TAC cup footy?

swans12345

Draftee
May 26, 2018
6
0
AFL Club
Sydney
I am currently 15 years old and living in Sydney and I want to play in the afl. Only problem is, players who come from sydney nowadays are pretty much always drafted through the swans and gws giants academies, so if you're not in those academies its really difficult to get noticed. I was thinking that I could move to victoria and play TAC cup footy after high school and potentially making it through there but I'm a bit unsure about whether or not teams would take a chance on me if I haven't played reps or academy or stuff like that.

What do I have to do to impress TAC teams when the time comes?

Bit of a strange question but if anyone from victoria who knows this could answer that'd be great. Cheers
 

cptkirk

Premiership Player
Oct 6, 2009
3,743
798
st kilda east
AFL Club
Sydney
How could you play tac/u18's AFTER high school?

Maybe try and get in to a NEAFL team up there where you'd at least play against those academies and even better kick 6 against them
 

swans12345

Draftee
May 26, 2018
6
0
AFL Club
Sydney
Because of my age I'll still be 18 in the year after I leave school. But yeah the NEAFL sounds like a good plan
 
May 3, 2003
20,755
9,494
Warriorville
AFL Club
Collingwood
Other Teams
NZ Warriors, Wallan FNC
I think you stand a better chance in NSW than you do in Victoria especially if you can play. I've seen a lot of kids over the years who I thought had it, but are playing local footy. cptkirk is right. Get yourself into a side in the NEAFL, or at least start by aiming to play senior footy in your local league.
 

cptkirk

Premiership Player
Oct 6, 2009
3,743
798
st kilda east
AFL Club
Sydney
Not sure they'd take you as an underage to be honest - they might prefer (they being AFL/VFL)might prefer you to go through the TAC until you're "of age?

What have you done up until now and where are you at right now?
 

swans12345

Draftee
May 26, 2018
6
0
AFL Club
Sydney
I actually haven't played any representative footy, and I don't think it's because I'm not good enough to it's simply just that I've never tried out. I lived in America from when I was 8 until I was 12 so I wasn't actually in Sydney to trial for Swans Academy or anything, and I missed the rep trials this year. I know it sounds far fetched to say that I wan't a career in the afl but I do think I can get there.
I looked at the squad lists for vfl teams and there were a number of 18 and 19 year olds playing in those teams...
 

cptkirk

Premiership Player
Oct 6, 2009
3,743
798
st kilda east
AFL Club
Sydney
Yeah but they would have been the next drafted last year you know and there's a fair bit of "who you know" going on where afl clubs might suggest to vfl counterparts this bloke is close, develop him this year and we'll take a good look at him

If I was you I'd try as hard as I could to see if i could get "in" somehow with the academy or those who run it...look where the academy kids came from initially...if you don't try out in some from then you're no chance

Do you know anyone in the academy's?
 

swans12345

Draftee
May 26, 2018
6
0
AFL Club
Sydney
Yeah I do there's a bunch of coaches who come in and out of the school comp system and such and I play with a lot of academy guys for club.
 
May 3, 2003
20,755
9,494
Warriorville
AFL Club
Collingwood
Other Teams
NZ Warriors, Wallan FNC
Whatever happens in the next few years, good luck. I've watched kids win 2 Vic Metro Interleague titles who then went on to TAC Cup and VFL sides and only 2 of them got drafted and both rookie listed. Out of that group I seriously thought ten were capable of playing at AFL level, but it's bloody hard and you have to be both a bit lucky and extremely good.
 

Aeglos

Cancelled
Sep 27, 2016
3,580
2,743
AFL Club
Essendon
Other Teams
Riverpigs
I’d be looking to play seniors in the NEAFL in the next year or two.
If nothing comes of that your best bet will be the VFL, SANFL or WAFL (probably the latter two with the death of the VFL development league).
 

cptkirk

Premiership Player
Oct 6, 2009
3,743
798
st kilda east
AFL Club
Sydney
I suppose you could ask to train with them but I would assume they'd like to see a "resume" of sorts to see where you've come from and what level/s of footy you've played so they're not wasting their time so to speak
 
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