by Chelsea Cryer | Oct 15, 2019 | Latest News
Australian Oztag are delighted to announce the remaining Tagaroos coaches and assistant coaches for the 2020 Trans Tasman series.
As expected, we received a large number of applicants and it wasn’t easy in selecting our coaches. We’d like to thank every candidate who made the effort to put their name forward.
Congratulations to all the coaches and assistant coaches that have been selected. We wish you all the very best for the upcoming campaign.
To view all the Junior Tagaroos coaches, click here.
To view all the Senior Tagaroos coaches, click here.
by Chelsea Cryer | Oct 15, 2019 | Latest News
Every year Australian Oztag partner up with a fantastic charity and this year we decided to team up with Cancer Council.
Already this year, Leah Bell from South East Junior Oztag has donated $500 after winning the Junior State Cup Club Championship ($1,000 prize money, with $500 to be donated to a charity of choice).
Oztag staff members, Luke Manahan and Phillip Browne ran the City2Surf on the 11th of August. $1,866 was raised for Cancer Council due to the generous donations of members of the Oztag community.
Cancer Council will be present at both the Junior & Senior Australian Championships in Coffs Harbour. They will have a marquee setup near the main entrance on the Friday & Saturday of both tournaments. We would kindly ask that all participants, officials and guests please drop in a gold coin donation on your arrival on both days.
At their marquee they will also have hats and sunscreen available to purchase with the funds going towards cancer research.
The gold coin donations will help raise some much needed funds to invest in further cancer research and give Australians hope for a cancer free future. Last year, in NSW alone, Cancer Council contributed an amazing $18.7 million towards research, making them the largest non-government funder of cancer research in the country.
With the Cancer Council being Australia’s leading cancer charity, uniting the community, providing support and investing in research to save lives, Australian Oztag believe they are a great charity to support.
by Chelsea Cryer | Oct 14, 2019 | Latest News
The team at Australian Oztag are pleased to announce the Junior Tagaroos coaches and assistant coaches for the 2020 Trans Tasman series.
We had a large number of applicants and it was a very tough process in selecting our coaches. We’d like to thank every candidate that put their name forward.
Congratulations to all the coaches and assistant coaches that have been selected. We wish you all the very best for the upcoming campaign.
The coaches and assistant coaches for the Senior Tagaroos squads will be named very soon.
To view all the coaches, click here.
by Chelsea Cryer | Oct 9, 2019 | Latest News
It’s going to be a pretty big few weeks for Central Coast club captain Kaya Ardita.
The Australian Oztag rep will play up and feature in a star studded Central Coast Men’s Opens team at the Senior Australian Championships later this month just days after he finishes his Year 12 HSC exams.
The Oztag obsessed teenager even tried to sneak in another trip to Coffs Harbour to play with the Central Coast Boys 17s side at next week’s Junior Championships.
“I really wanted to play juniors but I’ve got exams on the Thursday and Friday and my mum stepped in and said it was too much,” Ardita told Oztag Australia.
“I spoke to my coach and he said that the HSC was far more important and I still really wanted to play but I guess I’ll be better off focussing on my studies.”
Ardita has thrived since making the jump from junior to senior Oztag last year.
“This will be my second tournament playing with the big boys and I just love it. It’s so much faster and I really enjoy the physical side of it as well, it gets you pretty pumped up.
“In my first game, I remember I let in a try straight away and I was pretty dirty on myself for that but I was pretty freaked out early on. But then that sort of turned more into excitement and after I got in the groove, I felt way more confident and really enjoyed it.
“The older boys were great and helped me out a lot so I just can’t wait to do it all over again.”
Central Coast will play in their light blue and white colours for just the second time at the Australian Championships this year, after stepping out from the Country Bulls banner to play as an independent association at the annual national tournaments.
Ardita tasted success with his Boys 16s side last year and said he loved getting the opportunity to represent Central Coast in several tournaments each year.
“Playing for Central Coast, it’s unreal. All the other regions have players come together from different sides, whereas Central Coast is Central Coast still and I think that’s why all of our teams are so tight knit.
“Oztag is so strong on the coast and I think it comes from the seniors being so passionate about the game.
“Because of that, they try and get as many juniors playing the game as possible. Even in our local comps, it’s a really welcoming community and everyone just enjoys having a good time together.
While he’s still a little dirty that he won’t be heading to Coffs next week for the Junior Championships, Ardita said he thinks Central Coast are set for some strong results.
“The Boys 14s will go well. One of my friend’s brothers plays in that side so I’ve watched them a bit. They always go really well in round games but sometimes struggle to concentrate and stay composed in the finals. It’d be nice to see them get a good result.
“The Girls 14s, 16s and 17s also go really well so I think we’ll have a few teams playing on Sunday.”
He’ll then turn his attention to his exams and eventually the Senior Championships in late October.
“We made the grand final at State Cup and only lost by a try in the final minute to Homebush, so I think we’re confident we’ll go pretty well.
“One of my good friends from the Australian team is Kong Jacobs and he plays for Homebush and the Warriors, he’s my age as well.
“We’ve got a mad rivalry but we’re still good mates off the field so it’s always fun to play against him.
“He also likes to rub it in when he wins, so it’d be nice to get one back on him from last year.”
by Chelsea Cryer | Sep 20, 2019 | Latest News
Unfortunately the Invitational Challenge set down for this Sunday at Bateau Bay has been postponed. A decision was made by the Central Coast council to cancel the SportsFest which we were part of at EDSAAC Oval.
The tournament will be rescheduled with a date TBA.
The Australian players will still stick to their programme of dinner on Friday night at the Gosford Race Track and training on Saturday.
Below is part of the media release from Central Coast Council:
MEDIA ALERT – Wet weather forces SportsFest 2019 event cancellation.
Central Coast council regrets to inform that SportsFest 2019 has been cancelled due to the effect of recent wet weather at the site and with consideration to the predicted wet weather conditions.
SportsFest was planned to run this weekend 21-22 September at EDSAAC Oval, Bateau Bay but adverse weather has affected the event site including the feasibility of setting up a mass participation event and the safety of participants.
We are currently liaising with all the country delegates to reschedule the Invitational Challenge, discussing venue, date and format. We hope to announce the new details for the Invitational Challenge ASAP.
by Chelsea Cryer | Sep 20, 2019 | Latest News
The Greece Mixed Opens Oztag side will look to continue their strong run of results at international tournaments when the rescheduled International Invitational Challenge is held on the Central Coast in November.
The tournament was initially scheduled to be held this weekend but heavy rainfall during the week forced Central Coast Council to close fields and reschedule the event.
“It’s disappointing but I think it’s pretty understandable considering how much rain we had earlier in the week,” Greece Mixed Opens gun Kate McPherson told Oztag Australia.
Greece won the Oceania Tournament back in 2016 and finished second at last year’s Tag World Cup and McPherson seems confident they can collect some more silverware later this year.
“The majority of the squad has played one or two tournaments together if not more and then we’ve got a few new faces this year, which is exciting,” she said.
“The World Cup last year was amazing and we were thrilled to finish with a silver medal. We were beaten in the grand final by the Australians, but considering how limited our preparation was, I think it was a great result.
“We’ve also got a lot of young talent coming through the younger age groups as well, so it’s an exciting time for Greece Oztag.”
McPherson said the Greek Australian Oztag community is going from strength to strength, largely thanks to the hard work of Arthur Kyriakopoulos, and that most players jumped at the opportunity to play wear the blue and white jersey.
“It actually means quite a lot to me. I feel like I’m doing my grandparents proud by representing their heritage and a part of my heritage as well.
“It’s a nice feeling to make your family proud, especially when you’re able to put on the colours of the country that your grandparents have come from.”
The postponement will give McPherson and her side more time to prepare to play Australia, Lebanon and Pacific Islands in the round robin tournament set to be played on November 24.
“I think we’ve definitely got a team that can upset Australia but I don’t just think it’s Australia we need to be worried about.
“All the teams will be really strong but I think we’ve got the players to step up and match it with the best later this year.
“There could be an upset or two on the cards.”
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