MELBOURNE officially launched its Next Generation Academy with two open days during the September school holidays.

Held at Shepley Oval in Dandenong and Casey Fields in Cranbourne, the open days were an opportunity for Melbourne’s Next Generation Academy team to create awareness in the local areas about the upcoming academy in 2017.

With more than 200 athletes in attendance across both sessions, the clinics were open to males and females between the ages 11-15 who live in Melbourne’s allocated zone (South East Melbourne/Dandenong Stingrays Zone).

The days were not used as selection trial days and were instead aimed at being fun, engaging and inclusive sessions for both male and female participants.


Melbourne has launched its Next Generation Academy (Photo: Matthew Goodrope)

The sessions included skill development activities and information on future talent programs as well as nutrition and stretching presentations from Melbourne players Daisy Pearce and Karen Paxman.

The aim of the Melbourne Next Generation Academy is to encourage, develop and enhance participation outcomes for talented players, with an additional focus on creating more opportunities for Multicultural and Indigenous participants.

The AFL has allocated the club Melbourne’s South East corridor (Casey/Dandenong/Mornington Peninsula) and Alice Springs, NT to run its Next Generation Academy in 2017.

The club will work closely with partners AFL South East, Dandenong Stingrays, AFL NT and the respective local leagues to plan the academy structure over the coming months.

To find out more about the Melbourne Next Generation Academy, visit: