, it is therefore difficult to decide on which European sports to target for AFLG recruitment, although popular contact sports like Handball and Ice Hockey have so far yielded promising results.

Although players enter the AFLG aware that it is a contact sport, many are shocked by the extent of injury. ‘In Australia there is a common knowledge that injury is just part of the game. It’s definitely not the case here, as we have had a couple of promising German players injured in their first or second game and they have never returned,’ Kann noted. Garland agreed that the risk of injury is a problem.

‘Medical care in Germany is fantastic, however at the games it is not good, usually players have to wait a long time for an ambulance to come if a serious injury occurs,’ he said.

Despite these dangers, the growing participation numbers testify to the fact that more locals are slowly catching the AFL bug.

It is quite an achievement given the sacrifices many make to participate. Germany is not much bigger than Victoria in land mass, but the costs to travel across the country can be huge. Kann estimates that it costs around AUD$1600-2700 to send a team across the country for an away game.

As seems to be necessary in such a fledgling market, those involved are doing whatever they can to ensure the game grows.

‘The good-will between the clubs is great and usually beds are made available when needed,’ Garland said. Players will often offer up their houses to players from opposition teams, although as the competition becomes more fierce, offers have started to dry up.

Nonetheless, greater competition means greater numbers and investment in the game. For the growth of the AFLG, one can only hope it continue ...

Perris awarded Ling medal despite missing playing in NZ match

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 08:01:39 +1100

The Sydney Swans would like to congratulate QBE Sydney Swans Academy member Lloyd Perris, who has been awarded the Cameron Ling Medal for most professional player at AIS-AFL Academy. The medal, named after Geelong’s premiership-winning 2011 captain, was voted on by the best young footballers in Australia, who were Perris’ team-mates in the Australian Institute of Sport-AFL Academy squad which has just returned from a tour to New Zealand.

Before the medal was awarded, Ling said he wanted it to go to a young player who worked hard and was selfless, had a strong, positive attitude, and who was a good person. Seventeen-year-old Perris, who goes to Sydney Boys’ High and lives in the Sydney suburb of Cronulla, clearly fit the bill as he won the medal with 47 votes, ahead of runner-up Luke Dunstan from South Australia (36 votes).

There are 30 of the most talented under 18 footballers from around Australia in the AIS-AFL Academy squad, and at the end of the NZ tour they were each asked to vote on 30 character traits, and decide who best embodied those traits. Perris was awarded the highest votes by his team-mates in 12 of the 30 categories - competitiveness, passion, patience, loyalty, respect, selflessness, sacrifice, hard work, desire, professionalism, determination and listening ability.

The general manager of the QBE Sydney Swans Academy, Dennis Carroll, said the award was wonderful recognition for Perris. “We are really proud of Lloyd. He is a very talented young footballer but just as importantly he has the character, discipline and drive required to go far,’’ Carroll said.

Because Perris is a member of the QBE Sydney Swans Academy, the Swans have the advantage of being able to directly draft him to the Club in 2013 if he is considered good enough. The system works in the same way as the father-son rule which allowed talented youngster Tom Mitchell to come to the Swans in the 2011 draft.

Perris became part of the Swans’ junior QBE Academy program two years ago after he was identified as an outstanding talent by the Club’s Elite Talent & Operations Manager, Chris Smith. He began his footy with Cronulla Junior Australian Football Club.

Perris’ most recent award is all the more remarkable as he was not able to take the field during the AIS-AFL visit to New Zealand, where the side played one game against an open age Kiwi team. Perris had a knee reconstruction three months ago after landing awkwardly during a basketball game.

Michael Ablett, the AFL Academy development manager, said Perris’s attitude had been brilliant from the moment he tore his anterior cruciate ligament last year. “I have no doubt he will bounce back from the injury. He’s told me that he’ll never again take for granted being able to run,’’Ablett said.

“While it was tough for Lloyd to sit there and watch the other boys play in New Zealand we made him as much as part of it as possible. The other boys saw him doing his running and working with the assistant coaches, and could see he was doing everything right.’’

Perris was captain of the NSW/ACT team at the Under 16 national championships in 2011, and averaged more than 20 possessions a game. He was awarded an AIS-AFL Academy scholarship at the end of those championships and is the only NSW player in that 30-player squad.

He trains twice a week at the QBE Sydney Swans Academy, under the guidance of head coach, Paul Roos. Retired Swans’ premiership player Tadhg Kennelly is an assistant coach/mentor for the AIS-AFL Academy and is Lloyd’s mentor. To learn more about the QBE Sydney Swans Academy please visit http://www.sydneyswans.com.au/academy ...

GCS using footy to connect youth in UK and India

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 20:11:54 +1100

Originally from Adelaide, but now based full-time in the UK, Rick Shrowder has been a driving force behind footy in England's North East for some years now.

Besides this, he is also one of the founders of GCS - Global Community Sports, an organisation using Australian rules football to connect with young students both in the UK and India.

Shrowder explains that Global Sports Global Learning is a project that is using sport to creatively engage with young people. The project, offered both through schools and also through young offender institutes, introduces the students to the sport of Australian Football and then works with the students to create a sports coaching manual documenting their experiences of the project. This manual is then sent to a group of young people in Madurai, a city of around 1.5 million inhabitants in the state of Tamil Nadu, south India. These students then use the manual to learn about Australian Football and report back to the students here about their experiences. It is a six week project involving both practical and class based sessions.

However, whilst the project is using sport as a vehicle to engage with young people, it is more than just a sports project. The project actually explores topics such as global learning, community cohesion, diversity as well as clearly benefitting literacy skills and contributing to improved attendance and behaviour. Issues such as bullying, success and achievement and barriers people face in sport are also addressed.

Shrowder says, "I have been introducing young people and adults to Australian Football since about 2006. The above project alone has been delivered to approximately 1350 young people in over 35 different schools and institutes in England in the last 2 years. It has also provided an opportunity for approximately 450 young people in and around Madurai in South India to experience the benefits of Australian Football. These young people have all been from areas of poverty and deprivation and in some areas where child labour is still an issue."

"My motive behind creating and delivering the project is partly to share my love of Australian Football but also to show how with a bit of creative thinking the sport can really be used as a very effective, life changing educational tool. We are providing opportunties for employment and the development of real life skills both here in England and in south India using Australia's greatest game."

"My ambition is too see more schools in England participating in the program and experiencing Australian Football and then sharing this experience with other young people in other parts of the world."

The program in India has also received some local press coverage, with the article Going for the goal appearing in The Hindu in September last year. The AFL India does not yet have an outpost in the state of Tamil Nadu, but Shrowder is in contact with them and is hoping to further develop a mutually beneficial relationship.

Rick Shrowder is always keen to speak to businesses, clubs or individuals who would like to know more about the project and offers of support. For more information or to make contact, visit gcsprojects.org. ...

Looking back - la saison 2010-11 de football australien en France

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 11:56:17 +1100

Thanks to CNFA for sending us the link to this "Résumé de la saison 2010-11 de football australien en France.".

...

NZ Hawks no match for AIS

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 00:30:01 +1100

In the eagerly anticipated first Australian football match between the two countries at any level, the Under-17 AIS-AFL Academy squad overcame the New Zealand Hawks by 91 points at Westpac Stadium in Wellington on Saturday.

After the Kiwis performed a stirring rendition of the haka, they got the jump on the Aussies in the first quarter with former Fremantle Docker forward Adam Campbell helping the home team to a five-point lead at the first break.

The Australians, coached by Brisbane Lions triple-premiership player Chris Johnson, hit back in the second quarter, kicking six goals-to-none to open a 31-point lead at half-time.

New Zealand showed it could compete with the best Under-17 players in Australia in the third term, delighting the enthusiastic crowd and showcasing the potential the code has in the South Pacific.

Australia booted well clear in the last quarter to leave an unflattering scoreboard after a tighter tussle for three quarters.

The AFL has committed to return to New Zealand in 2013.

FINAL SCORE
New Zealand 4.1 4.3 6.3 6.3 (39)
Australia 3.2 9.4 12.12 19.16 (130)

GOALS
Australia: Jack Billings 4, Jack Martin 3, Clayton McCartney 2, Luke Dunstan 2, Dylan Loo, Ben Lennon, Jess Hogan, Cain Tickner, Billy Hartung, Sam Garstone, Dallas Willsmore, Matt Scharenberg
New Zealand: Adam Campbell 2, Andrew Christenson, Kurt Heatherley, Shem Tatupu, Khan Haretuku

BEST
Australia: Jack Billings, Luke McDonald, Billy Hartung, Jess Hogan, James Aish, Ben Lennon, Luke Dunstan, Matt Scharenberg
New Zealand: Kurt Heatherley, Michael Gregson, Adam Campbell, Andrew Chrighton, Sami Tuitiupo, Khan Haretuku

Full story and Wayne Schwass video at http://www.afl.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/208/newsid/128298/default.aspx

Photos courtesy of http://juntanlaycosports.com/p34021189

...

Hawks claim 4th International scholarship player from NZ

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 22:40:38 +1100

Hawks defender Stephen Gilham recently travelled across the Tasman to present the Club's newest International Scholarship holder Ben Miller with his Hawthorn guernsey.

Miller played his first Australian football game for the Otago Boys’ School in 2010 against the university team, Otago Riot. It was in his second game that he took a high mark well above his opponents in the pack and set up several scoring opportunities from the wing where it became clear Ben had potential to play this game. Given that so far Otago has no formal competition with just a University Club, that play spasmodically, and some junior development programmes within a few secondary schools, this is a monumental achievement.

In February 2011 he travelled to Auckland for the NZ under 20 National Provincial Championships playing for Wellington. Showing his potential, Ben was selected to play for the NZ U20's against VAFA and NZ U16 Oceania Cup 2011 where he was instrumental in the team’s success.

Gilham met with the Hawks’ four New Zealand recruits last week at an Australia Day function at the Australian High Commission in Wellington, with Miller (17) joining other International Scholarship holders Shem Tatupu (16), Kurt Heatherley (17) and Rhys Panui-Leth (17).

The Hawks have now positioned themselves as the leading club in seeking out international talent.

For more see including photos see http://www.hawthornfc.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/4742/newsid/128305/default.aspx ...

Interview with Glen Butler (AFL Fiji)

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 07:15:03 +1100

Shortly after the 2011 AFL Oceania Youth Cup, the Fiji coach, Glen Butler said goodbye. The reason being that his stint as an AYAD officer in Fiji had come to an end. The AYAD program is referenced over and over again in respect to Australian Football in the Pacific. Worldfootynews asked Glen to reflect on his time.

WFN The AYAD process. What got you into it. How did you go through the process, and how did the AYAD promise live up in reality?

GB I originally came across an advertisement on the AFL website in late 2009 to volunteer overseas and promote AFL. I had just recently finished my university degree and was living abroad for most of the year. After returning to Australia and struggling to get a job, I saw this as an opportunity to gain some work experience, which might possibly lead to a job with the AFL. I emailed AFL Asia-South Pacific with a little about myself and my interest in the position.

I was called into AFL House in Melbourne and met with Andrew Cadzow (AFL Asia-Pacific Manager). We had a fairly casual chat about the AFL in the Asia-Pacific region and what it was all about. Originally there was a similar position in Indonesia for which Andrew had suggested I apply.

I remember receiving a call in April 2010 from Cadz saying, “The job in Indonesia is gone, do you want to go Fiji instead…?”
I thought about it for maybe a second, “Sure…”

From there I was put in contact with Austraining International, the project management company that delivers the Australian Youth Ambassadors for Development program, an Australian Government initiative through AusAID. I then had to apply for the Fiji position officially through Austraining in May. I also had a phone interview before I was officially accepted in August that year.

The AYAD Program, part of Australian Volunteers for International Development, supports young Australians on volunteer assignments in developing countries. The program provides you with a support network of other volunteers and management staff in country(sic). I quickly settled into my new surroundings and had a great group of friends before I even left Australia.

WFN The Fiji experience. What were your expectations? What have been some of the greatest challenges, the greatest successes and what remain the greatest challenges (esp from a footy perspective).

GB When I first arrived, the Fiji Power were a month out from travelling to Tonga for the 2010 Youth Oceania Cup. I was pleased to find out I would be joining the squad on the trip. I remember being quite impressed with local committee that seemed well organised and the players were training hard under the supervision of Dylan Wolfgramm and then David Rodan Snr prior to leaving for Tonga.

I didn’t really know what to expect. I knew only of what I had seen on their Facebook page and brief contact with the chairman Robert Wolfgramm via email. I helped out where I could with administration and footy training. Soon we were off to Tonga, the boys played extremely well and I learned a lot about the Fijian culture and was warmly welcomed by everyone.

There was definitely no lack of enthusiasm for the game as I remember having boys waiting by my front gate not long after the New Year asking when training was starting again. I remember getting a group of the boys together to hand out AFL flyers around Suva. The next week, we had around eighty players turn up at a training session.

The greatest success was getting the senior team to Australia to compete in the International Cup. I didn’t realise at the time the magnitude of sending the team and officials to Australia. Organising Visa’s, flight payments, budgeting and fundraising etc. as the majority involved had never travelled overseas before and I myself had never applied for a visa to Australia surprisingly, let alone 32 of them. Credit to all the players and the families involved, it was a huge sacrifice not only money but their time and effort. The players getting down to training 3-4 times a week plus practice matches on the weekend. For these guys it would be for some, a long walk to the nearest bus route, getting on numerous buses from all around Suva for anywhere upwards of an hour to train for two hours and then get home again. So in addition to paying for their flights and visa’s to Australia, they were paying bus fares daily to get to and from training which put even greater strain on their families.

The biggest credit is due to the committee which has been held together by Robert and Lupe Wolfgramm. The two of them along with small group of parents and friends are keeping AFL Fiji alive and kicking. What I didn’t realise when I initially started was that they are all volunteers. They have their families, jobs and everything else to deal with but they still sacrifice their time to be involved. I (have) a lot of respect to the Wolfgramm family, as both Lupe and Robert would be down at every training, practice match and fundraiser.

AFL 9’s

Leading up to International Cup, we started the AFL 9’s competition that normally ran on a Saturday morning. One of the biggest challenges was finding a suitable ground. Albert Park is ideal due to its size but generally the ground is overrun by small groups playing schoolyard rugby or soccer and the occasional game of cricket. March through September is the peak of the rugby union season so this made it all the more challenging. The venue was ever-changing but the players kept coming. By the last week of the competition, we had close to one hundred players playing across eight teams.

Local media

AFL in Fiji was also getting more regular media exposure. The media in Fiji craved sport news and were extremely open to learning more about AFL. The two major newspapers (Fiji Times and Fiji Sun) regularly published sports scores from the local weekend matches and updates on progress throughout the year. I was interviewed on Fiji One TV network and had a couple of radio interviews with Viti FM.

Schools

The major targets of AFL Fiji’s programs were on youth. I started visiting schools during term 1 in the Suva area with of two of the senior boys Max Wolfgramm and Semiti Mateiwai. We visited about a dozen schools seeing close to 3000 students over an 8-9 week period. Another major challenge was expanding the program and establishing it outside of Suva. I had visited a number of schools in Nadi, Lautoka and Ba on the western coast of Viti Levu (main island of Fiji) and conducted several clinics but these were one-offs. It was a 4-5 hour bus trip between Suva and the western coast of Viti Levu, not to mention travelling to the other 320 or so islands that make up Fiji. Another challenge was that between the Wolfgramm family, myself and a handful of under 16 players, we were the only people in Fiji (known as AFL Fiji) that had a significant knowledge of the game.

International Cup

The benefits of participating in the International Cup were to create more exposure in Fiji and hopefully in the Australian media, to indicate to the AFL that progress is being made in Fiji, which may lead to implementing a similar academy-program to Papua New Guinea and finally that I now had twenty-eight assistants to now help run training clinics around Fiji. After returning from Australia, I caught up with a group of the senior players, handed them footballs, whistles and told them they are now coaching the Under 16’s in the lead up to the Oceania Cup. Two weeks later, I was invited to a practice match between the Suva City Swans and Raiwaqa Bulldogs on a rugby ground in the suburbs of Suva. A few days later I made my way out to the next main town of Nausori, about thirty minutes north of Suva. I made my way down to the local park to find a group of fifty-to-sixty players in large circle surrounding one of the Fiji TRIBE players as he talked and gave a post training rev-up. Again these senior players were all volunteering their time and effort to get down and train the new players coming through.

Oceania Cup

The 2011 Oceania Cup was the other major achievement for the year. Credit to the Wolfgramm’s and the small committee made up of Thelma Nabuka, Pasepa Wainigola, Beta and Fabi Vateitei, Inoke Leweni, Serafina Navuso and others to organise themselves during the competition. The Australian High Commission was very excited to be involved and graciously hosted the Australian Boomerangs and players and officials from the other Pacific nations in welcoming them to Fiji. Along with Andrew Cadzow and his team from AFL Asia-Pacific for running the tournament, it was well received and gained big media and public exposure over the week and leading up to the carnival. The Sportsman’s Night was a great night held at the Royal Suva Yacht Club and raised some much needed funds for AFL Fiji.

WFN What’s next for G.Butler (life after AYAD). And your hopes/expectations of Fiji (AFL) going forward.

GB The big challenge for AFL Fiji from here will be to expand and improve on 2011. I have met several Australian expats recently who have indicated their interest in getting involved, unfortunately they are typically on short-term placements in Fiji. The Oceania Cup will again be held in Fiji in 2012 and hopefully will be bigger and better than 2011. Many teachers throughout Fiji contacted me in regards to running clinics at their schools through the Ministry of Education who were very helpful. I hope that the more workshops can be held in Fiji have more and more local Fijians with level 1 AFL accreditation. Ideally to have teachers in every school with some knowledge and resources and embed AFL in the School curriculum for years to come. There are plans to have an official AFL 9’s competition early this year, to form clubs and officially register for the competition etc. There are hopes of attracting some international teams from the Pacific and possibly Australia to be involved.

I learned so much from the experience. I made some good friends and thoroughly enjoyed my time in Fiji. I am applying to do a development internship with the AFL, which is an opportunity provided by the AYAD program upon return from assignment. I am definitely interested in continuing to work with the AFL at some level, be that at the development or club level. The internship will involve future planning for AFL Fiji, which would involve competitions, workshops and looking at potential for international scholarships.

Footnote – AFL Fiji AGM is scheduled for this Wednesday, Feb 1, 5-10pm at the Albert Park pavilion. ...

Starling to become a Swan

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 13:20:44 +1100

Talented US college basketballer Alex Starling has been signed by the Sydney Swans after testing showed he had the athletic potential to make the switch to the AFL.

Starling, 22, is finishing college in Florida but will make several visits to Sydney this year to meet with Swans’ coaching staff and develop his football skills.

He has been signed under the AFL’s International Scholarship Scheme, which will allow him to both train with the Swans and complete his four year degree at Bethune-Cookman University. If things progress as planned, he will be recruited to the Swans’ senior list as an International Rookie in 2013.

Starling, who is 196cms and 93 kilograms, was identified by the head coach of the QBE Sydney Swans Academy, Paul Roos, during a trip to the US in 2011.

Roos held a two day mini draft assessment camp in Redondo Beach, California, last June, attended by four college basketballers who were identified through Roos’ network of contacts in the US.

The assessment camp was funded for the Swans by the Basil Sellers International Program.

Starling, who has been a standout basketballer at his university, showed the most exciting potential.

He then came to Australia last August, again through the program funded by long-time Swans’ supporter, Basil Sellers.

Starling took part in three weeks of testing at the Swans’ base in Moore Park where he was assessed by Swans’ senior coach John Longmire, development manager Stuart Maxfield, head of player personnel, Kinnear Beatson, and Roos.

Roos says they were all impressed. “Alex is not only an outstanding basketballer but he has also played American football as well,’’ Roos said. “We saw an amazing athlete with great speed, great hands and an incredible capacity to learn a new game.

“Of course we understand Alex has a lot of work to do but certainly he has the right attitude to attack this enormous challenge,’’ Roos said.

Beatson, who heads the Swans’ recruiting team, said it was exciting to unearth a player with Starling’s qualities.

“We believe Alex has the physical attributes required by the modern AFL key position player, which are difficult to find via the National Draft,’’ Beatson said.

“He displayed the ability to grasp the skills of our game, particularly soft hands in marking contests and the capacity to weight his kicks. We are excited about his potential and what the future holds for Alex. He showed in his time with us last year that he also has a fierce desire to succeed,’’ Beatson said.

Starling is known as a strong competitor and leader on the basketball court, and is renowned for his defensive pressure.

“One of the most important things about Alex is we believe he can transfer those attitudes to our game,’’ Roos said. “He is very keen to come to Australia and have a real go at making it in the AFL.’’

Starling will make several visits to Sydney this year and his training and skill acquisition will be overseen by Roos, Maxfield, and development coach, George Stone.

Training an athlete from a foreign country and code will be familiar territory for Stone. He is credited with teaching Swans’ premiership player Tadhg Kennelly the finer points of Australian Rules football after he came to Sydney from Ireland having not handled an oval ball.

The Swans have also recently had success with Mike Pyke, the former Canadian rugby International who is developing into a talented ruckman/forward. ...