So you have an opportunity to play a code of football at the highest level and yet you have so many questions.
Well, you can be expected to run a half marathon over the course of the game, play on a field that is twice as long and three times wider than any NFL field has to offer and yet has more in common with basketball than American football.
You’ll require a nutritionist simply to get you through the game and a heightened level of awareness, as no offside rule exists.
Scoring is the most frenetic of all of the football codes that any country has to offer. Time outs only occur when players are removed from the field by a stretcher and the crowd only ever dares to leave their seat at the end of each quarter break. The one fact that you have the most trouble with is the size of the playing field. You will take photos and tweet about it. It’s just enormous.
The vast majority of the 310 million born and bred sporting mad people that populate your country have never heard of this code and not one of them has played at the top level.
Of the 229,000 people that populate your home city, not one person you know has ever heard of it, with YouTube your only friend.
And yet it has been around since 1858. To the Americans who have no idea, they will call it rugby. To those who know a little, they will call it Aussie rules. To Australians, it’s simply known as footy.
While the five years of college have been good to you, things haven’t gone the way you expected.
But opportunity often comes disguised in the form of misfortune, or temporary defeat.
So when your agent calls with this bizarre opportunity you grab it with both hands. A corporate job and the life as Mr nine to five will be there for life but this small window to create history and become the first American to do so is yours for the taking.
This is the true story of a 24-year-old American by the name of Eric Wallace. Today it become official, he is now in the hot seat to become the first born and bred American to play in the Australian Football League.
The North Melbourne football club have provided him with this opportunity. Finally, the Roos have stepped up to take on the role of building an international recruit. If Eric had been drafted by the Sydney Swans his debut would have been a formality.
If I had to choose one other club that is capable of making this work, I would have said the Kangaroos. I say this for two reasons. First, Eric is already patient, honest, fair and loyal. This is the shinboner spirit and is what the Kangaroos expect of their players.
This is a fantastic fit and will be an awesome story. Secondly, Brad Scott is a no nonsense coach who wouldn’t take on a player unless he knew it was going to work. Already it has given the Kangaroos a lot of publicity and once Eric plays his first senior game, I have no doubt the jumpers will be flying off the shelf in the USA and it will increase the North Melbourne global fan-base.
And finally, Eric becoming the first American to do something, there will have to be a movie about it at some stage. I’m not sure who would play Eric, but I’m thinking Tom Cruise with some shoe lifts would be a good fit for Brad Scott.
To Eric I say good luck mate. If they don’t make a movie about you, you may just open the flood gates for more young basketballers who want a different path.
Start a kicking program for American High Schoolers, you could make a fortune.
Bondy
Guest
I've been involved with the sport for over thirty years and have never genuinely heared it called footy ever,soccer that is. The only issue I have is why just one American to play afl,that didnt make a great deal of sense,surely 4-6 of them would've been suffice. Off topic for a sec I notice the National Rifle Association since the massacre of 26 people 20 children murdered in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings ,memberships to the Rifle Assoc have increased 25,000 since the shooter went bezerk ,just charming isnt it.
TW
Guest
Great news for our international game. There will be more young ex Rugby guys from NZ getting involved as they see their All Blacks dreams fade and a professional career in another sport beckons if they can make it. Shem is a big unit and appears to be mobile and models himself on Buddy Franklin and the real good news is he was spotted in the AFL`s South Pacific Talent program. It doesnt seem to bother both of these players that they are not involved in an international sport like Soccer football and Rugby(Well they are now sort of as Australia is a "foreign" country to them) Its all good.
Brewski
Guest
Hawthorn will sign another Kiwi up to it's rookie list, Shem Tatupu, son of RL club NZ Warriors Tony. Film clip with link as well if interested. http://www.worldfootynews.com/article.php/20130110144420839 Sounds like Hawthorn will do very well out of NZ, and NZ will do well out of Hawthorn.
Jack
Guest
I agree that they should be counted as participant players in SA, PNG, NZ etc but I think the entire future of the AFL (if it wants to grow) rests on it expand into new markets. The Roos need more members and they aint getting them at home unless it relocates which it doesnt want to do and thats fine. The AFL receives money for TV rights so if people in these other countries want to see the game the AFL make money and continue growing and the Roos have a crack at getting a piece of that pie, good on them for trying. They all want the cash and that's been proven beyond doubt eg compromised draw, compromised salary cap, fixturing for maximum TV exposure, and especially finals fixturing. VFL is AFL and one day there will be an IFL Cup which the Aussies will win for the next 50-100 years. Maybe in 150 years there will be enough top international players in the local AFL comp that play for their home country that can give us a run for their money. Wouldn't that be great! It's pure economics and the game has to keep expanding or it will become irrelevant and stagnate. 150 years is a long time ie 1863 for us! Let the game expand I say and let's encourage these international guys. The 'potential' upside does outweigh the downside IMO. This is a multi-generational strategy and I support it and accept there will be mistakes made and money wasted as it's pioneering and I love the good old pioneers!
Jack
Guest
Ditto
Jack
Guest
The correct formula (if the raw numbers are correct) is - 450,000 / 756 = 1 in every 13,608 players go on to play AFL in any given year. My assumption is 450k players with each AFL team having 42 players. 42 players x 18 teams = 756 AFL players per season. So you've got a 1 in 13,608 chance of playing this year but thats only if you're currently playing the game.
Jack
Guest
Don't discount the marketing angle. They may rate him but would they have taken him if he was born and bred in Australia?
Jack
Guest
Who cares? It's an AFL post
Jack
Guest
Most relevant comment so far
Floyd Calhoun
Guest
I think he meant 'whinger' , and definitely no connection to Australian Rules whatsoever, past, present, or future. That in itself, can't be a bad thing for the game.
GoGWS
Roar Guru
a winger?..no such position... what you mean to say is you played on the wing, if you did play...which i doubt
Adrian
Guest
Good so it's not just me then.
Floyd Calhoun
Guest
God Almighty, this is gonna be a long, long, year.......!!
Harry
Guest
He sound's like a right git that Shae, better off without him.
Adrian
Guest
Wow, very interesting article. Thanks for posting it.
Cameron
Guest
Not an American, but I'm bewildered how AFL could be confused with rugby. The two are nothing alike.
Brewski
Guest
http://www.worldfootynews.com/article.php/20121219213339345 one American in, one American out. Interview with Shae.
Arm
Guest
The awareness isnt that great. Yes AFL is on the soccer channel and there is now the USAFL, but A lot of Americans still think Rugby is Australian rules or know nothing about the sport. This was evident when Sports illistrated put up Andrew Walkers mark on their website with a note stating that "this is not rugby". But I'm happy to be proven wrong, if your an American make a comment on when you first watched a game. (no expats).
Dragoon
Guest
Bennett did the same thing for the Chargers many years ago but again it was a face mask...
cos789
Guest
I see Sav Rocca made a touchdown saving tackle. What's so notable about this? The fact that he is Australian? No, the fact that punters are considered too wimpy to make tackles. Americans have a much greater awareness of Australian football than this post makes out. And it's not from the steady trickle of AFL punters in the NFL, it's from the fact that AFL was big on cable Tv in the 1980s before they switched to main stream sports. ,