Inaugural NT Wheelchair AFL Team

In November 2022, Northern Territory competed in their first Toyota Wheelchair AFL National Championship. We teamed up with AFL NT to make this possible and already sights on next year.

After conducting try-outs we selected three Territorians: Melissa Dunn, Annie Rose and Alison McGowan.

Unfortunately, due to a scheduling clash, Mel withdrew from the competition. Annie and Alison co-captained the NT Thunder for their inaugural Nationals appearance. The team notched a few wins! We are incredibly proud of our Territorians, they put so much effort into this campaign and improved tremendously across the four days. Annie claimed NT Thunder’s Most Valuable Player Award.

We are grateful to AFL Victoria, whose players supplemented the NT Team. They wore the Black and Ochre with pride. Victorian addition and Collingwood Wheelchair AFL player, Troy Hawkins’ consistency earned him All-Australian Squad selection for Division 2. He was open to input from the coaching staff and showed good sportsmanship even when the opposition teams were tagging him. The Victorian players added depth to the team. Their experience and leadership advanced the development of our fresh NT team.

The intention to attend Nationals was to help boost interest in the sport. Additionally, players could return to their local training with exposure to elite skill development and game awareness.

Thank you to our anonymous donators who helped get the Territorians to Melbourne to compete, and to ASN Parap for fueling the team! We look forward to building on this partnership next season.

AFL NT and DSNT are committed to making Wheelchair AFL a viable sporting option for people across the Territory. The elite pathway for those with disabilities has now been established. Stay tuned for a local competition in Darwin, and a series of come-and-tries in Alice Springs in 2023.

[Image ID - Alison and Annie competing for possession of the ball against a NSW/ACT player in a Wheelchair AFL match.]