Annual Anzac Cup Australian Rules Football

Kanchanaburi Thailand

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A now established feature of our Annual Ex POW Pilgrimage to Thailand is an International Football match hosted by the Thailand Tigers, a team made up of Australian Ex Patriates living in Thailand. The second Anzac Cup was played between the Thailand Tigers and the Hong Kong Dragons on the 29th April 2006 at the Kanchanaburi Stadium in honour of the exPOWs, the visitors won a close fought game by one point. The Anzac Cup has become so popular that teams in the Asian Competition are lining up to take part; in 2007 the Bali Geckos will travel to Kanchanaburi to play the Tigers on Saturday the 28th April. Bali even went to the length of sending a forward party this year to attend the Dawn Service and Wreath Laying ceremony on April 25th.

For those people interested in learning more about the Thailand Tigers, visit their web site www.thailandtigers.com/history.htm some back ground on the Asian competition has been supplied by Mark Robson of the Thailand Tigers.

For the whole of Asia there has been some form of competition here for a decade with teams in Hong Kong, China, Vietnam, Philippines, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Jakarta, Bali, Cambodia and Brunei.  Most of the teams are made up of ex-pat Australians however in some cases locals have been introduced to the game, in particular in Indonesia where the Jakarta Bintangs have developed a local league very successfully, this is certainly something on the agenda for the Thailand Tigers in the near future as we have a dream that one day our senior international side will include Thai’s who have grown up through our proposed future clinics.  Each year teams visit each other for friendly hit outs, this year we have had the Hanoi Swans and Hong Kong visit Thailand and we will be travelling to Kuala Lumpur to take on the Malaysian Warriors in November.  In addition to this there is an Asia Cup held annually where all teams in Asia travel to one destination to compete for the trophy as the best team in Asia.  The Cup was won last year by the Singapore Wombats in Manila. This year Asia Cup is due to be held in Jakarta on August 26th.  We all take our footy seriously with teams fielding players from all backgrounds including AFL, VFL and SANFL along with many of the Amateur, Suburban and Country competitions back home.  We are all fierce competitors on the field as you have seen through Anzac Cup however we are also all very good mates off the field and playing Aussie rules here allows us to retain a little piece of home and export the game to a new audience.

The Tigers in particularly have progressed along in the last 2 years, only 2 years ago we had 7 players turning up for training on a Saturday and now we have a domestic season made up of two teams and a playing list of over 40 guys.  Other teams have strengthened in a similar manner.

Mark Robson “Finally, it’s great to hear the Anzac Cup game is gaining such popularity as we love putting on the game, it’s an absolute privilege for us to do so and the lest we can do for the Diggers that return each year, it’s for them we play and will continue to play.  Hong Kong said to us before returning that it was the best tour they had ever been on, and believe me they’ve been on a few.  They even asked if they could make the trip back each year, which is a sign of the Anzac Cup games popularity here in Asia.  With a team for next year already lined up we are confident the game will go from strength to strength and really appreciate your support with the concept”.