As Deborah Conway once crooned, “It’s only the beginning.” Who knows how far this story will go by the time it’s complete. The 2010 AFL Under 16 national championships is underway, having fired up in Blacktown across the weekend.
This year’s event is a bit different to the past. It’s got an unmistakable international flavour. The World XVIII and the South Pacific sides are having a crack at it.
The South Pacific side is drawn together from PNG, NZ, Fiji, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Samoa and Nauru.
The World team includes players from Canada, RSA, a single Dane, Ireland, China, Argentina amongst others plus some more recent arrivals in Australia representing Sudan, Lebanon, Iraq, Uganda and Kenya.
In their first match – charitably against each other on the weekend – the Pacific side fought hard to finally break away in the last quarter winning 7.12.54 to 3.4.22. Note, also in round 1, Qld knocked over NSW/ACT by 70 pts.
On Wednesday, the World team had a reality check, getting clobbered by Tasmania 15.18.108 to 3.1.19.
However, interestingly, the South Pacific lads put up a more than respectable effort against Queensland, going down 6.6.42 to 7.15.57. This result alone indicates there’s something here to work with.
This is only the beginning.
Interesting also that Peni Mahini and Simote Taunga, two young players from Tonga in the South Pacific team, are cousins of Issy Folau.
brisvegas
Guest
The final score line between the U16 Qld and the U21 Pacific side was not a true indication of who dominated the game. If Qld had kicked straight they would have blown Pacific off the park. No way known would Pacific match it against the traditional states, but they certainly would have hurt the bodies of those sides. The Pacific boys are from strong rugby countries and play a very hard body game that sometimes looks nothing like AFL. Very hard to play against when your getting smacked around the head from all angles from PNG 20 yr olds.
Beaver fever
Guest
Gee that was a flogging, Vic metro may be beaten, but usually the scoreline is far closer. Dockers need to get Bennell.
Beaver fever
Guest
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0Ct1eNANdQ Malcolm Blight kicking a 150 metre goal !!.
B.C. Queenslander.
Guest
When Blighty was coaching the Crows, many players used the "torp". It is a bit too hit and miss for teams these days with the possession style of game that is played. I would love to see it used more and i reckon the odd "droppy" should get some exposure on occassions.
B.C. Queenslander.
Guest
Republican, geez are you such a "glass half empty" type of person. So what if "in time Australia could well be internationally uncompetitive at their own code", that would mean that many others around the world have embraced it. England have invented nearly every sport know to mankind and are now uncompetitive at almost all of them, these same sports continue to flourish. If any country ever does beat Australia that will create more interest and more rivalry, the sport would benefit from this enormously, I can't see why you get so down on positive developements that are happening with our code internationally. Cheer up.
Republican
Guest
Michael Shinboners to beat Swannies I believe. Have a good weekend!
Republican
Guest
Michael A blank canvas and a big 12 months - maybe so but hey, the NSW/ACT mob have had a big 12 years or more. Crickey, they went close to beating WA earlier in the year I believe yet they were flogged by Qld who only scraped home v 'Pacifica'. Whats this tell us about Pacifica mate? Despite your attempts, I really can't fathom it at all. Cheers
Michael C
Roar Guru
yep - - on AFL.com.au, just in the Under 16s section. I don't quite have that much of a finger on the pulse!!! although annoying that my post got embedded all the way up here?......theRoar running a bit chunky at the moment??
Redb
Roar Guru
twitter?
Michael C
Roar Guru
Latest - todays WA defeated Vic Metro as per Kevin Sheehan : WA 19 7 121 d Vic m 6 7 43 : Chris Yarran kicked 7 goals in a brillant best on ground effort for the winners with Taylor also vg and just in Vic C win great game by 3 points but SA take out the Title with 2 wins and victory over WA the other team on 2 wins which gives SA their first ever title at Under 16s level.
Michael C
Roar Guru
how often have you, at your footy club over the years, had a 12 month stay uni student from England or USA for example, come down and be completely hopeless for the first few months but finally by about 2/3s thru the season, it starts to click and they at least aren't hopeless and then one day they get set up to score a goal and everyone goes mad in the crowd etc because of the good news story of it all, and they leave after 12 months having far from mastered the game......but, no longer hopeless. That's not a weakness of the game. And, how often have I seen that attempted with a super athlete??....I haven't. Is it easy to master elements of the game? of course, as, we DO KNOW that there are attributes that ARE transferable from other sports, so, in general the development coaches know the pros and cons for someone from a basketball background, or a rugby background, or a soccer background. A combination of those backgrounds mean more pros and less cons. That's not saying our game is easy to master - but, that our game, being so isolated, has had to develop an ability to facilitate 'conversions' more so, than for example soccer. That I'd think then has become a strength of our game. Again though - most 'converts' have been a little 1 or 2 dimensional,.......we're yet to see a 'convert' become a top class midfielder. So, just as it might be possible to convert some basketballers to netball and vice versa....would ALL roles be readily inter-changeable??
Redb
Roar Guru
yep its called a pathway. Good stuff.
Beaver fever
Guest
http://www.worldfootynews.com/article.php/20100708200116869 Great WFN article attempting to update what is happeneing in PNG, sounds like a lot going on.
Michael C
Roar Guru
there've been a handful of torps used this year, I know I saw Daniel Wells pump one forward for us a few weeks back that set up a goal for Edwards, Dustin Fletcher has a license to try, and a few others still attempt a torp style bomb out of defence,....most just mungrel. I DO reckon a good exponent of the torp can in part break down the zone, however, some of these guys like a Gilbee can drill a low trajectory 65m pass via the drop punt, so, why would you go the torp?? personally, I love the torp and had a pretty good technique (with a slightly different ball angle that permitted a straight leg extension and follow through rather than a bit of the 'controlled' slice that many fall into).
Redb
Roar Guru
so? lost millions since, poor crowds for years after...
Michael C
Roar Guru
I didn't mention NZ. I was talking about PNG - - and given that going back 30 odd years they were participating in Teal Cup and probably at that point might've been considered equal or above NT, I don't regard footy and PNG as some fly by night flash in the pan as you seem to. Yes - the game was pretty strong around 1870-1900 but progressively got chipped away. Personally - - I reckon it's great that PNG is finally getting traction and respect again. I reckon it was a tragedy that PNG go ignored, and Canberra got ignored. Can't we have them both?? Moving forward, let's just hope that 2 teams focussing on NSW and 2 teams focussing on QLD will be a good news story for an even broader sweep of the footy broom over the footy community. My main thing is that I'm just pleased to see serious works by AFL HQ in this domain - and clubs recognising just what can be done, but - - with a couple of AFL academies in NSW and one in PNG,.....WHERE'S THE CANBERRA ACADEMY??? btw - another learning thru auskick is that a lot of kids who play junior footy TOO soon and don't play Auskick (at least in conjunction) can miss out massively on skills development. You can get to age 12 or 13, having played for 5 years, reckon your dad taught you everything and sadly.....you're crap!!! 12 months with a talented and willing 'blank' canvas can be easier than 'unteaching' bad habits. In the case of many of these Pacific lads - - they've had a big 12 months with the inaugral Oceania Championships, and playing in the Oceania side in Cairns and preparing for this U16s tournament,......and, perhaps....just perhaps,.....some of these kids might just be super prospects. Perhaps Sheeds is licking his chops in anticipation?? at any rate.....can't we have it all???
Republican
Guest
Baz35 All your banging on about the imaprted skillset to our game does not change the fact that our code just might be very easy to master. The Pacific lads are testament to this since in some cases they have only been exposed to the game for less than a year, wheras the Ozzie sides have been exposed to the game most of their life. Rather than banging on I would say mine is a perfectly reasonable deduction that many who love our game as I indeed do - simply refuse to accept.
Republican
Guest
Bever Interesting that it is taught since I can't remember when I last saw it used in a game of fotty at any level, as with the drop kick. I tried doing a stab kick recently, nearly put myself 'in the hands of the trainers.' Cheers
Republican
Guest
Yeah right Michael - and its been played in NZ since when? Thats the hard sell I would expect from the international footy fraternity. The hyperbole being dished up re NZ is also astounding since they actaully only played our game for a very brief window in history post gold rush and almost without exception, it was patronised on and off the field by Ozzies and thats the long and short of it! You of all people should know that the game was very strong all the way to the Qld border and just beyond, right up until the early 1900's. Southern NSW has played the game for yonks and cannot be compared with any PNG or NZ type enclave experience. That analogy is really insulting to the game in regions i.e ours mate and seems to be the pitch many of your persuasion indulge in. The quality of footy played over time here cannot be compared with the PNG's or NZ's of the world and that's why i raise these concerns - how have they become competitive over night - relatively speaking? Again Michael I say to you we either have a serious pronblem in our grass roots or the game is simply a snack to master remebering that many of these Pacific lads have only been playing for a year compared to our Aussie kids who have been playing most of their life I dare say. I know the Chief Ed at WFN offers exactly the same hyperbole in his pushing of the international barrow - you probably know him.
Michael C
Roar Guru
RP - how much more 'alien' is Australian Football in PNG than it is in much of NSW and QLD?? Footy has been in PNG since WWII and variously over the years has been reported as being the number 1 sport or near to at given times. We also well know - - and if you've coached even just auskick - - that we well know that we can break down the fundamental skills sufficiently in a 'mechanical' sense - - - to teach to kids with half an ounce of co-ordination. If we - as coaches - couldn't do that, we would be wasting our time really!!! That kids in Tonga now get to see AFL on tele Friday, Sat and Sun and that young Peni as featured in one article - his dad is a development officer - - well, doesn't that encourage you......that the game is NO LONGER SO ALIEN. And that the development officers are at very least able to develop their own children!!!! The Pacific squad is 20-30 odd kids - - the PNG lads having been going at the game in many cases for many years. Some of the others - such as the lad from Solomon Islands and the lads from Fiji are very much more new to the game. However - - in the QLD and NSW squads - there WILL be similar 'speculative' selections of highly regarded 'athletes' relatively new to the game. Let's not go over the top here........the NSW and QLD squads are all under age. The Pacific squad isn't. Let's revisit this in a couple of years should a fair dinkum U16s Pacific team be dominant.....but, by then, hopefully ALL the kids will be off a more solid base to your satisfaction.