This fixture will be re-scheduled for early March. Full details to follow.

Saturday 23^rd July saw an epic game of footy at “the Fortress” Home to The Mighty Huddersfield Rams.

The biggest game of the season between the Huddersfield Rams and Sheffield Thunder Was the deciding factor to see who reaches the AFL CNW Grand Final, The prize was to play the ladder winners Nottingham Scorpions this weekend at Manton Colliery Worksop (Ball up 3pm Saturday 30th.)

It was a hot summer’s day at Lockwood Park and as expected the game got under way at high intensity from the travelling Thunder who sat 1 place above the Rams in the ladder in 2^nd , The home crowd saw their Rams go 2 goals down in the first few minutes with some great work from Thunder captain Garth Nevin and half forward Luke Childs.

The Rams were caught on the back foot and a bit slow out of the blocks compared to the visitors conceding again to go 3 goals down in 7 minutes, With some harsh words from the back men and the touchline the Rams eventually got going although not to the level they had reached in previous games, With the Thunder heavily manned up on Rams Captain Danny Armitage they still couldn’t stop him taking a massive grab and finishing his job off with a great opener for the Rams.

This gave the Rams a lift but still only into second gear, The Thunder replied with another good goal to which the Rams answered again within minutes, the first quarter continued this way right up to the Horn with both sides producing goal after goal.

The Rams went into the huddle 3 goals down after the first Quarter and the lads were in for a roasting from Assistant Coach Rhys Long, Unfortunately due to a late pull out by the league field umpire Rams head Coach Neil Morrison had to step in to fill the role which he did fairly and to the highest standard.  As expected the coaches words were harsh but with encouragement and optimism as always.

The Rams headed into the 2^nd quarter optimistic they could turn the game in their favour, The Rams started the 2^nd a lot better than the 1^st getting an early goal from new young star Luke Booth, The Rams got the game back level in quick concession capitalising on the Thunder being totally out of position after a bit of hand bags at dawn, between Thunder full back and Rams “mouth” Luke Booth.

The Rams new themselves that they weren’t firing on all cylinders yet and had to do something about it and quick, Sheffield Thunder got a grip on things after all the excitement of the Scuffle and come back showing why they were 2^nd in the ladder.

The Mighty Rams took a massive blow as Tagger Stu Rowling went down and eventually off the field with a knee injury which has unfortunately ended his season for 2011 and put him out of the Grand Final.

The Rams had to regroup and reshape knowing they would deeply miss the presence of the Tagger who had done a solid job up to the unfortunate injury, This misfortune seemed to give the Rams the kick that they needed and the goals started flowing with great finishes from James Sunderland, Jason Battye, Ally Delooze, Danny Armitage and Luke booth.

The Rams went into Half Time a few goals up on the Thunder but they knew that they had to dig deep and produce more, They needed to start the Third quarter as well as they had finished the 2^nd and with some encouraging words from the coaching staff the Rams headed out to try and put this game beyond the reach of the visitors.

As the game got under way it seemed that the Rams had totally forgot what they had been instructed to do, The Thunder broke through the middle with great intensity supplying their forwards with some quality balls which they made the most of clawing back the goals. It took yet another scuffle to get the Rams going again as they took the game by the scruff of the neck and started to pile on the pressure which led to more goals from Rams captain Danny Armitage and rover Luke Booth. The Rams went into 3 quarter time up 4 goals on the thunder and it seemed that the wind had been taken out of the Thunder storm.

Another positive huddle and excellent coaching from Rams assistant Rhys Long spurred The Rams to take the game to the Thunder, they needed to maintain the momentum they had built up in the  3^rd quarter and take it into the 4^thas all the hard work both sides had done through the season had come down to just 20 minutes of footy.

After great work in the ruck by Rams big ruckman Darren Lynch the Rams were straight back into the action, Rams youngest player Sam gill (who had also done well all day in the ruck rotation) was gifted chances by some excellent work from Matt Whitely which he unfortunately squandered but emphasised how the rams were dominating from the off.

The Thunder looked under the pump as full back Dan Washusen attempted to kick in, The Rams seemed to have more men on the field as all the options were nonexistent for Sheffield, This was assisted by great tagging on the Thunder captain by Rams rookie Brandon Fletcher who took on the role from injured Stu Rowling, Thunders other usual option Luke Childs was having the job done on him too by Rams club secretary and International star Ally Delooze who kept Luke quiet for the second half. There was no other option than to bomb the guts from the back men but the Rams continued to dominate winning possession almost every time setting up Great Britain international Matt whitely to get on the scoring sheet.

Sheffield seemed to have no answer to the Rams pressure, Every time the ball went forward to the big Thunder forwards it was dealt with consistently by rams founder Karl Haigh and rookie Matt Evans, who is only in his first season and coming on in leaps and bounds every week.

The Rams kept possession and did what they had to do to keep the 33 point deficit as instructed by Rams halfback and Fellow Australian Assistant coach Rhys Long.  Rhys comes from Leeds each week and has been a god send for Head coach Neil Morrison this season, Neil has had a lot of commitments outside of the club which has meant that he has not been able to fully commit at times this season, Rhys has stepped in well and has a wealth of experience, he has instantly earned the respect of the lads and has done a great job assisting the Boys to the Grand Final who without him could have possibly ended up mid table after a run of losses mid way through the season, The Rams held out right up to the final horn ending what was one of the best games of footy this season which finished Huddersfield Rams-149 defeating Sheffield Thunder-116

The Grand Final between Huddersfield Rams and Nottingham Scorpions is being held on Saturday 30th July at Manton Colliery sports club Worksop, Ball up is 3pm.

(above Rams president Karl Haigh and Head coach Neil Morrison with CNW Umpire Andrew Markham and guinness world records Englands youngest Mayor Bassett Laws Ian Campbell photo from 2011 Brit Cup in Worksop.) 

Well it has definitely been the best season in the AFL CNW Division since footy began in the north. With our great game growing so rapidly it proves why everyone is so excited about Aussie Rules.

It couldn't have been tighter in the ladder all season and it has all comes down to the last game of the season to decide who makes it to the Grand Final.

Nottingham Scorpions (2010 AFL CNW Runners up) have been top of the table all season and have proven what experience brings to a side, they have been together now for 8 years and have a wealth of experience playing in the London leagues before they came into the CNW Division. They had not lost a game in 7 rounds straight even beating the Mighty Rams at Lockwood Park by 5 goals.

This left Huddersfield, Sheffield and Birmingham fighting it out for the rest of the season to secure second place which left no room to slip up. (First and second go into a Grand Final to find out who is the greatest team in 2011 in the AFL CNW division.) Manchester, Wolverhampton and Hull suffered some shock defeats in previous rounds taking them out of the running.

The 3 teams have been fighting it out for 8 rounds of tough footy, This weekend saw round 9 and the race come down to 2 teams as Birmingham were narrowly defeated by last years champions Manchester Mosquitos In Nottingham as the Mozzies found some last minute form,.

The Mighty Rams also travelled to Nottingham to take on the hosts, table leaders and Brit Cup Champions Nottingham Scorpions, The Scorpions were going into this game with their first loss of the season in the previous round 8 where they were defeated by the Birmingham Bears in a thriller, The Rams were going into this game on 3 straight wins hoping to take down the Scorpions on their own soil.

There was no other option, This was The Rams biggest and toughest game of the season by far, The Rams had to win to stay in contention for the Grand Final as Sheffield were taking on the new boys of the season Wolverhampton (who hadn't won a game all season) at sheffield on the same day. (Sheffield defeated Wolves 132-90)

The Sun was out and the ground was buzzing as everyone knew how this game needed to finish.

The Rams came out firing on all cylinders and did exactly what coach Neil Morrison asked of them, The Scorpions didn't know what hit them and were shell shocked, they couldn't handle what the Rams machine was throwing at them, They piled on the Goals and were solid through the guts, The defence were solid also and by the end of the second quarter (half Time) had only conceded 3 goals, the Rams had scored 11 goals but were paying the price of such a ferocious start as the Sun continued to burn hot and zap the Rams.

This game was definitely a game of two halves, The Rams were spent and the Scorpions were not going to sit back and take what the Rams had dished out, Straight into the Third quarter the Scorpions got a couple of goals consecutively and the Rams were on the back foot. They had to get a grip and with the result of a great play and another special goal from Rams captain Danny Armitage the sting was taken out of the Scorpions tail once again, The Rams played out the third quarter playing a defensive possession tactic while the Scorpions were frustrated and missed the chances they were given.

Going into the Fourth quarter the Rams knew what they had to do! they were in front but had to play the toughest 20 minutes of their lives as they knew the Scorpions were going into bully mode. Nottingham are by far the Biggest team in the division with players on average 6ft 5 with bodies like weapons of mass destruction, They couldn't out play the rams so they were going to literally bully the Rams off the Field, They pushed their big boys up through the guts and into the forward lines but this left them vulnerable through the back.

The Last quarter kicked off and as expected the rams were hit hard, They were battered and bruised but we were smart.

The Scorpions did bully themselves a couple more goals but the rams knew the long ball was always the option that was going to win them the game.

Rams defenders put themselves on the line in the air and the big tackles while the smalls picked up the crumbs, They delivered the long ball perfectly on numerous occasions leaving the forwards to do what they do best.

The Mighty Rams thought hard and held off the Scorpions, They scored a couple more goals sealing the win and giving the table leaders a lesson in football.

This has taken it right down to round 10, the last round and their are no prisoners!

The Show down between Huddersfield Rams and Sheffield Thunder is going to be the game of the season, The Scorpions are into the Grand Final and deservedly as they had such a strong start and middle to the season. Huddersfield are Third and Sheffield are in second place, The Rams are too far ahead on percentage which means there will be a winner this Saturday 23rd and a confirmed Grand Final.

Round 10 is at the home of the Mighty Rams Lockwood Park and will ball up at 3 pm, The Rams would love it if you could get down but totally understand if not.
Hopefully we will make it to the Grand Final and give you another opportunity to come and see us in action, This will take place the following saturday at manton colliery Worksop.

THE MIGHTY RAMS AFTER VICTORY IN SHEFFIELD

Round 5 comes to Huddersfield for the first time this season on Saturday 11th June with a top of the table clash, The Mighty Rams who are currently placed second in the table face visitors nottingham Scorpions who sit top of the ladder undefeated.

Both sides have got off to a great start this season in an expanded AFL CNW Division which is taking no prisoners and is wide open for anyone to take.

Rams President Karl Hagh says "This season is the biggest and toughest yet, There is no easy win as all the teams are so tightly matched as you can see by the results. There is going to be some big upsets for anyone who takes their foot off the gas at any time! This shows how the game is developing up here and every game now see's Internationals throughout both sides which makes the games even more exciting to watch"

The Rams go into the weekend clash boosted off a great victory last Saturday against The Sheffield Thunder who were joint second, Rams head coach Neil Morrison was absent from the squad due to family commitments and handed over the reins to fellow Aussie and Rams Half back Rhys Long.

It was a hot day and the Rams showed true grit and determination to come back from a terrible first quater, After a stern inspirational team talk from stand in Coach Rhys Long the Rams went into the second quater 2 goals down but hit twice in straight majors to level the game within minutes of the horn sounding. Jason battye,Matthew Whitely and Danny Armitage made short work of the shell shocked Thunder who couldnt do anything against the strenghth and skills of the Rams.

the Rams went into the third quater on fire, They piled on the pressure and the points but couldnt quiet find the goals, the rams took their foot off the pedal to let the Thunder sneak in a couple of cheeky goals towards the end of the quater but still felt confident they had the game in hand.

The 4th Quater saw the return of injured Thunder President Garth Nevin and he showed how dear he was missed by capitalising on the Rams loose play in the middle and teaming up with Thunders best on field luke to bring the game abit tighter. After great rucking from Rams Lamb sam Gill the Rams dug deep and grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck. More inspirational grabs and even a spekky from Rams captain danny Armitage and hard tackling newest recruit Luke Booth saw the Rams once again pile on the goals to see the Rams to victory and go a clear 2nd place.

Rams Head coach Neil Morrison said "Rhys has done a tremendous job coming in and taking over in my absence, I have learned alot from his coaching style and the buzz he brings to the team, He does some great drills in training and I would love him to stay at my side for the rest of the season as my assistant, I cant wait to get back into action this weekend infront of our home crowd and really give it to last years grand finalists the scorpions, They wont know what hit them as we are so pumped this season and really think we can win the flag, if it we were chinese year it would definatley be the year of THE RAM!!!"

Huddersfield d Sheffield

16-16-112 d 11-10-76

Full-time scores: 

Huddersfield 0.5 7.11 10.14 16.16 (112) 

Sheffield 2.3 4.5 7.7 11.10 (76) 

Goals: Sheffield: Luke Childs 4 Donal Collins 3 J DCosta T Pullinger S Connolly G Nevin

Huddersfield: Danny Armitage 7 J Batty 3 M Whitley 2 L Booth J Sunderland UNKOWN 2

Umpire: Wolverhampton.

RESULTS FROM THE PREVIOUS ROUNDS WERE-

ROUND 3 - Hudds 15.15.105 df Bham 13.16.94

ROUND 2- Manchester d Huddersfield 13.8 (86) to 11.7 (73)

ROUND1- Huddersfield d Wolverhampton 25.21 (171) to 4.13 (37)

So all the action This Saturday 11th June see's some great Aussie rules footy action at Lockwood Park Hudds RUFC ground behind fitness first.

Top of the table clash with 2nd place Rams V 1st place Nottigham Scorpions, ball up at 2pm,opening game is Sheffield thunder V wolverhampton Wolverines Bar open from 11.30am

1st game is at 12pm! Footy,Beer, Music, BBQ, PRIZES and SUN!! No better way to spend a saturday out with the family, come support ur Huddersfield local lads!!! BOOM GO RAMS....

Football opened a new chapter on Saturday when a European side played the Australian Under-17 in London.

More than 2000 people witnessed the match at Dulwich College in south London.

In a terrific exhibition, the European Legion (an under-21 side which came together for the first time only three days ago) maintained pressure, harassment and endeavour against the young Australians.

While the efforts of the European Legion boys weren’t reflected on the scoreboard, the stage is set for the future of the game on the continent.

AFL National Talent Manager Kevin Sheehan said with continued coaching and competition, the game will grow.

"The team very proudly played as Europe. Never before has a combined European side come together to play together. overcoming distance and language barriers.

"The Europeans kicked the last goal of the day on the siren, which was very well received," Sheehan said.

AFL Europe was formed in 2010 and has 17 affiliated nations. The European Legion side was coached by former Melbourne player Glenn Lovett and Sydney Swans legend Brett Kirk and contained players from eight nations: Sweden, Wales, Scotland, France, Denmark, England, Ireland and Croatia.

The AIS-AFL Academy side is currently on tour in Europe. The squad has now arrived in Turkey and is on its way to ANZAC Cove to attend the dawn service.

Exclusive to AFL BigPond Network 

 

The mighty Huddersfield Rams kicked off their 2011 campaign in Glasgow on Saturday April 9th. The Commonwealth Stadium was the venue for the 2011 Haggis Cup, an 8-team knockout competition. The facilities were fantastic and a big thankyou goes out to the guys for organising a great event.

After losing in the Grand Final, the Rams were fired up to improve on last year. The weather was red-hot and conditions were perfect for Australian footie. Being a pre-season fixture, the Rams only had a squad of 9 players for the duration of the tournament. As a result, Karl Haigh, Ally DeLooze, Neil Morrison, Jason Battye, Danny Armitage, Stu Rowling, Phil Lanning, Adam Ballard and Jonny Beaumont played the full 20-minutes for each game of the tournament.

The Rams' first game was against the Edinburgh Bloods and were caught on the back foot as the Bloods powered through with the victory.

Game 2 was against the 2010 winners Dublin Demons, and after losing their first game, the Rams knew a victory was needed to stay in the competition. Digging deep, the Rams found some form and came up with the win so badly needed.

The final group game was against Sweden Saxons and the Rams needed another win to guarantee their progress to the play-off stage of the competition. A brilliant display from all 9 Rams resulted in a comprehensive victory, with the Rams winning the match by 11 goals - the highest winning margin of the tournament.

The semi-final draw saw Huddersfield play Wimbledon Hawks with a place in the final at stake. The closely-contested game was fast and furious and late in the final quarter, the Rams hit the lead for the first time in the match. However Wimbledon were too strong and the Rams ran out of legs. In the end the Hawks came back to win the match by 13 points.

The final saw the Hawkes line-up against against the Glasgow Sharks. In a fitting end, the hosts pulled a convincing victory, with Glasgow forward 'Jacko' stealing the show.

Although we didn't get the result we were hoping for, all Rams players put in a massive effort and performed admirably throughout the day. We're looking good for a strong 2011/12 season.

Go Rams. Booooom!!

Rams Legend Royce Free

HUDDERSFIELD Rams might have missed out on Aussie Rules’ AFL Britain Central North West Division grand final.

But stalwart head coach Neil Morrison believes it’s still been a season of progress for the Lockwood Park club, who have had five players selected for both the England and Great Britain squads.

Club founder Karl Haigh, Danny Armitage, Jason Battye, Ali Delooze and Matt Whiteley were the men in the frame for international action.

Along with the internationals in the squad the Rams had an unexpected addition to the side, the Rams got their first ever playing Australian who came in the form of (now asolute club legend) Royce Free.

Royce was a 25 year old Melbourne ace who played at a good level back in OZ, He played country footy and was an inspiration to everyone at the Rams on and off the field, He joind the Rams in his first outing before even a training session and made the trips to Glasgow and Portsmouth to play a vital role in the Rams success of 2010 along with his partner Christine, Royce came runner up for the prestigous Brownlow medal and he went back to OZ at the end of the season with alot of new friends and leaving behind a legacy.  

Great Britain took part in a seven-day European Championship tournament in Denmark in August, while England aimed to win the EU Cup for the third year running in Italy in October.

Both sides finished a respectable fourth place in both competitions proving that the game is growing at such a fast rate and without a doubt reinforcing the fact that Australian rules football is the fastest growing sport in Europe.

Newly appointed England captain and Rams full back Karl Haigh commented

“The level that all the teams across europe are at now has made the game so exciting and such a high level across the board, there is no such thing as a clear cut game anymore and the fact that England and Britain finished fourth proves this and we are loving every minute of the competition”  

Haigh and Armitage were members of the England team who triumphed in Croatia last year while Morrison was a member of the coaching panel.

Morrison,  is also head coach of the Central North West and Northern Division representative team the Northern Warriors.

They produced bright performances to reach the final of the Brit Cup held in Southampton, pushing the strong eight times winners West London Wildcats hard before losing out (2-5) 17 to (1-3) 9.

They had shocked the Aussie-rich capital team by beating them earlier in the tournament, and also defeated the Welsh Devils, Reading Kangaroos and Putney Magpies.

The Rams went into their second season boosted by success in their pre-season Carnival tours.

The Historic Celtic carnival the “Haggis Cup” saw the Rams in blistering form on a red hot day in Glasgow, The mighty Rams were undefeated all day up to the Grand Final where they met  four times winners Dublin Daemons, The thrilling final was tied right up to the last kick of the day in the last minute when the Daemons showed great skill and kicked to victory.

The Rams made another long pilgrimage to compete in the Mecca of all carnivals held in Portsmouth.

The infamous National carnival is “the one to win” and the Rams did this in style.

The Mighty rams once again went all day without defeat through the group stages and the semi’s, They met the hosts Portsmouth Pirates in the Grand Final which was another hard slog at the end of a blistering summers day, The Rams came out victorious and brought the National cup back to “The Fortress” Lockwood Park for the first time after winning only one game in the same carnival the previous season.

The Rams produced some solid displays all the way through the 2010 CNW season only for their grand final hopes to disappear with a (12-10) 82 to (9-6) 60 defeat by Manchester Mosquitoes in their final match.

Manchester, unbeaten throughout the season, took on Nottingham Scorpions in the big Grand Final showdown. It was a thrilling end to another great season with the Manchester Mosquitos victorious and being crowned 2010 CNW Division champions.

Sheffield Thunder and Wolverhampton Wolverines were the other teams involved, with teams from Birmingham, Hull, and Peterborough competing on a social basis due to join the ever expanding division next year.

Huddersfield were Central Division champions in their first season, but Morrison believes a restructuring of the UK set-up made the competition stronger.

“Manchester are a really well-established club with a strong team, so I think we can take some satisfaction from pushing them hard,” he said.

“I think the standard of footy has certainly got better, and we’ll be working hard to raise the bar for next season.

“We’re still a young club, and we’ve come on in leaps and bounds, and the boys can see the rewards to be had from hard work on the practice ground.

“We’re proud to have so many players involved at international level, and it will be really interesting to see how they go.”

The rams recently had their end of season presentation dinner event early January, This was a special event and was the warm up to a big rugby match between Huddersfield and Ilkley.

Unfortunately due to a heavy snow fall the day before the game between the two sides was cancelled but the dinner and award ceremony went on regardless and was a great success as club founder and President Karl haigh explained

“We are so happy that the event was such a success as it caps off another awesome season at club and International level, Not only was the event so great for the Rams but it was a massive day for club integration between the Rams and the Huddersfield R.U.F.C, A lot of the rugby club board and members came to the meal and a lot of them didn’t know we existed, After the event every one of the members congratulated us on our success and are proud to have us onboard at Lockwood park. Club integration is big on the agenda for us in 2011 along with Senior and Junior development and this is just the start of building the bond between the two clubs as recruitment is the key to success for any club no matter what sport they play, We have no confliction at all as we play at different times of the year and skills from both games are transferable which can only be good for any sportsman”

Awards on the day were gratefully presented by Rams major sponsor EasiLift Loading Systems

Most improved player of the season went to 16 year old Sam Gill after coming through the ranks from junior level and proving his senior level status.

Best newcomer went to Matt Whitely after a tremendous first season resulting in International call up.

The golden boot award went to newly appointed club secretary Allistair Delloze for a great goal scoring record all season.

The Best and Fairest player of the season award went to club founder Karl Haigh after collecting the most votes from coaches, players and umpires throughout the 2010 CNW season.

The rams are on a big recruitment drive in 2011 and would like people to get involved at any level be it playing or as a volunteer to help run the club.

The season starts in April and training is on Monday nights 18.45 at Lockwood Park from now, for more information go to www.huddersfieldrams.com or facebook group Huddersfield rams Aussie Rules Club.