27 Jun 2025
Last Thursday’s AFL gala team was an opportunity for our traditionally rugby-oriented students to try their hand at AFL.
Both our under 15s boys and girls teams arrived with a mix of nerves and excitement. Many of our players were completely new to the game, learning the rules on the fly. To make things even more daunting, reigning champions St Francis had entered a team in the comp.
The girls played the mighty St Francis for their first match of the day. Despite their odds, they held their own in the first half with Misha Brill kicking an absolute beauty from 50m that rolled right through the goals, drawing cheers from the sidelines. In the second half however, St Francis found their rhythm and gave our defenders a real workout. Their experience showed and they managed to earn a convincing win.
The girls quickly reviewed the rules before taking the field against Leeton High School. Armahni Cook managed a fantastic goal from the pocket and Ebony Best fought hard in the ruck, battling for every ground ball she could. Griffith came away with a well-deserved 6 – 1 win.
In the final match against Marian, Jess Johnstone and Esther Sanson showed huge improvements in their marking skills, each taking several field intercept possessions and even bagging a few goals. Armanhi’s Hail Marys, though they didn’t all hit their target, resulted in some much-needed behinds. The team held on for a thrilling two-point victory.
“The day was full of learning, fun and plenty of personal victories,” summarises coach Bethany Tyson, “Back at school they were quick to continue the fun with a game of “markers up” and were unanimous in their call: AFL needs to be played in PE more often!.”
Our boys, meanwhile, handed a massive beating to Marian in their first match. The favour was returned by St Francis, who delivered a punishing defeat to the mixed ability team.
Paxton Fall was outstanding in the middle. He broke through the defender’s ranks and played both matches at 100 miles an hour. Kingston Sipiki’s bounding enthusiasm and speed managed to compensate for his lack of experience on the AFL oval and Bailey Broome found his calling in the backline, retaining his cool and calm demeanour throughout the day.
“What was really impressive to me was that even the kids who didn’t really know what they were doing had a crack,” recounts coach Michael Thompson, “At the end of the game I asked them whether they had fun and I could tell that they definitely did.”
Though neither team will be progressing through to the next round, the day was a great introduction to AFL to our teams.
