Adelaide Shores hosted the Touch Football at the recent Pacific School Games (PSG), held in Adelaide from 1st to 10th December, 2017.
The Games caters for 12-and-Under and 15-and-Under Boys and Girls teams from all states and territories, and forms an important pathway for aspiring Touch Footballers.
Touch Football South Australia (TFSA) collaborated with the PSG Event Manager, Dominic Fitzsimmons, to ensure that the Touch Football event was delivered to a high standard, aligning with other national events delivered by Touch Football Australia (TFA).
TFSA State Operations Manager, Kym Ireland, noted the importance of this alignment: “It was important that we worked closely with Dominic to create alignment between the PSG and TFA events. We want to ensure that players understand that representing their state at 12-Years-and-Under and 15-Years-and-Under levels are the stepping stones to progress through the Touch Football pathway.”
School and Junior Services Manager, Anthony Jennings, who also attended the event, indicated the fantastic job that Ireland as well as Jake Milne (Sport Operations Coordinator) and Renee Bryant (Competitions and Events Coordinator) had done in delivering a quality event: “The venue was extremely well dressed in terms of signage, while referee clothing and footballs were all on-brand. Communication throughout the event was clear, and feedback on referee standard was positive,” says Jennings.
“Credit goes to the TFSA staff for the effort they put in. The atmosphere at the event was also outstanding, and it was great to see so many parents making the trip to support their children.”
Photography by Matt Long.
Queensland and New South Wales were the dominant teams at the event, with Queensland defeating New South Wales 5-2 in the 12-Years-and-Under Boys Final, while also coming out on top 6-1 in the 12-Years-and-Under Girls Final.
It was a similar story in the 15-Years-and-Under division, with Queensland victorious 5-4 in the Boys and 4-2 in the Girls.
Full results can be found on the PSG website by clicking here.
Jennings said that events such as the Pacific School Games and, moving into 2018, the School Sport Australia Touch Football National Championships, were key for collaboration with the school system: “The delivery of Touch Football within the school system nationally is huge, and it’s important that we work closely with them to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes.
“With the PSG being delivered in Adelaide and the School Sport Australia Touch Football National Championships being delivered in Tasmania in 2018, it’s key that we work with the school system to deliver high-quality national Touch Football events outside of New South Wales and Queensland to continue to expand the sport’s profile.”
