Bluemont Park #1 (601 N Manchester St, Arlington, VA 22203, USA)
To register for Saturday Morning Footy click link on right hand side.
- The cost $20 (or $40 with a jersey). Scholarships are available.
- No equipment is necessary.
- It is recommended that players bring a water bottle, sun screen, and a football (footy, soccer ball, or American football).
- For boys and girls aged 5 to 16.
The first three Saturday mornings will be "clinics" with fun games to teach skills.
Each session will end with a game.
The last two Saturday mornings will be scheduled matches (although the emphasis will be on learning, fun and participation).
Snacks and drinks will be provided and participants will receive a free footy and junior membership of the Baltimore Washington Eagles (valued at $20). For more information please email christopher_p_adams@hotmail.com or call 703-217-3625.
What is USFooty Kids?
USFooty Kids is the US version of the very popular junior Australian football program called AFL Auskick (www.aflauskick.com.au).
Auskick is a hugely successful junior sporting program that emphasizes fun and participation in order to develop a life-long love of sport and Australian football in particular.
- As with Auskick there is no contact in USFooty Kids.
- In 2006 Auskick had almost 150,000 participants in 2,500 centers across Australia.
- USFooty is the governing body of Australian football in the US. In 2007 USFooty celebrates its 10th anniversary. Australian football celebrates its 150th anniversary in 2008.
- The game dates to the 1850s in booming Melbourne, Australia. At the time "football" had no consistent set of rules with players used rules from various English elite private schools (Eton, Rugby) and their home towns. In Melbourne, players came from a wide variety of backgrounds and preferences for various rules. The result was a consensus code that incorporates rules that are now used in soccer, rugby, American football and Gaelic football. Some believe that the game was also influenced by the local indigenous game of Mangrok.
- Today, Australian football dominates Australia's sporting culture - particularly in its home town of Melbourne.
USFooty Kids teaches a number of important sporting skills including punting and catching. Recently, the coach of the Welsh rugby team complained that Australia's rugby team (the Wallabies) had an advantage because of exposure to punting in Australian football from a young age.
In American football, a number Australians have made their mark on the NFL as punters.
- Darren Bennett and Mat McBriar were All-Star punters for the San Diego Chargers and Dallas Cowboys, respectively.
- Ben Graham is captain on the New York Jets and Sav Rocca is currently competing for the punting position at the Philadelphia Eagles.
However, the skill that USFooty Kids really emphasizes is team work. Game rules require that players pass the ball either by hand or by foot. It is amazing to watch kids who never pass the ball suddenly looking for team mates, running to position and call each other's names!
Saturday Morning Footy is in its second year after three very successful clinics in 2006.
The clinics will be run by:
- Chris Adams, an ASA coach for U7 Coed Hurts Hammers and former assistant coach for the Baltimore Washington Eagles.
- Denis Ryan, the National Coordinator for USFooty Kids and former Head Coach of the Baltimore Washington Eagles and the US national team the US Revolution.
- Rob Brunton, the President of the Baltimore Washington Eagles and former member of the Canadian Northwind.
- Matt Bishop, the current Head Coach of the Baltimore Washington Eagles.
Collingwood's #50, Shae McNamara, is hoping to be the first American to play AFL.