On what can only be described as a perfect day for footy, Wandsworth Demons have defeated West London Wildcats in the final to win the first silverware of the season.

With some interesting results, such as the Bulldogs beating a very strong Swans side, the day had something for everyone (even Kiwis - the rugby matches were particularly hard fought).  Read on for a full report...

The 2008 Anzac Cup was played out in the sunshine at a very well attended Anzac Sports Challenge at Twyford Park, Acton on Saturday (26/04/08).

In the early rounds the GB Bulldogs came out hard against the North London Lions and with a little more accurate goal kicking they may have pulled off a shock opening win (the GB forward line hit the post twice to miss out on ten extra points), but the Lions held out to win by a mere five points. In the other pool the West London Wildcats stated their intentions for the day by kicking 3 goals and keeping the Putney Magpies scoreless. In the second round Wandsworth Demons were also keen to show they were serious to defend their Cup title by kicking 6.4.40 and keeping the London Swans to a single point.

The London 'Barbarians', a team made up of players from the new Dulwich Dragons club together with guest players from the likes of the Sussex Swans and Reading, were keen for a taste of London footie but were no match for Wimbledon Hawks, going down by 5 goals. With results looking like following form, the Bulldogs got reward for their running hard and in numbers, by pulling off a 2 goal win over London Swans, and in a game that would be tough to call, the Magpies beat the Hawks by not much more than a single goal.

With the Barbarians no match for the Hawks but the Wildcats then kicking 6 unanswered goals against the Hawks in their final pool game, the Magpies simply had to play a controlled final game against the Barbarians to take 2nd spot in the pool, which they did, winning by 4 goals.

In the other group, the Lions had only lost to Wandsworth (by 3 goals) and so looked set to take second spot in the pool, unless the Bulldogs could pull off a result against Wandsworth in their last game. The Demons were getting more focused and with a dominant midfield and some accurate kicking they showed their class by kicking 6.4.40 to Bulldogs' 0.2.2.

The pool 1st/2nd 'cross-over' semis meant that Putney and Wandsworth were playing their clash with only a very short rest period, and the Demons proved too much for the Magpies with their eye firmly on the Grand Final and defending their title. North London and West London were a little more rested going into their semi and pretty much cancelled each other out for most of the game, with the Wildcats winning by only 5 points in a tough, low-scoring game.

So a repeat of the 2007 Anzac Cup grand final saw Wandsworth come out in a very determined mood and keen to score first to pin back their traditional league rivals. Whilst possession was reasonably even for a lot of the game, the Demons' stronger midfield running and accurate kicking from half-forward meant they scored steadily throughout and frustrated the Wildcats attack. At the siren the Demons won 6.3.39 to the Wildcats 2.0.12 and took the trophy home for a second year in succession. Best On Ground (as voted by the umpires) was Wandsworth's Ryan Emmett.

After the match Wandsworth Coach Greg ‘Hosko’ Hoskins revealed how pleased he was with his whole squad, saying that their “success was built on everyone’s efforts on the day.”  Hosko went on to say; “We were very happy to retain the ANZAC Cup and start off the season on a winning note.  Specifically, a number of players who were extremely impressive all day were Ryan Emmett, James Geal, Dan Roberts and Marc McCutcheon.”  Greg also praised the rest of the event, saying “I thought the day was exceptionally well organized this year and all teams played in the right competitive spirit.”

This opinion was backed up by organiser Matt Glyn of Active Antipodean, the organisers of the ANZAC Sports Challenge 2008.  “The 2008 Anzac Sports Challenge was a very successful event with over 5000 people in attendance and it was a great way for AFL Britain to showcase the start of the AFL London season.  This year we as organisers have been building the concept so that each AFL London club can have a well organised event where they simply have to turn up and play, and we found that the AFL London clubs really embraced this whole concept.

“As far as possible all the stress is taken out for both the AFL London committee and the clubs and players, as well as giving each club the opportunity to financially gain from the day through ticket sales commissions.  We estimate that at this year’s event AFL London clubs would have made approx £2000 across the league from ticket sales commissions, which is a terrific start for the clubs to the 2008 season.  We would hope that in 2009 each club uses the opportunity even further to profit from the event, which is a win-win for all parties as it helps us attract bigger crowds and make the event even better!

“All in all the Anzac Sports Challenge would like to sincerely thank Martin Smith from the AFL London committee for all his organisation on the day, as well as all the club presidents, committees, umpires, football and netball players, as well as the club supporters.”

The quality of the football (and sportsmanship) makes for a promising season. Our thanks to the umpires for contributing well to the flow of the games, and finally thanks also to the Anzac Sports Challenge organizers for hosting us again (3rd year) on what is developing into a huge and successful sporting extravaganza.