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AFL Grand Final Party (02.09.2010., 04:39:28)
September 25th there will be AFL Grand Final party at Old pHarmacy pub. The door opens at 6 am, game starts half an hour later. Pub will serve breakfast at cost, but there will not be any cover charge. There will be about 25 players from Croatian footy, and hopefully a lot of Aussies who will spark the atmosphere in wee hours of the morning.
Croatian federation won't profit from this event but needs publicity.
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Fontanafredda - Four nations cup (06.07.2010., 02:41:34)
After an exciting and successful HLAN season behind us with Agram Power taking their second league title in succession, it was time for the Croatian Knights to step into the spotlight this weekend. This would be the Croatian national teams first outing of the season and the first since the 2009 EU Cup where the bronze medal was won. The Knights traveled to the small town of Pordenone in Italy for the Four nations Cup involving the hosts Italy, Czech Republic and Scotland. The tournament was played over the weekend with two semi finals scheduled for Saturday 3rd of July and the final being played on Sunday. Croatia had been paired up against Scotland in the first Semi final and Italy would take on the Czech Republic in the other Semi. The Knights roster looked much different from the one that had taken the EU Cup bronze medal only ten months earlier but this team was not short of quality and the performances showed. Croatia beat Scotland in a hard fought game 65:33 and went on to beat Italy in the final 66:53. The final was a much closer game than expected with a very inspired Italian side giving the experienced Knights a run for their money but in the end Croatia did enough to win the game and lift the Four Nations Cup!
The boys are stoked about the win and will be training hard this month to prepare for the European Championships taken place in Denmark and Sweden in August. This will be Croatia's first tournament at 16 a side football so we will not be raising the bar too high, all we expect is to give everything we have and enjoy the experience.
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Round 3: Summary (06.05.2010., 00:37:33)
The third round of the HLAN season took place on the 25th of April with the Zagreb Hawks taking on the league leaders Velika Gorica Bombers. Everyone expected another close game but what we witnessed was far from that with Zagreb dominating play from the very start and showing great teamwork to defeat Velika Gorica with a massive margin.
The Bombers made a few tactical changes going into the game. The reliable defender Kušen was moved into a midfield position and to compensate Josipović and Deranja were taken out of the forward lines to strengthen the hole left in the back. As the game got under way it was clear that the tactical change was a mighty gamble and unfortunately for the Bombers goals started leaking in fast. The Hawks forward Koračak did the early damage with some strong marks and accurate kicking giving his team a comfortable lead. It was said after the game that Koračak had played the match of his life and it's safe to say that he did his captain proud! Before the end of the quarter Velika Gorica made some more changes and brought most of the players back into their natural positions although it seems the damage had already been done. The scores at qrt time were: Hawks 6.2(38), Bombers 2.1(13).
The second quarter showed that Velika Gorica were still highly motivated to get back into the game. Things were going much better for the Bombers in the middle of the ground with their midfielders doing a solid job battling for the ball which resulted in more scoring opportunities. K.Franić, Deranja and Mi.Mamić got themselves on the score sheets for Velika Gorica. Although Velika Gorica seemed to find their way in the second term, Zagreb showed no signs of slowing down. The additional accuracy training sessions the Hawks had taken during the week were paying off and it was all thanks to Belić who organized them. The scores at half time were: Hawks 8.5(53), Bombers 5.4(34).
We were expecting a mean fight in the third quarter after a positive second term from the Velika Gorica Bombers but in the end the quarter belonged to Zagreb. The Hawks showed everyone present that they had put last weeks loss behind them and that they will be the team to beat this season with some gutsy play in the middle of the ground from Kravar, Brebrić and Tonković. Up front the experienced Bašić was in form kicking 5 goals for the Hawks showing why he was a standard national team player and Svoboda also did well out running the Velika Gorica defenders. The scores going into the final term were: Hawks 14.9(93), Bombers 6.6(42). Although Velika Gorica had been defeated on the day they didn't give up and showed some good fighting spirit eventually out scoring Zagreb in the last quarter. The Hawks gave some of their rookies a run and the experience will definitely give them a boost so it will be interesting to see how they develop as the season continues.
The final scores were: Zagreb Hawks 17.10 (112) - Velika Gorica Bombers 9.10 (64).
With this result the Zagreb Hawks move into first position on the ladder and even after last weeks loss they look good to mount a serious title challenge this season.
Umpire: Ante Lončar
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Round 2: Summary (23.04.2010., 06:49:55)
Agram Power 68 - 67 Zagreb Hawks
This weekend saw Agram Power take on the Zagreb Hawks for Round 2 of the 2010 HLAN season. The game was full of excitement with many good plays and we can definately be happy with the progress Aussie rules football has made in Croatia.
Agram made an interesting move by putting the small Bošković in as ruck for the opening bounce and as predicted the experienced Tonković had no trouble winning the duel. Surprisingly the Hawks failed take advantage of the situation. After a few behinds from both sides Agram managed to kick the first goal of the afternoon thanks to Paris who was in excellent form. Zagreb responded by kicking two goals of their own and interestingly both goals came from their defenders. Veličan, who did well helping out his team with some forward runs, kicked the first and Grgurić scored the other goal on his debut in Croatia. Adam Lončar sneaked in a goal before quarter time for Agram and helped his team take a narrow lead going into the break: Agram 2.3(15), Hawks 2.2(14).
The 2nd quarter got off to a flying start for Agram as they scored their third goal thanks to Bošković but after that moment the Hawks took control of the game and went on a rampage scoring four goals in succession. The goal scorers were: Bašić, Vranić, Kravar and Koračak. It has to be noted that Zagreb’s captain Kravar kicked a screamer snapping one in under pressure from two Agram players and duly deserved the applause from the 50 odd spectators attending the game. The scores at half time were: Agram 3.6(24), Hawks 6.3(39). The Hawks picked up where they left off booting another two goals at the start of the third quarter. The ruckman Tonković kicking one and the other going to Veličan who was definitely the surprise package of the game. Everything was looking good for Zagreb but unbelievably things turned around and they turned around fast! Agram made a few changes, most notably taking Cvetko out of the forward lines and moving him into the middle and with this they began an amazing comeback! Bošković kicked his second goal of the game and Cvetko added two more to his account giving Agram a real chance going into the final quarter. The scores were: Agram 6.10(46), Hawks 8.5(53).
The Hawks got the final quarter off to a great start with experienced Koračak kicking his second goal of the game. The boys from both sides fought out a tough battle in the middle of the ground and space was hard to come by. A light drizzle started coming down which made things more difficult but even the spectators didn’t mind as everyone was soley focused on the game at hand. In these conditions Belić, Brebrić and Kravar excelled for Zagreb with Tonšetić and the indestructible Ante Lončar doing the dirty work for Agram Power. The Agram side gave it their all, fighting on even with a smaller bench again this week. Never the less they kept on running and piled on the pressure. Igor Franić kicked his first goal of the season for Agram and soon after Cvetko added another which helped the Power close the gap right up to Zagreb. The Hawks responded with a goal from their captain Kravar and also had a few good chances to increase their lead but their accuracy let them down this time. With time running out Agram showed character and once again stepped up into higher gear. After a few behinds Cvetko kicked what turned out to be the winning goal and gave his side their first taste of success this season.
The final result was: Agram 9.15 (69) - Hawks 10.7 (67).
Umpire: Matija Mamić
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Round 1: Summary (13.04.2010., 23:05:52)
The third HLAN season kicked off this weekend with the reigning premiers Agram Power taking on the new team to the Croatian domestic scene, Velika Gorica Bombers.
The match got off to a ferocious start with the Bombers winning the ruck and having two good opportunities to score but their accuracy ultimately let them down. Agram on the other hand had no such difficulties with Cvetko scoring the first goal of the game and giving his team an early lead. The scores at quarter time were: Agram 1.2(8), Bombers 0.4(4). The 2nd quarter started off with two early goals for Agram. Cvetko scored his second while Molnar kicked his first on debut. The Bombers then made a few substitutions and managed to get a goal back with K.Franić opening his account. Half way through the 2nd qrt Cvetko had to be taken off after the Agram captain got a nasty knock to the head. This was without doubt the turning point of the game as Agram had no substitutes left on the bench and had to play the rest of the game with nine players. With the absence of their captain, Agram slowly started loosing the fight in the middle of the ground and the Bombers managed to score two goals in succession. Just before half time Paris hit one back and scored his first goal of the season. The scores at half time were: Agram 4.2(26), Bombers 3.6(24). The third quarter belonged to Velika Gorica with K.Franić kicking two goals, while Čudina and Mi.Mamić also helped out with one a piece. The Bombers defense led by Kušen (aka Ujko) and Ma.Mamić did a fantastic job holding Agram down to just one goal in the quarter. The Bombers had a comfortable lead of 16 pts going into the final term: Agram 5.3(33), Bombers 7.7(49). With no substitutes available on the bench, Agram looked the worse for wear and couldn’t keep up with the fresh legs of Velika Gorica. Only thanks to the experience of both An.Lončar and Tonšetić in the backline, Agram stayed in contention till the end of the game. Paris got his name on the score sheet once again kicking Agrams only goal of the quarter while Čudina and K.Franić kicked the only two goals for Velika Gorica.
The end result was: Agram Power 6.5 (41) - Velika Gorica Bombers 9.12 (66).
Congratulations to all the players especially the rookies who showed great skill. Awesome stuff! This season is sure to be a good one so we would like to see all of you there next weekend on the 18th of April. The Zagreb Hawks take on Agram Power with kick off at noon. The teams have played 12 times so far with Agram leading the head to head battle 7 – 5. Will it be 8 – 5 next week? Time will only tell!
Umpire: Josip Kravar
Line Umpires: Marko Belić, Luka Veličan
Statisticians: Igor Svoboda, Matija Bašić, Fran Tonković
STATISTICS:
| Agram Power | Velika Gorica Bombers | |
| Result | 41 | 66 |
| Goals | 6 | 9 |
| Behinds | 5 | 12 |
| Disposals | 39 | 46 |
| Marks | 29 | 22 |
| Tackles | 2 | 5 |
| Q1 | 1.2(8) | 0.4(4) |
| Q2 | 3.0(18) | 3.2(20) |
| Q3 | 1.1(7) | 4.1(25) |
| Q4 | 1.2(8) | 2.5(17) |
AGRAM POWER
| #No | Ime | Disposals | Marks | Tackles | Goals |
| 24 | Tonšetić | 9 | 2 | 1 | |
| 8 | Cvetko | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 |
| 9 | Lončar Adam | 5 | 2 | ||
| 34 | Lončar Ante | 10 | 2 | ||
| 25 | Molnar | 1 | 3 | 1 | |
| 31 | Bošković | 2 | 4 | 1 | |
| 34 | Kovačević | 1 | |||
| 42 | Franić Igor | 1 | |||
| 53 | Paris | 7 | 9 | 2 | |
| 40 | Vukušić | 2 | |||
| Total | 39 | 29 | 2 | 6.5 (41) |
VELIKA GORICA BOMBERS
| #No | Ime | Disposals | Marks | Tackles | Goals |
| 1 | Klenović | 2 | |||
| 9 | Mamić Matija | 4 | 2 | ||
| 7 | Mamić Milijan | 5 | 4 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | Josipović | 3 | 3 | ||
| 23 | Deranja | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 17 | Franić Krešo | 6 | 4 | 4 | |
| 8 | Kušen | 10 | 4 | ||
| 10 | Čudina | 6 | 3 | 2 | |
| 19 | Huđek | 1 | 2 | ||
| 3 | Galeković | 2 | 1 | ||
| 26 | Papić | ||||
| 16 | Šeparović | 3 | |||
| 24 | Glavinić | ||||
| 25 | Štetner | 1 | 1 | ||
| Total | 46 | 22 | 5 | 9.12 (66) |
STAT Leaders
| Top Scorers | |||||||
| 1. | Franić Krešo | 4 | Marks | ||||
| 2. | Cvetko | 2 | 1. | Paris | 9 | ||
| Čudina | 2. | Bošković | 4 | ||||
| Mamić Milijan | Cvetko | ||||||
| Paris | Franić Krešo | ||||||
| 3. | Bošković | 1 | Kušen | ||||
| Deranja | Mamić Milijan | ||||||
| Molnar | 3. | Čudina | 3 | ||||
| Josipović | |||||||
| Disposals | Molnar | ||||||
| 1. | Kušen | 10 | |||||
| Lončar Ante | Tackles | ||||||
| 2. | Tonšetić | 9 | 1. | Mamić Matija | 2 | ||
| 3. | Paris | 7 | 2. | Cvetko | 1 | ||
| 4. | Čudina | 6 | Deranja | ||||
| Franić Krešo | Galeković | ||||||
| 5. | Lončar Adam | 5 | Mamić Milijan | ||||
| Mamić Milijan | Tonšetić |
||||||
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2010 Season draft (22.03.2010., 21:35:46)
The 2010 season draft ceremony was held last friday for the forthcoming HLAN season. We are happy to say that this will be the most competitive Croatian championship to date and we expect to attract even more locals to the game with our games being played each weekend during the course of the year.Share
Thursday training cancelled (11.03.2010., 19:40:49)
The weather has been playing tricks again and unfortunately this thursdays practise has to be cancelled again. The forecast looks good for the weekend so see you guys there.Share
Draft + Knights night out party (11.03.2010., 19:39:11)
The 2010 draft will commence next friday (19.3.2010) at the Strossmayer bar. The proceedings begin at 19hr and after its all over and done with the talented rock group Crane will have a performance so don't miss out. Hope to see some new faces there. Facebook link: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=371795922791Share
Thursday training cancelled (05.03.2010., 00:24:48)
Due to the rain we have been experiencing for the past few days, training for tonight has been cancelled. See you SaturdayShare
First training session (02.03.2010., 21:05:00)
The first training session of the season will begin tonight with some jogging along the Sava river. We will begin at 20hr and will start the run infront of the club Brazil. Everyone is welcome and be prepared to run atleast 8-9km! See you there
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Footycroatia now in English, too! (26.02.2010., 16:22:02)
Dear footy fans and players, we're proud to say that from now on we're operating bilingually - in Croatian and English!
Please contact us if you see any untranslated content or anything that needs fixing. Or just to say hi :)
To recap: at the moment Croatian Knights are practicing at the Core Gym, as you can see on the video bellow.
Please check the practice schedule and join us and help promote footy in Croatia!
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