ACT Mixed Nationals teams

Hello Everyone

If you want to take up one of the ACT mixed nationals team spots for the 2010 competition, please ensure that you get in touch with someone from the ACTUA committee before this weekend (4th and 5th of September).

We just have to ensure that there are no undeclared teams that are thinking of popping up out of nowhere.

Leaving a comment on this blog with contact details will suffice.

-Thomas Watson

Kaboom teams announce for the NSW Qualification Tournament and Mixed Nationals

The teams for Wollongong and Hobart have been selected.

NSW mixed qualification tournament, 29-30th August, Wollongong.

Erin Wallis
Mica Hartley
Michelle Phillips
Larissa Arney
Heather Tolley
Lorna Barr
Carrie Flynn
Nat Cheong

Adam Mortimer
Tom Watson
Gareth Bayer
Pete Flynn
Max Wheeler
Asher Gentle
Warwick Shepherd
James Ley
Andrew Sutton
Myall Hingee

Non-player Coach: John Horan

Mixed Nationals, 10-12 October, Hobart

Mica Hartley
Michelle Phillips
Larissa Arney
Heather Tolley
Lorna Barr
Carrie Flynn
Jess Preston
Vickie Saye

Adam Mortimer
Andrew Jackson
Tom Watson
Gareth Bayer
Max Wheeler
Asher Gentle
Warwick Shepherd
James Ley
Myall Hingee
John Horan
Pete Hemphill
Thomas Walcott

The teams are fairly large. This is for three main reasons: 1) We want to test some methods of line-balance and 'time on field' management, 2) We want to assess a range of players in pressure games at tournaments. 3) These tournaments are not our end goal and are working towards ourgreater plan for Prague.

Thanks for everyone's continued efforts so far this season. Congratulations to those selected and if you missed out we encourage you to continue to come to training and improve your skills to take advantage of every future opportunity that Kaboom, Factory Girls and Fyshwick United will provide you.

If you have any questions for the selectors, please reply to this email and I'll pass those questions along.

Kaboom training squad announced!

Hi everyone,

Thanks to you all for your interest in the Kaboom training squad for Mixed Nationals this year. We have never run tryouts before so hopefully the sessions were as interesting to attend as they were to run.

Unfortunately, it became clear during the tryouts that we do not have sufficient interest to field two organised and trained Kaboom teams at Mixed Nationals this year. This has forced the Kaboom stewards to reduce the training squad to suit the one team that Kaboom will be able to send. Hopefully a pickup team will form to help fly the ACT flag in Hobart (the ACT has two slots so a pickup team would automatically qualify). It also made spots in the squad more competitive and difficult to get. The squad is still quite big but once the usual toll of injuries, work hassles and bankruptcies take their toll we will have a normal sized squad from which to select the team towards the end of the year.

With that in mind extra congratulations are due for the Kaboom 2009 Mixed Nationals squad:

Annette Zou
Asha Sharma
Carrie Flynn
Heather Tolley
Larissa Arney
Micaela Hartley
Shoko Okada
Sue Brown
Vickie Saye
Angela Hudson
Rachel Gentle
Lorna Barr
Laina Hall
Erin Wallis
Jess Preston
Nat "Trouble" Cheong
Charlotte Peterson

Adam Mortimer
A J
Andrew Sutton
Ben Matthews-Hunter
Tom Walcott
Tom Watson
Gareth Beyers
John Horan
Peter Flynn
Max Wheeler
Ian McKerracher
Ross McKerracher
Asher Gentle
Wawrick Shepherd
Peter Hemphill
James Ley
James O'Reilly
Myall Hingee
Matt Howarth

Well done to everyone selected for the squad. Thanks again to everyone for braving the winter weather and heading along to the tryouts. Hopefully it was a worthwhile event for everyone and if you would like any individual feedback or more information about why you were or weren't selected please contact John or the rest of the leadership group at who.is.the.schmooze@gmail.com.

For those people who were not selected it was great to see you looking to improve your ultimate and we hope you get the chance to build up your skills once the ground unfreezes and regular ultimate resumes in Spring.

Tom, on behalf of the Kaboom stewards Jess, Erin, Pete, Tom and John

Kaboom training squad tryouts complete!

Well last night saw the 2nd and final evening of try-outs for the Kaboom training squad. Try-outs are now done and dusted and the leadership will be meeting on the weekend to determine who will get on to the training squad that will later form the two Kaboom teams heading to Hobart later this year.

The evening saw much more pleasant conditions than the previous week, with no wind or wet to challenge the players. We are pretty pleased with how the night went and are looking forward to what is to come.

-Tom

Mixed Nats Update

Howdy Folks,

Just a quick update on the results for the Kaboom teams at mixed nationals. The team captained by Dave Young and Alica Daly bottomed out at 24th, after improving all tournament, and they picked up the spirit prize. Woo!

The Kaboom team run by Pete and Carrie Flynn established a reputation for punching above their weight, eventually finishing up 14. They pulled out a massive 13-12 win over Townsville's "Hand of God" who had taken half 8-3. Nat Cheong and Andrew Jackson kept the offense moving in the mid-field and Matt Morrison was dominant in the air all weekend.

And Kaboom 1, captained by Pete Hemphill and Jess Preston made a point of fighting back in tough games, winning their three sunday games by a total of 5 points, including a 15-14 win over Faf from Sydney after being down 12-5. Unfortunately, Faf had the last laugh, edging them out in the semis. They finished third after an epic scissors-paper-rock bout with Spider-Pig from Sydney.

Vintage from Victoria stomped all over Faf in the final to win the tourney. Anyway, I'm going to bed so I'll write something more detailed later.

Off off and away in Brisbane!

As I speak Kaboom players will be touching down on the tarmac in Brisbane, preparing themselves for a fest of ultimate this weekend.

Last night we had our last training session and now the time to play has finally come! Such excitement.

Good luck to all the Canberra teams heading up to Brisbane and hopefully we can bring back something to show for our efforts.

Kaboom's Top Team Announced

My spies within local mixed club Kaboom have delivered the lastest roster for the ACT's top mixed team into my waiting hands. Kaboom plans to send three teams to Mixed Nationals this year, but some late pull-outs among their men have opened new spots in their roster. If you're a man and you're in Canberra and interested in attending mixed nats in October (18th-20th) contact me at who.is.the.schmooze at gmail.com and I'll pass your details on the relevant folk. This is the first time the ACT has taken a focused, club based approach towards the mixed division and it will be interesting to see what kinds of dividends this change brings. So, who will don papaya shirts in the name of destruction this October?

Larissa Arney,
Gareth Beyers,
Asher Gentle,
Laina Hall,
Mica Hartley,
Heather Hemphill,
Pete Hemphill,
Jonathan Holmes,
Ian McKerracher,
Keah Molomby,
Jess Preston,
Vicki Saye,
Heather Tolley,
Thomas Walcott,
Thomas Watson,
Max Wheeler,

These kids carry the hopes of at least 4 certified minors and will no doubt do their clubmates proud in Brisbane. If you see any of them around the traps congratulate them on their selection and wish them the best for the tournament ahead. I should have finalised rosters for Kaboom's other two teams once our final few players are confirmed.

ACTUA meeting, Mixed Nationals, WOL next weekend

Hey everyone

Three things,

-ACTUA meeting tonight (Monday) at 38 Scrivener Street, O'Connor. Come along, contribute and eat pizza. 7:00pm start.

-We need to get our rosters in for Mixed Nationals really soon. If you are not on the list soon, you won't be able to join later but if you are on the list we can take you off at a later date. Therefore, if you want to keep Mixed Nats as an option this year, you need to let us know to put you on the list.

-Winter Outdoor League is on next Sunday, 14th of September at Downer Fields. Come along and watch the finals (there are semis and stuff as well - everyone has games).

Kaboom - Mixed ACT Ultimate

Its my pleasure to announce the formation of the ACT mixed club Kaboom.

We are looking to produce a more cohesive and organised effort during our mixed season this year. We hope this will be a longer standing mixed club that gives opportunities for all Canberrans to play for.

This campaign will be a building phase in our wider plan and will set our men's, women's and mixed teams up for 'great success' in the future. We are aiming at getting three mixed teams to tournaments and to qualify as many as possible for Mixed nationals. The teams will share style of play, training and administrative functions but will all have a different focus and goal for their campaign.

There will be a top level team, a competitive but more relaxed team and a development team. The top level team will be aiming to put itself into a position to win nationals and will play the smartest and cleanest ultimate in Brisbane. The 2nd team will be for those that want to have a good competitive tournament but also want to indulge in the more social aspects of the season. The development team will hopefully consist of players from the current Winter Outdoor League and previous div 2 leagues, with a core leadership of players that have played tournaments before. Its purpose is to expose new players to the tournament scene.

The campaign is effectively already under way. WOL and the development clinics on monday nights are new features of ACT ultimate that will prepare players for the mixed season. We are expecting to start training in mid August, giving us a ten week lead up to mixed nationals. This training will be run by Pete "Mad Dog" Hemphill with support from John Horan and conceptual guidance from G. Training will be held at O'Connor Playing Fields (the fields nearest the O'Connor Shops off Pedder Street) at 6:15 on Thursday nights, starting on the 21st of August (with an introductory bridging session held on the 14th). Details about selections and tournaments will be announced at a later date.

We are hoping that the merry batch of players heading off to Brisbane in October will all contribute to the improvement of Ultimate in the ACT and our eventual goal of qualifying for and winning World Clubs 2010 in the mixed division.

If you are interested in playing competitive ultimate with the ACT during the mixed seasons then please register your interest here: http://afda.com/rego/showcompetition.php?competitionid=509

Thomas Watson, on behalf of the current stewards of Kaboom, John Horan, Mica Hartley and Thomas Watson.