New Zealand

 

Australian Football has a long and proud history in New Zealand, so much so that the game was officially called 'Australasian Football' from the 1880s through to the start of World War I.

Its profile fell away as rugby union became the winter sport of passion for most New Zealanders, but Australian Football is still played throughout the country.

The controlling body is the New Zealand Australian Football League (NZAFL). There are competitions in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. Teams:

 

Auckland Australian Football League

• Takapuna Eagles
• North Shore Tigers
• Waitakere Magpies
• Mt Roskill Saints
• University Blues
• Manurewa Raiders

 

Wellington Australian Football League

• Hutt City Tigers
• Upper Hutt Eagles
• Wellington City Saints
• Western Suburbs Bulldogs

 

Canterbury Australian Football League

• McCormacks Blues
• Southern Storm
• University Cougars
• Northern Jets

 

History

It is a little known fact that football has been played in New Zealand for nearly as long as it has been played in Australia. From the late 1850s until May 1881 Christ's College, Canterbury played football by what were called "College Rules". These rules were almost identical to the Melbourne Rules of the day.

The Christchurch Football Club, founded in 1863, also played a very similar football game, until 1876 when they were probably the first club in Canterbury to adopt the Rugby rules. One of the Christchurch Rules was that the player was required to bounce the ball every four yards!

Further south, the game was played in Otago by locals and many of the tens of thousands of Australians who poured into the province during the gold rush.

By 1876 several clubs had formed in Wellington and Christchurch. It was suggested that Tom Wills or H.C.A. Harrison visit New Zealand and bring the Melbourne and Geelong teams over to stage exhibition matches. Geelong was very keen on the idea and started to make arrangements for the trip, but a number of Melbourne's leading players could not obtain leave of absence to undertake such a long journey, which could only be made by boat in those days.

In 1877 efforts were made to try and get Essendon, Carlton, Geelong and Melbourne to make the trip, but finance could not be arranged. Wills then decided to organise a visit by Geelong for 1879, but illness prevented him from going any further.

In 1882 there were 36 New Zealand clubs playing under the official "Australasian Rules".

In 1889 the New Zealand "Native" footballers returning from their marathon British tour played 13 matches in Victoria under these rules. The team won six matches, including a remarkable two goal victory over Victoria's then reigning Premiers, South Melbourne.

The economic downturn of the 1890s forced thousands of Australians to cross the Tasman in search of work. Their number included several ex VFA and VFL footballers who played in NZ professionally. The migration helped the game in NZ to boom and the number of teams grew to 44 in 1893 and 115 in 1901.

In 1908 the New Zealand team - dressed in black with a gold fern - competed in the Jubilee Australasian Football Carnival with games played at the MCG. They defeated New South Wales and Queensland, and lost to Victoria and Tasmania to finish fourth out of the seven competing teams.

"It was hoped that leading VFL teams would make efforts to visit New Zealand and try to help the good work that had already been done there, but the apathy of controlling bodies in Australia and too much "club-mindedness" of VFL clubs resulted in rugby gradually getting the upper hand. The first World War saw the game fall further behind, as most of the older players had left the game and nothing had been done to organise the code in New Zealand schools. As a result there were only 22 clubs in 1920, 14 in 1923 and 10 in 1927." No team survived the depression of the 1930s (C.C. Mullen, History of Australian Rules Football pg. 158-159)

Modern Times

After a 40 year hiatus Australian football was revived in the 1970s with competitions established in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. Otago commenced playing in 1998 with three teams playing 12 a side football.

The Auckland Australian Football Association was reformed in 1974 at the instigation of former Hawthorn player and team medical officer, Dr Terry Gay. In 1988 the Association shifted its four team competition to spring to avoid clashing with the traditional winter codes. The Association changed its name to the Auckland Australian Football League in 1990.

New Zealand competed in the inaugural 1995 International Australian Football Championships in Darwin, losing the grand final to Papua New Guinea. This result was repeated in 1997 and 1999.

In 1999 South Melbourne District Sports Club visited NZ and played three matches prior to participating in the Auckland Secondary Schools Championships.

A New Zealand Under 21 team toured Australia in July 2001, winning two out of its five matches. Results:

• New Zealand 8.6 (54) d. Sandringham Dragons 7.6 (48)
• Northern Knights 10.16 (76) d. New Zealand 4.4 (34)
• Oakleigh Chargers 8.7 (55) d. New Zealand 4.9 (33)
• New Zealand 4.12 (36) d. St Pauls 2.2 (14)
• Eastern Ranges 17.11 (113) d. New Zealand 2.1 (13)

 

The AFL in New Zealand

An end-of-season exhibition match, the Just Jeans Cup, was held on October 5 1991, at the Western Springs Stadium in Auckland between Geelong and St Kilda. It was watched by an enthusiastic crowd of more than 8000.

In November 1997 the AFL entered into a three-year licence agreement with New Zealand AFL to develop the game in New Zealand by implementing the NZAFL Development Plan. The plan included a range of football development programs and aimed to lift the profile of the AFL and the game in New Zealand by securing television coverage and assisting with the staging of high profile AFL matches in New Zealand. The AFL's investment in this program was $100,000 per annum over a three-year period.

The major objectives of the NZAFL Development Plan were to:

• Establish Australian Football in the New Zealand school sports curriculum at primary, intermediate and secondary level.
• Provide players at junior level with an opportunity to compete in Australian Football competitions at school and club level in the major cities of New Zealand.
• Strengthen open age competitions by encouraging junior players to participate in senior club football.
• Establish Australian Football as a recognised and accepted television and spectator sport in New Zealand.
• Establish New Zealand as a territory from which potential AFL footballers may be recruited.

Long-time New Zealand Australian Football administrator Will McKenzie was appointed General Manager of the NZAFDF and Ian Francis Director of Coaching. In March 1999 the NZAFDF was incorporated into the governing body of the sport which was renamed New Zealand AFL.

As part of the strategy to develop the game in New Zealand the AFL scheduled an Ansett Australia Cup match in Wellington, New Zealand's capital. On March 1, 1998 the Melbourne Demons defeated the Sydney Swans 15.15 (105) to 14.9 (93) before a vocal crowd of 8,000 at the Basin Reserve.

On January 29, 2000 the Western Bulldogs 13.7 (85) defeated Hawthorn 4.14 (38) in the new Westpac Trust Stadium in Wellington. Despite the rain a good crowd of 14,000 attended. However, a disappointing crowd of 8,000 turned up in Wellington on 17 February 2001 to see Brisbane 16.18 (114) defeat Adelaide 10.3 (73).

After regular AFL matches and a strong development program, the third leg of the tripod of football establishment is excellent television coverage which was secured in 1999 after many long years of lobbying by AFL and New Zealand football administrators. The Prime Television network broadcasts the Saturday afternoon AFL match live and free to air to the 75% of New Zealand homes able to receive the terrestrial Prime signal. This coverage is the only weekly live and free to air coverage of any sport on New Zealand television! In addition the Sky pay television network broadcasts the Sunday afternoon AFL match on its satellite service which can be received from any point in New Zealand. This satellite service also carries the Prime signal making it possible to watch two live matches every week from any point in New Zealand.

After a long history and sporadic growth, all the elements are now in place to allow Australian Football to grow steadily and at times quickly in New Zealand. By the year 2008, the 150th anniversary of the founding of the game, New Zealand could well be an integral part of the Australian game, as well part of the burgeoning international scene.

 

New Zealand Players in the AFL

Nine VFL/AFL players were born in New Zealand - Joe Sellwood (Geelong), Wayne Schwass (North Melbourn/Sydney), Peter Bennett (Hawthorn/Essendon), Marty McDonnell (Footscray), Tom O'Halloran (Richmond), Warren Jones (Carlton/St Kilda), Daniel McAlister (Essendon), Donald Dickie (Port Adelaide) and Trent Croad (Hawthorn/Fremantle).

Croad was drafted by Hawthorn as the number three pick in the 1997 AFL National Draft. His grandfather, Eric Bloggs, played for the All Blacks.

 

National Championships

1992	Auckland
1993	Wellington
1994	Auckland
1995	Wellington
1996	North Harbour
1997	South Auckland
1998	Wellington
1999	South Auckland
2000	Wellington
2001	Wellington
2002	Wellington

 

International Matches

1908	New Zealand 6.12 (48) d. Queensland 4.11 (35)
1908	New Zealand 9.9 (63) d. New South Wales 8.14 (62)
1908	Victoria 25.21 (171) d. New Zealand 5.10 (40)
1908	Tasmania 11.18 (84) d. New Zealand 1.12 (18)
1995	New Zealand 8.6 (54) d. Nauru 3.1 (19)
1995	New Zealand 14.8 (94) d. Hong Kong 6.6 (42)
1995	Papua New Guinea 16.4 (100) d. New Zealand 3.0 (18)
1995	New Zealand 7.7 (49) d. Japan/Singapore 4.11 (35)
1995	Papua New Guinea 16.10 (106) d. New Zealand 8.7 (55)
1997	NTFL 19.9 (123) d. New Zealand 2.3 (15)
1997	Papua New Guinea 8.6 (54) d. New Zealand 5.7 (37)
1997	Australian Defence Force 18.13 (121) d. New Zealand 0.1 (1)
1997	New Zealand 12.3 (75) d. Hong Kong 4.5 (29)
1997	Papua New Guinea 14.9 (93) d. New Zealand 9.6 (60)
1999	New Zealand 6.8 (44) d. Samoa 2.3 (15)
1999	Singapore 4.5 (29) d. New Zealand 1.12 (18)
1999	New Zealand 14.8 (92) d. Central Desert Eagles 7.1 (43)
1999	Papua New Guinea 13.15 (93) d. New Zealand 9.2 (56)
2002	New Zealand 25.13 (163) d. South Africa 0.1 (1)
2002	New Zealand 11.12 (78) d. USA 4.1 (25)
2002	New Zealand 10.8 (68) d. Canada 2.6 (18)
2002	New Zealand 10.10 (70) d. Samoa 5.8 (38)
2002	Ireland 4.10 (34) d. New Zealand 3.2 (20)
2002	New Zealand 3.7 (25) d. Denmark 2.4 (16)

 

AFL matches in New Zealand

1991	Geelong 12.11 (83) d. St. Kilda 10.10 (70)
1998	Melbourne 15.15 (105) d. Sydney Swans 14.9 (93)
2000	Western Bulldogs 13.7 (85) d. Hawthorn 4.14 (38)
2001	Brisbane Lions 16.18 (114) d. Adelaide 10.13 (73)

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