The Dongguan Blues in Macau have become the 8th team to join the EAAFL.
The new EAAFL’s website yesterday reported that the Dongguan Blues from Macau have become the 8th team to join the EAAFL.
Below, the article has been reproduced.
Darrell Egan of the Dongguan Footy Club in Macau has just confirmed that it will become the eighth team to join the East Asian Australian Football League and, in so doing, become the first team from North East Asia to sign up.
Darrel says,
“Dongguan Blues Nan Hua Humen College Senior Club is grateful to be accepted and to come on board as the 8th club in the EAAFL. Eight is the number of fortune in China and I wish the EAAFL future fortune.
“We commend the establishment of a peak body which will pave the road for a well structured and co ordinated approach to Footy in Asia.
“Dongguan Footy Club looks forward to working with all parties on the EEAFL for what we can see as a bright future for Footy in Asia.”
According to Dongguan’s Facebook page, the Club was only established a year ago in January 2012 and is the “first sustainable 100 per cent senior team made up of local Chinese.”
In other news from the China Reds, Mic Mittasch (Beijing Bombers’ President) has confirmed that the Reds have been contacting other clubs in Japan to discuss setting up an annual “home and away” fixture. To share the costs of travel, cities/venues would be rotated.
Jonathon Cooper from the Osaka Dingoes, who coached the Japan Samurais last year, says the Club was “desperate to get some high level match practice in before the AFL’s International Cup (and) I think the EAAFL is a good opportunity for them. They currently have a development squad of about 35.”
Jonathon continues, “There are some amazingly talented players over here in Japan. The university guys out of Tokyo treat it as a Japanese guy would any other club activity and train four to five times a week. Here in Osaka, we have the only mixed team with half of the list being Japanese and the other half being from a range of foreign countries. We share leadership positions between Japanese and non Japanese”.
Jonathon also mentions that, as with other clubs around Asia, the financial burden of travel is is a real issue, especially as many of their players are university students or English teachers who “don’t have cash to throw around”.
Paul Milbourne from the Malaysian Warriors says that “the Warriors have ‘spread the word’ at our AGM and training this week. The guys have all come back with a really positive response and think it’s a great idea.”
Momentum continues to build for the EAAFL!
- To view the original article on the EAAFL website, click here.
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