2018 Champions League Team Previews – Part Four

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In the lead-up to the 4th annual AFL Europe Champions League hosted by AFL Netherlands in Amsterdam on Saturday 7th April, afleurope.org will be taking a quick look at the teams who have qualified for the continents’ premier club tournament. 

In our fourth round of team previews, we feature the Oslo Crows, who have been making big waves in Melbourne media pre-tournament, Switzerland’s Winterthur Lions, London powerhouse the Wandsworth Demon’s and their northern compatriots the Manchester Mosquitoes.

Men’s Competition:

OSLO CROWS

Sebastian Muller – Oslo President
Tell us a bit about your pathway to qualifying for the 2018 Champions League…
The Norway league is still quite small, composed of 3 fairly well-matched teams. That being said, with Scottie Arcus, who hung up his boots after one too many concussions, as the new coach of the Oslo Crows we rose to the top.

What has your preparation for this year’s tournament been like?
In the run-up to the tournament, our training has emphasised timing our plays and both trusting and protecting our team mates. With the worst winter Norway has experienced in decades it’s all been indoors. Which means we’ve done a ton of pushups as punishment for hitting the ceiling!

What does your side want to achieve coming to Amsterdam in 2018?
We want to improve on last year’s performance and in particular work on our communication and coordination. Both on the grounds and in the bar!

Describe some players in your team that fans should keep an eye on at Champions League 2018.
Keep an eye out for Oscar Chandler, number 11. He’s been on fire at training. He reads the ball and uses his body fantastically to his advantage to consistently win competitions.

What would you like the world to know about your football club? Are there any funny stories from last season or previous tournaments?
We just elected in a completely new board. We have high expectations for them and the club as a whole this season and are looking to step up our game on and off the grounds. To that end, we’ve started building a following in Australia off the back off a couple of interviews on SEN.

Hear Seb chatting to AFL legend Kevin Bartlett and Doctor Turf on SEN here.

MANCHESTER MOSQUITOES

Glenn Murphy – Manchester President
Tell us a bit about your pathway to qualifying for the 2018 Champions League with a quick recap of your 2017 season…
We were Premiers of the AFLCNE making it an incredible 4-peat. Finishing just clear on top of the ladder we met with Nottingham Scorpions Grand Final day and it was a great hard fought game and anyone’s at 3/4 time. Fortunately, we prevailed and celebrated accordingly.

What has your preparation for this year’s tournament been like?
As with some of the other teams in the Champions League, our preparation started with our annual Movember Cup charity tournament. From there we have had solid training sessions and intra-club matches. Having lost a few key players mid last year it was great to pick up a few capable players including Patrick Statham to bolster our ruck stocks freeing up Ben Sweetman to work towards his goal of equalling Tom Mitchell’s 54 touches.

What does your side want to achieve coming to Amsterdam in 2018?
Every year we strive to go deeper into the tournament than the previous occasion and for us this year means making it to the final. It won’t be easy but we feel have the squad that could achieve this. Off-field, it’s always great to catch up with all the other players and enjoy the day and night.

Describe some players in your team that fans should keep an eye on at Champions League 2018.
We have a really strong non-Australian squad and we expect them to be in the mix for the team of the tournament. In particularly a pair of our GB representatives in Andy Walkden, who is all class up forward, and Andrew Cochran who can play anywhere and has the ability to turn a game. Expect to see plenty of dash from player/coach Alex Pietrus who provides a lot of drive and then there’s Keegan Best,  who has been likened to Dustin Martin by the player group and has said nothing to downplay this tag.

Any additional information you would like the world to know about your football club as a whole?
One of our clubs medium-term goals is to get a women’s team up and running and we are continually working toward that. We think this should be something all teams should strive for as it will only strengthen the clubs, leagues AFL Europe. Anyone interested should contact our club.

WINTERTHUR LIONS

Stefan Burgener – President of Winterthur and AFL Switzerland
Tell us a bit about your pathway to qualifying for the 2018 Champions League with a quick recap of your 2017 season…
We received a wildcard qualification due to being the only team in Switzerland. Opposition teams are welcome to join!

What has your preparation for this year’s tournament been like?
We started pre-season training at the beginning of March with one session every Sunday. We are seeing a lot of improvement in skills and team play. Our biggest recruit would have to be Johannes Orlowski from the Rheinland Lions, a ruck/forward who brings a lot of experience, and currently plays for the German National Team.

What does your side want to achieve coming to Amsterdam in 2018?
We are in it for the experience and overall development of our game, but we also want to get at least one win on the board!

Describe some players in your team that fans should keep an eye on at Champions League 2018.
As mentioned above, Johannes Orlowski (no. 15) is one to watch, along with lars Mathis (no. 5), who is a fast-paced midfielder who has taken on the new game seamlessly. Matt Burgener (no. 3) is another to keep an eye on as a dangerous small forward.

WANDSWORTH DEMONS

Xavier Holland – Wandsworth President 
Tell us a bit about your pathway to qualifying for the 2018 Champions League with a quick recap of your 2017 season…
For the first time since 2010, we managed to win the Men’s Premiership, winning against the North London Lions by 3 points in what was a thrilling game of footy. It was a wild day out there on our home turf at Clapham Common with the final 3 minutes played out like a ping pong match. Some match winning marks by Sam Bowler and Nick Noblett were some of the final highlights on the day, hoping they can both turn it back on for the Champions League competition. Not only is a great to get a flag after 7 years but the chance to play in the Champions League is something we are very excited for. It’s something we’ve watched from the wings for the last 3 years so to be able to take on the best of Europe will be a great test for our club.

What has your preparation for this year’s tournament been like?
Our preseason has been fairly volatile with freezing temps and snow hampering a lot of our training sessions on Clapham Common, even as recent as a week ago we were training in the snow and our girls played 3 interclub matches. With the elements aside however, we have had plenty of fresh faces grace the Common and join our ranks for our 2018 campaign. We were very active in recruiting and we are looking forward to seeing some of these guys put on the red and blue for the first-time next weekend. We lost half of our winning Premiership side to visas expiring, a constant threat living in London, so replacing some of those experienced players was high on the agenda for us to maintain our momentum from last season.

What does your side coming to Amsterdam want to achieve in 2018
We want to win the tournament. To pit ourselves against the best in Europe is something we are hungry to be challenged by. As it’s our first time having the opportunity to face off against completely new opposition, our focus would be on playing our brand of footy, with a keen eye on developing our Rest of the World players in a competitive tournament. ROW players are crucial to any team in London’s chances at success, so watching our more experienced ROWs and our new recruits battle it out will be something we are eager to see.

Describe some players in your team that fans should keep an eye on at Champions League 2018.
We have put together a really strong squad which includes a healthy mix of 9 Premiership players from last season along with 7 new players who have recently joined the Club. Everyone who has been selected has the ability to be a matchwinner which is an exciting position to be in. Joe Lloyd from England is into his 2nd season of AFL and we are super excited to see his development. Declan Bevan is a mobile big man who has joined us fresh from Queensland. He’ll play forward and we hope to see him jag plenty for the day. The last player to keep an eye on is big Dave Morrison from New Zealand, who has only joined us in the last few weeks. A tall, tap ruckman with a few years’ experience behind him, he will be used to chop out in the ruck all day so looking forward to seeing what he can bring to the club.

What would you like the world to know about your football club? Are there any funny stories from last season or previous tournaments?
For all our funny stories you’ll just have to come along to our fine sessions after training in London! There you’ll hear everyone’s dirty laundry aired out in public, and as all fines are true it’s more like a historical documentation of the club as well. We are bringing about 40 supporters across with us to Amsterdam, so you’ll be sure to see the bright red polos of the Demons floating around on the day. Come find us, get to know us and maybe you might even get a mention come the next fine session…if you’re lucky!

SEE PART ONE OF THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TEAM PREVIEWS HERE
SEE OUT PART ONE OF THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TEAM PREVIEWS HERE
SEE OUT PART THREE OF THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TEAM PREVIEWS HERE

Telstra and AFL Europe Strengthen the Australian Connection!

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Telstra and AFL Europe Strengthen the Australian Connection!

AFL Europe is thrilled to announce a newly formed partnership with Telstra for the 2018 season, a deal that will see Telstra become the official ball partner of AFL Europe and play a significant role in ensuring that more footballs end up in the hands of European footy lovers.

Telstra’s brand is synonymous with the AFL, and the strength of this relationship was highlighted recently with the announcement of a six-year mobile and digital rights agreement with the AFL in Australia. This Australian-based partnership will ensure the game is available to AFL fans to stream live, fast and for Telstra mobile customers, data-free.

(L-R) Charlie Eales, Jay Treloar & Keith Della-Vedova prepare to defend their titles in the Champions League, ANZAC Cup & Euro Cup throughout the year.

 

AFL Europe General Manager, Ryan Davey, said the partnership would provide a huge boost for AFL Europe ahead of a bumper 2018 calendar.

“We are very excited to align with such a recognisable Australian company. Having Telstra join the team as our official ball partner will help us get more footballs out into European clubs and schools in 2018. The support shown by the team at Telstra is amazing and thanks to this new partnership we are one step closer to reaching our goal.”

“The accessibility of AFL footballs always a difficult obstacle to overcome in Europe, especially with the tough winter climate significantly reducing the lifespan of a football. Not only will this new partnership assist in making footballs more accessible to the community, they will also ensure top quality Footballs are used at major AFL tournaments like Champions League, the ANZAC Cup and the Euro Cup” he said.

Telstra’s Managing Director for EMEA, Tom Homer, echoed these sentiments saying  “both Telstra and the AFL are growing in Europe and it is exciting to extend the longstanding partnership we have in Australia to help get more people involved in the game across the continent”.

Interested in purchasing footballs for your local league, club or school?
 Please download the football order form.

 

Lauren Spark and the Bulldogs claim AFLW Flag

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Lauren Spark and the Western Bulldogs claim AFLW Flag

After eight weeks and thirty-three enthralling games of football, the curtain has closed on the 2018 AFLW season in spectacular fashion for former Wimbledon Hawks star Lauren Spark and her Western Bulldogs teammates.

Spark and the Daughters of the ‘Scray lifted the Premiership Cup after triumphing over the Brisbane Lions by six points, in what was an extremely tight contest from siren to siren on a rain-soaked Princes Park.

Credit: Wayne Ludbey – Twitter @WLudbey

The Melbourne weather made for tough conditions throughout the match and it certainly limited scoring opportunities, with the Lions registering the only goal in the first half as the Dogs were held to just one behind to halftime.

Not to be discouraged, The Dogs mounted a spirited surge after the main break which saw them boot three goals to Brisbane’s none in the third quarter, with Monique Conti, Ellie Blackburn & Emma Kearney staring up the ground as Lauren Spark did as she has done all season and held down fullback with aplomb.

Despite one final charge from the Lions that almost saw them steal the lead back in the dying stages, the Bulldogs held firm and registered a famous win, adding the AFLW Premiership Cup to a trophy cabinet at the Whitten Oval that is now receiving plenty of love after 50 years of neglect.

AFL Europe would like to congratulate Lauren, Phoebe McWilliams, Cora Staunton, Lauren Tesoriero, Laura Corrigan-Duryea & Kate Shierlaw who all flew the flag for Aussie Rules in Europe superbly throughout the 2018 season.

ANZAC Cup Player Spotlight – Priscilla Lodge

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ANZAC Cup Player Spotlight – Priscilla Lodge

On ANZAC Day 2018, the 10th annual ANZAC Cup between the men’s and women’s Australian Spirit sides and their French national team counterparts will be played to mark the 100th anniversary of the Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux. AFL Europe will be putting the spotlight on some of the players who will represent Australia each week in the lead-up to the game, highlighting their remarkable connections to the ANZAC’s and previewing an incredible event.

 

With extensive connections to Australia’s Armed Forces, there is no doubt that Priscilla Lodge will cherish the opportunity to represent the Australian spirit at this year’s ANZAC Cup at Villers-Bretonneux.

Ever since she was a young girl Priscilla has taken great pride in the ANZAC traditions, previously marching in the Melbourne ANZAC Parade with her Grandpa and WW2 veteran, Jack Hardy.

“Walking down St. Kilda Road towards the Shrine of Remembrance (that my great-grandfather and his brothers built) and seeing the crowds cheering, waving flags, and clapping are memories I cherish dearly. To have people yelling, ‘thank you’ at my Grandpa, and see his incredibly humble face shine with pride is a moment like no other.”

At the present, just three veterans are still alive from her grandfather’s Battalion. They still all proudly partake in the parade. Their arms always linked, and their smiles always glowing, as they approach The Shrine with family members walking proudly by their side.

Priscilla’s grandfather Jack Hardy is now 94 years of age, but his bond with his granddaughter is still as close as it’s ever been. His courage was shown not long after his 18th birthday, when he was assigned to the 57/60th Battalion, a part of the 3rd Division’s 15th Brigade.

In March 1943, Jack Hardy fought for Australia in Port Moresby to undertake defensive duties around the American Airbase at Tsilli Tsilli. His toughest challenge came after PNG, when as part of the 3rd Division, Jack headed to Bougainville to fight what was thought to be 17,500 Japanese soldiers. Whilst this was significantly incorrect, Jack and the Allies were aware of the treacherous attacks the Japanese could make around the mountains and rivers. In fact, it is recognised that conditions were so bad that patrolling operations had to stop come December 1944. It’s now known as a period of time where the Japanese capitalised their advantage and heavily attack the 3rd Division, before the unprecedented dropping of two atomic bombs ensured unconditional surrender.

When war was over and Jack was discharged on the 19th of March 1946, Priscilla’s grandfather had actively served in Australia for 675 days, internationally for 761 days and all up just shy of four years of days in total.

 

John (Jack) Hardy. Army Service Number V 310379.

 

Just as impressive as her maternal grandfather’s feats are the efforts of Priscilla’s paternal great-grandfather.

Lodge, one of four of his brothers to take his place at WW1, also has a remarkable story. After living in Hamilton in Western Victoria, Frank’s brother Gus landed on Gallipoli just after the 9th Battalion on the morning of the 25th of April 1915, as part of the 8th Battalion. At just 19 years old, he was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant and was the youngest officer in the Australia Imperial Force (AIF).

Months earlier and Frank was enlisted for service and departed Melbourne with the 22nd Battalion on the 10th of May 1915. Like his brother Gus, Frank was quickly promoted to Lance Corporal, where he played a large part in the Lone Pine defences prior to landing at Gallipoli himself. Here he was further promoted to Corporal in October 1915.

Priscilla’s paternal great-grandfather and great, great uncle then reunited in Alexandria, Egypt on the 14th of March 1916 and were soon transferred to the Western Front.

In July 1916, Gus and his fellow soldiers of the 1st Division were thrown amongst a battle now known as the ‘Battle of Pozières’. Knowing how significant the battle has become to WW1 history, Priscilla understandably has a deep knowledge of her family’s involvement in this battle.

“Gus played a critical role in the capture of Pozières and was awarded a Distinguished Service Order (DSO) for his actions. W.D. Joynt, VC. had just joined the 8th Battalion as a Lieutenant prior to the battle of Pozières and witnessed the actions of Gus Lodge, which he later described in his book “Breaking the Road for the Rest.” “What courage; I thought, and he (Gus) immediately became my hero.”

Possessing the same outstanding qualities as his brother, Frank soon found his way to the Battle of Pozieres where he and his Battalion were responsible for digging communication trenches running through Pozières. Together, Gus and Frank showed the utmost courage and resilience in a battle that saw Australia lose 23,000 men in less than seven weeks. At one stage, both brothers were placed in an army hospital after suffering serious gunshot wounds in this bloody affair.

Gus’s wounds made him unfit for further service as he was repatriated back to Australia in January 1917.

Frank carried on, making his way to the Western Front, partaking in four battles including then Battle of Villers-Bretonneux. Later, he was awarded both the Military Cross and Military Medal. He received the Military Cross recipient for his work around the area of Peronne and Mount St Quentin. He received the Military Medal for his work at the Battle of Pozières.

With their other brothers Richard and Jim enlisting during 1917, by the end of the year all four Lodge brothers were either in active service or on their way.

By July 1918, all four Lodge brothers at War were fighting on the Western Front. Between them, the four brothers provide unbroken service from the first landing at Gallipoli to the last battle in 1918.

By 1919, Frank, Gus, Richard and Jim were back in Australia continuing their father’s stonemason business ‘Lodge Brothers’, building many famous churches, spires and commercial buildings in the years that followed.

The story of Lodge brothers and her grandfather Jack is something that still remains very significant and important to Priscilla. It’s a story of courage, resilience and perseverance under times of genuine physical and mental pain.

Now based in London to pursue travel and work opportunities while playing footy for the Wandsworth Demons, Priscilla will always be grateful for the sacrifices made by her inspiring relatives. And the opportunity to play in the ANZAC Cup will be just another reminder of how fortunate she truly is.

“It would be an absolute honour to pull on the Green and Gold on 25th April in Villers-Bretonneux, particularly given the significance of the 100 Year anniversary of this battle, and represent Australia in my own right. I would cherish the opportunity to stand in a place where my own great-grandfather and his brothers fought so courageously for Australia; I truly am at a loss to describe what this would mean. I am searching for words to use other than proud but there honestly is no substitute.”

 

Linking arms, John (Jack) Hardy and his fellow men of the 3rd Division at the 2017 ANZAC Day Parade in Melbourne.

Will Taylor – AFL Europe

Stay across afleurope.org and AFL Europe social media channels for more news and build-up to ANZAC Cup 2018.

 

 

ANZAC Cup 2018 presented by AFL Europe and major partner National Australia Bank

Special thanks to the organising committee in France, Association Bretonvilloise d’Animation for their ongoing support of the ANZAC Cup

 

2018 Champions League Team Previews – Part Three

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2018 Champions League Team Previews – Part Three

In the lead-up to the 4th annual AFL Europe Champions League hosted by AFL Netherlands in Amsterdam on Saturday 7th April, afleurope.org will be taking a quick look at the teams who have qualified for the continents’ premier club tournament. 

In our next round of team previews, the Nottingham Scorpion’s and Port-Malmo Lynx are our feature sides from the female division, while we get insight from the men’s camps of the Greater Glasgow Giants & Styrian DownUnderDogs.

 

Women’s Competition:

NOTTINGHAM SCORPIONS

LAURA TURNER 

Tell us a bit about your pathway to qualifying for the 2018 Champions League with a quick recap of your 2017 season…

The Nottingham Scorpions women’s team was established in 2017. Previously a few keen women had been training with the men’s team so we decided to advertise and recruit to make a full women’s team. We did so and had great success being unbeaten in all friendly fixtures and winning the Haggis Cup. Many of the women made the long journey to London each week to play for the North London Lions as there were no women’s teams outside of London to play against. In 2018 we hope to change that and already have a number of fixtures arranged against university teams and London league teams.

What has your preparation for this year’s tournament been like?

The team achieved a lot in 2017 and many players participated in the International Cup in Melbourne and the Euro Cup in Bordeaux. We were keen to increase our squad base by attracting new players and that is exactly what we have done, many of the ‘old’ Scorpion players will not feature at the Champions League, instead, we have recruited new players from home and abroad. We had a very successful taster session in February and are still gaining new players every week.

What does your side coming to Amsterdam want to achieve in 2018

2018 for the Scorpions is all about progress, development and experience. We have quite a number of brand new players who need as much game and tournament experience as possible. It will be the first time ever that a women’s English team from outside London will have participated in the Champions League tournament which in itself is huge progress for the women’s game in England. Any goals, wins and good performances will be an absolute bonus for us.

Describe some players in your team that fans should keep an eye on at Champions League 2018.

The tough-tackling Sophie Morris has been hitting the gym hard and has been honing her physicality, which combined with her speed means she often catches players off guard and they underestimate her due to her stature and perfectly coiffured hair. Laura Park (Speedo) has gained valuable experience at the International Cup in summer 2017 and has swapped smashing Irn-Bru for smashing deadlifts in the gym. Her keen eye for goal makes her one to watch for the crumbs and cheeky soccer goals. Jo Scrimshaw’s dedication to training will serve her well in the competition, she has game sense and awareness to use the right tactics at the right time. Her off the ball efforts go unnoticed by some but not her Scorpion teammates.

What would you like the world to know about your football club? Are there any funny stories from last season or previous tournaments?

The Scorpions love to party as much as they love to play, some of the team will be AP preppin’ in the lead up to the event and you will spot the Scorps on the dancefloor no matter what the score!

PORT MALMÖ LYNX

RYAN DAVIDSON  – PORT MALMO COACH

Tell us a bit about your pathway to qualifying for the 2018 Champions League with a quick recap of your 2017 season…

2017 was a pretty quiet year for us as the only club team in Sweden so our year consisted mainly of internal matches and a handful of games in Denmark.

What has your preparation for this year’s tournament been like?

We train indoors regularly through winter, and while we are happy with our preparations a bit more match practice would have been nice.

What does your side coming to Amsterdam want to achieve in 2018

In Amsterdam, we just hope to put up a good fight. We have a number of players that will play their first match so we need to be realistic about our expectations. We also have lost a few experienced players that have gone to Australia to play and try and gain some experience there.

Describe some players in your team that fans should keep an eye on at Champions League 2018.

Malin Anderberg is a new player to look out for. She will debut in Amsterdam but is already showing positive signs after only a few months training with us. The ‘legend of the boom’ will also be back after her debut in Bordeaux, look out world!

What would you like the world to know about your football club? Are there any funny stories from last season or previous tournaments?

I’m just hoping that our captain will stay out of the first aid tent this time. She has a habit of throwing herself into the contest and doing some damage. Final words, eat bananas, kick bananas.

 

Men’s Competition:

GREATER GLASGOW GIANTS

DOUG MULLIKEN 

Tell us a bit about your pathway to qualifying for the 2018 Champions League with a quick recap of your 2017 season…

Despite having the potential to be a year of transition and consolidation with a new head coach and heavily revamped playing squad, 2017 ended up being the most successful year in the Greater Glasgow Giants’ short history. After making, and losing, the AFL Scotland Grand Final in both of the club’s first two years of existence, the 2017 Giants, under the guidance of first-year head coach Ross Thomson, not only finished the regular season top of the log but also managed to put their Grand Final day jitters behind them for good. With only four teams competing last year, the Scottish league was remarkably even; the Giants were the only team to secure an away win throughout the course of the season and that win, a 63-66 slog in a downpour against their city rivals, was ultimately what allowed the Giants to finish top and qualify directly for the Grand Final. The Giants started the Grand Final slowly but came on strong in the second half and secured the league title with a 18.11 119 – 11.11 77 victory over the Kingdom Kangaroos. Notable performers on the day were half-forward Keiran McRedmond, who tallied 6 goals, and ruckman Conor McGoran, who was named Best on Ground.

What has your preparation for this year’s tournament been like?

With many of the Giants players participating in other team sports during the AFL off-season, the twice-a-week training schedule the team ran over the spring and summer has been cut back to once-a-week for most of the winter. With the Champions League in mind, however, the club made the decision to move training indoors at the Emirates Arena, which has seen a notable uptick in numbers as compared to the outdoor sessions from previous winters.

What does your side coming to Amsterdam want to achieve in 2018

The excitement for the tournament is palpable amongst the squad, however, there are a few players who will not be able to attend due to extenuating circumstances such as injury or prior commitments. This is frustrating, but it is also the unavoidable reality of a club dedicated to amateur sport. Of those who will be in Amsterdam, keep an eye out for ruckman/midfielder James Reekie – despite being a recent convert to the game he has proven to be quite the natural – and club captain Michael “Gekko” Douglas, who is capable of bossing the game from midfield or half-forward.

Describe some players in your team that fans should keep an eye on at Champions League 2018.

On the field, the club’s main goals for the Champions League are to represent to the best of the squad’s abilities, gain experience against the best Europe has to offer and utilise those lessons over the course of the 2018 AFL Scotland season. Off the field, one of the Greater Glasgow Giants’ foundational principles is the belief that a sports club’s health is reflected as much by its social side as by its on-field results. With that in mind, the Giants will be heading to Amsterdam eager to interact with fellow AFL lovers from across the continent. A tip for anyone reading this: if at any point over the weekend you see someone wearing orange and black and talking with a Scottish accent, come introduce yourself. You won’t regret it!

STYRIAN DOWNUNDERDOGS 

MICHAEL JUD

Tell us a bit about your pathway to qualifying for the 2018 Champions League with a quick recap of your 2017 season…

Same as this year, our 2017 season started with the Champions League where we finished below our expectations due to unnecessary losses in the group stage. Since we are the only team in Austria, we compete in the CEAFL together with our friends from Croatia, Czech Republic and Italy, where two tournaments were held in Milan and Graz. We were able to integrate some new players into our team and made a good performance at the Euro Cup.

What has your preparation for this year’s tournament been like?

The weather was not in our favour this year – a long period of temperatures around minus 15 degrees, a thick blanket of snow and uncountable rainy days forced us to hold our training sessions in the public parks of Graz instead of on our two pitches. Further, we regularly train in an indoor facility called skills.lab, a hexagonally shaped hall equipped with HD projectors and laser scanners high-tech training system where ball control, handballs and kicks are precisely measured and are compared in real-time.

What does your side coming to Amsterdam want to achieve in 2018

First of all, we are looking forward to play against for us unknown teams and see how our game play works against them. Secondly, the tournament is a good start into the season and we want to use it as an extra motivation for the upcoming year. Last but not least, we want to fight as tough as possible for and against every point in order to receive the best result possible in every game.

Describe some players in your team that fans should keep an eye on at Champions League 2018.

We definitely have some players to watch, but our biggest strength is our team as a whole – every one of our players has an individual quality that is better then ones from the rest of the team, but the spirit, passion and toughness all of us bring on the pitch will help us to fight for every necessary centimetre.

What would you like the world to know about your football club? Are there any funny stories from last season or previous tournaments?

Memories from half of the holiday lost after a Euro Cup because of a concussion, partying until the morning with a broken ankle, hundreds of hours in cars with really bad music, thousands of empty beer cans – those are things a big family is about.

SEE PART ONE OF THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TEAM PREVIEWS HERE
SEE OUT PART ONE OF THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TEAM PREVIEWS HERE

AFLW – Round 7 Report

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AFLW – Round 6 Report

It came down to the final quarter of the final home and away game of the season, but the two teams contending the 2018 AFLW Grand Final have been decided, after a thrilling final weekend that perfectly encapsulated the evenness that typified the entire season.

The Western Bulldogs and Brisbane will fight out Saturday’s Grand Final after they came out on top of their respective do or die matches, with the Lions also having Collingwood to thank for causing another upset victory over the Crows to guarantee their place in the top two.

Lauren Spark will be the sole representative of AFL Europe in the big dance for the Bulldogs, after the seasons of Phoebe McWilliams, Cora Staunton, Lauren Tesoriero, Laura Corrigan-Duryea & Kate Shierlaw ended earlier than they would have liked over the weekend.

To watch the AFLW Grand Final and all opening round AFL matches live and on-demand this weekend, click here and enter the code AFLEUROPE10 to get 10% off your subscription!

Lauren Spark – #11 – Western Bulldogs – Formerly Wimbledon Hawks (2015/16)

The Dogs coughed up their chance to lock in a spot in the Grand Final last weekend but didn’t make the same mistake at the second time of asking, coming up trumps over Melbourne in a seesawing game at the Whitten Oval.

With the stakes as high as they can be in a regular season match, Spark was close to best afield in defence marking the dangerous Demon Tegan Cunningham, remarkably managing to keep her opponent completely stat-less whilst gathering eleven disposals of her own.

A strong breeze dictated much of the match early on but when Karen Paxman crucially became the first goalscorer against the wind just prior to half-time, the balance of power swung the Demons way. The second half was hotly contested and Emma Hoare’s goal in the final term to give the Dees the lead guaranteed it would go down to the dying stages, but at the moment the Dogs needed a hero it was Brook Lochland who responded with a snap that put her side ahead by two points.

The Bulldogs now have the advantage of staying in Melbourne for what is virtually a home final against the Lions at Princes Park, though their task has been made tougher by the suspension of star skipper Katie Brennan after her appeal was thrown out by the AFL tribunal overnight.

Laura Corrigan-Duryea – #11 – Melbourne Demons – Irish Banshees Co-Captain (2017 International Cup)

While Spark enjoyed the spoils of the weekend with her teammates, it was a tough result for the Melbourne Football Club and Laura Corrigan-Duryea, with her side missing a spot in the Grand Final only by percentage for a second straight year, rubbing salt into the wound after the men’s Demons also missed the finals on percentage in 2017.

Duryea didn’t feature for the Dees as the side was very gallant in defeat, with the star trio of Pearce, O’Dea, Paxman once again a huge presence on the game. Once again though, Melbourne will spend an off-season ruing what could have been.

Cora Staunton – #13 – Greater Western Sydney Giants – Recruited from GAA

It was Friday night heart-break for Cora Staunton and her GWS Giants as their highly anticipated match-up against the Brisbane Lions in Bankstown ended in a 40-point defeat.

Effectively needing only to win the game to book themselves a place in the Grand Final, the Giants were obliterated early by a rampaging Lions side led by Sabrina Frederick-Traub, who kicked three of her sides five first-quarter goals to the Giants one.

Staunton continued to display her growing prowess with the oval ball and hit the scoreboard once again, but she was powerless to stop Brisbane as they charged into a second consecutive AFLW Grand Final.

While the loss brings a close to the Giants season and Stauntons maiden voyage into Australian Rules Football, club officials are reportedly extremely keen to get the GAA legend back to Western Sydney for next season, which is sure to excite plenty of fans.

Phoebe McWilliams – #3 – Greater Western Sydney Giants – Formerly Wimbledon Hawks (2015)

Phoebe McWilliams was a shining light for the Giants at Centre Half Forward despite the defeat, gathering ten disposals and taking three strong marks, as well as providing the assist that saw Courtney Gumm kick the sides second goal of the game.

That stopped a run of seven unanswered goals the Lions and looked capable of sparking a mini-comeback when Cora Staunton goaled not long after, but it was too little too late for GWS, as Brisbane pushed on to an all-important percentage boost which ultimately proved crucial.

 

Lauren Tesoriero – #7 – Collingwood Magpies – Formerly Wandsworth Demons (2017)

Collingwood ended their season on a huge high with their 21-point win at Olympic Park, which ended the season of the reigning premiers Adelaide sooner than they would have liked.

The Crows had the better of the early going and looked like challenging Brisbane’s hold on the second Grand Final spot when they slotted four goals in a row, but for the second week running the Magpies were ferocious in their resolve and able to keep the margin in check.

Despite trailing by 11-points late in the third term, the Pies kicked two late goals prior to the final change through Christina Bernardi that became the straw that broke the camels back, as Adelaide struggled to contain Collingwood’s momentum in the final quarter.

Lauren Tesoriero was lively on the day with eight disposals and even got amongst the goals to give her side some breathing room late on in the piece.

While the win meant nothing more than pride for the Pies, it certainly meant plenty for the girls in Brisbane.

 

Kate Shierlaw – #25 – Carlton Blues – Formerly Wimbledon Hawks (2016)

Carlton have finished their season with a competitive loss across Nullarbor against the Dockers, with the home side claiming an eleven point victory to resign the Blues to bottom place on the ladder.

Kate Shierlaw did not feature in the Carlton lineup, though her teammates managed to put a scare up the Fremantle camp with a tough display that saw them lead throughout much of the match before being overrun in the final term.

It shapes to be a new look Carlton side in 2019 after coach Damien Keeping parted ways with the club, with injured skipper Bri Davey also said to be looking for greener pastures elsewhere.

 

To watch all the AFL and AFLW matches in 2018 live and on demand, click here and enter the code AFLEUROPE10 to get 10% off your subscription!

Sweden Country Report

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With the 2018 season fast approaching, we’re continuing to take a look at each of the countries in our AFL Europe community to get a snapshot of how Aussie Rules kicked off in their nation, some of their highlights, and some of their goals for 2018. Next up are Sweden, who have a rich history in footy and are looking to continue their growth in 2018. We got the inside word from AFL Sweden President Ryan Tucker. 

History of AFL in Sweden:

Footy has been around in Sweden since 1993 when a few likeminded people in southern Sweden, including Terry Lundqvist, founded the Helsingborg Saints to play in the DAFL (Danish League). In 2002 Helsingborg was split into 3 new teams comprising of the Port Malmö Maulers, Helsingborg West Raptors and the Lund Magpies. After 2005, the three Scania teams became feeders for the South Sweden Saints (changed name back to Helsingborg Saints in 2008), who competed in the DAFL Premier League and reached the 2005 Grand Final. Port Malmö and Helsingborg continue to compete in the Danish league today.

In 2003, the movement in Stockholm became organised and a team named Stockholm Dynamite was created. Shortly thereafter a Stockholm league was created consisting of Stockholm north and Stockholm south. Over the years the Stockholm league has continued to grow and at its peak in 2015 consisted of 5 teams and over 100 players. The Stockholm Dynamite is now a representative team made up of players from the active Stockholm teams. A defining moment in the history of footy in Sweden was the creation of a women’s league in southern Sweden and the creation of a women’s national team. Since inception, the women’s national team have made great inroads in European tournaments taking home medals from almost every tournament they have attended.

The men’s national side, the Swedish Elks

Snapshot of AFL in Sweden currently:

Sweden currently has around 200 players spread out over 8 teams. Of those 8 teams, 4 play in the Stockholm league, 2 play in the Danish league and 2 play predominantly exhibition matches. Footy has existed in some form in Sweden since the 1990’s and has continued to grow to its current form today. Sweden has a men’s and women’s national team that has competed at various European and International tournaments.

The current active clubs in Sweden are: Helsingborg Saints, Port Malmö Maulers+Lynx, Gothenburg Beserkers, Eksjö Bulldogs, Norrtälje Dockers, Solna Axemen, Södermalm Blues, Årsta Swans.

Highlights from AFL in Sweden in 2017:

2017 was a great year for the Swedish representative teams. 2 clubs and 3 teams competed at the Champions League in Amsterdam, whilst both the men and women’s national teams competed at the Euro Cup in Bordeaux, with the women’s team coming home with the bronze medal.

The women’s national team, the Ravens, are making a name for themselves in Europe

Goals for 2018:

The expansion of women’s football in Sweden and especially in Stockholm is a major goal in 2018. Both the men and women’s national teams will look to improve on their 2017 euro cup campaigns.

Player to watch:

Stina Nylinder joined Port Malmö Lynx in 2015 and has had an interesting Aussie rules journey so far. She rode her bicycle from Malmö in Sweden to Umag in Croatia for the Ravens first Euro Cup and in the process damaged her knee, but soldiered on anyway and played the tournament. She started her career in the forward line but has now developed into an amazing backline player and can even have a run in the middle. She was the first of two women to join the committee at her club in 2016 and is still there now in an important role. In general, she is an amazing human, a pleasure to coach and an important part of her team and club.

CHECK OUT AFL SWEDEN ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE INFORMATION

ANZAC Cup Player Spotlight – Daniel Tracey

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ANZAC Cup Player Spotlight – Daniel Tracey

On ANZAC Day 2018, the 10th annual ANZAC Cup between the men’s and women’s Australian Spirit sides and their French national team counterparts will be played to mark the 100th anniversary of the Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux. AFL Europe will be putting the spotlight on some of the players who will represent Australia each week in the lead-up to the game, highlighting their remarkable connections to the ANZAC’s and previewing an incredible event.

 

Growing up on Sydney’s Upper North Shore, Dan Tracey has always possessed a strong connection to both football and the ANZACs from a very young age.

As a junior, he was introduced to football through his father and the St Ives Junior AFL Club, where he played for eleven years to win just one glorious premiership. It remains Dan’s only premiership to date.

Until a few years before he began playing football, his father represented the Armed Forces for a stint that lasted 24 years in the Regular Army. From his training at the Royal Military College at Duntroon to reaching the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, Dan’s father spent two and a half years in Papua New Guinea where he trained and assisted the PNG Army.

Dan’s great-uncle Alexander Eason Ross was also a Duntroon graduate, serving 35 years in the Regular Army as an engineer and attaining the rank of Brigadier on the way. He fought in the Second World War and after its conclusion, Alexander used his training in helping construct the ANZAC Memorial Chapel at Duntroon.

But it wasn’t just his relatives that got involved in the ANZAC tradition.

His father’s and great uncle’s legacy led Dan to become involved himself during his high school days at Barker College. As a student heavily involved in the cadets, Dan thoroughly enjoyed his time learning and developing within the cadet unit.

“I was given the opportunity to take a leadership role a year earlier than normal, because there weren’t enough leaders in the year above, and I grew a lot from this. In my final year, I was CUO and second-in-command of the unit in the role of Training Officer. I got involved as much as I could – Adventure Training, skydiving, drill and skill competitions, playing in the Unit Regimental Band at ANZAC Day marches, and then instructing younger cadets at Adventure Training and leadership courses.”

Years later and Dan’s family still remains tightly linked to the Armed Forces.

His father’s passion for military history has led him to lead an average of three Kokoda treks a year, for the past ten years, with Adventure Kokoda. Dan joined him for his first trek in 2009, where he remembers his dad’s passion explaining the military and historical details of the Kokoda campaign to trekkers, many of which had family connections to the campaign. But as Dan explains, that’s not all his father has been up too since his time in the Armed Forces.

“Dad is currently commissioned by the Department of Defence to write the official history of the 2nd Division that fought in WW1. The 2nd Division fought at Villers-Bretonneux where three soldiers were awarded the Victoria Cross (Sergeant Walter Brown, VC (6 July 1918 Villers-Bretonneux), DCM, 20th Battalion, 5th Brigade; Lieutenant Albert Borella, VC (17/18 July 1918 Villers-Bretonneux), MM, 26th Battalion, 7th Brigade; Lieutenant Alfred Gaby, VC (8 August 1918 Villers-Bretonneux, Posthumous), 28th Battalion, 7th Brigade).”

Today you will find Dan still playing football and keen to remain in touch with the ANZAC tradition. Now thousands of miles away from the North Shore, Dan resides in Oxford and plays Australia’s game at the Oxford University Australian Rules Football Club. As the captain in 2016-17, Dan has continued to showcase his football talents on the AFL Europe stage. Needless to say, the former skipper of Oxford’s side is looking forward to participating in his first ANZAC Cup, a match he has heard so much about in the past.

“Two Oxford women who played in the ANZAC Cup last year spoke really highly of their experience, and this had me sold. In particular, they were blown away by the incredible gratefulness, generosity and warm welcome of the people in ‘V-B’, and the connections they made with host families, French players, and local school children. This goes to show how much the Australian soldiers’ sacrifice means to the people in ‘V-B’, even after 100 years – I can’t think of anything else like it. To meet these people and experience their gratefulness first-hand would be wonderful.”

Next month he will have the chance to meet these people at Villers-Bretonneux in a weekend that will mean much more than just another game of football for his family.

‘’Respect for our Armed Forces and a love of footy have always been big parts of our family and especially the relationship between Dad and I. We were together on the Kokoda Track and at the last two Swans premierships, and these were bonding moments. If I was involved in the ANZAC Cup match, Dad would be very much a part of it and proud on both the military and footy aspects – as would the rest of my family.’’

Will Taylor – AFL Europe

Stay across afleurope.org and AFL Europe social media channels for more news and build-up to ANZAC Cup 2018.

 

 

ANZAC Cup 2018 presented by AFL Europe and major partner National Australia Bank

Special thanks to the organising committee in France, Association Bretonvilloise d’Animation for their ongoing support of the ANZAC Cup

2018 Champions League Team Previews – Part Two

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In the lead-up to the 4th annual AFL Europe Champions League hosted by AFL Netherlands in Amsterdam on Saturday 7th April, afleurope.org will be taking a quick look at the teams who have qualified for the continents’ premier club tournament. 

In our second round of team previews, we showcase a new women’s side the Hamburg Dockers, who will become the first German women’s club to play in the Champions League, as well as the Odense Lionesses from Denmark before taking a look at three men’s teams in the West London Wildcats, the Lyon Lions and Croatian champions, the Sesvete Double Blues. 

Women’s Competition:

Hamburg Dockers

Lisa Wilson – Hamburg Women’s Coordinator

Tell us a bit about your pathway to qualifying for the 2018 Champions League with a quick recap of your 2017 season…

The Hamburg Dockers don’t have your usual story for qualifying for a competition. Though the men’s team and the AFLG men’s league have been around for years, only a handful of girls have attended training with no opportunity for games. This year, a campaign has been created to launch women’s football in Germany with the Champions League competition being a focal point for growth with the Hamburg Dockers being granted a spot. As women’s footy is so new here the team will be made up of females from the Clubs across the whole country including the Berlin Crocodiles, Munich Kangaroos, Frankfurt Redbacks and Württemburg Giants, with the only player currently not located in Germany a German native who plays for the Wandsworth Demons in London.

What has your preparation for this year’s tournament been like?

Preparations have been solely based around promotion of the sport and the building of the team as this will be the first ever German women’s Australian Football team to play in AFL Europe history. Therefore our aims will be to promote the name of Germany Women’s Australian Football, inspire other German girls and girls in Germany to try the game and also to give game experience to the girls who have been training with the men but haven’t had the opportunity to play a game.

What does your side coming to Amsterdam want to achieve in 2018?

Being a brand new team and name in the European Footy world we want to give an opportunity for all our players to shine at the competition. We will have a great mix of experienced players both Australian and German nationals and complete beginners who it will be their first game and will be looking to learn from our experienced players. We are also lucky to have Hamburg Dockers Vice President and Captain of the German Eagles Men’s Team, Florian Naumann as Head Coach of the team, he is working hard to grow the sport for women in his home country and will be looking to inspire all the girls at the tournament.

What would you like the world to know about your football club?

An unknown entity in the competition we are excited to represent Germany, play some football and get the ball rolling for Germany Women’s Footy in 2018. Hopefully, the Champions League competition will be the start of something great!

It will be a first for AFL in Germany when the Hamburg Dockers become the inaugural German women’s club to play at the Champions League.

Odense Lionesses

Amanda Teglhus – Team Manager

Tell us a bit about your pathway to qualifying for the 2018 Champions League with a quick recap of your 2017 season…

Our 2017 season came in continuation of our dwindling numbers of 2016. Despite that, our efforts were centred on helping in the development of Denmark’s second women’s team, Farum Wildcats. In this, Port Malmö Lynx was vital in providing good opposition, lending players out, game rescheduling… Our victories of that season came therefor off the back of a core of players, now amongst the most experienced in our region, our own guest players, and the young Wildcats players.

What has your preparation for this year’s tournament been like?

At the end of the season, we refocused our efforts inwards, and a couple successful recruiting events have almost brought our numbers back up to 9 a side standards. The harsh winter this year will result in us bringing a high number of first-gamers to the competition, but our indoors trainings intensity should show promising results nonetheless.

What does your side coming to Amsterdam want to achieve in 2018?

Such a high number of new players coming into the team at once, and changes in the club’s coaching structure, will take a toll on our team play; and teamplay is exactly were Head Coach Morten Merhøj has his focus in this 2018 pre-season. Champions League will be the occasion for us to observe what came out of the off-season and pre-season, as well as try out different positions for both new and experienced players. But don’t expect us at the bottom of the ladder crunching numbers all nerd-like, we’ll see each other in the finals!

What would you like the world to know about your football club?

For those who know us, there will be some known faces in our squad; like our cow-wrestler, our tireless panda-ruck and our German tackle-machine. Our new players also come in a variety of playstyles: power players with strength and courage not unlike our captain herself, speedsters like we’ve missed in the last couple of years and even a couple of tall girls hopefully boosting our marking game.

Men’s Competition:

West London Wildcats

Chad Sellenger – West London President

Tell us a bit about your pathway to qualifying for the 2018 Champions League with a quick recap of your 2017 season…

Our journey here started with the 2017 AFL Europe Champions League. It was a tough group stage last year and we managed to get our way into the final coming up a resilient and disciplined Amsterdam Devils side, but we managed to come away with a hard-fought win to leave as Champions and be able to come back to defend our title in 2018.

What has your preparation for this year’s tournament been like?

Being in London there is always a high turnover over players coming and going so we have lost a fair amount but also gained some really important players that will drive our team forward in 2018. Training has been cold and wet so far, hopefully, we can get some dry conditions on the day! We are always looking for ways to improve our game, coming back again we always know we need to go up another 50% if we want to win.

What does your side coming to Amsterdam want to achieve in 2018?

Coming over to Amsterdam is a big highlight for our players each year, it’s a chance to enjoy a really great city and play against some really tough competition from around Europe. We are hoping – like everyone – to come away as Champions in 2018 once again.

Who are some players in your team that fans should keep an eye on at Champions League 2018?

No doubt we will be relying on all 16 players to make a valuable contribution throughout the day to have a good chance at coming out on top so it’s hard to single anyone out. You can miss big Wazza out on the ground so you can keep an eye on him easily enough and there should be plenty of good craic floating about from our Irish contingency, so keep an ear out for those lads.

What would you like the world to know about your football club? Are there any funny stories from last season or previous tournaments?

Plenty of good stories that come from this trip including 4 missed flights home in 2015 and one lad self-saturating himself 3 times but none better than one involving Matty Ferg Bro. During a pitch move he had misplaced his Cons and was unable to locate them come the end the day, rather than stay at the hostel or buy a new pair he soldiered on with football boots on throughout Saturday night celebrations. With no Cons in sight the next day he was left with no choice but to fly back to London still wearing his football boots and socks on, much to the confusion of EasyJet stewards! Even better that his Cons turned up in the kit bag under a few jumpers.

Lyon Lions

Charles Bernigaud – Lyon President

Tell us a bit about your pathway to qualifying for the 2018 Champions League with a quick recap of your 2017 season…

After a difficult 2015/2016 season (2win and 6 Loss),  we get back to work with intentions to make much better. After the first win of the 2016/2017 season, we knew that we had something to work with. And we did, finishing as champions without losing any games in the season. It was just incredible, we feared no one and felt like we were indestructible.

What has your preparation for this year’s tournament been like?

No special preparation as we are actually playing the championship (French season is from October to may approximatively). So we are ready to play. We try to improve on how to use the ball the most efficiency. That’s very important to be sure to make the right choice every time you got the ball.

What does your side coming to Amsterdam want to achieve in 2018?

It is very new for us, of course, we are here to gain experience by facing the best teams in Europe, but we also here for the competition. Saying we got a winning chance will be foolish but I’m sure that we can compete with most of the team. I can just tell that my boys are really excited about playing in Amsterdam.

Who are some players in your team that fans should keep an eye on at Champions League 2018?

All my players deserve a look, but if I have to select 3 I would say Thibaut Picard, who is our captain for 2 seasons now and led the team to the title last season. He is a very clever and experienced midfielder and understands the game really well.

The second one is Pierre Napolean who played in the last International Cup in Melbourne after just his first season as a footy player and gained a lot with this experience. He’s a small forward who can also play in the middle when we need it, is a remarkable goal scorer on his day, we hope the 7th of April will be one of those days.

And the third one is Emmanuel Bessenay, he could look lazy on the field and is not the most devoted to the training, but he’s a strong pillar of the Lions, it’s his fourth season of footy and he’s improving a lot again. Strong defender who always makes the right choice, he can also make the projection on the field to score a goal from far.

But the sixteen lad’s will be playing at the Champions League deserve a look. We are a team, we win as a team, we lose as a team!

What would you like the world to know about your football club? Are there any funny stories from last season or previous tournaments?

I can say that we love shining on the field, but the most important for us is to shine even more in the 5th quarter. I think that’s one of the keys of our last season premiership!

The French champions are looking to announce themselves on the European stage – on and off-field

Sesvete Double Blues

Dejan Pavkovic – Sesvete Team Manager

Tell us a bit about your pathway to qualifying for the 2018 Champions League with a quick recap of your 2017 season…

Five clubs had been participating in Croatian league last season, with all 5 clubs really good teams and all of them had same starting position and possibility to win the league. So, at the start of the season we told ourselves that we’ll take one game at the time and then we’ll see where will that lead us. As we finished second in regular part of the season, the whole team started to believe that we have the best team in Croatia, and we prove that in semifinals and grand final. We played top quality footy and deservedly won the championship against a fantastic team and great friends from Cvjetno Dockers. Also, we won the Croatian cup and were second placed in Central European AFL, so that was a fantastic season for us.

What has your preparation for this year’s tournament been like?

Last season was really a long one, as we played many games on different fronts and many of our players participated in national team actions. That being said, we decided to give our players a long rest over winter. So, actually, we started preseason training sessions at the beginning of February with many of players going to the gym aside official training seasons.

What does your side coming to Amsterdam want to achieve in 2018?

As this is our first participation in a Champions League, we are going to Amsterdam to gain a lot of experience and to have some fun on the field. Our first and only goal is to play footy as good as we played it last season and if we manage to achieve that, we’ll see where will that lead us.

Who are some players in your team that fans should keep an eye on at Champions League 2018?

We like to say that our team is strong as the weakest link is and we are really working hard on team spirit and team harmony. We really believe that we are doing well only if the whole team work hard and every player knows what to do. Of course, every team has their star players. In Sesvete Double Blues those are unarguably Josip Motik, who had been the best player of the national team in Bordeaux or Mislav Karamatic as one of the best goalscorers last few seasons in Croatian league. There are also young players who can show what they worth like Josip Karadza or Marko Klisanin. Of course, there is one an only, our key to success, captain and team spirit Goran Pecikoza. But as I said, we are before all a team

What would you like the world to know about your football club? Are there any funny stories from last season or previous tournaments?

Fun fact: we are in serious considerations that we bring live alpaca on our next home game as our new mascot. Also, with it comes and a new name: Double Alpacas or Blue Alpacas.

The Sesvete Double Blues will be fierce competition for the rest of the men’s Champions League field.

 

CHECK OUT PART ONE OF THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TEAM PREVIEWS HERE

Croatia Country Report

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With the 2018 season fast approaching, we’re continuing to take a look at each of the countries in our AFL Europe community to get a snapshot of how Aussie Rules kicked off in their nation, some of their highlights, and some of their goals for 2018. Next up are champions of the 2017 CEAFL, Croatia. Check out what AFL Croatia President, Josip Kravar, had to say about AFL in Croatia:

 

What’s the history of AFL in Croatia?

Footy in Croatia started back in 2005 when Kolja Koračak started the first club with a couple of experts. After the Zagreb Hawks were the first club, we found new clubs mainly around capital city (Zagreb). In the first years we recruited students and that was a good move as they lifted this sport. During 2006 and 2007 the Croatian National Team was founded and they played in the CEAFL and 3 nations cup. The first appearance of the Knights on the big stage was at the 2008 Euro Cup in Prague where we ended second behind England. It was a good effort for a first try.

Years after, our league developed fast with new recruits especially from the sport faculty in Zagreb which reflected the Croatian Knights play and results. The Knights have been one of the best teams in Europe in 9-a-side (as it is our domestic game), winning Euro Cup 2 times and being runner up for a couple of times also. In the Croatian League, during the prime years of 2014-2015 we had 9 clubs (7 men and 2 women) but we found out that it is hard to maintain clubs that are 3-5 hour drive from all the other clubs.

Give us a snapshot of AFL in Croatia:

Now we have a steady number of 4 men’s clubs and one women’s club and we are doing very well. Back in 2013 we founded AAFC (Association of Australian Football of Croatia) which is today the governing body for all clubs in Croatia and holder of HLAN (Croatian Australian Football League). All our clubs have around 20 players which are 18-35 years old. We had a couple of younger boys but we didn’t develop the junior program due to problems with our facilities. Clubs in Zagreb who have most potential to start junior programs are still training without locker rooms and after we solve this problem we will be able to start the junior program.

The clubs in Croatia are the: Zagreb Hawks, Zagreb Cvjetno Dockers, Velika Gorica Bombers, Sesvete Double Blues.

All our clubs have good relationships with their older brother clubs and they are the Box Hill Hawks, Fremantle Dockers, Essendon Bombers and Sturt Double Blues.

What were some of the highlights of AFL in Croatia in 2017?

Highlights of 2017 for Croatia in the CEAFL (Central Australian Football League) are that we have Italy and Czech Republic back on track. This league was started by our friends from Graz and us, so that countries that have one club can have some kind of league. After a few years playing we managed to have our friends from Italy and Czech Republic join and we are lucky to have them. The Swiss team will join in 2018 and the CEAFL is moving forward with tournaments in Zagreb in June and Prague in September 2018. The CEAFL Champions were the Zagreb Cvjetno Dockers and the Croatian League champions were the Sesvete Double Blues. Sesvete stopped the Dockers after back to back wins in 2015 and 2016.

Also, Tomislav Cvetko, Zagreb Cvjetno Dockers forward and Croatian Knights captain went to play for Norwood FC in Adelaide. He is the second player after Josip Habljak that is playing in Australia and that is also another step forward for us. Josip is now back in Croatia and he is coaching the Zagreb Hawks and our goal is achieved. We now have more experienced and educated players who can bring knowledge and experience.

What are your top three goals for 2018? 

Our first goal is to gain new facilities in Zagreb. The Hawks and Dockers are playing on a rugby ground and the Knights also have a preparation camp there and that is not good enough. We want an oval with facilities and we will gain that from the city of Zagreb. We will try our best. Also, we have like every year a lot of activities and they include the recruitment of players, donation dinners, recruitment of volunteer students for marketing (we have them 5 that are working on social media) and National Sport TV game coverage (I think we are the only one after AFL to have that). It is a very good promotion tool.

We have plans to start a junior program and to invest more in women’s footy. We have one women’s club and we want to encourage other countries in the CEAFL to start women’s clubs and also encourage our own clubs to do so. Also we want to be the host (if we have all the requirements) of EC 2019 as we have experience of hosting 2 Euro Cups.

We will send our national teams (our women’s and men’s teams) to Cork and we will hope for the best. After the success on IC Cup 17, we had a very bad result in the 2017 Euro Cup in Bordeaux and the new coaches will have to work hard to bring our teams back on track. The AAFC committee are having extensive meetings every month and our main goal is to not just to make things work, but we want to build steady foundation for our sport starting with facilities, junior programs and then results.

We know that we know our job very well and we are very motivated to build a sustainable system. We always strive for 1st place and we always will, and along the way we’ll help all our friends as much as we can.

Who is a player to watch?

Josip Habljak is back from Australia and he will play for his former team (Zagreb Hawks). Josip Motik is last year’s MVP of the Croatian League and he is player to watch. We also need to mention that we will watch Tommy at Norwood and hope he will prove the quality of our school.