Irish stars shine as others face crunch time for AFL futures
Brown led the way with an equal career-high five as the Giants maintained their spot in the top eight with two games left in the regular season.
'Just seven (touches),' Brown smiled post-match. 'If I don't get subbed off, that is a good thing right? Maybe it is a bit quiet, but kicking five goals sort of helps the team I guess.
'Coming off a bit of a dry spell the last two weeks, haven't kicked anything. It is obviously nice to get on the scoreboard again and help the team out.'
Last month, Brown signed a new three-year deal to continue in Australia until at least the end of the 2028 season. Former Young Footballer of the Year Oisín Mullin recently signed a new two-year contract.
Elsewhere, Kerry's Mark O'Connor has enjoyed career-best form for Geelong while Meath's Conor Nash continues to excel with Hawthorn.
Cork's Mark Keane was impressive once more for the Adelaide Crows in their win over West Coast on Sunday. The Irish defender was recognised in the AFLCA coaches' votes, Keane rounded out the vote-getters, after finishing with 17 disposals, 11 intercepts and six marks.
Every week, the two senior coaches for each game give votes on a 5-4-3-2-1 basis. The player with the most votes at the end of the season will win the Champion Player of the Year award.
Meanwhile, there are a host of players looking for more AFL action or a contract extension. Monaghan's Karl Gallagher is yet to debut as his second rookie year moves towards its conclusion.
For the Irish at 2024 Premiership winners Brisbane Lions, it has been a mixed campaign. Tyrone All-Ireland winner Conor McKenna has only played five games so far this season. Kilkenny's Darragh Joyce has not featured in the AFL in 2025 and is out of contract at the end of the year.
Kerry's Rob Monahan, who joined Melbourne outfit Carlton at the end of 2023, is also out of contract at the end of the season and yet to debut.
Ballincollig and Cork man Liam O'Connell is another Irish player pushing for a break through. He has played seven games this season since debuting earlier this year. He is joined at the club by Meath U20 star Eamonn Armstrong, who flew Down Under last month after completing his Leaving Cert.
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Irish Daily Mirror
17 minutes ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
€70,000 plus AFLW packages on the way for top ladies GAA stars as season opens
When the oval Sherrin ball is bounced up in the air at 10.15am Irish time tomorrow morning, it will signal the 10th season of AFLW with a record 39 Irish players set to feature across the next four months of keenly-contested action. That figure has risen from 34 players last year and has been creeping up steadily, all the time since the inaugural 2017 AFLW season - (two competitions were played in 2022) Over the coming days nine Irish players could make their Australian Rules debuts. More and more firsts are happening. Meath captain Aoibhín Cleary is Richmond's first ever GAA signing, putting pen to paper on a two year deal, meaning there's another club serious about scouting Irish talent. Donegal's Niamh McLaughlin - the 2022 LGFA Player of the Year - is the first Irish recruit to skipper an AFLW side, after being appointed joint captain of the Gold Coast Suns. Another first is the number of regular season games increasing to 12 from 10 in 2023 and 11 in 2024. 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More Australian players and better coaching will invariably mean the quality rises and the same volume of Irish players are not required - or able to compete. Currently there are 13 Irish men in the AFL, with only a handful playing regularly. AFLW may end up with similar numbers of Irish recruits. Ladies football has never been more popular, but for now though there's a sweet spot there for the top ladies GAA players. And it's difficult to see how the LGFA can compete with what's on offer - or what they can do about it.
Sunday World
3 hours ago
- Sunday World
Parents of US nurse allegedly murdered by Irishman attend special tribute to her
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Mackenzie Michalski with her parents 'She was always involved in the community, and she loved history, she loved the culture of Portland because it's very unique, coming from Buffalo, New York,' Bill Michalski said. 'She embraced it and she really loved it.' Mackenzie Michalski News in 90 Seconds - August 13th Mackenzie Michalski, a 31-year-old American nurse, went missing on November 4 from a nightclub in central Budapest. Her body was later discovered in a suitcase in a wooded area 140km outside the capital. A 37-year-old Irish man was arrested in connection with her murder after the discovery of her remains. The man, who works in marketing and has not been named, has appealed his ongoing detention. Last April his lawyer, Dr Gyorgy Magyar, said: 'My law firm is defending an Irish citizen who is suspected of the crime of murder committed against a US citizen. 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She was reported missing the next day by her friends after she did not check out of her Airbnb accommodation in the Hungarian capital. According to a statement released by Budapest police, Ms Michalski and the male suspect met at a nightclub in central Budapest on the night of her disappearance before going to another nightclub and later to the man's rented apartment in the city. The same police statement noted that the Irish man maintained that Ms Michalski's death was accidental. According to the police, following Ms Michalski's death, the suspect cleaned his apartment and drove to Lake Balaton, two hours west of Budapest, with Ms Michalski's body placed in the suitcase, before hiding her body in a wooded area. After his arrest, the suspect travelled with police to Lake Balaton to reveal the location of Ms Michalski's body. Mr Magyar previously told a Hungarian media outlet that Ms Michalski's death was 'an accidental act without intention'. Under Hungarian law, a suspect is formally charged after the conclusion of an investigation. In cases of suspected murder or manslaughter, an investigation period can take a number of months, and, in some cases, more than a year to conclude. In an interview with this newspaper earlier this year, Ms Michalski's father said he did not believe his daughter's death was accidental. 'The main thing for us now is to be patient and allow the police to continue to carry out their investigation,' Bill Michalski said. 'Everyone wants to know the details. We have faith in the police investigation, and they are keeping us updated.' Ms Michalski's mother, Jill, added: 'Our daughter was kind, compassionate, independent and adventurous. And she loved to laugh. People ask us how we are doing… all we can say is we are doing as well as we can be.'
The 42
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Brooks Koepka confirmed for Irish Open
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