Read all about it

Feedback regarding the Grand Final Parties in Hanoi and Saigon has been very positive. In Saigon for example, we had a visiting cricket team of 10 from Australia. One sent the Vietnam Swans a follow up email to:

From the Vietnam Swans, thank you to our sponsors, supporters and friends who made the day in both cities such a success. Special mention to the Sydney Swans, Carlton, Melbourne, West Coast and St Kilda who donated footy jumpers to raffle/auction.

Check out the Vietnam Swans Web Album for photos from both events. Bring on the 2009 AFL Grand Final Parties!

Upcoming footy matches

• 25 October, Saigon – Vietnam Swans Vs Malaysian Warriors
• 22 November, Phnom Penh Cambodia – Cambodia Vs Thailand Vs Vietnam Vs Lao  

We are just two weeks away from our next match which will be in Saigon against the Malaysian Warriors. Malaysia thumped us in KL back in March this year. This time, however, with the combined strength of Hanoi and Saigon playing on our own turf, we are looking very strong. 

Saigon, Saturday 11 October, Hari Raya Training

Tomorrow in Saigon, we train at Parkland Resort Apartments An Phu from 2.30pm. After training, we will enjoy some of the best Malaysian food you will ever have – a Hari Raya Feast courtesy of Scott. Showers are available at Parkland so bring a change of clothes. 

Hanoi, Saturday 18 October, Green Mango Restaurant’s 1^st birthday 

The Green Mango Restaurant in Hanoi (18 Hang Quat), a great supporter of the Vietnam Swans, will celebrate its first birthday with an awesome party. A Green Mango delicious 3 course dinner and free flow wine/beer will go from 6.30pm – 1.30am – and set you back just 500,000VND.  

The Races...

Saigon 18 October 2008, Caulfield Cup

The Swans on You Tube. Click to watch

The Hanoi Swans – now the Vietnam Swans – created this promo video back in 2005 to showcase Aussie Rules to the local Vietnamese.

The 2 minute video splices some local action (from a match we played against the Thailand Tigers in November 2005 which gives it relevance) with some of the professionalism and excitement of the AFL/VFL game back home (so the audience can see what the professionals can do with a footy – and the crowd that it attracts).

The action packed footage is set to Jet’s song, “I want to be your girl”.

Click You Tube to watch it. We have also added an extra tab on this web site, “Promo Video” for people to view it.

If you like the video and need your own done, contact the man who did it for us – Tony. He’s done some seriously awesome work.

Troggs

So the season is over and all the tipping has been done. 

Below I have registered the top 5 finishers. As with the rules that were set out at the start of the season, if you were not paid up by round 7, you were not eligible for the prizes.

This has cost the outright winner, Troy “Troggs” Lanigan dearly. Stuck in Perth with no way to pay…

Accordingly, Deesboy, from 2nd Place, has swooped on the uncollected prizemoney set aside for the winner. He’s smiling as broadly as Troy (photographed above) was back in 2006 after West Coast won the Premiership!

Name                       Score             Margin            Name                     Winning
Troggs                           127                     696                     Troy Lanigan                DNP
Deesboy                         126                     650                     Adam Baird                  1st Prize – 2,250,000VND
The Bloke                       126                     711                     Michael Johnston         2nd Prize – 900,000VND
The Boz                          125                     648                     Ian Boz                         DNP
Golden Boot Gus            124                     785                     Gus McEwin                  3rd Prize – 450,000VND

Congratulations to the winners and hope everyone can get back involved in next years tipping. I will be in touch shortly with the winners to work out how to get the cash to each of you. Remember that the remaining 20% of the pool goes towards the club = 900,000VND.

Thanks again and see you in the tipping ring in 2009 – Tipstar!

1. Scotty Stacey adds lots of flavour whipping the Jim Beam faithful into a frenzy.

2. The Jim Beam Party Crew show the crowd a mega 4.5 litre bottle of Jim Beam.

3. Winner of the Beam, Sam Grigg, looks less of a winner than the Jim Beam Party Crew.

4. The Jim Beam Party Crew make plenty of friends.

5. Jim Beam Man, Mr Thien, points out to passionate Hawthorn supporter, Rhys, “That’s Clarko and Mitchell holding up the Premiership Cup”.

Looking for a footy field in Vietnam

“A social game was organised in 1969 by Captain Bill McMahon of Croydon, Victoria, a former Melbourne Football Club and Sandringham Football Club footballer. The match was billed as “Diggers” vs “The Rest” which was played with Vietnamese soldiers in August at the headquarters of the Free World Military Assistance Organisation.

“In 1971, Australian Force Vietnam (AFV) and 110 Signal Squadron played a match in Saigon organised by Private Conboy of Clifton Hill, Victoria, also a previous member of the Melbourne Football Club Under 19s squad.

“There was at least one contest between 110 Signal Squadron and 104 Signal Squadron in 1970, one being played at a police or army academy at the sea-side village of Vung Tau and a little later another between the Nui Dat based units of 104 Signal Squadron and 106 Field Workshops on pretty rough ground at the Reinforcement Wing at the Dat.

To read the Wikipedia article, click here.

On a side note, next Anzac Day, the Vietnam Swans will play the Thailand Tigers at Kanchanaburi in Thailand near the Bridge on the River Kwai.

The Blog records best month

Last month, September, the Blog recorded nearly 6,000 hits. The actual number was 5,890 hits which was an extra 527 hits compared with the previous high of 5,363 in July 2008. 

Another interesting comparison is the figure for the same month last year. In September 2007 we had 2,974 hits which means that we had a 98 per cent increase on last year.

The Swans represent a safer haven

The other interesting thing about the graph is that it’s a stark contrast to the happenings on the world’s financial markets; ie, it’s headed up!

Message? Don’t worry about the ASX, the Dow Jones, the CAC or anything else. The Vietnam Swans represent a safe haven offering strong growth and security in these turbulent times.