Nine-a-side Footy - A version of AFL
Nine-a-side Footy (AFL 9s) is team sport derived from Australian Rules Football. The standard Aussie rules game, that is played with 18 players on a side, has been difficult to spread to other countries. Nine-a-side Footy was developed with an intent to spread Aussie rules to other countries by providing a minified non-contact version of the sport.
The sport is played on fields of different shapes. Matches are sometimes played on rectangular rugby fields, on a half or full Australian Rules Football field, or on a cricket field.
Like Aussie Rules, points can be scored by goals and behinds, but points have to be scored only from inside the forward zone. There is no tackling or bumping. Unlike Aussie Rules, players can bounce the ball just once before getting rid of it. If the ball goes out of play the nearest opponent kicks the ball back into play (there is no throw in).
Matches are played between two teams, with nine players on each team. Of the nine players, three players are designated for each of the forwards, back and center positions. The objective of the sport is to score as many goals as possible. During the match, after a goal is scored, the players must realign back into their respective positions before the ball is set in play (but can roam freely after that).
Nine-a-side Footy is currently played only at an amateur level in Australia and Europe. The most popular European tournament for the sport is the EU Cup, which is conducted annually.
Similar Sports
- Rec Footy — an accessible non-contact version of Australian Football, played with 8 per team.
- Metro Footy — a modified version of Australian football played on a rectangular field, predominantly in the USA.
- AFLX — a new version of Australian Football played on a rectangular field with seven players on each team, created to showcase some of the most thrilling elements of the sport to attract new fans.
- Australian Football — a fast-paced football code developed and played mainly in Australia. AFL is played between two teams of eighteen players on a large oval field. Six points are scored by kicking the ball between two tall goalposts, or one point for passing the ball either side of these.
- 9-Man Football — a small team version of American Football
- Rugby league nines — a variant of rugby league football with just nine players in each team instead of the 13 in the traditional rugby league game.
Related Pages
- About football (general)
- Football Decoder — what is called football around the world?
- Complete list of sports
- The Encyclopedia of Sports
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