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Air
Forces’ FSGT Paul Ridder wears the green and gold for Australia
at the European Touch Football championships in Jersey.
Paul was one of seven ADF members who played for Australia
as they toured South Africa and the UK before taking on
the best of the world in Jersey.
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Photo:
Michael Broadbent, Sporting Images Australia
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Seven
members of the ADF helped turn the European touch football championships
into an Australian whitewash with the Aussies taking out three
rest of the world finals in Jersey Channel Island recently.
FSGT’s John Samin, Jed Murray, Mick Lennon and Paul Ridder and
Army’s LCPL Steve Hughes were selected as players for the senior
and master’s men’s teams while WO2 Greg Taylor was one of five
referees and Navy’s SBLT Joanne Adams was the senior women’s team
manager.
Teams played over 30 games on the European and South African tour,
ranging from young, fast, but inexperienced sides to representative
national and international sides.
The tour combined coaching clinics and local games, but it was
the European championships in Jersey that the players had been
training and preparing months in advance for.
Teams from the British Isles, France, Germany, New Zealand and
South Africa joined the Australians at the championships.
In the early rounds, the Aussies played all teams but the finals
were divided into European countries and the rest of the world,
with the teams winning the three rest of the world finals that
they participated in.
The senior women won the women’s open division defeating Colonials
by touchdowns to 2 in an exciting drop off.
The men’s 35 years division rest of the world championship final
was a tussle between the two Australian senior teams with the
masters team defeating the Vets 4 to nil.
The men’s ppen rest of the world final was won by Australia 6
touchdowns to 2 against the New Zealand University team.
FSGT Ridder was named “players player” for the master’s team while
FSGT Samin captained the senior men’s team to victory and had
the honours of being one of two Australian flag bearers at the
opening ceremony in Jersey.
For more touch information see the ADFTA website at http://defweb.cbr.defence.gov.au/adfta/home
