Send Joe to the Transatlantic cup with the GB Bull

This summer the Great Britain Australian Rules Football teams are travelling to Toronto to compete in the Transatlantic cup. As with any sport, it is an honour to be selected to represent your nation on an international stage at a major tournament. If I’m being honest, it’s something I can say I’ve pictured and dreamt of since I was eight or nine years old, when I would regularly score the world cup winning drop goal in the garden (kicking the ball over the fence – sorry dad), or bowl my brother out to take the game winning wicket in the ashes during a game of living room cricket (sorry mum).

Similar to other amateur sports in the UK, one challenge we face as a squad is funding. Despite many of us training and competing six days a week along-side full-time employment, we are not paid athletes and therefore do not have access to the financial contributions that Rugby Union, Rugby League or some amateur Olympic sports do. Couple this with the consistent challenge of convincing partners, families and employers that our haircuts and facial hair choices are in fact deliberate, you can hopefully begin to understand that playing footie at this level requires a substantial amount of time and energy.

This GoFundMe page has been set up to support me on a personal level and will help contribute to my flights, accommodation and other essential central costs associated with the trip. Any contribution, or simply sharing this page with friends and family will have a significant impact on this cause, ultimately supporting myself and thus the wider squad in attaining our primary goal: securing the silverware for the first time.

Thank you in advance, see you in Toronto.

Joe X