DARREN MONCRIEFFF
Monday 2 April 2012
SYDNEY Swans great Michael O'Loughlin (pictured) is leading a 30-strong playing group on a 13-day tour of Europe this week.
O'Loughlin, the AFL's Indigenous Team of the Century full-forward, is the AIS-AFL Academy's high performance coach and his role will be to assess the under-18 Australian team in two games against combined European teams and elite training practics in various locations.
The squad will visit Italy, England and France. In that squad are two Indigenous footballers: Western Australian pair Shannon Taylor and Josh Simpson.
The tour kicked off last Thursday when the squad played against Box Hill, the VFL club affiliated with AFL club Hawthorn, in the curtain-raiser to the Richmond-Carlton match at the MCG.
O’Loughlin said the European tour will be a fantastic opportunity for the elite under-age players to represent their country.
"The Australian squad will experience world-class facilities and coaching in Italy when they train at the Australian Sports Commission facility in Varese," he said.
"They will put their elite training to the test when they take on Europe's top players; the European Legion in London and the European Titans in an historic game in Paris.
"We are really pleased that the AIS-AFL Academy will have the chance to showcase Australia's game in Europe, while playing a key role in supporting the AFL's international development plan."
The tour won't just be about football. The group will pay their respects to the Australians who died on the battlefield.
"Following on from the academy's visit to Gallipoli on Anzac Day in 2011, this year's squad will honour the sacrifice made by Australian soldiers during World War I by paying their respect at the War Memorial in Villers-Bretonneux," O'Loughlin said.
The tour highlights:
• April 2-5: Training at the Australian Sports Commission facility in Varese in northern Italy;
• April 7: Australia Under 18 v European Legion following the official European launch of AFL 9s in London;
• April 10: Visit to the War Memorial in Villers-Bretonneux where the Australian squad will hold a football clinic with the local community;
• April 12: Australia Under 18 v European Titans in an historic game in Paris.
* The AIS-AFL Academy is an element of the NAB AFL Rising Stars Program, which supports grassroots players and football communities and helps young Australians fullfil their dream of playing in the AFL.
AboriginalFootball@westnet.com.au
Last Modified on 02/04/2012 19:29