Burnaby goes all Aussie with football championships

Canada’s secret passion for Australian rules football is going public.
The game popular Down-under is a growing sport in this land of hockey and lacrosse, with Burnaby hosting the first-ever Canadian national championships this weekend.
The tournament features men’s and women’s divisions of teams from Ontario, the East (including Montreal and Atlantic Canada), Alberta and B.C., all vying for footy bragging rights.
“This is the first time for a national championship, and every indication is its going to be big,” said Burnaby Eagles coach Jake Wilkins. “I think everyone who comes down is going to enjoy themselves, whether they know the sport or not.”
Having learned the game growing up in Australia, Wilkins compares the passion for the sport, which is played on an oval-shaped field, to hockey and says the number of Canadian-born players in the local league continues to grow.
“The Eagles have been around for 10 years, but unlike the other B.C. clubs, we’re made up of about 75 per cent Canadians,” said Wilkins. “It’s an international game, but for a long time the foundation of local clubs were visiting Aussies, Irish, English and Aussie ex-pats... We’ve got people from all over, actually.”
An ex-pat who grew up in the Victoria region of Australia, Wilkins said most people can’t make heads or tails of the game when someone describes it.
When they see it, they latch on quickly.
“In rugby the ball pretty much goes only up or down, but footie you can go anywhere, the ball goes anywhere,” he noted.
Players are required to bounce the rugby-shaped ball when running with it before booting it through one of four uprights.
Ontario has been a bastion with a number of clubs in the Toronto area. Here, a league of six teams, plus Seattle, compete in the B.C. Australian Football League. There are also two women’s sides in B.C.
The tournament, played at the Burnaby Lake Rugby Club, starts Saturday, 9 a.m. when Alberta plays Ontario in the men’s division. Games continue Sunday, with the finals at 3 p.m. (women’s) and 4 p.m. (men’s). For a full schedule, visit http://tinyurl.com/cdnfootie.