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Player of the Week – Coline Duquet

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Each week AFL Europe is profiling a European player and finding out how they got into the great game of Aussie Rules and a bit about themselves. If you’d like a profile or know of someone who would, then email admin@afleurope.org to receive a question sheet.

This week’s player profile is on French ruck, Coline Duquet. Coline first fell in love with the game of AFL on a study exchange in Sydney, Australia, where she played for the University side. She has been a member of the French national side for the past few years and this year represented France in both the AFL Europe Champions League and ANZAC Day clash in Villers-Bretonneux.

Coline picked up the nickname ‘Emu’ during her time in Australia and loves singing the French national anthem before her games for her country.

Well done Coline, best of luck for the rest of the season.

 

Name:

Coline Duquet

Club:

Paris Cockerels

Nationality:

French

What position do you play?

Ruck

AFL team you support:

GWS Giants

Favourite AFL player:

Jeremy Cameron

How did you find out about AFL?

I studied in Sydney, Australia for a year and played a season with UTS

How long have you been playing for?

3 years

What is your memory of your first Aussie Rules game?

It was a preseason game in Sydney, really warm weather. They put me in the midfield and I didn’t know what I was doing but I felt really welcomed in the team and knew I would love it.

Best AFL moment?

Singing the French anthem with the French national team

Any other interesting information, quirky stories or interesting things about yourself?

At a training session in Sydney, the coach said “don’t bend over like emu” which made me laugh very hard because it sounded so Australian. My nickname there was emu.

 

Updates on French Footy and French Cup now announced

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By Alban Schieber

The 2013/2014 season is now officially over in France. Here is a quick overview of the season:

It all started back in September when the Bordeaux Bombers organised with AFL Europe and the CNFA the 2013 Axios Euro Cup. During this tournament the French Coqs made history by reaching the Grand Final and beating Ireland for the first time (34-33). Unfortunately the players were a little short during the final against England Dragonslayers with the end result being 92-15.

The Axios Euro Cup was also a big event for French Women’s footy with the first ever French national team competing for the European Crown against girls coming from all over Europe in the Crusaders team.

Once AFL Europe and all the other teams had left Bordeaux and its wineries, the CNFA went back to work and the clubs as well. When the championship started, the Aix Marseille Dockers were unable to join anymore and were replaced by the ALFA Lions (Lyon).

Here is a summary of the whole championship won by the Toulouse Hawks (see story about the CNFA Grand Final here).

Resultats_CNFA

(Click on picture to enlarge)

In February the Hawks organised another competition, the annual South Cup. Running on the same format as most European Cups, all the teams competed in a seeding round in the morning before playing the finals in the afternoon. This year 6 teams competed including the Toulouse Hawks 1 & 2, Bordeaux Bombers, Montpellier Firesharks, ALFA Lions and the returning Perpignan Tigers. The Bordeaux Bombers won the 2014 South Cup defeating the Montpellier Firesharks in the Grand Final.

In April, France also had the chance to host the annual Topdeck ANZAC Cup held in Villers-Bretonneux where AFL Europe were involved. This year the Aussies came back with the strongest team so far and defeated the French Coqs. We can for sure say that all the boys who played had an unforgettable experience.

Unfortunately, this season didn’t see any French Cup as the CNFA decided that the French Cup will be played in september. “We want the French Cup to become the big start of all our coming seasons. It will be a good opportunity to meet the new clubs and new players and give everyone a chance to show that they can compete in the Championship. This will also allow the national coach to see all the players before every Axios Euro Cup and help him to make his final decision on the team!” said Thomas Urban, CNFA President.

CNFA is also proud to announce that the 2014 French Cup will be held in Bordeaux on September 21st.

1. The possible inclusion of  the Nancy Bobcats and the Pau Bears (new clubs in the process of formation)

2. The Perpignan Tigers will return before joining the 2014/2015 season

3. The ALFA Lions, Paris Cockerels, Strasbourg Kangaroos, Montpellier Firesharks, Toulouse Hawks, Cergy-Pontoise Coyotes and Bordeaux Bombers will once again be there to ensure one of the biggest French Cups.

French clubs

Last but not least, CNFA worked with a communication agency called Bleue Com Une Orange which was in charge of developing our sponsors programs and our social media. This also helped us to reorganise new processes and give a better picture of our sport in France.

Now we are focusing on the IC14 where we hope to offer a good image of our footy and show the world our improvement.

#coqsweek #IC14 #gofooty

French Team Player Profiles

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 Name: Jérome Canonici

Cano

Age: 31

Size: 1.80 m

Team: Firesharks Herault Montpellier club

Jersey number: I don’t have a specific one, sometimes 82

Position: Usually in defense

Why and when I started playing: I started in 2008. I wanted to discover another sport, but I also wanted to keep an oval ball.

Expectations for IC: Qualifying for the first group and going as far as possible in the competition

Best footy memory: This season, for the team spirit and the determination and will power of our group.

 

 

 Name: Thomas Depondt

Depondt

Age: 25

Size: 1.87 m

Team: Alfa Lions (Lyon)

Jersey Number: 3

Position: Ruckman

Why and when I started playing: I tried for the first time during my travel around Australia. We worked in a farm close to Port Lincoln (SA), and the farmer was an old footy player still following footy, his passion. So we played one game and we loved that, so we played the end of the season (6 games).

Best Footy Memory: Supporting the Bombers, we went to Patterson stadium in Perth to watch this big contest against the Dockers. That was an exciting game and my first time at a big stadium for an AFL game. In the end the Bombers won by 3 points.

 

 

 Name : Clément Coste

Coste

Age: 29

Size: 1.93 m

Team : Montréal Demons (Québec, Canada)

Jersey Number : Demons = 6 ; France = 26

Position : Ruck

Why and when I started playing: Like many Frenchmen, a trip in Australia in 2009, allowed me to discover footy through television.

I had the privilege of playing 3 matches with the Bordeaux bombers where I secured 3 victories against Paris, Strasbourg and Toulouse as a ruck man. In Quebec Canada, I played with the Montreal Demons right at the beginning of the 2013 season. Elected best on ground on the 4th round of the AFL Quebec; I made the 2013 all stars team.

This sport is extremely complete physically. It offers me the possibility of practicing a sport without any stoppage, be constantly in the air and on the ground and be ready to take a hit and tackle again in return. Australian Football allows me to constantly run every quarter and to give the maximum of my abilities

Expectations for IC: In 2014, and more precisely August, I will be having the honour of representing my country and the privilege of sharing a brotherly moment among 30 people. I want France to be represented by 18 players on the pitch that want to give their all with a heart on fire. My objective is to bring to France everything it can take out of me.

Best Footy Memory: My 3rd footy game: Against Toulouse, in December 2012 with the Bordeaux team, we delivered a complete game and we left with our head held high with a beautiful victory.

#IC14 #coqsweek #gofooty

Toulouse Hawks undefeated French Champions!

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By Alban Schieber

The 2014 French Championship ended on June 14th with a wonderful Grand Final held in Toulouse at the Australian Summer Party organised by the Toulouse Hawks.

Before even knowing if they would play in the Grand Final, it was already determined that the Hawks would be the hosts. After a few weeks of brainstorming, they decided to play another card to attract people to the event.

The Australian Summer Party, DJ, BBQ, drinks, games, goodies and of course footy were on the program. “The idea was to have more than traditional fans for the game! And also more ladies!” said Emilien Martinez (Toulouse Hawks President).

After turning on the music and the beer tap, the afternoon started with a women’s footy game where the ladies of France came to play together in two sides called the Toulouse Hawks and the Toulouse Cockerelles (most of the girls coming from Toulouse and Paris). A great achievement to hold the first official 7-a-side French women’s game.

Most of the early crowd was really surprised to see the level of this game as the girls were putting so much intensity and passion in the game. “Handpasses, kicks, shepherds, goals, high marks, their skills set improved a lot since the Axios Euro Cup held in Bordeaux” said Pascal Ivorra the French Women’s Coach.

This was a great first step for women’s footy development. This game also helped him to see all the ladies before the 2014 Axios Euro Cup which will take place in London in October.

During the ladies curtain raiser game, the temperature kept on rising in the grandstand when the two men’s teams entered the change rooms to begin their pre game preparations.

The Hawks were the first ones to come out in front of a 500-600 people crowd followed by the Paris Cockerels for a remake of last year’s title.

Pat Douglas from Andorra came to umpire the game and was delighted to be part of the event.

The Cockerels were the first ones to put their hands on the ball scoring three behinds in a row within the two first minutes. Unfortunately, they were unable to score goals to make a small break. After a good play of handpasses, the Toulouse Hawks scored the first goal of the game after 5 minutes! Quickly followed by a second and third one. At quarter time the Hawks held the lead at 38 to 12.

In the second quarter  the Paris Cockerels seemed to have found their sight for the footy but not the precision. The Hawks on the other hand remained accurate and kept increasing their margin. At half time Toulouse lead 62-23.

The third quarter demonstrated the ability of Toulouse to play as a team while Paris got caught out kicking long bombs and hoping for individuals performance. 101-36.

In the last quarter Toulouse managed to capitalise on the situation and control the game. However the Cockerels began a late surge scoring consecutive goals but it was too late. The Hawks came away as champions on the day with the final score of 104-62.


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French Ladies

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Paris Cockerels vs Toulouse Hawks