Originally from Adelaide, but now based full-time in the UK, Rick Shrowder has been a driving force behind footy in England's North East for some years now.

Besides this, he is also one of the founders of GCS - Global Community Sports, an organisation using Australian rules football to connect with young students both in the UK and India.

Shrowder explains that Global Sports Global Learning is a project that is using sport to creatively engage with young people. The project, offered both through schools and also through young offender institutes, introduces the students to the sport of Australian Football and then works with the students to create a sports coaching manual documenting their experiences of the project. This manual is then sent to a group of young people in Madurai, a city of around 1. ...

Thanks to CNFA for sending us the link to this "Résumé de la saison 2010-11 de football australien en France.".

In the eagerly anticipated first Australian football match between the two countries at any level, the Under-17 AIS-AFL Academy squad overcame the New Zealand Hawks by 91 points at Westpac Stadium in Wellington on Saturday.

After the Kiwis performed a stirring rendition of the haka, they got the jump on the Aussies in the first quarter with former Fremantle Docker forward Adam Campbell helping the home team to a five-point lead at the first break.

The Australians, coached by Brisbane Lions triple-premiership player Chris Johnson, hit back in the second quarter, kicking six goals-to-none to open a 31-point lead at half-time.

New Zealand showed it could compete with the best Under-17 players in Australia in the third term, delighting the enthusiastic crowd and showcasing the potential the code has in the South Pacific.
...

Hawks defender Stephen Gilham recently travelled across the Tasman to present the Club's newest International Scholarship holder Ben Miller with his Hawthorn guernsey.

Miller played his first Australian football game for the Otago Boys’ School in 2010 against the university team, Otago Riot. It was in his second game that he took a high mark well above his opponents in the pack and set up several scoring opportunities from the wing where it became clear Ben had potential to play this game. Given that so far Otago has no formal competition with just a University Club, that play spasmodically, and some junior development programmes within a few secondary schools, this is a monumental achievement.

In February 2011 he travelled to Auckland for the NZ under 20 National Provincial Championships playing for Wellington. Showing his potential, Ben was selected to play for the NZ U20's against VAFA and NZ U16 Oceania Cup 2011 where he was instrumental in t ...

Shortly after the 2011 AFL Oceania Youth Cup, the Fiji coach, Glen Butler said goodbye. The reason being that his stint as an AYAD officer in Fiji had come to an end. The AYAD program is referenced over and over again in respect to Australian Football in the Pacific. Worldfootynews asked Glen to reflect on his time.

WFN The AYAD process. What got you into it. How did you go through the process, and how did the AYAD promise live up in reality?

GB I originally came across an advertisement on the AFL website in late 2009 to volunteer overseas and promote AFL. I had just recently finished my university degree and was living abroad for most of the year. After returning to Australia and struggling to get a job, I saw this as an opportunity to gain some work experience, which might possibly lead to a job with the AFL. I emailed AFL Asia-South Pacific with a little about myself and my interest in the position.

I was called into AFL Hou ...

Talented US college basketballer Alex Starling has been signed by the Sydney Swans after testing showed he had the athletic potential to make the switch to the AFL.

Starling, 22, is finishing college in Florida but will make several visits to Sydney this year to meet with Swans’ coaching staff and develop his football skills.

He has been signed under the AFL’s International Scholarship Scheme, which will allow him to both train with the Swans and complete his four year degree at Bethune-Cookman University. If things progress as planned, he will be recruited to the Swans’ senior list as an International Rookie in 2013.

Former North Melbourne star Wayne Schwass says in the Herald Sun that New Zealand can develop into a strong AFL breeding ground and wants to see a match played across the Tasman for premiership points.

AFL New Zealand continues to push the league for a home-and-away match to be played in the country as early as next year, with Anzac Day suggested as a potential date.

Schwass who was born in New Zealand backed taking a game across the Tasman. "We are into Tasmania, the AFL are exploring China, and I understand that from a commercial point of view, but New Zealand is three hours across the ditch."

Schwass is an assistant coach for the New Zealand Hawks, who play the AIS-AFL Academy squad in Wellington on Saturday 28th January.

New Zealand-born Hawthorn player Shane Savage hosted a contingent from the NZ Hawks yesterday at ...

Shark TV have started the new year with a new show, Jacko's Challenge, where Adam "Jacko" Jack takes on a new competitor from the Glasgow Sharks each week in a 5 goal kicking challenge. This week John McIntyre, Sharks ruckman, took on Jacko in a very close contest.

Have a look and get ready for more exciting content soon.

The English rugby league team Warrington Wolves this week continued the long tradition of football teams cross-training with other codes in the off season when they joined the Sydney Swans in Sydney for a skill and fitness session.

Canadian Mike Pyke can be seen in the background of the Fox Sports video below and looks like he might rightly be as comfortable with the Rugby League players as with the Swans or his former code of Rugby Union.

New Zealand-born Hawk Shane Savage will host eight players from AFLNZ after the Club’s open training session tomorrow at the Ricoh Centre, formerly Waverley Park.

Savage will have a light kick on the oval with his compatriots, who have been living in Melbourne to improve their football skills, before they return home to play in the New Zealand Hawks team pitted against an AIS-AFL Academy squad.

Beginning their travels in Auckland, the Australians’ nine day tour will culminate in Wellington where the AIS-AFL squad will play against the New Zealand Hawks at Westpac Stadium on Saturday 28 January.

Hawthorn Football Club ...

The AFL Great Britain National Conference was held on the 20th November 2011 in Birmingham.  On the agenda was a list of the key dates for 2012, a move to rename to AFL England and numerous items to drive development such the Brit Cup, juniors and a European tour by the AFL AIS Academy.  The following article is not formal minutes but give a bit of an insight into the many issues discussed by a body that covers a relatively large number of clubs and leagues.

The meeting started with key dates for the 2012 season. Key events to be considered included the Olympic Games which will be held in London from July 28th to August 11th, and the AFL Grand Final on September 29th. Next came important Australian Football events in Europe, including the AFL-AIS Academy’ ...