Australian Rules Football explained

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This video is a brief explanation of the rules of Australian Rules Football or Aussie Rules as it is commonly called.

Due to the time constraints of YouTube I have only covered the major rules, however this should be enough to help you follow the game. You may need to pause the video occasionally to read the text.

I have also added numerous short videos to further illustrate aspects of the game that can be accessed in the video responses to this video.

One aspect I overlooked is the punch. This is a defensive technique often used in a marking contest by a player who is out of position in relation to his direct opponent. For example if a player is caught behind his opponent as the ball is coming towards them and it is clear the player in front will mark the ball, the player caught behind will try and punch the ball away to prevent the mark. Care needs to be taken to avoid high contact.

The game is played at a fast pace with players playing on at every available opportunity. This means that extremely high levels of fitness and strength are required with players regularly running 20km or more each game. Imagine running twenty 100 metre sprints over a two hour period while simultaneously trying to catch and control an oval ball while fending off attacks from 18 other players and you will begin to understand what is required of an Aussie Rules Footballer.

History:
Aussie Rules is the world's oldest football code being codified in Melbourne Australia in 1858 and was partly inspired by the aboriginal kicking/catching game called Marn Grook. This means the games origins are potentially tens of thousands of years old. The Melbourne Football Club is the worlds oldest being formed in 1859. The first night game was played in 1879.

Year first codified:
AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL: 1858
ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL (SOCCER): 1863
RUGBY UNION: 1871
AMERICAN FOOTBALL: 1876
GAELIC FOOTBALL: 1885
RUGBY LEAGUE: 1895

Just remember: Aussie Rules is not a religion, it is far more important than that.

UPDATE: Fraser Gehrig (the 'G-Train') received a one week suspension for punching an opponent based on the video evidence.

Links:







Channel: Sports
Uploaded: April 15, 2007 at 9:51 am
Author: mddawson1

Length: 00:09:58
Rating: 4.60
Views: 107020

Tags: AFL Australian Aussie rules football footy marn grook

Video Comments:
brettnsteven (November 18, 2008 at 10:38 am)
AFL is the best sport! this video is just crap
mvox55199 (November 18, 2008 at 8:39 am)
Clever Aussies. this 'sport' looks so fkng boring. anyone who likes this is gay and should watch a real sport. Not this ex-con load of shit!
nrlrule1 (November 18, 2008 at 8:37 am)
afl is not a great game afl is shit and nrl is much better then afl
skins189lbs (November 17, 2008 at 8:11 pm)
yeah i dont think i would like this game. i hate soccer i think its for pussies but i lovee american gridiron football and rugby. this looks better than soccer but not as good as rugby or american football. though it seems to requir more skill than both
GorillaInella (November 15, 2008 at 7:10 am)
looks like a really cool sport. i wish it was popular here in america. we should make a professional footy league here
rhys21kipling (November 14, 2008 at 2:31 am)
Can i have some help from an Aussie can you tell me what your hotmail ends with ?? is it . Au
trocarbronx (November 12, 2008 at 12:13 am)
This is an awesome game. It's a perfect blend of American Gridiron Football, English Soccer Football, and Rugby Football.
firedog3030 (November 9, 2008 at 7:57 pm)
i thought if the ball was touched before going through the 6 point goal post is only worth 1 point and not the full 6 points. but if the ball is not touched by anyone it is worth 6 points then. aussie aussie aussie oi oi oi!!! GO HAWTHORN HAWKS
eric829 (November 10, 2008 at 2:09 am)
it's still a full goal if it comes off the foot/shin off of a teammate ... if it's off any other body part ( even off an opponent's foot ) it's only a behind. some teams would often give up the behind to milk the clock and pin their opponent as deep as possible late in a game.
AmineTommylee (November 7, 2008 at 8:17 pm)
great vid thanx!