Saints set to take AFL to NZ

Well that's 348 people interested. Seriously I wish them well but I sence that only St Kilda will make any money.

Cat, Check out the poll results in the article (grins)

More from the Dominion Post: http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/sport/7026554/AFL-aims-at-sell-out-for-Anzac-Day-game Aiming to make the game a sell-out. Positive comments.

Looks like the idea has legs.

Very exciting for those of us who love our Aussie Footy!

This project in now in final stages of discussions - A yes decision in 2 weeks it seems. Two AFL events staff to inspect the facilties in next few days and make final recomendations. Some major points thrashed out --- St Kilda will play preseason game early next year at Westpac Stadium in Wellington as a tune up for Anzac Day. St Kilda will play Anzac Day game for competition points at Westpac - It will be played AFTER the MCG game and will be the first for regular points outside of Australia. After that it will be held every year. Opponent not known at this time. From 2014 one regular season match at least in addition to above will be held featuring St Kilda. The AFL will send fulltime 3 development officers to Wellington to work in the schools and community - Probably AFL at first then locals I would think - After all they are good jobs for the right people. The organisers have the 2015 100 year Anzac Day event on their mind - They think that event will be pretty big in Wellington anyhow and hope to add this project to the days commemorations. I have detected a subtle change in attitude from the AFL (Tony Woods) to International footy - He is saying the game is entrenched now and is now ready to move offshore and NZ is the start. Late news on another topic -- Andrew Demitriou is reported in the media as saying - The AFL wiil include an AFL Channel in the next TV deal through their AFL Media setup.

wow, haven't had a peak at this website in over a year. You guys still having a peeing contest!!! Redb, you must be the last of the originals. What happened to MichealC???? Are they still letting Republican slag NZ??

Papers past is well worth a look and gives a great insight. I'd recommended anyone to put in simple search terms and find out for themselves public opinion of the day. I never knew that victorian rules teams played rugby as late as 1879 and that the common perception was that victorian rules was a derivation of rugby.

Thanks for that. If only those half witted victorians had listened to him. We may have been spared the atrocity that is Australian gaelic football.

Cat, I know this may seem a long bow to draw but eventually there will be enough NZ origin players of a good "AFL" standard to put a NZ Origin team together. The big question is who will they play - I have no idea at present but an Aussie team of some sort will be available as time goes by so as to make a decent contest. The match played in January in Wellington revealed the hodge podge NZ team currently could not handle an U18 Elite AIS squad so there is a way to go. One thing is for certain the Senior Footy Women in Australia will be playing an fully fledged International Senior squad long before the men.

A couple of footballers of Maori background made the news on the weekend. Marley Williams had a pretty good debut with Collingwood in their important win against Adelaide, while VFL rep, Khan Haretuku was amongst the best for the VFL vs TFL. Khan has an interesting story, he's from Sydney and learned his footy there. He was picked up as a NSW scholarship player, but was't selected in the draft, and then moved to Melbourne to play in the VFL and give himself a chance to be recruited as a mature age rookie. These are precisely the sorts of stories we want to see more of.

So its OK for the Pheonix to play at the stadium but not some unwanted foreign game! Last time I looked the Phoenix played in an Australian league too.

I think this is a good move for footy and for St. Kilda they clearly need another source of revenue and a home away from home could be it. Theres not many viable places in Australia left. North to Hobart, Hawks in Launceston, Bulldogs, Melbourne and Port Adelaide in Darwin, Giants in Canberra, Tigers in Cairns. Theres maybe Newcastle/Central Coast, Townsville and Bunbury left, even they are questionable. It looks like it'll be between saints and Giants to see who hosts the very first AFL game overseas. Giants and Sheedy wont be easybeats, they're looking to China.

at this time of year they're both cold, wet and windy.

Its an expirement and good on them for testing international expansion. the AFL is looking 50-100 years into the future and doesn't expect short-mid term success. It starts with baby steps and that is what this is. Swans v Saints on Anzac Day in NZ is a great idea.

Tony - New Zealand has 320,000 registered Rugby players from a population of 4.5 million - So its highly possible that Sydney alone could make up 300,000 rugby league players? Anyway this argument is about a monoculture sport in Australia trying to strip mine my home city of its rate payers hard earned wages, while at the same time trying to further hijack the name of ANZAC in some sort of cynical promo fill up.

Anatomy.......many organs of the body are used to make a complete athlete, that is true.

The height doesn't help, but don't forget to mention that your missing an important part of the anatamy.

Probably true, I am under 180cm and co-ordinated.

titus I honestly doubt you were suited to it.