It was tough going for both the Greater Western Sydney Giants and the Adelaide Crows at Blacktown International Sports Park in Sydney, as they played out the first draw of the 2018 AFLW season in wet conditions.

Image Source: Twitter @GWSGIANTS

Neither of the teams was able to break away with clean disposal and this is what’s expected in wet weather football. It was an extremely physical brand of football by both teams from the first siren to the final siren and it was a credit to both teams to play with such a high intensity and skill for the entire match. This showed at the final siren with nothing separating both teams.

They say history is written by the victors.  In this case the victors are the Kingdom Kangaroos and this version of their historic three-peat was submitted to us by Sandy Bell.

The Kingdom Kangaroos won the annual Preseason Bawbag Cup for the 3rd time in 3 years on Saturday 24th March. The annual warm up tournament competed by the Tyne Tee Tigers, West Lothian Eagles and Fife’s own Kingdom Kangaroos.

The Kangaroos preparation was thrown into disarray when the entire midfield was a late withdrawal due to a road traffic accident on route to the game. This resulted in the Roos taking to the field in the first game against the Eagles with only 8 players (and no subs). Despite playing a man short the Roos experience and commitment at the ball kept the game close. The highlight was a spectacular contested Mark by veteran Player/Coach Wayne Sullivan. The Eagles utilising the strong breeze held onto a handy 3 goal lead at the half time that included a well crafted team goal by half forward Jason Forrest. Kangaroo Reinforcements arrived shortly after the restart allowing for a 9 vs 9 battle. The impact was swift with forward Mark Flanagan kicking 3 goals in a devastating 5 minute spell. The 1st game was closed out with make shift Ruckman Jamie Koo kicking a 60metre plus torpedo to seal a famous victory against the odds.

The 2nd game of the tournament was Tyne Tee Tigers vs West Lothian Eagles with the victor meeting the Kangaroos in the decider. In a pulsating contest the Eagles coaching staff came close to masterminding a win against the English opposition. The Tigers prevailed setting up the third Kangaroo Vs Tigers Bawbag Cup final in three years.

As expected the final was a committed affair with the Roo midfield constantly pumping the ball deep into the forward line. Despite having a limited bench to rotate players the Roos superior fitness and skill eventually carved out clear chances. The 2 goal lead at half time against the wind was game changing and allowed the Roos to control the contest to the end, eventually running out winners 40 points to 24. Man of the match for the Roos was Jack Chalmers whose tireless running and ability to read the play bodes well for the season. Special mention to Sandy Bell who was coaxed out of retirement for the cup and played every minute of the tournament.

The Kangaroos are currently recruiting players for the upcoming season. Training is free and the club have friendlies arranged in April and May. if you would like to experience this fun, inclusive dynamic sport, contact the Kangaroos via their Facebook page Kingdom Kangaroos arfc or contact Mark on 07504272269

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According to Matt Thomson on the www.afl.com.au website, he AFL will be taking the new AFLX version of the game into Asia on a bigger scale very soon. Whilst the jury is still out to some degree on the success of the game here in Australia with the AFL clubs involved as part of the pre-season schedule, smaller versions of the game have already been successfully adapted across the world through local leagues.

These amendments have included smaller grounds – rugby and soccer fields – smaller player numbers (predominantly using an AFL 9’s format adapted to include normal playing rules) and other adjustments. But the move into Hong Kong (see below) might be the catalyst for more countries to consider adapting further to the seven per side AFLX format.

AFLX appears headed to Asia, with the prospect of a November tournament in Hong Kong on the League's agenda.      

 It follows three experimental tournaments last month in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney.      

"We've literally just been talking about it," League chief executive Gillon McLachlan told radio station 3AW on Friday morning.      

"I think the future's enormous," he said.     

"I think you can have a distinct product potentially with different owners, you can involve past players.      

"I'd like to see us have a crack at it in November somewhere into Asia, we've got venue availability, new audiences are closer to the game … it's just a bit easier for new people to consume.      

"(Maybe we) take 10 players to Hong Kong, or 12 players, after the draft and you have to take two of your top two draft picks, maybe you have to have one recently retired player and a number of other players and make it a bit interesting and have a look at it.      

"They're some of the ideas we're kicking around."    

AFLX is a shorter, modified version of Australian football played on a rectangle field with teams of seven players and three on the bench.  

The original story can be found at: http://www.afl.com.au/news/2018-03-02/afls-xpansion-plans-asia-on-the-radar

Picture Credit: Fremantle FC

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The reigning premiers the Crows were too polished in the end for the Blues when they needed to be in the match, as they won by 35 points at their home ground the Norwood Oval. This match was played with an extremely high intensity and pressure from both teams. The Blues were in the contest for most of the match with their gameplay and it was just their wayward kicking in front of the big sticks that let them down.

Image Source: Twitter @Adelaide_FC

It was a high-pressured game from both teams in the first quarter. The Crows took their chances early in front of goal with two goals to the Blues four behinds, as the Blues kicking in front of goal was wayward and let them down. Sarah Perkins hand passed to Ruth Wallace who snap kicked the goal from 20m out for a nice team goal for the opening goal of the first term. Wallace was on fire for the Crows up forward, as she nailed through her second goal of the match of a snap kick around her body.

The Crows placed the Blues defense under immense pressure in the first quarter and the Blues had a lot of the football too in their forward half but could not capitalize on the scoreboard with majors until late in the quarter. Darcy Vescio was the one who set up the important goal, as she kicked a torpedo towards her forward 50 and Tayla Harris ran onto the football and nailed through an important goal for the Blues with four seconds left in the first quarter. As a result of the goal the Blues were only down by 4 points at quarter time over the Crows in a strong physical start to the match.

The Crows had a strong dominant second quarter, because they outscored the Blues four goals to one despite the high intensity and physicality in the game continuing. However the Crows were able to get on top of Blues as they kicked four consecutive goals. At the start of the second quarter, the Blues via Vescio scored the first goal of the term and took the lead but the Crows responded with a goal of their own as they regained the lead back via Eloise Jones who kicked the goal from 35m out on a slight angle. Jones with a classy finish with a snap kick at goal and she booted through the goal truly. The Crows won the clearance in the centre again and Jasmyn Hewitt slotted through the quick snap kick at goal after she received the handball from Erin Phillips. Jessica Sedunary cleared the football out of the middle and kicked the football to McCormick who marked strongly in the forward 50 and McCormick put through the goal nicely for the Crows. The Crows at the main break held a 23-point advantage over the Blues.

This match continued to be a tough one played by both teams in the third stanza with one stoppage after another and this was reflected on the scoreboard at the end of the third quarter with only one behind being scored for the entire term. Katie Loynes copped a heavy knock to her head and blood streamed rapidly from her head and she ran off to the bench. The Blues were dominant in the third quarter with the majority of the attacking play in their forward half of the ground, but they did not have much fortune when it came to getting some reward for all their effort on the scoreboard as they could only score a behind. Credit to the Blues who kept the Crows scoreless for the entire third quarter. The Crows held a 20-point lead over the Blues at three quarter time.

Early on in the third quarter, Erin Phillips was on the bench being iced and word from the Crows said they were managing her quad that she previously injured. Phillips did not play out the second half of the match.

In the final quarter, the Crows scored the only two goals of the term. There first goal was set up by Perkins who hand passed to Wallace over the top who ran into an open goal and put the nail through the coffin that put an end to the Blues season. The Crows scored their first goal since the second term. Sedunary scored the last goal of the match for the Crows after she marked the football from a forward stoppage and she slotted through the goal nicely between the big sticks. The reigning premiers finals chances are still well and truly alive as they were 35-point victors over a Blues outfit that fought hard till the end, but their wayward kicking in front of goal was what let them down at the final siren. The wayward kicking in front of goal by the Blues is what has stopped them from winning more matches this AFLW season.

GOALS
Adelaide: Wallace 3, Jones 2, McCormick, Hewett, Sedunary
Carlton: Harris, Vescio 

BEST 
Adelaide: Wallace, Randall, Jones, Marinoff, Phillips, Rajcic
Carlton: Loynes, S.Hosking, Harris, Moody, Audley, Gay 

INJURIES 
Adelaide: Phillips (quad), Cramey (hamstring)
Carlton: Nil 

Reports: Nil

Umpires: Mirabile, Strybos, Crosby

Official crowd: 5970 at Norwood Oval ...

The top placed Western Bulldogs held on to win by 8 points over the bottom placed Collingwood, after the Pies came at the Dogs late in the final quarter at Moe.

Image Source: Twitter @BulldogsW

It was a very high intensity aggressive game of football, which saw Steph Chiocci and Libby Birch reported in the first half of the match. There was heaps of pushing and shoving in this match in the first two quarters. The Pies came at the Dogs late in the final quarter, but the Dogs held on to win by 8 points over the bottom placed Pies.

The match started as a physical encounter between the Pies and Dogs. However halfway through the first quarter the Dogs begun to get on top in the contest over the Pies. Steph Chiocci was reported early in the first term with high contact, as she did a hip and shoulder to Libby Birch’s head and Birch came to the bench holding a towel to the side of her head. The Dogs scored the first goal of the match and Ellie Blackburn who kicked long to goal set up this goal and it dribbled towards goal to Bonnie Toogood who crumbed the football and nailed through the goal.

Moana Hope kicked it short to Meg Hutchins who was given a 50m penalty and from the goal square she scored the goal for the Pies. Aisling Utri slotted through a nice goal of a snap kick for the Dogs second goal of the match. Lauren Tesoreiro does not give the football back to Aasta O’Connor, so O’Connor was awarded with a 50m penalty. So she lined up from 40m out and her goal splits the middle as she booted through the goal nicely. The Dogs led by 16 points over the Pies at quarter time.

This match continued to be frenetic in the second quarter and heaps of free kicks were awarded in this term as a result. Caitlyn Edwards has been awarded a free kick and she slotted through the goal truly between the big sticks from about 25m out for a much-needed goal for the Pies. Emma Kearney was given a free kick from about 50m out, so she kicked the football long towards goal and the football fell to ground metres from goal and Brooke Lochland soccer kicked the football of the ground for a goal. In the second quarter, the umpire reported Birch after high contact on Moana Hope.

Amelia Barden was given a free kick after she was dealt with high by Hannah Scott. Barden responded with a quick goal for the Pies from about 20m out. Late in the second term, Brittany Bonnici swung Kearney into the fence and they pushed and shoved each other. As a result the Dogs are given a 50m penalty. At the main break the Pies were down by 12 points in a fiery clash.

At the start of the third stanza the Dogs were able to strike with the first goal. This goal from the Dogs came after they won the clearance and Kearney kicked the football long inside 50 and Lochland marked with a strong contested mark and she slotted through her second goal of the match. Edwards was given a free kick and she nailed through the goal from about 20m out. She scored the quick reply for the Pies to become the first multiple goal scorer in this match.

The Pies made a mess of the football in their defensive 50, as Toogood intercepted a Pies kick and Toogood with great teamwork found Blackburn who she hand passed to. Blackburn kicked an easy goal from the goal square. This third quarter tight tussle from both teams but it was not as physical as the first half of the match. The Dogs had a 17-point advantage on the scoreboard over the Pies at three quarter time.

The Pies controlled the early stages of the fourth quarter, but they were not able to capitalize on the scoreboard with goals for their effort. They only managed to kick two behinds. Nicole Callinan booted through the first goal of the last quarter from the goal square. Chloe Molloy went forward after she has played predominantly in the backline for the Pies late in the fourth quarter. As a result, Molloy took a strong mark inside 50 and she kicked the goal nicely between the big sticks from 35m out. Molloy scored her first ever goal in her AFLW career. Christina Bernardi kicked a timely goal for the Pies after she was able to break away clear towards goal and she kicked the goal from 35m out.

The Dogs held on to win by 8 points in Moe after a late fight by the Pies who kicked the last two goals of the match. It was looking like the Pies were going to run over the top of the Dogs late in the match and cause another upset like they did up in Darwin against the Melbourne Football Club. Blackburn played a great captains game at Moe today, as she led from the front for the entire match and she finished the match with 17 disposals and one goal.

It was a great captain's game played by Blackburn. After this match the Pies are well and truly out of the finals race and the Dogs are flag favourites.

COLLINGWOOD              1.0   3.0   4.2   6.5   (41)                 
WESTERN BULLDOGS    3.4   4.6   6.7   7.7   (49)         
 
GOALS
Collingwood: Edwards 2, Hutchins, Barden, Molloy, Bernardi
Western Bulldogs: Lochland 2, Toogood, Utri, O'Connor, Blackburn, Callinan
 
BEST
Collingwood: Garner, D'Arcy, Edwards, King, McIntosh
Western Bulldogs: Blackburn, Conti, Kearney, Lamb, Ferres
 
INJURIES
Collingwood: Nil
Western Bulldogs: Nil
 
Reports: Chiocci (Collingwood) reported for high contact on Birch (Western Bulldogs) in the first quarter, Birch (Western Bulldogs reported for striking Hope (Collingwood) in the second quarter.
 
Umpires: Young, Curtis, Heffernan
 
Crowd: 2700 at Ted Summerton Reserve, Moe
  ...

In recent weeks we have seen some tremendous initiatives to develop the game of Australian Rules football across the world. From player drafts and new urban leagues in Colombia (see Bombers, Bullants and Aguilas Arrive in Bogotá) to school and ministry driven national tournaments in East Africa (see Something Amazing Happening In East Africa) individuals, clubs and leagues are finding innovative ways to attract new players to the game and open up new markets.

Another example of this development is happening in Mumbai India where Reclink India has joined forces with Mumbai Footy to get the game into schools. According to Sumesh Sawant, Co-Founder and National Coordinator from the Reclink India report:

 Reclink  India 50k Footy Program:

“We aim to bring the sport to more than 50k students in next three years. Reclink India 50K footy program provides regular footy activities to local government schools where kids don’t have opportunities to play organized sports. Through AFL 9s we are creating a              healthy, safe and fun environment for kids. Participation in sports is an important aspect that promotes healthy growth and development in children. Our program encourages female involvement and promotes youth empowerment through footy.”

Last month the program reached a high point with the running of the Reclink India Inter-School Footy Tournament 2018. According to the Reclink India report:

RECLINK INDIA INTER-SCHOOL FOOTY TOURNAMENT 2018

With the successful launch of the 50k Footy Program for school kids, Reclink India concluded its first ever Inter-School footy tournament on 3 rd February in Mumbai, Maharashtra and on 10th February in Jaipur, Rajasthan. Around 150 kids, including girls, participated in the tournament in each state in three divisions – Senio Senior girls teams during a match at the Chaugan Stadium in Jaipur. 

 All the schools involved in this program are municipal schools where the students don’t have easy access to organized sports activities. Participating in the Inter-School tournament was a brilliant opportunity for the kids to showcase their talents and experience a sports competition in a safe and fun environment. Kids from both the states played with a lot of passion and energy, showing their liking for this new sport.

Mumbai (3rd February) - 5 schools participated in the Mumbai tournament which was held at the Worli Sports Club Ground, considering ease of conveyance for the kids. Team Tigers, represented by the students of City of Los Angeles Municipal School won the first place in the senior divisions for both boys and girls whereas the Crows, represented by the students of Adarsh Nagar Municipal School, bagged the trophy in the junior mixed category.  

Jaipur (10th February) – 6 schools played in the inter-school tournament in Rajasthan at a famous sports ground called the Chaugan Stadium. The Saraswati Baal Vidhya Mandir Senior Secondary School playing for the Bombers won the first place in the senior division for boys and girls. Team Kangaroos represented by the Laxmi Shikshan Sansthan School emerged victorious in the junior mixed division.

Reclink India would like to thank all of their supporters and sponsors namely Reclink Australia, India Unbound, Phillips Foundation, Just Get Active and the West Coast Eagles for their continual help and encouragement and to make this event a grand success.

Whilst the programs re ostensibly for the development of school children across many aspects of their lives, there is also the potential for growth for coaches within the program.

According to the Reclink India 50K Footy Program Report:

We at Reclink India, are using the most efficient ways to promote our program; our coaches are the young players who have been involved in footy activities since a couple of years and are now going to schools as instructors. We believe in giving back to the community. Our coaches are mostly students, and through our program each young player gets a chance to be a coach and become a more responsible and disciplined person. 

Majority of the work done by the staff involves coaching the school kids which takes up around 20hours per week. Along with coaching, the staff also needs to perform administrative tasks like procuring permission from the school’s governing bodies and writing reports about the activities conducted. A coaching guide has been created for the instructors to refer to so that the teachings remain uniform and efficient throughout all locations. 

This program is enormous in its scope for game development as well as being a genuine part of education options for students in India. Whilst Reclink India and Mumbai Footy operate their programs independently from AFL India, ultimately this is still a story of the game of football growing in Mumbai and elsewhere in an unprecedented manner. The momentum created will go a long way towards the game gaining stronger and wider footholds across the world’s second most populated country.

Image Credits: Reclink India

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The followng is an edited version of the AFL Canada 2018 president’s report by Lachlan Griffiths. As this an AGM report it is primarily looking back over the previous year’s events. I hope to interview Lachlan soon, looking forward about a  new strategic plan which will be released shortly and some other details

The full report can be read here http://websites.sportstg.com/assoc_page.cgi?client=1-7259-0-0-0&sID=154776&&news_task=DETAIL&articleID=61461986.

Two new board positions  were added to the AFL Canada  board for mens and womens player representatives as a voice in national team programming..

2017 was another successful year for Footy in Canada measured against the three
focus areas of growth, development and promotion.

Participation across the country has continued to rise, led by the growth of Women’s footy in Vancouver and Youth programs in Calgary.
AFL Canada National Teams represented Canada admirably in both London and Melbourne

AFL Canada were able to grow the exposure of the game through increased engagement via online platforms and a new telecast agreement with CBC. As a result all IC17 Canada games were streamed digitally online through CBCSports.ca.

As recognition for the work over the past two years the AFL has increased  funding to AFL Canada  allowing the employment of the first full-time staff in Bram Cotton.. Bram’s immediate focus is on assisting AFL Canada  to be recognised by Sport Canada as a National Sporting Organisation.

Following the 2016 Canadian Nationals and Training Camp, AFL Canada selected  Men’s and Women’s National Development teams who toured London, The Midnight Suns finished with a 2-1 record, beating the London All-stars and the Great Britain Swans and falling narrowly to the Irish Banshees. The North Stars finished with a 1-2 record, being soundly beaten by the Great Britain Bulldogs and the Wandsforth Demons, but bounced back to beat the Welsh National team.

In August 2017, Canadian National Teams travelled to Melbourne, Australia to compete in the International Cup. Williamstown Football Club were gracious hosts, offering their VFL facilities as a training base for the week prior to the tournament.

Despite instigating new national trials Canada was unable to leapfrog other improving international teams. The Northwind lost a close opening game against the USA, before bouncing back to defeat the Great Britain Bulldogs. A loss to the strong New Zealand side and Nauru resulted in an 7th overall placing. Burnaby Eagles star Eric Klein was named to the World Team, one of the few very male players not based in Australia to do so.

The Northern Lights overcame a scare from a tough Fiji in the opening game, escaping with a narrow one point win in a thriller. Wins against  newcomers Pakistan,  a competitive Great Britain and traditional rivals USA saw the Northern Lights fall agonisingly short to Ireland by two points in the Grand Final. Valerie Moreau was named player of the tournament with Lara Hilmi, Aimee Legault, Nicola Kirwan, Hilary Perry and Head Coach Jason Arnold named to the world team.

At a participation level, AFL Canada  had another year of overall growth, driven primarily by the AFL BC Women and Calgary Men and juniors. AFL BC Men, Edmonton and Ontario Women’s numbers were down in 2017 while Calgary Women, Ontario Men, Quebec and Nova Scotia were relatively flat.

During 2017 and into early 2018 AFL Canada  has been in touch new and potential new clubs with the Winnipeg Bears, Fort McMurray Magpies, Barrie Ballarats all looking to grow footy in their regions in 2018. AFL Canada are currently re-evaluating how they can better support new and emerging clubs to ensure that they are a catalyst for growth in new regions.

AFL Canada  were pleased to approve a number of grants in 2017, including; a grant for new goal posts for North Delta Junior AFL, Junior Footys for Edmonton AFC, and three new club grants to help the Vernon Roosters, Vancouver Vixens and Sydney Giants.

  ...

AFLW's second season is running successfully in Australia and women's footy in South East Asia is following the same trend.

Recently the Vietnam Swans have proudly announced their own women's team.

The Swan's girls effort has been great as they have trained hard for two weeks before Tet (Lunar New Year). The new committee member Chia Sabbatucci told the club website:

“With the first official game of the 2018 season coming up, the girls have been training hard and learning the game. I’ve been really impressed with the interest from the ladies in Saigon especially from girls that have never heard about AFL who want to try it out. With a full squad to hit the paddock for the first game I’m hopeful that it will cement the spirit for the season and give the girls the motivation to continue playing and learn more about our great game – AFL.”

The women's team have held a mixed modified Aussie Rules AFL tournament in partnership with Saigon Gaelic Women's team for the several seasons, other than regular training sessions. The Swans also organised the positive move of hosting  the first ever women's AFL match  Asian Champs held in Saigon in 2016.

Vietnam Swans Women's Team are already scheduled to play six matches during the 2018 Season including four international tours.

10th March – Vietnam vs Cambodia in Saigon

19th May – Vietnam vs Malaysia in Penang

Early June – Vietnam vs Cambodia in Phnom Penh

1st September – Indochina Cup in Phnom Penh

13th October – Asian Championships in Kuala Lumpur

3rd November – Central Vietnam Games ...

We’re one month into the AFL New Zealand premiership season, and the Central Giants have stayed atop the ladder with two convincing victories in as many weeks. 

Round 3 Recap
Round 3 saw the Giants take on the Northern Suns at QBE Stadium in Auckland. The Suns were feeling confident after a strong two weeks of competition, but the Giants kicked the first four goals of the match to gain a 30-point lead heading into halftime. Once again, the two Jameses -- Bowden and McKenzie -- were dangerous in the forward line for the Giants.

All was not lost for the Suns, however, as they put in a spirited effort throughout the match. Defender Alex Awatere received best on ground honors, and Jackson Clince managed to kick a pair of goals as well. However, the Giants ended up bringing home their third straight victory with a big second half.

“They kicked some late goals in each of the quarters, but we managed to put on a four quarter performance quarter today,” said Giants assistant Wayne Sullivan.

Final: Giants 13.6.84
Suns 7.6.48

Goalkickers (Giants): James Bowden (5), James McKenzie (3), Sam McKenzie (2), Tayne Lockwood (2), Declan Crann
Goalkickers (Suns): Jackson Clince (2), Ari Cohen (2), Joel Brown, Josh Mackie, Heta Scarf-Matthews
Best on Ground (Giants): Nick Rhodes
Best on Ground (Suns): Alexa Awatere

In the second game, the Western Crows continued to show themselves as potential premiership contenders in 2018, smashing the Southern Saints by 79 points. Star midfielders Jay Johnson and Shane Leat used their speed and ball skills to dominate the clearances and disposals for the Crows. Te Kopa Tipene-Thomas booted three goals, as did Zac Maio. Johnson, the Crows’ captain, kicked two of his own.

While the Saints were hampered by injuries heading into the game, they simply didn’t have enough answers against the high-powered Crows side. Key defender/captain Michael Boyce (two goals) had to move into the midfield due to the injury-related absences of Carlos Donnell-Brown and Andriu Sucu. Ryan Marsland had three of the Saints’ five goals, and young defender Hayden Johnston was named best on ground for the Saints in the match. Coaches seem excited about his future with the club.

Final: Crows 16.6.112
Saints 5.3.33

Goalkickers (Crows): Zac Maio (3), Te Kopa Tipene-Thomas (3), Brad Wade (2), Jay Johnson (2), Joey Alesich-Tamariki, Jed Williams, Steph Tabaillou, Lewis Gill, Alastair Maisey, David Rattenbury
Goalkickers (Saints): Ryan Marsland (3), Michael Boyce (2)
Best on ground (Crows): Joey Alesich-Tamariki
Best on ground (Saints): Hayden Johnston

Round 4 Recap
The Crows were back at again in Round 4, securing another solid win to put on their resume despite blustery conditions at QBE Stadium. Josh Mackie and Ari Cohen kicked the first two goals for the Suns in a hard-fought first quarter, but the Crows were able to bounce back, aided by some strong pace courtesy of Shane Leat. It was a similarly back-and-forth affair for both sides in the second quarter, but Crows coach Andrew Crighton was ready and confident.

“We knew that if we could ride out the first couple of quarters, then we could look to put the foot down in the second half, which is exactly what we did,” Crighton explained in his post-match interview.

Crighton also showed a willingness to take advantage of mismatches, switching natural defender Alastair Maisey to the forward line, while moving Steph Tabaillou to the halfback line. This strategy, combined with a constant attacking effort around the footy, helped propel the Crows to a 32-point win.

Meanwhile, in the second game, the Giants stayed perfect at 4-0 with another resounding victory, this time over the Saints. Once again, Josh Bowden was one of the best players for the Giants, kicking three goals.

However, the newly-healthy Saints gave the Giants all they could take early in the first half. The Giants held a double-digit lead after the halftime siren sounded, but the Saints still couldn’t take advantage of their scoring opportunities. Nick Rhodes and Harry Manks were superb in defense for the Giants, but Xavier Rice was equally effective in that area for the Saints, holding Giant gun James McKenzie to only one goal for the match.

The Giants came alive in the second half and cruised to a 49-point win, but the Saints should feel good about their chances in the second month of the season and beyond if they stay healthy. They have a nice nucleus of young talent that will serve them well in the near future.

  ...

The tremendous work of AFL India may be about to bring the sweetest fruit of all as the AFL considers options to take advantage of the tremendous football platform laid over recent years. The dedication of AFL India, and the uptake of the game across India, may be the “Perfect Storm” needed for the game to really take hold in a big way. 

Nick Bowen from the www.afl.com.au website reports that the AFL are about to engage in further missions to explore the growth possibilities of the game in India, with matches at the highest level being slated again. This is on the back of recent stories from India which have looked at the growth of a local Mumbai-based competition (see Mumbai Footy Cup 2018), and a schools-based footy program in Mumbai (see School Kids Get Footy Lesson In India). Whilst these programs are outside of the AFL India umbrella, they also suggest that Mumbai is developing as the logical city to host an AFL match.

 FOUR clubs are visiting India this week as the AFL edges closer to staging a game in the world's second most populous country.

AFL general manager of China and India David Stevenson will fly to India later this week on a fact-finding mission, and will be accompanied by officials from four clubs.  

League CEO Gillon McLachlan preferred not to disclose the identity of those clubs at a pre-season briefing with reporters on Wednesday. 

But Richmond and Greater Western Sydney have been pushing since last year to play a premiership game in Mumbai, while Essendon and Adelaide have also been investigating playing a pre-season or exhibition game on the subcontinent.    

McLachlan said India was an enticing new market for the AFL, but was not sure how soon games could be fixtured there. 

"China and India are huge migrant markets. India has facilities that are easy, so you've got population and the scale, you've got the economic growth and an appetite to follow sport," McLachlan said.  

"There are potentially opportunities in India and they're being explored at the moment." 

To read the rest of this article, including Gillon McLachlan’s additional comments about gam development in China, the original story can be found at: http://www.afl.com.au/news/2018-03-07/four-clubs-off-to-india-as-afl-eyes-staging-game ...