Sunshine Footy

We're focused on providing players a better lifestyle around footy.

Announcing

We're excited to announce our partnership withGetDrafted.com.au.

GetDrafted aims to provide athletes across all sports the opportunity to create and own their player profile. And the ability to connect with clubs and advance their sporting careers through connections and quality resources.

Moving forward SunshineFooty will continue helping AFL/AFLW players to play footy in Queensland, but you'll need to register on GetDrafted.GetDrafted enables you to take ownership of your footy career and play to your full potential. Top clubs across all of Australia are ready to provide a pathway to relocate, enjoy a new lifestyle, and help finding employment.If you have any questions please contact us. (edited)

Why we're doing this

We've done it ourselves a few years back. Just missing out on the top level of AFL in Melbourne and not getting enough game time, someone suggested Port Douglas and we all jumped on it. It turned out to be the best experience of our lives and we wanted to bring that experience and opportunities to more people.

After years in Recruitment and IT we're embarking on a dream to create a platform by which players and teams of all sports, can connect and change peoples lives. The aim is to keep players in their sports for longer, build life long friendships and support team managements in grass roots and amateur clubs with a cost effective recruitment solution.

Sunshine Footy is just the first step in that journey to a bigger platform. Glad you can be part of it.

Contact us

Want to know more or get registered as a Player or a Club.
Get in touch via email us now or call us on 0448 711 313

What experiences led to Sunshine Footy?

After losing the grand Final by 4 points in 1998 (24 years old) I knew that I needed to try something completely foreign to me and leave the reality safety of Melbourne and push my comfort zone. I had to leave my friends and family and play footy around the world, not knowing where it would take me.

The goals in my own mind were straight forward. But funny enough they were in my head not written down whereby in hindsight writing down you goals is allot more powerful in the universe:

Getting my mates on board

I stated sharing my thoughts with my friends and I remember a close friend of mine saying my ‘My Dad lives in Port Douglas (Nth Queensland) he owns the ice-cream shop at the Port Douglas Mariner. I’ve spoken with him and said the AFL Port Douglas Crocodiles pay players well they find you jobs there are quite successful in winning Premierships!’ I was thinking tick tick tick Boom! Let’s Go.

It turns out that I wasn’t the only player looking for a change in footy lifestyle. A few of my mates/cousins decided they liked the idea as well, 9 players in total all made the trip from Melbourne & Camperdown in Victoria to Port Douglas North Queensland almost as far North as you can possible go to play AFL. One of my closest mate Damien decided he wanted a year out from playing VFA for Frankston ended up winning the Port Douglas Best & Fairest that year and representing CAFL league. I know Port Douglas were wrapped in a little team coming up as integration from players down South can be a challenge to get them stay over the year. PDFL ended having a great year we lost 1st Grade Premiership by a fair margin, but our 2nds won the Grand Final!

Lifelong friends

I’ve made some lifelong friends and we all keep in touch & head to PD reunions. In the back of my mind I remember thinking there is a recruitment angle here for clubs but back then websites were just emerging.

Over in England

From Port Douglas Queensland I moved to the United Kingdom to Harlow in Essex chasing a young backpacker I met in Port Douglas. It didn’t work between us but we still remain friends today. I ended up by myself in London living on school mate’s floor no job and no footy club to play for remember thinking I need to find a AFL club to play for in London. The British Australian Football League was running was my next stop I remember hearing in PD that some London clubs are financial and can pay to play. I called a number of clubs but didn’t hear JackO from the Wimbledon Hawks AFL was the 1st to call me back. He arranged they I received some pounds to play (50 win 30 loss) which was awesome as I was broke. Again I thought back then there needs to be a better way for clubs to attract players, there was no current no platform. Over the next year we played finals and the following year I became Captain of the Club. Captained for two years and recruitment was always part of my role. 

When you field a side in BAFL you need to have half the side Australian (9 players) & Rest of The World ROW mainly English rugby union players or Irish Gaelic players filling those positions. It was a constant challenge trying to field the two team 1sts & 2nds. I found out 1st hand our difficult that was when I became coach for a couple of years. As far as recruitment it was all word of mouth & hunting players down through calls. I finished up in London in 2007 and moved to Sydney.

No centralised platform

Again I found the same challenge when I arrived in Sydney to play AFL. There was no recruitment platform to research what clubs our where around Sydney to line up to play for. In the end a mate from London directly to play for East Coast Eagles where I’m played one season and retired.

After losing the grand Final by 4 points in 1998 (24 years old) I knew that I needed to try something completely foreign to me and leave the reality safety of Melbourne and push my comfort zone. I had to leave my friends and family and play footy around the world, not knowing where it would take me.The goals in my own mind were straight forward. But funny enough they were in my head not written down whereby in hindsight writing down you goals is allot more powerful in the universe:

Get in Touch

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