MONTMORENCY midfielder Ryan Jackson has been selected as captain of the Northern Football League’s representative team.
The decision was announced at Tuesday night’s interleague training session, with Heidelberg defender Jason Kennedy named as Jackson’s vice-captain. Ricky Dyson (Bundoora) and Bronik Davies (Northcote Park) round out the leadership group.
The best of the NFL will square off against the Essendon District Football League (EDFL) at Visy Park on March 29.
Jackson has starred at Montmorency over the past two seasons, following nine AFL games with Carlton and stints at WAFL club Claremont and Box Hill and the Northern Blues in the VFL.
The 26-year-old said it was a great honour to be named NFL captain.
“It’s not something you strive for, but to be named captain is amazing,” Jackson told NFL.org.au.
“It’s an honour, especially when it’s the Northern Football League and you’re representing the Diamond Valley area.
“To be one of the leaders of a group such as this is an honour and I’m really looking forward to playing the Essendon District league.”
A former Greensborough junior, Jackson was named captain of Montmorency at the commencement of the 2013 NFL season.
In his first season in charge he guided the Magpies to their first Grand Final appearance since 2008.
Jackson (pictured below) said the NFL was ready to take on the EDFL’s star-studded line-up, which includes many former AFL and VFL-listed players.
“We know the EDFL has loaded up pretty heavily and they’re taking it very seriously as well,” Jackson said.
“We’re hoping over the next couple of weeks to continue to jell as a group and training so far has been great.
“It’s going to be a very good match and it could be anyone’s game on the day.”
Commencing at 1:45pm, the NFL v EDFL clash will be the second match of an AFL Victoria Metro Championships triple header.
It will be the first metropolitan interleague carnival since 1999, despite a number of one-off representative clashes over the past 15 years.
The NFL last played a senior representative game in 2008, went it went down to the EDFL.
Jason Kennedy – who has replaced Blair Harvey as Heidelberg captain – said he jumped at the opportunity to be involved in the league’s return to representative football.
“I did want it to come back and I reckon rep footy is a great thing,” Kennedy said, having previously represented the Goulburn Valley at interleague level.
“Over the years it sort of died because a lot of the top tier players didn’t want to play, but I said to ‘Heaters’ (NFL coach Jason Heatley) that if it was going to be done properly that I definitely wanted to be part of it.
“You always have bragging rights between different clubs and different leagues around Melbourne and this is no different.
“I expect to go out there and have a win.”
Bundoora premiership midfielder Ricky Dyson said the NFL’s squad was coming together well, having spent the past month training together.
Dyson – who last year returned to suburban football following nine years and 114 AFL games with Essendon – said he’d enjoyed the opportunity to work closely with the best players in the NFL.
“We’ve got a really good group of blokes from all the teams around the league,” Dyson said.
“We obviously enjoy playing against them during the year, but to get to know them on a different level and to be able to get to know and to run out with the guys that you respect when you play against them is a really good thing.”
“I am looking forward to the game. It’s good to test yourself against different leagues and come together as a group.”
A much-hyped recruit when he joined Bundoora in the 2013 pre-season, Dyson flourished in last year’s finals series as the Bulls won their second flag in three seasons.
He was best afield in the club’s preliminary final win over Northcote Park and was again a major contributor in the Grand Final win over Montmorency.
Dyson said he’d enjoyed stepping back into local football.
“I was quite surprised by the standard,” he said.
“I couldn’t speak more highly enough of the Bundoora Football Club and I love playing down there.
“The league has been fantastic as well and I’m really enjoying it all.”
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