Chippenham Redbacks v Swansea Magpies

                           Vs



The Swansea Magpies Aussie Rules season gets underway this weekend with an Away fixture v the Chippenham Redbacks. Kick off is at 12:30pm at Chippenham RFC

Swansea Magpies Fixtures 2014

24/5/14 Chippenham Redbacks (Away)

31/5/14 Bristol Dockers (Home)

7/6/14 Cardiff Panthers (Home)

14/6/14 Cardiff Double Blues (Away)

28/6/14 Chippenham Redbacks (Home)

12/7/14 Bristol Dockers (Away)

19/7/14 Cardiff Panthers (Away)

26/7/14 Cardiff Double Blues (Home)

News report for the Cymru Cup!

Excellent start for Swansea Magpies in Aussie Rules Season

SWANSEA Magpies made a hugely promising start to the new Aussie Rules season in Wales.

The Magpies were one of the teams taking part in the Cymru Cup at Tonna RFC, where they featured alongside teams from Surrey, Cardiff and Chippenham.

Reigning champions Cardiff Panthers got off to a storming start with an 83-15 win over Surrey Stags.

The Magpies then pulled off a big shock in defeating last year's finalists Chippenham Redbacks 37-16.

As the rain continued to pour and the pitch began to cut up, the games became more attritional. The Magpies followed up their opening win with a battling performance when narrowly going down 17-8 to the Panthers.

Chippenham returned to winning ways in round two, beating the Stags 37-23, before losing 24-9 to the Panthers.

The final match of the tournament was abandoned after six minutes due to a nasty shoulder injury to a Stags player, with the score 2-1 to the Magpies.

This meant the Cardiff Panthers managed to retain the cup, while the Magpies finished a creditable second in front of AFL Europe president Ben MacCormack.

Swansea coach Geraint Havard said: "I was very proud of the effort the boys put in. Against the odds, we battled hard and showed how much we wanted to win.

"Unfortunately it wasn't to be in the end, but this puts us in very good stead going into the league season.

"With hard training and good recruitment, I believe we have a good chance of making this year's grand final."

The Magpies train on Mondays at 9pm in Swansea Tennis Centre and at Tonna RFC on Thursdays at 6.30pm.

Read more: South Wales Evening Post

Magpies set to soar this summer

AUSSIE Rules is coming to Swansea this summer.

The Swansea Magpies will join the Welsh Australian Rules Football League, where they will face teams from Cardiff, Chippenham and Bristol.

They will be coached by Geraint Havard, one of only 27 level one qualified AFL coaches in Europe.

The Magpies have recruited some players including Great Britain international Tim Atkins and Welsh internationals Barry Cawte, Evan Phillips, Jamie Evans and Robert Baker. But the club are still seeking new players so they can field a team for the upcoming season.

Havard said: "We urge anyone who is interested to come along and try the sport.

"It doesn't matter if you have never played the sport before or whatever your age or ability, we would love for you to join us.

"We will get you up to speed with the rules in next to no time and I'm sure after the first training session you will be hooked on this great sport."

The Magpies kick off their season by hosting the Cymru Cup at Tonna RFC on May 10. Training takes place at 9pm on Mondays in Swansea Tennis Centre and 6.30pm on Thursdays at Tonna RFC.

http://www.southwales-eveningpost.co.uk/Magpies-set-soar-summer/story-21033513-detail/story.html