TAC CUP ROUND 3 APRIL 5-6, 2014 $3.00 OOakleighakleigh oonn ttopop eearlyarly NNorthernorthern KKnightsnights 118.8-1168.8-116 d CCalderalder CCannonsannons 115.12-1025.12-102 OOakleighakleigh CChargershargers 115.12-1025.12-102 d EEasternastern RRangesanges 77.16-58.16-58 AFL VICTORIA CORPORATE PARTNERS NAMING RIGHTS PREMIER PARTNERS OFFICIAL PARTNERS APPROVED LICENSEES RISING STAR NOMINEE Former Knight a Rising Star nominee Former Northern Knight Dylan Buckley was the Round Two NAB AFL Rising Star nominee. Playing off the half-backline for Carlton in only his second “I went to him last year and said that we would consider game in three seasons on the list, Dylan showed plenty of the move, so he needed to start to get his head around dash fi nishing with 18 possessions and six tackles in the a different type of training – and he has risen to the Blues’ narrow loss to Richmond in Round One at the MCG. challenge. Dylan’s match was highlighted by his clean use of the ball. His opponents included Shane Edwards, Jake King “He’s a kid who gets down here early, loves the football and Ricky Petterd. club and loves training. What we all like about Dylan is it It was the 21-year-old’s year fi rst AFL match on the MCG doesn’t matter who the opposition is or how big they are, as a senior player and only his second AFL match. He he will always have a crack.” debuted for the Blues in Round 3 2013 against Geelong. Northern Knights Talent Manager Peter Kennedy Carlton coach Mick Malthouse said he was delighted with Dylan’s transition to a defensive player. remembered Buckley joining the TAC Cup as a 16 year old “To have a young player like that who has transformed in 2009. himself from a forward to a back is just fantastic,” “A feature of Dylan’s football at young age, was Malthouse said. his explosive pace and his ability to break lines with his ‘run & carry’ during games. “Dylan had a positive personality, was always ‘upbeat’ around his teammate and he was an enthusiastic team member during his time at the Northern Knights; well respected by his peers.” Dylan was a father-son selection, selection 62 overall in the 2011 NAB AFL Draft. His father, Jim, played 164 games for Carlton between 1976-1990. Jim was a member of the 1979, 1981 and 1982 premiership teams and won the 1982 best and fairest. Dylan represented Vic Metro in the 2010 NAB AFL Under-18 Championships and is a graduate of the AFL National Academies. He played junior football with the Fitzroy Junior Football Club and the Northern Knights. Editor: Anthony Stanguts anthony.stanguts@afl vic.com.au Contributors: Anthony Stanguts, David O’Neill Design & Print: Cyan Press Photos: AFL Photo’s (unless otherwise credited) Visy Park, Gate 3, Royal Parade, Carlton Nth, VIC 3054 Advertising: Ryan Webb (03) 8341 6062 GPO Box 4337, Melbourne, VIC 3001 AFL Victoria General Manager: Grant Williams Phone: (03) 8341 6000 | Fax: (03) 9380 1076 State League & Talent Manager: John Hook www.afl vic.com.au High Performance Managers: Anton Grbac, Leon Harris Cover photo: Oakleigh Charger Marc Pittonet in the Talent Operations Coordinator: Rhy Gieschen ruck last weekend. Talent Operations Offi cer: Lauren Bunting www.taccup.com.au 1 MEDIA COVERAGE TAC CUP MEDIA COVERAGE Keep up to date with all the action from the TAC Cup via the following media coverage: TAC Cup Radio Tune in from 1:45pm for the return of TAC Cup Radio for season 2014. Join Phil Crooks, Rick Morris, Gabe Sorrentino and Paige Cardona as they bring you a weekly TAC Cup match throughout the season. Saturday April 5: Gippsland Power vs Murray Bushrangers, 1:45pm Listen live on the Red Time Sport iPhone App or www.taccup.com.au Next week: Eastern Ranges vs Northern Knights TAC Cup Future Stars TAC Cup Future Stars will return to Channel 9 on Sunday May 11. Join Craig Hutchinson and the team as they keep you up to date with results and information from AFL Victoria’s TAC Cup competition. Returns: Sunday May 11, 1pm on Channel 9. TAC Cup Online Keep up to date with the TAC Cup via the following methods: Website: www.taccup.com.au @TACCup www.facebook.com/taccupfooty TAC CUP RADIO TIPSTERS Paige Cardona 4 (7) Phil Crooks 3 (5) Rick Morris 3 (5) Gabe Sorrentino 4 (5) North Ballarat North Ballarat Bendigo Pioneers Bendigo Pioneers Gippsland Power Gippsland Power Gippsland Power Murray Bushrangers Northern Knights Northern Knights Sandringham Dragons Northern Knights Geelong Falcons Geelong Falcons Dandenong Stingrays Geelong Falcons Oakleigh Chargers Oakleigh Chargers Oakleigh Chargers Oakleigh Chargers Eastern Ranges Calder Cannons Eastern Ranges Eastern Ranges 2 www.afl vic.com.au BENDIGO PIONEERS Bendigo shave for a cure The Bendigo Pioneers have a secret weapon against opposition clubs in season 2014. The tactic however is for a good cause, with the club “The whole team committed to the fundraising process, for the second year running supporting the Leukaemia and after raising over $20,000 last year, the guys all got Foundation’s World’s Greatest Shave. behind World’s Greatest Shave again this year. In mid-March every member of the 2014 Bendigo Pioneers “It is for a great cause and we threw our support behind it squad shaved their head for charity, which is sure to make as a team to try and raise as much as we can.” the matchups diffi cult for opposition coaches in 2014. Newett said it was pleasing that his side showed a Bendigo Pioneers coach David Newett said it was great to commitment to a cause outside of football. see the players support such a worthy cause. “The guys are doing some really good work, and they don’t want praise for it, but they are aware that a lot of families are affected by cancer on a daily basis, and they have an awareness of that. “We really stress to our guys that there is a lot more than football in life, and it is great that we can offer this sort of support to those that may have been affected in the region.” After the success of the 2013 fundraising effort, the club’s fundraising efforts have again been productive, with over $12,000 having already been pledged. “Last year they only set a target of $2,000 and we blew that out of the water really quickly with three or four families raising over $3,000 each in their region. “We did not set a target this year, but we aimed to throw our support behind it and hoped to raise a few thousand dollars to contribute.” If you would like to contribute, head to www. worldsgreatestshave.com and search Pioneers in the team section. www.taccup.com.au 3 NORTHERN KNIGHTS IN NFL Northern Knights in NFL When Northern Knights Talent Manager Peter Kennedy recently attended the Northern Football League season launch, he felt at home with plenty of familiar faces in the audience. One of the highlights of the league’s launch was “Congratulations go to all players on an excellent win the announcement of the fi nal squad to take on the against the EDFL,” Kennedy said. Essendon District Football League in the AFL Victoria The Northern FL squad of 30 featured: Metro Championships, held last Saturday at Visy Park (see page 17 for full story). Two Knights’ best and fairest winners in Gary As Kennedy quickly learnt, the squad was a who’s Moorcroft (1994) and Bronik Davies (2005) who of former Northern Knights players, with former 2005 Northern Knights captain Ryan Jackson, who captains, best and fairest winners and draftees forming captained the NFL side on the weekend over half of the fi nal team that would eventually Four AFL draftees in Gary Moorcroft (1994), Ricky Dyson prevail by 37 points over the EDFL. The win booked the Northern FL a spot against the VAFA in 2015 in a 1v2 (2003), Ryan Jackson (2005), Cathal Corr (2005) battle, and the chance to be ranked the No.1 metro The fi nal list that took to the fi eld Saturday featured 14 league in the state. players that had been involved in the Northern Knights While majority of focus is on the pathway to the AFL program from AFL Victoria’s TAC Cup system, the relationship Looking across the other leagues, a number of other the Northern Knights have with their local league competitions featured representation from the TAC and infl uence on football in the region cannot be Cup, with Jason (WRFL) and Cameron Cloke (NFL) underestimated in the way it helps develop footballers formerly with Eastern Ranges, Michael Stinear (SFL) for any level of the game. with Dandenong Stingrays, Taylor Gilchrist (EFL) with “It was great to see so many NFL players, who played Sandringham Dragons and Adam Bentick (VAFA) with on Saturday, start their football journey via the TAC Calder Cannons just to name a few. Cup,” Kennedy said. “After a number of years of developing their craft at various levels, they have found their way back to playing excellent footy at community league level.” After graduating from the Knights, many players progressed to various levels of football from the AFL to state league football with the Peter Jackson VFL or SANFL. Now they have returned to the NFL with a wealth of football knowledge and experience behind them. “Having such players, who have gained football experience at a higher level and have now returned to play in the NFL, has defi nitely lifted the standard of footy in this league, and we are pleased with the infl uence we may Former Northern Knights captain Ryan Jackson (right) was captain of the Northern of had in their football journey.” Football League’s win over the EDFL last Saturday.