VAFA RNd 9 05.qxd 16/6/05 9:27 AM Page 1 Inside the VAFA Amateur Football On The Internet 200 visitors a day from When Marcellin Football Club finally constructed Monday to Friday and its website recently, (Marcellinocfc.com.au) it attracting over 2000 meant that every A Section club is now officially different visitors each online. Indeed, of the 73 Amateur clubs, only six month. Their site is a good do not have a website. Given that club secrets example of blending match were once fiercely guarded (the scourge of the reports, a detailed history scribes!) and information on the week- to- week dating back to 1923, links fortunes of the team were the domain of the to all their sponsors and Thursday night get-together and the club the offbeat ramblings of the newsletter, this is a massive step forward. increasingly senile Mr Chips and the intriguingly elusive “Sheik”. When they plucked the 2003 flag out of nowhere, VAFA “ n the Monday before last week’s fans in London, New York and Northern Timbuktu could read about it almost immediately, complete O representative games, over 4,500 with scores of high quality colour photographs. hits were recorded, while this season the In terms of accessibility, information, site has averaged almost 20,000 visitors photographs, history, use of sponsors and good old fashioned humour, some other club sites weekly.” currently setting the pace include…. Of course, the competition website, vafa.com.au, 1. FitzroyReds.com.au provides links to all the club sites and continues 2. Beaumarisfc.com.au to grow markedly. On the Monday before last 3. Hamptonrovers.com.au week’s representative games, over 4,500 hits were 4. Uniblacks.org.au recorded, while this season the site has averaged 5. OldGeelong.com.au almost 20,000 visitors weekly. Significantly, only 6. DeLaFootball.com.au two years ago, the weekly average was less than a 7. PrahranFootball.org.au third of this. This is perhaps attributable to a 8. StBedesMentoneTigers.com.au greater emphasis on web polls (the latest of 9. RupertswoodFC.org.au which saw the Junction Oval voted the best 10. UniBlues.com ground in the VAFA, ahead of Melbourne Uni, Elsternwick Park, Toorak Park and the recently Clubs such as Hampton Rovers, St Bedes upgraded Snakepit), more news articles and a Mentone, Ormond and Beaumaris place a strong higher percentage of overseas visitors. The recent emphasis on incorporating the juniors on their initiative of making The Amateur Footballer sites, which can only help with ensuring the downloadable has also been a massive success. A youngsters filter through to senior level. quick scan of some of our local and country rivals’ sites (many of which are either non-existent or Whatever the case, as fans become increasingly IT incomprehensible) reveals just how far ahead we savvy and clubs latch on to the financial and are. Amateur Football even has its own live forum logistical benefits of promoting themselves on the (bigfooty.com.au) which at last count had more internet, amateur football will continue to be than 650 posts and 15,000 views. second only to the AFL in terms of our exposure on the World Wide Web. At the club level, OldXavs.com is perhaps the busiest individual website, garnering more than Jonathan Horn THE AMATEUR FOOTBALLER THE JOURNAL OF THE VICTORIAN AMATEUR FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION June 18th, 2005 Price: $2.00 Vol. 05 No. 09 V THE AMATEUR FOOTBALLER 2005 1 VAFA RNd 9 05.qxd 16/6/05 9:27 AM Page 2 A SECTION by Jonathan Horn Uh Oh Righettio! where it’s due St Kevins haven’t lost at Righetti for however, Trinity’s donkies’ years, yet were really under the stocks have really pump with their two key defenders going picked up with down in the first five minutes to further Damien Buttler exacerbate the loss of Nick Dowling who is having a cracking season at CHB and Linc out suspended. On cue, Collegians’ James “just call me The Champ” Reynolds Jorgensen, who was only a last minute providing a target up forward. They lost Al inclusion, stepped up and tore the game Neville, Abe Williams, Lachlan Kennedy and apart with seven goals. Corey Weeks in the others over Christmas and finally the middle, Andrew Baxter off a back flank and rebuilding process in taking shape. Brent Grant Dowson all over the place played Walsh has had bad hamstrings all year so stellar games for the Lions. St Kevin’s the two-week break should also sharpen meanwhile, are in all sorts, though the him up. break should treat them kindly in terms of The ever humble Jesuits like to refer to injuries. Elsternwick Park as “Premiership Park” and they certainly do have a point. I only saw a half of what was a high standard game and “ hey’re still up there but really it was enough. Mike Beardsley (another T need Glenn Cox back, one of adopted Xav with a Ballarat connection) would almost be leading their B&F, Damien the best amateur footballers of Lynch seems to be a specialist third quarter recent times” player, Cadyn Beetham seems to shift into Big win for Marcellin, who were pretty McKINNON average against Xavs, but turned it around SPORTS MEDICINE against a Scotch team that must really have SHARPSHOOTERS – A coach Dale Tapping booking a ticket on the rubber bus. Vaughan Cleary blooded CLUB NAME LST WK TOTAL another first gamer, Daniel Fraser, who A SECTION promptly bagged two in the first ten minutes Old Scotch Gerstman 5 35 of the game while Matt Leffanue rucked well Marcellin Cullinan 3 33 all day. They’re still up there but really need Old Haileybury B. O'Farrell 0 32 Glenn Cox back, one of the best amateur St. Kevins McKee 2 27 footballers of recent times, if they’re to be a genuine premiership chance. University Blues De Crespigney 4 27 A RESERVE I reckon if it wasn’t for Old Melburnians, I would be on top of the tipping ladder and my Old Haileybury Efstathiou 1 29 life would have a semblance of credibility. University Blues Coleman 1 14 What a strange bunch they are; knocking off Old Haileybury Salter 0 13 the world beating Xavs one minute, playing Old Scotch Beaurepaire 2 11 like a pack of Haselhoffs the next. Credit St Bernards Mizienicz 2 11 2 V THE AMATEUR FOOTBALLER 2005 VAFA RNd 9 05.qxd 16/6/05 9:27 AM Page 3 top gear on a whim, usually when they’re LAST ROUND’S RESULTS – A playing a big game and Adam Chatfield seems to never have an opponent. ROUND 8 – JUNE 4 2005 - A SECTION OLD XAVERIANS 7.4 11.5 18.6 20.11 (131) Be assured, the Bloods are pretty handy OLD HAILEYBURY 6.2 7.7 11.8 15.12 (102) Old Xav: Lynch 5 Clarke 5 Pasceri 3 Bowen 2 Arnold Mollard Colbert themselves. Paul Corrigan, like he has for Scanlan Purss. Best: Chatfield Beetham Ford Johnston Lynch Clarke. years, played a fearless brand of football Old Hail: Seccull 4 Bourke 2 Jones 2 Ford 2 Steinfort Siapantas Barker and is almost untaggable while Mark Armstrong. Best: Seccull Jenke Corrigan H McLaughlin Brown Trollope. Umpires: Wayne Hinton Richard Eastwood (F) Cameron Hayes Andrew “Disco” Seccull, who may well have been a Errington (B) Michael O'Donnell Bernie Hoare (G) member of the founding Haileybury team MARCELLIN 6.6 8.8 15.10 17.12 (114) OLD SCOTCH 3.2 6.5 10.7 13.12 (90) in 1961, looked a class above everyone Marc: Cullinan 3 Fraser 2 Waters 2 J Bortolotto 2 S Considine 2 Frazer else up forward. Put Brett O’Farrell back Rice Marson Addison Carmody Johnston. Best: Leffanue Rice Dobson Augustin S Considine L Considine. Old Sc: Gerstman 5 Lewis 2 Collins into that side and get Carl Steinfort fit and Crow S Dick McKenzie-McHarg Demetriou Gnatt. Best: Gnatt Tallent they will be the real deal. Hume Gerstman Crow Saunders. Umpires: Geoff Caulfield Sacha Koffman (F) Brendan Cannon Peter And let’s not forget those Blues, who are Monotti (B) Steven Piperno Bernie Jephson (G) going about things with a minium of fuss. OLD MELBURNIANS 4.1 6.4 12.5 13.7 (85) OLD TRINITY 2.3 8.9 12.12 19.19 (133) While the rest of us were babbling on Old Melb: Jm. Beaumont 2 Hicks 2 Kennedy 2 Lacey 2 Jr. Beaumont about the Scotch result for six weeks, they Farquharson D Harrison Jo. Miller Mulquiney. Best: Hicks Bunn Toll Holme Lacey Roberts. Old Trin: Cultrera 4 A Ramsden 4 C Buttler 3 Walsh unobtrusively assumed equal top position. 3 Aitken Hooke Reynolds Saunders T Van Der Venne. Best: Brown Liam Ryan had really added something Reynolds A Ramsden D Buttler Saunders Aitken. Umpires: Mark Gibson Luke Holmes (F) Will Stokes Rob Mayston Jnr (B) after his year off while Rob Wilkie (who Lucas Robson Chris Doyle (G) does some strange things and is, from all UNIVERSITY BLUES 4.5 8.10 13.16 19.22 (138) reports, one for the white lab-coat brigade) ST BERNARDS 3.2 5.4 6.7 9.10 (64) Uni Blues: DeCrespigny 4 Scambler 4 Ryan 4 Wilkie 2 Butko Gleeson has given them some much needed Wilcox McKay Clark. Best: Lowcock Scambler Ryan Steele Paterson Clark. mobility in the ruck. Bernards couldn’t St Bern: Potter 3 Keunen Garth A Mitchell C Mitchell Pearson Legudi. Best: Gill Kavanagh Blunt Madden Legudi T Wilkinson.