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G’Day, Ladies and Gentlemen, and welcome back to another addition of Friday Night Footy at the Wavo! The weather is smiling as are the faces of the crowd here on the Lake Front. The fight for the second/third on the ladder is shaping up to be an interesting one. Tonight, the Wrigleyville Rhinos take on the Lincoln Square Tigers in what should be one heck of a match.

With the final sides decided, Umpire Anthony “Razor” Hendrie said, “Let’s get this underway, boys,” and sent a beautiful bounce skyward. As with every ball up on the day, it was immediatly followed by an intense Ruck competition. It was the Battle of Jasons, pitting Jason “Pony-atta-Boy” Wilhelm against first year giant, Jason “Sandilands” Holmes (3 Goals). These two lads were at each other all night and it was a beauty to watch. Holmes is sailing away to train with the Sydney Swans for a month so, “Good onya, mate” and learn everything you can. The opening bounce led directly to a goal through some beautiful work by Tiger’s Vet, Paul “Oscar” Meyer who was active all day on the wing. Garrath “Sneaky” Carragher was lively in the forward line for Lincoln Square, kicking one goal for the night. The Tigers controlled the footy for much of the first quarter seeing them kick 3 goals 2 against a Rhino defense that seemed out of sorts. Will “Well” Hyung went down early with an ankle while Josh “Goose” Stenger tried to lead by example with some extraordinary efforts in the back pocket but unfortunately only aquired the Golden Goose as his prize. After a massive effort by Jayson “Long-Stocking” Schmelzer, the Rhino Defense found its feet. The second half of the first quarter saw Wrigleyville come alive and they ended the quarter with 2 goals 2 making the score at the end of one, the Lincoln Square Tigers leading the Wrigleyville Rhinos 3.2.20 to 2.2.14.

The Rhinos decided to make things very interesting when they opened the 2nd Quarter with a goal. Xavier “Rated X” Burton was like a war torn battleship out there, tossing blokes aside and kicking a beautiful goal off of Half Back, showing that you can never keep a big man down. Tyler “not Hattery” Dorsett was providing some great forward pressure while Aussie recruit Wade “Stewy” Porter was simply exhilarating in the mid field and across half back. His beautiful delivery was inspiring his teammates left and right. There’s only so much one man can do, however, as the defense of the Tigers were like plumbers out there: patching up all the leaks. Tiger Captain, Brian “Red Shorts” Hoyt made life tough for Rhino forwards, Joel “Dammit” Bennett and Mark “Macintosh” Appel who were the victims of bad bounces and a lack of support all evening long. Tiger Eric “Tricky” Conway was stingy in defense, but took a hard knock that hopefully proves to be nothing more than a corked thigh. Finally, Doug “Flash” Malcolm, was able to find space for the Rhinos and kicked a nice goal, 30 out on the run. At the long break, it was the Tigers 7.5.47 to the Rhinos 3.6.24.

The third quarter simply belonged to the reigning Premiers, Lincoln Square. Alex “Yep, I’ve only been playing for a few months” Wallach was on fire, taking a snapshot at goal on the left and starting an onslaught that would last nearly the entire quarter. The Tigers piled on 7.7 in a third period that left the Rhinos a bit punch-drunk. Russ “Not so Rusty after all” Adams had a great game coming off injury and kicked 2 goals for good measure. Al “Tatonka” McGlashan seemed likely to mark anything that came his way and proved too elusive for the Rhino defense, kicking 3 goals for the night. Joining in the fun was Paul “They Really Work” Enzinger who came from nowhere, putting up a bag of 3 as well. Henry “Thank God I don’t have to Ruck” Knoop was outstanding at Center Half Back where he was able to rebound the few oppurtunities that Wrigleyville had. At the end of three, the Tigers had a comfortable lead over the Rhinos who only managed one behind: LIncoln Square 14.14.98 to Wrigleyville 3.7.25.

The Rhinos had little but pride to fight for in the fourth quarter. And this came in droves as Nolan “Torpy” Mckeegan hoisted a magnificent Torpedo through the uprights from 60 out. He, David “Dewy” Fitzgerald and Woody “Brian Lake” did all they could to get on the board by kicking 3 goals between them, but alas it was not to be. The Tigers again, surged as Joe “Parking Ticket” Swierupski roved a pack and found Nolan “Blinded by Puppies” Schmelzer in space which led to the 2nd of 6 fourth quarter goals for Lincoln Square. the final score: the Lincoln Square Tigers 20.19.139 to the Wrigleyville Rhinos 6.6.45.

It was an absolute thrashing by the Tigers, but the Rhinos can hold their heads high. Anything, it seems, can happen this season. One thing is for sure, the Chicago Australian Football Association has a lot to look forward to in the coming years. The youngsters are making a difference and the future looks bright heading into a big away game in the coming weeks against the Division II Premiers, the Minnesota Freeze. This is a great rivalry and should prove to be an exciting contest.

BOG (Blue Jacket): Alex Wallach
Oxford Landing Wine: Jason “PonyBoy” Wilhelm / Pedro Jiminez
Golden Goose: Josh Stenger (for taking the kick out from outside the goal square)

Blue Jacket (BOG): Tim Hermann
Oxford Landing Wine: Not Awarded
Golden Goose: Anthony Hendrie

Welcome to another round of Friday Night Footy at the Wavo! The storms that were expected never came, but the Piranhas had a storm of their own brewing and looked to continue their win streak against the Tigers. Could the Tigers weather it, or would they end up soaked?

The scoring started almost immediately as shifty Piranha forward, Nolan “Faster Than He Looks” McKeegan (3 goals)wheeled around on his trusty right boot to slot the first of the night. He and mid-fielder Keith “Head First” Campion looked up and about as Campion put up another major from an impossible angle. Matching their ferocity, however, was Tiger mid-fielder Pedro “My Eye is Finally Healed” Jimenez who collected a tough ball at ground level and kicked a great goal on the run. Joe “I before E” Swierupski had good hands, taking a few contested marks across half back. Contesting those marks was Piranha Matt “Greedy” Reid who was a tough nut in defense. After one last goal for the Tigers by Danny “Snap-Shot” Yunes (2 goals), the scores were nearly even, favoring the Tigers by 1 point.

The second quarter again opened with 2 quick goals to the Piranhas’ stalwarts Frank “Bouncy” Bradley and Doug “Flashy” Malcolm, both of whom are showing lots of veteran leadership. Quinton “Mighty” McMillen and Garret Carragher (who kicked one goal on the night) provided plenty of run on the wings for the Fish. Getting a run in the midfield, much to the chagrin of his quads, Paul “Vienna” Meyer seemed to slot in nicely next to Eric “I Think I Can” Zukowski for the Tigers. Their clean hands led to two goals in the second quarter, one to forward Graham “Teddy” Brennan, and one to first year player, Alex “Wazza” Wallach. The two sides were evenly matched until the final four minutes of the quarter when two more goals went to the Piranhas (one to McKeegan and one to Woody) as they began to pull away.

The third quarter was a story of defenses… mostly that of the Piranhas. “Betty” Palmer crashed countless packs and one ankle while Dan “Ginger” Kastilahn simply denied any entry into the Tiger’s forward 50. Matt “Spidey” Webb looked the part as he spoiled Tiger Eric “Conny” Conway’s kick in the centre square. Nick “Gleaming” Glennon ran well and supported his comrades. David “Deutzy” Deutz and Joel “Benny” Bennett, provided lead after lead for the Piranhas. Had their kicking been straighter, it could have been blood bath, but the Piranhas only managed 1 goal 4 for the quarter, to the Tigers 1 Behind.

In an effort to stop the bleeding, Al “Forever 21″ MacGlashan moved into defense and looked really strong running through the center square. Piranhas Ruckman, Jason “Taps” Holmes was excellent and showed a deft touch at center bounces against Henry “Snoop” Knoop who was all over the ground. Paul “Gloves” Enzinger provided a good target for the Tigers, as well as Steven “Chappy” Chapman but it was to no avail. The real deal, though was Tim “Munster” Hermann for the Fish. All day long he seemed to find more space than anyone. The Piranhas ran out the victors 8.7.55 to the Tiger’s 5.4.34.

Blue Jacket (BOG): Tim Hermann
Oxford Landing Wine: Keith Campion
Golden Goose: Danny Yunes

Mud. Water. Fire. Electricity. A 12 mile course with a few obstacles along the way. The Tough Mudder was billed as a rugged challenge to test even the toughest. So obviously when it was suggested (possibly under the influence) that the Swans should field a team in the Chicago event, that a flock of 20 Swans and Swanettes geared up to brave the challenge.

The day began with the unveiling of the team shirt (A perfectly white tank top emblazoned with the new logos) and a quick drive down to Joliet for our limo (school bus) to the event site. Despite Dougy getting busted for “standees” we managed to survive the wrath of the bus driver and arrive at beautiful Seneca, IL.

One initial test, scaling a 7ft wall (which we would learn to be just a confidence booster) was all that stood between us and the start line. A couple of “hoo-rahs” later and we were off, running through a plume of orange smoke we got a brief taste of what we were up against… a short distance of ankle deep mud.. Only a few hundred feet later we got to test if the new Swans training shirts would stand up to the punishing our shoes just experienced. A face first slide and slither through thick mud, to avoid getting dirty meant getting cut up on barbed wire so that was the official end of the “white” shirts. That was also the end of the “easy bit” of the course.

From there the pain continued. 12 miles, 22 obstacles, from jumping fire pits to swimming through ice water, from climbing up and over 20ft structures to jumping off them, from running through pits of mud to running through pits of mud while being shocked by 10,000 volts of electricity. 12 miles and 22 obstacles designed to test our mental and physical toughness, our teamwork and our laundry machine.

Congratulations to all that participated and our photographers and fans on the day. The beer at the end was worth it.

Blue Jacket: Eric Zukowski
Oxford Landing Estates Wine: Xavier Burton
Goose: Too many candidates…

You might have noticed that there have been a bunch of changes to the look and feel of the club this year. In addition to some new faces on the team, the Chicago Swans website and logo have received a face lift. Thanks to the hard work of our marketing committee and others, we’ve carved out a look and feel for the club that is unique to our Chicago club while paying homage to our Sydney Swans roots.

The website has undergone the most drastic changes. Thanks mostly to the hard work of Oscar Meyer the site has become simpler and a much more engaging experience overall. We’ve collapsed the navigation tabs and created scroll over drop down menus that allow users to navigate more easily. We’ve created a carousel which highlights the most recent posts. We’ve increased the visibility of key features like the schedule, sign up and social media. Finally, we’re working on developing more robust content like the history of the club. It’s still in it’s beta phase, meaning there are more changes still to come. Anyone interested in submitting content (articles and the like) please content Oscar Meyer or Betty Palmer.

The 2013 season sees the launch of a new club logo. Although affiliated with the Sydney Swans, it is important for our club to have a distinct identity of it’s own. The foundation of the new logo is the iconic Syndey Swans V (stands for Victoria) and swan head/opera house used by their club for years. In order to make it unique to our club, the new logo draws inspiration from the Chicago flag by incorporating horizontal stripes and four six point stars. The result is a simple, yet elegant combination of two of these cities most recognizable symbols. In addition to the primary logo, there is also a secondary logo featuring “Chicago Swans” in a bold simple typeface underscored by the Chicago stars.

Our branding efforts don’t stop there. In addition to a new club logo, for the first time ever we have a suite of logos for our metro clubs. The metro clubs are the backbone of the CAFA. They are where we learn the game, hone our skills and act as the feeder system for our MAAFL squad. With renewed emphasis on building a successful metro league, we felt it was important to enhance each of the teams unique identity. The addition of strong branding should help develop a stronger sense of team pride and fuel the rivalries that currently exist between the teams. Ultimately, they are something tangible that team members can rally around.

Thanks to the entire Oscar and the marketing committee (Fitzy, Dauds and Betty) for spearheading these efforts. Additional thanks to Dougy Fresh and others who provided guidance and council. Finally, thanks to the exec team for their sponsorship of the project.