Melbourne welcomes the world

NEXT Wednesday, Melbourne's Royal Park North will be a jungle teeming with Mosquitoes, Lions, Falcons and Elks.

Vikings, Chiefs, Warriors and Samurais will roam the grounds and prepare to do battle. The Northwind will blow in and the Icebreakers will muster their strength as 16 nations converge for the Australian Football International Cup.

The triennial competition attracts diehards of the game from nations as far-afield as Denmark, Sweden, South Africa and the United States – lovers of the code that are prepared to scrimp and save to pay their way for the privilege of competing in its heartland.

There are countries that have taken the game up in the past 12 months – India, China, Finland, and the improbable union of Israel and Palestine forming a united front as the Peace Team.

Purists argue the attraction of footy is that it is indigenous, something best confined to Australian shores. But AFL talent and international manager Kevin Sheehan disagrees.

His work has taken him to several continents, including recent trips to South Africa with the AIS Academy and Israel to conduct football clinics with the Peace Team. He is consistently impressed by the unbridled enthusiasm with which international sides embrace the game, despite lacking the traditional cultural ties to AFL clubs inherent to Australian fans.

"They've got a great feel for it, a love for it and it just stands out when you watch them play, absolutely stands out," Sheehan says of the international players he comes into contact with.

"That's the thing that impresses you the most, the love that these people have for this particular code and the way in which they'll attack the ball and try and gain a result and work for their group like any other Australian footy side – whether it be an AFL team or a side anywhere in any community in Australia," he says.

He rates Papua New Guinea as the team to beat in this year's Cup after being twice runners-up, to Ireland in 2002 and New Zealand in 2005.

The PNG side will be bolstered by around a dozen players who have accepted football scholarships to play in the Queensland state league this season. State under-18s representative John James and under-16s player David Meli will bring talent and skill to the PNG side, enhancing the experience of older players such as Overa Gibson and Rexy Leka – both in their 30s and stalwarts of the game in PNG.

Sheehan says the side is well prepared after being unlucky in the last two championships. 

"They are quick and smart and probably more brought up on the game than some of the other nations," Sheehan says.

"They are small, so that will challenge them but they'll make up for it with brilliant speed and wonderful feel for the game, very much like our own indigenous players with their extra sense, I suppose. And hand-eye co-ordination, smartness around goals, all those sorts of features ... absolute pace."

New Zealand and Ireland are also expected to be in the mix, both having won the Cup and having strong reputations in international footy.

The Danes' fourth place in 2002 behind Ireland, Papua New Guinea and New Zealand was encouraging. Sheehan says Denmark's commitment to junior development should see it continue to advance on the international stage.

South Africa is expected to fare well under the guidance of former Kangaroo Jason McCartney, who will coach the side throughout the competition. Five of their players have gained valuable experience playing WAFL reserves or under-18s for Swans District over the past two weekends.

"There are close to 15,000 players in South Africa, they've come off their first ever national championships in July – four provinces at both senior and youth level," Sheehan says.

"They've had an exceptional 18 months in terms of the growth and development of the game in South Africa. Expect them to improve."

Sheehan fancies Canada as a potential dark horse. After beating the United States in the past 12 months, they "look to be on the improve".

But don't discount the US, Sheehan says. The Revolution take their footy seriously – enough to adopt a self-imposed media ban to eliminate distractions on their way to a third placing in 2005.

"Give them a go, too," Sheehan says. "You can never underestimate the might of the USA!"

The International Cup will be played in Melbourne and Warrnambool between August 27 and September 6, with the grand final to be played as curtain-raiser to an AFL finals match in Melbourne.

For more International Cup news, click here