Yass Valley Touch Football Knockout set and ready | Preview

There will be 112 teams – 44 mixed, 40 men’s and 28 women’s teams –  participating battling for the $15,000 prize money.

A total of 168 games will be played at Walker Park on Saturday and the knockout competition will be held there on Sunday. Both days will begin at 8.00am.

A record 116 teams participated in 2016’s tournament but organisers decided to take only 112 teams (from the 123 nominated teams) to ensure the venue can host it. Seventy seven teams from 2016 are back to enjoy the action.

Each team will play three games on Saturday before the teams are graded for Sunday’s knockout event. The semi-finals will start at 1.30pm on Sunday with the finals commencing at 2.30pm.

Yass will be represented by the Eagles, Hawaii Try O and Blue Ballers in the men’s division. Meanwhile in the mixed division, Smokin Darts and Breakin Hearts, White Line Fever and Got The Gear But No Idea will represent Yass.

The Eagles will be one of the teams to beat in the men’s division with players like Scott Naughton, Chris Rawlinson, Adam Bell and James Byrne in their lineup.

In the men’s division, the Inferno Sydney lineup will include Scott Prince, who was the halfback for the Wests Tigers team when they won the 2005 NRL premiership. Prince received the Clive Churchill medal for the player of the Grand Final.

There are three teams from Adelaide, 13 from Melbourne and 36 from Sydney.

There will also be teams from Albury, Wagga Wagga, Gundagai, Young, Harden, Condobolin, Parkes, Dubbo, Orange, Bathurst, Lithgow, Central Coast, Milton-Ulladulla, Batemans Bay, Moruya, Goulburn, Canberra and the Defence Forces.

The Galaxy Rebels from Sydney are the defending mixed champions and will be hard to beat again with Manu Wakely at the helm. Their main opposition will come from Inferno, Papakowhai Pistols, Code Red, ACT mixed and Smokin Darts and Breakin Hearts.

Hot Custard will be back after playing in the 2014 Knockout. The team is made up of players from Australia and England who played touch together when working in London. Rohan Creasey who founded the Hot Custard Touch Club will be playing and wearing number two on his playing shirt.

In the Women’s division Daryl’s Horses from the Central Coast will be the team to beat. They are coached by Mark ‘Bus’ Boland regarded as the best touch player to play for Australia. The main opposition will come from the Sydney Rogues, Inferno, Mexicans Touchies from Melbourne and the Young and the Bold from Adelaide.

There are six ACT teams using the knockout to prepare for the National Touch League (NTL). Doug Witt is coaching and is playing for the Feather Flyers – the ACT Men’s 45’s team – while wife Sally is playing for the Dirty Half Dozen – the ACT Women’s 40’s team.

Dave Turner will lead the ANU Bears Old Boys into action in the men’s division and Marty Kirkman will return to show his skills with the Dubbo Devils.

Kel O’Rourke, the legendary Canberra Greyhounds race caller, will be the voice at this year’s knockout to let everyone know what is going on.

Peter ‘Milo’ Millington from Wagga and Nick Altin and Gary ‘Bear’ Foster from Griffith will be the referees coordinators for the tournament.

Pat Batiste and Ricky Hetherington, NSW Touch Association development officers, will be in the Administration tent updating the results and preparing the draw for Sunday.

David Baggio, the world’s number-one referee, could be back for the third consecutive year.

The Yass business community has been great supporters of the knockout with sponsorships, which have allowed $15,000 prizemoney for the event.

Thanks to the following organisations:

We appreciate the continued support of the Yass Valley Council for the Knockout.

The profits from the Knockout have been used to keep the registration fees for the local competitions low, support local players to play at a higher level and make improvements to the facilities at Walker Park the Knockout venue.