Minnesota Footy Photos
Apr 12, 2004
Photos of the first practice for Minnesota Footy are online. The Minnesota Morrigans and Minnesota Freeze held a combined co-ed practice.

Minnesota Footy practices continue weekly on 1pm Sundays at the Lake Nokomis Athletic Fields in Minneapolis. Check the Morrigans page for updates

A small, small world!!!
Apr 05, 2004
by Leigh Swansborough
Five months ago Mini and I were kicking the footy at Balboa Park in Encino. It was there that we met Tera othewise known as T-Blu. With a cigarette in one hand and a soda can to mark her spot "T" was manning the outfield for her softball team.

The ever so curious "T" forgot about her game long enough to approach Mini and tell him how cool it was that we were playing soccer with a football! It was there and then we had the pleasure of meeting "T" and wasted no time in recruiting her. After attending a few training sessions T moved to Orange County in order to make a life change. Even though she wasn't able to play footy, I still felt the need to keep in touch with her. Fast forward to April 3rd and Mini and I find ourselves picking "T" up for her first game of footy in San Diego.

What are the chances that "T" will know someone from the Bombshells? Slim to none one would think, but indeed she did know someone at the game. It was Dian, now known as "Roxy". It turns out T and Roxy played softball together in the valley.

• Kidman recruited Rock who brought her mum "Tank" to training.
• Tank recruited Trina who in turn brought out Farish and Sabrina
• Farish brings Roxy to the Simi Valley game a few weeks back. Roxy is keen to play footy and is crazy enough to drive all the way to San Diego for her first game.

Hence, T and Roxy finally meet again.

All because of Women's Footy!!!!!

Minnesota Women's Footy Kickoff
Mar 29, 2004
Minnesota Women's Footy will be kicking off at 1pm Sunday, April 4 at the Lake Nokomis Fields (50th & Cedar) in Minneapolis: [ Map ]

All you need to bring is cleats, water, and hopefully some friends. Expect to have a blast! New players are always encouraged. Contact Kathryn Hogg for more info.

An Invitation from the Melbourne University Mugars
Mar 24, 2004
The Melbourne University Women's Football Club would like to extend an invitation to any members of the Women's Australian Football Association should they make it to Melbourne, Australia. Our members are more than welcome to join the Mugars at training and possibly play if their stay allows them to do so. The Mugars can reached via their web site at http://www.mugars.org.au.

Canada and Minnesota Regional Officers Named
Mar 23, 2004
The Women's Australian Football Association is proud to announce the appointment of two regional officers. Sherelle "Squirrel" Kelly has been named Development Officer for all of Canada and Kathryn Hogg has been similarly appointed for Minnesota. Inquiries about women's footy in Canada should be directed to Sherelle at sherelle@sympatico.ca and for Minnesota, Kathryn can be reached at kjh@flyballdogs.com.

Santa Barbara Women's FitFest
Mar 04, 2004
Women's Footy USA participated in the Women's FitFest held in Santa Barbara on Feb 29th 2004. We ran an information booth, introduced the footy to many ladies, and held a clinic in the afternoon. The response to footy was very postive, resulting in over 20 ladies signing up for a future clinic in Santa Barbara and the possibility of forming a team.

The Santa Barbara soccer community has really embraced us and is even willing to have us hold a demo match at one of their biggest tournaments later in the year. Three of the Santa Barbara soccer ladies will be heading down to Simi Valley to play in the March 20 game. Thanks to Danger, 5-0, Kidman, and Mini for helping out with the clinics talking footy all day long.

Who we are

Our goals are to start women's teams across North America and promote the growth of women's Australian Football (aka Aussie Rules or Footy). In the year 2004, we would like to have at least one women's match at the Atlantic Alliance Cup in Toronto and 8 teams competing at the inaugural women's championships.

For more information on playing or supporting women's Aussie Rules in North America, contact Leigh Swansborough. Let us know if you have a team forming or are an individual who wants play. That will allow pickup teams to be formed at tournaments or have existing teams pick up players.

Sign up for our discussion email list!

What is Australian Football?

Australian Football, also known as Aussie Rules or Footy, is a fast paced exciting game that is played with a ball similar in shape but slightly larger than an American football. It combines elements of soccer, basketball, ultimate, lacrosse, and even volleyball. Points are scored by kicking the ball between goal posts at either end of the field. The ball is advanced by hand passing or kicking. Hand passes are similar to an underhand serve in volleyball and the kicks are similar to punts in American football. Unlike soccer you can catch, grab, or pick up a ball. Some of the most exciting and elegant plays occur when players are catching balls kicked to them. Unlike most other ball sports, Australian Football is played with the ball in the air which makes it exciting to play or watch and leads to the fast paced, high scoring nature of the game.

The Sydney Women's Australian Football League has a nice description of Women's Aussie Rules on their website. Please note the rule differences below.

North American women's footy is played pretty much according to the Women's Football Australia Guidelines with the following exceptions:

1. The number of players will be 9 per side unless both captains agree to a different number
2. The field size will be adjusted accordingly (a soccer or football field approximately 120 - 135 yards in length is ideal)
3. Tackling is not allowed. Players may be wrapped up which has the same effect as a tackle normally would. If a player is tackled (taken to the ground), she will be awarded a free kick.

The Burley Women's Football is our standard ball. These balls are designed by women for women and are the official ball of the Victorian Women's Football League, the premier women's footy league in the world. They are based on the Burley Premier but are sized a little smaller.

If you are interested in buying a women's football, please email Kathryn Hogg.

Women's Footy in the Media