Tackle Your Feelings kicks off strong in 2026
The Tackle Your Feelings (TYF) program has officially launched for the 2026 VAFA season, continuing as a key initiative supporting mental health and wellbeing across the competition. With the VAFA’s
For a fifth consecutive year the VAFA will send a select group of U18s to tour New Zealand and take on the best footballers from the land of the long white cloud.
With the VAFA now taking on the combined talents of the NZ AFL’s best U18s the challenge is to for the VAFA to maintain their 100% record against the Kiwis.
The final team has been selected and the team comprises a strong mixture of clubs across the entire association – view the full travelling team below.
The U18 side will be coached by Owen Lalor. Lalor has been a previous VAFA U19 representative coach and this year was an assistant coach in the successful Hampton Rovers Division 1 premiership. Lalor will be assisted by 2013 U19 successful representative coach David Gately.
The team departs this Friday at 7am to Auckland where they will check into a hotel and have an afternoon training at the Trust Stadium. That evening the team will attend a welcome dinner with AFL New Zealand at Trust Stadium.
The first match of the tour will be on Saturday 2pm local time at Parrs Park with a second match match to be played at the same venue on Monday at 11am.
The team flies home to Melbourne on Monday afternoon.
In the four previous years the VAFA has never lost to the best under age talent New Zealand can muster, let’s the tradition continues.
All VAFA versus AFL NZ results will be posted here at vafa.com.au.
The Tackle Your Feelings (TYF) program has officially launched for the 2026 VAFA season, continuing as a key initiative supporting mental health and wellbeing across the competition. With the VAFA’s
Old Brighton entered the 2025 Premier Men’s competition as both the hunter AND the hunted. Externally, the club was widely seen as the clear premiership favourite, yet internally, the Tonners
The VAFA Women’s competition will feature five Divisions in 2026, and the fixtures have been released, with Round 1 kicking off on Saturday, April 18. All five Women’s Divisions will
