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UCC Bombers Team Preview – Fitzpatrick Cup 2017

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In the lead up to the 2017 Fitzpatrick Cup to be held in Cork, Ireland on the 4th February we’ll be taking a look at each side attending the annual universities tournament. We’re kicking off the team previews with the host University men’s side, the University College Cork Bombers.

The Bombers will be looking to impress in front of a home crowd and regain the ‘Fitz’ after missing out at the past two tournaments.

What has happened since the last Fitzpatrick Cup?
Another season, another Fitzpatrick Cup. Since last year’s competition the Bombers have had a successful year on the field, winning their first Rebel Shield and having players in their ranks selected for National Teams. This year, the Bombers kicked off the year in typical fashion, with a BLAST, beating the current ARFLI Premiership winners, the Leeside Lions, in the first round of the Rebel Shield. The Bombers have drawn high numbers of players to training this year, pushing one another to improve week on week. This year the Bombers have had a high turnover of players, and a whole host of new players are eager to go one step further than last year.

Fitzpatrick Cup history
– Inaugural winners of the Fitzpatrick Cup 2013.
– Runners-Up 2015 & 2016

Players to watch
With the Leeside Lions being the current ARFLI Premiership winners it’s safe to say footy has taken off on Leeside. The Bombers provided a number of players who went on to play for the Lions, with the likes of James “Enzo” O’Callaghan and Jack Kelleher having gained valuable experience competing against footballers who have been playing the game for a number of years.

A number of Bombers have gone on to represent the Irish Warriors over the past 12 months, with the likes of Peter Traynor, Rory O’Donnell, Paul Murphy, Matt Bell, Oisín Collins and Ronan Sheehan all given the opportunity to represent their country.

While the Bombers have an exciting crop of new players, providing the team with new and fresh ideas, players like Shane O’Sullivan, James Galvin, and Conor Beasley are just a few of the new players the Bombers have on board this year. You mix this in with the Bombers that have Fitzpatrick Cup experience like Evan O’Connor, Dean Johnson and Joe Maguire, and I think it’s safe to say the Bombers go into this year’s Fitzpatrick Cup full of hope and expectation.

So who’s in charge?
Yet again the Bombers are led by the Lions double act of Eoin O Súilleabháin and Chris O’Brien. Eoin has represented the Irish Warriors over a number of years and has won it all as a player. Now he hopes to replicate that success as a manger. Chris O’Brien was the figurehead behind the Leeside Lions’ march to an undefeated ARFLI season and Premiership crown, all in his first year in charge. He too will be hoping continue this success going forward with the college.

Interview with Eoin O Súilleabháin – Head Coach of UCC Bombers

Aims for the tournament?

“Our aims are to win it. No point in beating around the bush, it’s what we’re all aiming for. To be European Inter-varsities Champions.

On top of that, we also want to host a great tournament. The Fitzpatrick Cup is fast becoming one of the biggest events on the AFL Europe calendar, and we want to push on and make this year’s installment the best yet.”

Which players have the X-factor?

“It’s always tough to pick out individual players from a list. In UCC we have a high turnover of players, through graduation, impact of other sports, etc. so we essentially have a new crop each September, boosted by a few players with a year or twos experience. It’s an exciting prospect, and when you see their natural talent on show, you just need to guide them along.

We have a few in our list that have had call ups to the National Team, and some GAA and rugby converts that have taken to the game well, so it’ll be interesting to see how they perform.”

How have the preparations been going?

“Preparations have been going well on the whole. ARFLI have introduced a Winter Championship that has us playing regular footy, and we had the first leg of The Rebel Shield recently which was another opportunity to get a run out. Although neither were a 9s format, we’ve been focusing on that at training. Numbers have been great, application and effort the same, so hopefully it will all come together.”

What are the main attributes of your team?

“It’s tough to pick specific attributes when we haven’t played fully as a team yet, but the intensity of some of our guys for the footy is amazing.  The boys go whole-heatedly for the ball, take knocks and bumps, and just get on with it.
That, coupled with a few good legs and big grabs, it helps to get a good footing in a game.”

Around the Grounds

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AFL Canada making the trip over the Atlantic in 2017!

AFL Europe and AFL Canada announced plans for the men’s and women’s Canadian Development teams to travel to London in May 2017. Both tournaments will be taking place from the 19th to 21st of May with a round robin fixture set in place.

To read more about the tournament click through the link below.

AFL Canada comes to London!

Coyotes sit atop the CNFA ladder

The CNFA ladder is starting to take shape. Following the weekends fixtures, the Cergy-Pointoise Coyotes are sitting on top for the 2016/17 season. The ASP Tigers have jumped into second position in front of the ALFA Lions who are in third with a game in hand. The Bordeaux Bombers have played 4 games and round out the top-four places. The two Parisian sides are yet to hit their straps but are in 5th and 6th  as the Toulouse Hawks and new-comers, the Blagnac Aviators, are battling it out for the wooden spoon.

The next few rounds before Christmas are incredibly important for setting up sides 2nd half of the year and will go a long way to determining the make-up of the top 4.

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AFL Europe Footy Show kicks off! AFL Europe Footy Show kicks off! AFL Europe Footy Show kicks off!

Monday night was the first instalment of the AFL Europe Footy Show after a 2-year hiatus. Despite a few technical issues and an annoying echo, we were able to put together a 45-minute show full of entertainment. Special guest, Oliver Howard, discussed his aims and objectives as the new Chairman along with general discussions on all things footy.

Improvements to the quality of the stream (and the general presenting) will occur over the course of the first few shows. Massive thanks to everyone who tuned in. We’ll announce when the next show is scheduled well in advance.

If you’d like to listen to the recording from the first show, click through the link below.

AFL Europe Footy Show – Listen Here

 

Old vs New: Alumni take the win over the Students at UoB

It was a battle between old and new at the weekend for the University of Birmingham Aussie Rules Football Club. And it was the old boys who had the last laugh against the current students in their annual hit-out. A great initiative by the team at UoB keeping their alumni in the mix with all things Aussie Rules at the Uni. The final score in the match was 137 to 95 in favour of the Alumni.

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New President in the DAFL

The Danish Australian Football League (DAFL) will be under the guidance of a new president in 2017. Thore Lauritzen was elected to take over the job from Simon Malone after his 2 years of great service. Thore has been an integral member in the DAFL community over a number of years. He is the captain of the national side, coach of the Farum Cats as well as being crowned best afield in this year’s DAFL Grand Final.

Congratulations on the appointment Thore and all the best in your new role.

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1st Round of the Rebel Shield goes to the Bombers

The first leg of the Rebel Shield took place on Friday evening at Mardyke Arena in Cork. It was the students, the UCC Bombers, who claimed the spoils over their cousins, the Leeside Lions. The hit-out was great prep for the Bombers who are gearing up for the upcoming Fitzpatrick Cup in early 2017.

The Lions will also take valuable match practice from the game as they look for a serious assault on the 2017 Champions League in April next year.

The return fixture should be hotly contested between these two clubs with the difference not too great to overcome for the Lions.

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International Rules set for two-test hit out in 2017

After a year off, the International Rules series between the AFL and GAA has been set for November 2017. Following the two one-off tests in 2014 and 2015, the 2017 instalment will feature a two-test series at yet to be determined venues.

Australia will play host to the series and will present a side made up entirely of All-Australian players, as has been the case in the previous two series.

Check out the full press release from the Official AFL website.

http://www.afl.com.au/news/2016-11-22/international-rules-series-returns-with-australia-to-host-two-tests

Around the Grounds

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AFL Umpires stop in for a chat

Last night a handful of the AFL Umpiring squad gave up their time whilst on tour to sit down and have a chat about all things umpiring with several our current AFL Europe Umpiring team.

The boys shared stories of how they got into officiating the game and provided a great insight into some of the challenges they face in the recruitment and retention of high quality umpires. A massive thank you must go out to Shane Hill, Head of Umpiring, for arranging the get-together.

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L-R: Hayden Charles, Gary Gila, Matt Stevic, Chris Goodman, Shane Hill, Ian Kafka, Jordan Bannister, Steve McInerney, Shaun Ryan, Josh Davey

Stay tuned on the www.afleurope.org for information on umpiring courses being held here in England in the new year.

 

Can you top the TruChallenge?

I’m sure that by now you’ve noticed the GB Swans and their TruChallenge taking over social media. If you think you and your club can top the ‘flick and kick’ challenge, then follow the link and post your video on Facebook. Be sure to tag AFL Europe!

https://www.truchallenge.co.uk/v/bGPMLb

 

ARFLI 7s kicks off

The first ARFLI 7s session was held over the weekend with 3 teams contesting the reduced format game. The County Lions, City Lions and UCC Bombers took part in the inaugural tournament in what was a great success.

ARFLI will be running several sessions around the country throughout the winter months. The full results from the first session are as follows:

County Lions 6.6.6. 102 to UCC Bombers 3.10.7. 97

City Lions 6.8.5. 113 to UCC Bombers 2.6.6. 62

City Lions 5.12.7. 129 to County Lions 7.5.11. 111

 

UoB and Oxford battle it out in a thriller

The boys from the University of Birmingham clinched a thrilling 3-point victory over rivals, Oxford University, in an incredible display of Aussie Rules.

Testing conditions didn’t stop the intensity of the match with a supremely competitive contest experienced throughout. A strong Oxford side were unrelenting in their pressure and they’ve set the scene for a big year of university football.

In the women’s match, the Oxford girls proved too strong for their opponents. Both matches were played in great spirit with massive congratulations to all players involved. We’re looking forward to the return fixture between these two university football powerhouses.

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Talent Combine uncovers stars of the future

The 6th AFL Europe Talent Combine was held at the weekend under the watchful eye of the AFL’s International Talent Manager, Tadhg Kennelly. 23 boys from Ireland and France were selected to attend the combine and were put through a range of fitness and skills tests over the course of the weekend.

Massive congratulations to all the boys who tested as well as their parents for attending the information session on the Saturday afternoon. Tadhg and his team ran another smooth combine and will have a very tough decision to make when selecting the boys to take part in the AFL AIS Tour of Florida next year.

Read our full Combine review below:

http://afleurope.org/afl-europe-talent-combine-review/