Australian team announced for International Rules Series

You guys are awesome

Agree with all the concerns raised - but what an awesome team. Would much rather them play proper football than this version, but without some form of Origin it will never happen.

Id say trading the shape of the ball for the right to tackle is a good trade off.

Given that it'll be the same 70:30 ratio of Gaelic Football favoured game format, I'm as uninspired as ever.

No thanks.

.......the fact is that despite the international status of these Mac Donaldesque codes, our indigenous game remains the most popular of all. Hypothetically, if our game were to ever realise pseudo international status, it would not increase its profile or appeal one iota domestically, unless you consider being the new addition to the glut of the Fox et el sports entertainment menu is about real exposure. Suffice to say, any 'globalising' of our game would render it less appealing, since the game would then be forced to compromise its cultural and intellectual property if you like, to appease global market forces dictated by uncompromising international tele behemoths. The Australian game would cease to be that quintessential institution that so many of us love, simply because of its uniqueness in an otherwise homogenised commodity driven world. It would be a travesty to see our footy code commercially dumbed down, which it already is to some degree, while many of us seem to be completely naive to this fact by taking the true value of our game for granted.........

I suspect that as long as the Socceroos make the World Cup, and Sydneysiders mock the All Australian selection while their Kangaroos and Wallabies play tests, the AFL will continue to attempt to validate selecting a national representative side.

what's the point of these games ? what part of this game is Aussie rules ???

........I say this year in year out, why do the AFL persist with this laborious non event (with all respect to my family in Tipperary)? Is it perhaps the cringe persuasion that has infiltrated our governing body. These are the ones who struggle to value our indigenous code as a successful and robust domestic product and who would compromise its cultural DNA to ensure it devolves pseudo international integral to some pie in the sky commercial tv agenda?

.........to be sure Timmuh........

....indeed. The hybrid is heavily weighted toward the Gaelic version. The Irish will always have a huge advantage over us, unless they compromise one or two traits, i.e. the pill, to realise more equity.........

Hmm... are we sure these players want to play? How many will be late withdrawals? Games in just Adelaide and Perth also seem unusual. I suspect maybe 20,000 will turn up to each of them.

THIS is when Origin could and should be played. Every second year, IR, SoO in the other years.

Another hiding coming up for our boys????

Glad the got the A to Z of AFL players in there.

Double Sloane! Have they recruited Dr Stephen Dank as the team doctor?!! Looks a very good squad of players. But will AFL fans take much notice?