Waikato Australian Football League

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Waikato AFL is an Australian rules football competition in Waikato, New Zealand and is one of the Leagues governed by AFL New Zealand.

Australian rules football Contact sport invented in Melbourne

Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, or simply called Aussie rules, football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of eighteen players on an oval-shaped field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by kicking the oval-shaped ball between goal posts or between behind posts.

Waikato region in New Zealands North Island

Waikato is a local government region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Hauraki, Coromandel Peninsula, the northern King Country, much of the Taupo District, and parts of Rotorua District. It is governed by the Waikato Regional Council.

New Zealand Country in Oceania

New Zealand is a sovereign island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The country geographically comprises two main landmasses—the North Island, and the South Island —and around 600 smaller islands. New Zealand is situated some 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and roughly 1,000 kilometres (600 mi) south of the Pacific island areas of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga. Because of its remoteness, it was one of the last lands to be settled by humans. During its long period of isolation, New Zealand developed a distinct biodiversity of animal, fungal, and plant life. The country's varied topography and its sharp mountain peaks, such as the Southern Alps, owe much to the tectonic uplift of land and volcanic eruptions. New Zealand's capital city is Wellington, while its most populous city is Auckland.

Contents

Current Clubs

History

The Waikato AFL begun in humble fashion in 2004 when an ex-pat Western Australian started some training sessions in Hamilton. Jim Lucy had been a coach and Administrator with Takapuna AFL in Auckland, but wanted to grow the game in the Waikato where he was based. So in 2004 he created an article in the Waikato Times newspaper. A number of sportsman were interested in the sport and came along to see what it was all about. That first year saw 15-20 men meet at Eliott Park to learn the skills and game of Australian Rules Football. In 2005 the numbers grew until around 30 men met each Sunday. With numbers too small to form a competition, players learnt the skills and played "scratch" matches amongst themselves using a rugby field. Ambitiously they joined the AFLNZ in a weekend tournament to compete against the 3 established provinces; Auckland, Wellington and Canterbury. The NPC has been held around the Labour Weekend period but in a current restructuring will be moving to early December in 2013. The Waikato representative side team took on the name, Waikato Thunder AFL (WTAFL) to distinguish themselves from Wellington AFL (WAFL) who had formed years prior.

Since entering their inaugural National Provincial Competition the Waikato Thunder have continued to grow. They now have 2 full-time teams Hamilton Mavericks, Hamilton Tuis) that compete each week and are on their way to forming a permanent 3rd Hamilton based team (Redbacks). The WTAFL season runs from mid August through to late October/early November. Games are currently held at Derek Heather Park in Western Heights, Hamilton on Saturdays at 1pm. Finding a permanent location for the sport is difficult due to the size of the field required - and oval 150m long by 110m wide. A permanent base is being sought within the Hamilton area.

Representative Side

The representative side for the Waikato AFL is known as the Waikato Thunder.

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References


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