The Great Britain men's national

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

team is known as the Great Britain Bulldogs. The team is made up of the best British born players selected from clubs of in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

and

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, and occasional appearances from British players playing for clubs in Australia. In

AFL Europe AFL Europe is the regional governing body for Australian rules football in Europe. As of 2018, it organises the AFL Europe Championship and the Euro Cup, and previously managed the ''European Legion'' representative team as well being responsible ...

, separate national teams represent England, Wales and Scotland. As well as regular international friendlies, the team has played in every

Australian Football International Cup The Australian Football International Cup (also known as the AFL International Cup or simply the IC) is a triennial international Australian rules football sport competition. It is the biggest worldwide tournament in the sport and is open to ...

since its inception in 2002. They also compete at the triennial

AFL Europe Championship The AFL Europe Championship is an Australian football competition played between European national teams. The European Championship is played in a full traditional 18-a-side format (formerly 16-a-side) unlike the Euro Cup which has a 9-a-side f ...

, winning the 2016 edition in London after beating the Irish Warriors 7.9 (51) to 4.5 (29). The Great Britain women's national Australian rules football team are called the Great Britain Swans.

History

The first team to represent Great Britain in Australian rules was the British Lions during the

1888 British Lions tour to New Zealand and Australia The 1888 British Isles tour to New Zealand and Australia was a tour by a British rugby union team, known at the time as the "English Footballers", throughout New Zealand and Australia. Although a private venture not organised by any official b ...

. The team played 19 matches of Australian rules winning six and drawing one. A standout for the team was

Andrew Stoddart Andrew Ernest Stoddart (11 March 1863 – 4 April 1915) was an English sportsman who played international cricket for England, and rugby union for England and the British Isles. He was a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1893. He has the unique ...

. However following the tour the codes had diverged to a point that it was felt that such exchanges could not continue and Australia's policy was not to compete internationally in the sport. The Great Britain Bulldogs played their first international on 2 October 1993 against Canada in Toronto. They competed at the 2001 Atlantic Alliance Cup, recording wins over Canada and eventual runners-up Denmark. Great Britain's Best and Fairest player was Tyrone Hallam. In 2002, the Great Britain Bulldogs competed at the first ever

in Australia, finishing sixth. Three years later they also finished sixth at the 2005 tournament. In October 2005, the Bulldogs played against

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

in a curtain raiser at the

West Coast Eagles The West Coast Eagles are a professional Australian rules football club based in Perth, Western Australia. The club was founded in 1986 as one of two expansion teams in the Australian Football League (AFL), then known as the Victorian Football ...

Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...

exhibition match An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...

the Oval The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since ...

in London. After this match head coach Matt Connell handed over the coaching role to Charlie Kielty. In October 2006, the Great Britain vs Ireland fixture was repeated before the

Geelong Football Club The Geelong Football Club, nicknamed the Cats, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Geelong, Victoria, Australia. The club competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's premier competition, and are the 2022 ...

Port Adelaide Power Port Adelaide Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Alberton, South Australia, Alberton, South Australia. The club's senior men's team plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), where they are nicknamed ...

match.

After coach Charlie Kielty resigned in late 2009, Mark Pitura became head coach, with Rob Fielder as assistant. The first test was against a travelling Denmark Vikings squad, which resulted in an 11.10 (76) to 9.9 (63) win for the Bulldogs on Putney Heath, London. In 2010, the squad competed in the inaugural European Championships in Denmark and Sweden. The squad achieved a credible 4th place, losing out to losing finalists Denmark in the group and co-hosts Sweden in the qualification final. Three Bulldogs were named in the Team of the Tournament. These players were Adam Bennett ( Reading Kangaroos), Martyn Hinchey (Southampton Titans) and Gareth Blackstaffe-Turner (

Wimbledon Hawks AFL London is one of the largest organised Australian rules football leagues outside Australia. The league organises multiple grades of full 18-a-side games across London, United Kingdom. The competition provides a competitive and fun game of fo ...

). At the 2011 International Cup, Paul Harris from the

Putney Magpies The Putney Magpies is an Australian rules football and netball club based in Putney and Fulham area of South East London, England. The club fields teams in each of the three AFL London divisions — Premiership (1sts), Conference (2nds)and S ...

captained the squad to a seventh-place finish. Brendan McGeever (North London Lions), Ian Mitchell (Wolverhampton Wolves) and Paul Francis (

) served as vice-captains. A marked improvement in performance culminated in a fantastic performance at the 2013 AFL Europe Championships, where the squad finished as runners-up to hosts Ireland. In 2014 the Bulldogs once again travelled to the AFL International Cup and were placed in Pool A alongside Ireland, Nauru, Fiji, France and Indonesia. Victories over France and Fiji were achieved and Great Britain finished 9th overall, defeating Fiji 5.7 (37) to 2.7 (19) in the Qualification Final. 2016 was a successful year for the Bulldogs as they became champions of Europe for the first time. The bulldogs defeated Ireland 7.9 (51) to 4.5 (29). Six players made the team of the tournament. These were Luke Booth (Huddersfield Rams), Marc Cashman (Wimbledon Hawks), Jack Coughlan (North London Lions), Myles Hudson (Wimbledon Hawks), Michael Sharp (North London Lions) and Andrew Walkden (Manchester Mosquitoes). At the 2017 version of the AFL International Cup, Will Worthington captained the squad and was assisted by Luke Booth and Sean Walton as Vice-Captains. The Bulldogs finished in a joint-highest position of six. As of February 2018, Ross Denton, formerly of Birmingham University and currently playing for the North London Lions, was appointed captain of the Great Britain Bulldogs.

International competition

International Cup

AFL Europe Championship

Results (2010-present)

:''Scores and results list Great Britain's points tally first.''

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

References

External links

{{Australian Football International Cup Australian rules football in Great Britain National Australian rules football teams