Year in Review: AFL 9s

AFL’s newest game grew again in 2013 with more than 4,000 people enjoying the fun and social aspects of AFL 9s.

4276 people played AFL 9s in 2013, more than 32 per cent more participants than in 2012.

The strongest regions were Sydney Harbour and the ACT, and these continue to be the benchmark for AFL 9s competitions across the state.

Fantastic results were seen in the regional areas; including Wagga Wagga, Bathurst and Pambula, and the Pambula competition has set a precedent for quality competitions in regional areas.

The competition donated its profits to a house building project in Cambodia, demonstrating the wonderful spirit of the local community.

AFL 9s featured at half-time of three games this year: at StarTrak Oval in Canberra, and ANZ Stadium and Skoda Stadium in Sydney. The teams had the experience of a lifetime as they played on an elite AFL field in front of a large AFL crowd.

The inagural AFL Beach 9s competition was trialled in the Hunter/Central Coast region at Redhead beach, driven by the Warners Bay JAFC. This was a great success and there are plans to replicate the model in two other locations in spring 2014.

AFL 9s was introduced to federal politics with a group of parliamentary members playing a game in Canberra, while university students in Sydney got in on the action with an event held at Sydney University as part of the inter-faculty sport competition.

The AFL 9s summer competition will kick off in early February, with registration now open.