Auskick

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Auskick
Auskick logo.svg
Presence
Country or regionAustralia
OlympicNo
ParalympicNo
AusKick taking place during the half time break of an AFL game at Telstra Dome.

Auskick is a program designed to teach the basic skills of Australian rules football (AFL) to boys and girls aged between 5 and 12. A nationwide program in Australia, it has increased participation in the sport amongst children, and is employed in many countries across the world.

At its peak in the mid-1990s in Australia there were around 200,000 Auskick participants annually.[1] Numerous professional players are graduates of the Auskick program.

The program is now run throughout the world, including several locally branded variations such as: "Kiwi Kick" (AFL New Zealand), "Niukick" (Papua New Guinea), "Footywild" (South Africa), "Bula Kick" (Fiji), "Viking Kick" (Denmark) and "Ausball" (United States) among others often sponsored by local organisations.

History[]

Auskick has its roots in the Little League which began to be played at half time during VFL matches in the 1960s[2] and was revised in 1980 to make it more accessible. Little League was expanded by Ray Allsop into a state development program called Vickick begun in Victoria in 1985.

Urged by former player David Parkin in 1995 as a means of keeping the sport viable long term in the Australian Capital Territory[3]

Vickick was rebranded Auskick and at its peak in the mid-1990s there were around 200,000 Auskick participants annually.[4]

It was adoped by the Australian Football League, the national professional competition for the sport, which began to roll it out nationally from 1998.

Auskick sessions[]

Auskick is a national football coaching network, with clinics held weekly (usually on Saturday mornings) run by volunteers. The program attracts over 100,000 primary school aged participants annually and, as such, is the largest grassroots sporting association of its kind in Australia.

Each Auskick session consists of a training session and a game, with the emphasis on developing skills rather than the game result. Some of the major rule differences from Australian rules football are a ban on tackling and the restriction of players to their zone of the field, similar to netball.

The AFL is a major supporter of Auskick and star players occasionally assist in training events. The AFL also invites various branches of the Auskick network to play short games during the half-time breaks of premiership season games at all grounds, with numerous matches played on modified fields simultaneously.

In 2007 the program's slogan was "Where Champions Begin", with Jo Silvagni (wife of former AFL player Stephen Silvagni) and Robert DiPierdomenico, the 1986 co-Brownlow Medallist as the main ambassadors.[5] They also used the kick-to-kick tradition as part of their promotional television campaign, which shows kids from around the country kicking the football to each other to the tune of "Gimme Dat Ding".

Parents' role in Auskick[]

Parents are involved across the board in activities such as at skills sessions, as coaches and supervisors, administrators, helpers, coordinators and first aid officers. Throughout the year, there are parent orientation courses as well as coaching courses.

Auskick in non-traditional Australian rules football regions[]

The AFL has used the Auskick program the introduce Australian rules football into schools and communities around the country to increase the AFL's profile in areas that traditionally support other football codes such as New South Wales and Queensland.[6]

The AFL have been accused of exaggerating their participation figures[7] in their attempts to gain access to Sydney playing fields. Vast increases in AFL participation figures in Sydney were questioned by David Lawson, a Melbourne University academic, in a study commission by the AFL itself. His study found that AFL club participation rates in Sydney had stalled, and that the AFL was masking low figures by using short term, non-club affiliated Auskick participants and comparing them to competitive junior club participation numbers in other sports.[8]

Ambassadors[]

Early on in the national program, national ambassadors were nominated. All of these ambassadors played for Victorian clubs and as the AFL and the program continued to expand nationally, these players were not always well recognised figures by children in all regions. In 2010s each state nominating its own ambassador, usually a home grown talent, without a national ambassador.

National[]

Australian Marketing Campaigns[]

  • "NAB AFL Mini Legends" (2016-)
  • "More Give, Less Take" (2012)
  • "Let It Shine" (2009)
  • "Follow Every Rainbow" (2008)
  • "Gimme That Thing" (2007)
  • "Where Champions Begin" (2007)

Sponsors[]

Australia[]

References[]

  1. ^ 'Father figure' of Auskick and Richmond Tiger, Ray Allsopp, dies aged 87 By Michael Doyle 28th October 2021]
  2. ^ "Little League plea". The Canberra Times. 43 (12, 105). Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 13 September 1968. p. 20. Retrieved 1 December 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. ^ "Parkin backs joint program to boost AFL". The Canberra Times. 70 (21, 769). Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 23 November 1994. p. 35. Retrieved 1 December 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ^ 'Father figure' of Auskick and Richmond Tiger, Ray Allsopp, dies aged 87 By Michael Doyle 28th October 2021]
  5. ^ Celebrities to get their NAB AFL Auskicks Archived 20 November 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ AFL battles for hearts in NRL heartland
  7. ^ "AFL accused of exploiting figures". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
  8. ^ "Auskick putting Sydney kids off". The Age. Melbourne. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
  9. ^ News article on simpson.com.au Archived 6 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine

External links[]

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