Australian rules football in South Africa
Australian rules football in South Africa is a team sport played at amateur level in the country with a small audience.
Earliest recollections in South Africa indicate that Australian rules football was first introduced to the colonies of Transvaal, Natal and Cape in the 1880s with a premiership competition and intercolonial matches operating from 1896.
The Lions reached a peak of bronze at the 2008 Australian Football International Cup however its performance, like the state of the game in South Africa, collapsed in the 2010s.
The AFL Commission's official 2008 account of the game's history in South Africa was that it was played in 1898 "by a few Australian soldiers on Boer War service behind the lines".
[4] The Witwatersrand Gold Rush brought an influx Australians to Johannesburg in 1886, and there were a large number of migrants across the goldfields of South Africa.
[5] Melbourne's Argus newspaper makes reference of serviceman Frank E. Cochran of Elsternwick who served in the German West African campaign as one of the founding figures of the code in Johannesburg.
[8] The Durban Football Club appears to have been incorporated prior to 1900 but well established in 1900 though few records exist and there is no mention of a local competition in the city.
[6] It was noted that while the public had embraced the game, the majority of British nationals increasingly preferred to play the football codes which they were more familiar with.
The sport's officials in the country, facing competition with two other football codes began to call for assistance from Australia to further grow the game.
[22] In 1907, then Australasian Football Council president Con Hickey declared that despite the game being played overseas the primary focus should be on inter-state competition and that there was no intention to attempt to "oust rugby" in places where it was growing in popularity.
From 1907 an Australian exodus from South Africa occurred as wages fell and unemployment rose with many migrating to Western Australia.
In any case, the "Father of the game" in Australia H C A Harrison expressed some regret at the AFC's decision not to support the inclusion of South Africa during the 1908 Carnival.
M. C. Blackett reported that at the end of 1909 the code had gone into permanent recess as Australian Footballers joined the ranks of rugby and soccer due to a lack of numbers and interest to sustain the once thriving competition.
[3] The AFL Record's 2007 "Footy Facts" column made an unreferenced claim that Australian football clubs existed in 1967 in Johannesburg, Pretoria and Cape Town and that the VFL at the time was optimistic about the future of the game in South Africa.
[34] In 1939 a match played in Cape Town by the crew from HMS Moreton Bay attracted much interest and favourable reviews from the local newspapers.
[35] In 1993 interest increased to the point where plans were made for powerful WAFL club Subiaco and Norwood from the SANFL to play two games in Johannesburg in 1994.
[36] In 1997, the Australian Defence Force visited the North West province and the first talks of re-introducing the game began with some football clinics.
South African children exposed to the clinics took up the sport enthusiastically and the rapid growth of the game began to attract serious attention in Australia.
In 1998 an experimental exhibition match was played between the Brisbane Lions and Fremantle Dockers Australian Football League clubs in Cape Town.
AFL South Africa was formed in 2003, as a development organisation and secured funding from the North West Academy of Sport, as well as Ausaid, Australian Volunteers International and Tattersalls.
With the success of the program, the Australian Football League began to contribute development funds in 2004, seeing the country as a potential source of playing talent.
South African born indigenous West Australian Football League player Paul "Gumby" Magambwa began entertaining crowds with spectacular skills.
[40] In 2006, the AFL announced it would send an all-aboriginal juniors side (from the Clontarf Foundation's Clontarf Football Academy[41]) headed by former Essendon star Michael Long and Sydney Swans star Adam Goodes to play three matches, including an international rules football match against local sides in South Africa.
South African born Luke van Rheenen was selected in the 2007 rookie draft by the St Kilda Football Club.
Although winning convincingly, The Geelong College formed positive relationships with the players and the trip proved to be a great investment for AFL in South Africa.
[49] As part of its investment, the AFL scheduled a 2008 pre-season match between Fremantle and Carlton at Supersport Park, Centurion which attracted a modest attendance of 5,222 spectators.
The league was started at the Douglas Murray Oval in Cape Town, South Africa, and is tightly contested between two teams.
[51] In the same month, the AFL announced that 4 of its clubs had applied for access to specific recruiting zones in South Africa and to provide investment and development support through clinics and end of season tours.
Between 4–8 July 2008, the historic first senior AFL South Africa National Championships were held at the Kopanelo Cricket Ground in Potchefstroom from which the 2008 Australian Football International Cup squad was selected.
South Africa hosted the 2010 FIFA World Cup which significantly affected participation, resulting in the AFL reducing funding.
