Canterbury AFL Season 2025 Preview
The 2025 Canterbury Men’s AFL season kicks off next Saturday, 23rd August, at QEII Park in New Brighton. Once again, four clubs will compete across nine rounds with the aim of claiming the Thomas Stanley Hill Memorial Trophy by winning the Grand Final on Saturday, 8th November.
The Blues’ 2025 mission is straightforward: attaining an unprecedented fourth straight CAFL premiership. An experienced core complemented by a dynamic contingent of youth steered the Blues to a record-equaling threepeat last year, carving out a 55-point grand final victory over the table-topping Bulldogs.
Blues coach Andrew Leckie reflects on their recent achievements, stating, “Snapping an eight-year title drought in 2022 was a massive milestone for the club, going through unbeaten in ’23 was another, and we’re proud of the way we regrouped to retain the title last year after being knocked off top spot by an outstanding young Bulldogs side.” Leckie also emphasises the team’s motivation for the upcoming season, saying, “The chance to create CAFL history will be spurring our boys on throughout this campaign as we navigate some key absentees.”
Led by inspirational New Zealand Falcons Co-Captain and 2024 Niki Dow Medallist Jay Johnson, the Blues’ three-time premiership skipper, and wily Australian expat and vice-captain Billy Hope, the CAFL’s oldest roster is personified by ageless (he’s just turned 45 for those counting) local legend James ‘Buzz’ Bowden and club president Jared Court. The sibling infernos, Josh and Kieran Charlton, are fired up to dominate in the engine-room again with the likes of the mercurial Joe Hapi and 2024 rookie find Kaspar Hayes.
Diminutive forward trio DJ Kilden, Dan Benny, and Sam Blackler will be vying for leading goalkicker honours, while valuable defenders Matt Little, Matt Johannsen, and Connor Allnutt help alleviate the huge loss of Hayden Johnston – such a key part of the Blues’ 2022-24 success at fullback. Grand final specialist Mick ‘Vintage’ Atkins is another big loss for the year after undergoing shoulder surgery; however, the Blues are looking to draw on Mick’s wisdom and have the Assistant’s clipboard in the hands of the experienced ex-pat Aussie.
NZ Falcons star Sean ‘The Mercenary’ Butler has vowed to live up to his reputation as the league’s finest gun for hire after first-time dad commitments curtailed his involvement at the business end of last season.
The Blues are equally excited to unleash a handful of newcomers to the code in 2025, particularly as other sporting commitments eat into the playing ranks during the early rounds. Coach Leckie expresses his enthusiasm for the competition, stating, “We can’t wait to take on the challenge the Bulldogs, Cougars, and Eagles will undoubtedly provide in another bumper season in Canterbury for our great game.”
Runners-up for the past two seasons, the Christchurch Bulldogs will be aiming to take the next step and claim the trophy for the first time since 2019. New coach Henry Russell put it bluntly, “Everyone talks about culture within a team and this club definitely has it. We are a player-led team, everyone is always on the same page and we are willing to work hard for each other and do the things that often go unnoticed. Many crumbs make a meal and we are hungry Bulldogs.”
The Bulldogs will go into the season looking a little different to 2024. Losing captain Russell to injury for the season, and two-time Golden Boot winner and vice-captain Lachie McBride to the Mitcham Tigers in Melbourne, along with long-serving midfielder Jonny Lord will test the depth of the squad. On the positive side, 2019 premiership player Jayden Astridge returns and will add depth and experience, and their pack of yappy young pups are another year older and wiser. The Bulldogs will be hoping their farming contingent’s calendars don’t impede on their late-season availability, as was the case in 2024.
The Bulldogs peaked a little early in the season in 2024 and so will be looking to make a consistent effort and finish this season off strongly. The club has appointed two long-serving players as co-captains for 2025, with the team to be led jointly by key position player Caleb Macpherson and midfielder Max Hammett. Swingman Jack Penniket will assist the rookie coach, and life-member Jason Beck will be carrying the water bottles and generally revving up the lads on game day.
The Mid-Canterbury Eagles will be looking to return to the Grand Final after not playing off since their glory years of 2020 and 2021 where they took all before them and played some sublime football. NZ Falcons legend Andrew Howison continues his stint as coach with 2024 CAFL Best & Fairest winner Sam Anderson again leading the team as captain, supported by vice-captains Cam Howison and Jamie Reisima. With the elusive Josh Robles-McGill doing the hard work in the engine room all day, the Eagles are sure to win a lot of contested footy and provide their forwards with silver service. The Eagles have experience all over the ground and with a strong culture, they are always a challenge to play against.
Eagles coach Howison shares his outlook for the season, saying, “As we look ahead to the 2025 season, we’re excited to build on the experience gained by our rookies last year and push to be competitive in every single game. Winning the key moments of games will be a key focus for us, along with being predictable to teammates. The culture at the club continues to go from strength to strength which is exciting to see and is a credit to the playing group for being a key driver of that. I’m looking forward to seeing what we can put out on the park this year. As usual, we farewell a number of players from last year who have moved overseas or retired. However, along with some old heads returning, we are excited to welcome a number of new players to the fold and look forward to watching their development throughout the season.”
The Cougars will be striving to move up the ladder after a couple of tough seasons. Although beaten, they were never disgraced and often in the contest for much of the game, with lapses for a quarter often costing them the ascendancy.
Coach Harry Peterson will be moving the magnets, ably assisted by Jamie Woodin, with the passionate and reliable Adam ‘Jinxy’ Clarke and the wisdom of David Hume keeping everything in order in the clubhouse. Veteran Cougar George Read will captain the team with Xavier Giles in support as vice-captain.
The Cougars have talented players around the ground including the strong marking Dan Brooks, the elite kicking Nathan Ryan, and Brad Mavor who uses his raking left foot to send the footy deep into attack. If they can keep their best 18 on the park, they will no doubt improve upon their recent results. The Cougars have pleasingly had no notable losses and have picked up several new recruits who will improve as the season progresses.
Veteran Cougars coach Harry Peterson remarked recently, “We are aiming to be more competitive across four quarters and keep building on our great culture. We have showed good signs and our squad are working hard at training and looking forward to the start of the season.”
The CAFL Women’s competition begins in late September and, as is the case with the AFLW in Australia, the number of players and standard is set to strengthen and grow. Several CAFLW players were part of the Senior AFLNZ Women’s team, The Kahu, who had a strong campaign in the Pacific Cup held in Queensland in November 2024, which bodes well for the season ahead.
A recent highlight and inspiration for women’s AFL has been the selection of Black Fern and Canterbury Farah Palmer Cup winner Grace Booker by the powerhouse Essendon Football Club in Melbourne, adding to the long list of code-hopping elite women who have reached the highest level in multiple sports. There are huge opportunities for girls and women to make rapid progress in AFL, both in New Zealand and in Australia, with several women from the Auckland AFL now making Australia their home. Over 30 women with Kiwi heritage are competing at the highest level in the AFLW this season and this number is surely to grow in the years ahead.
By establishing a clear pathway for female players – from their first kick to competitive play – we can inspire the next generation. We’re actively seeking to connect and work closely with local high schools to promote both the game and the value of women in sport, encouraging participation, leadership, and opportunity in AFL.
Tamara Toaolamai emphasises the importance of the women’s program, saying, “We’re focused on strengthening the women’s CAFL programme, ensuring it’s thriving for years to come. Our goal is to create more opportunities for females to get involved in the game, building strong connections with men’s teams to foster a united CAFL community.”
The competition could not be successful without umpires and CAFL has perhaps the strongest cohort in the country with most games officiated by three field umpires and four boundary umpires. Anthony Calderone retains the role of Umpires Coordinator and has a committed and knowledgeable group of officials taking control of the games.
CAFL Youth Coordinator Sam Hurley is looking forward to bringing boys and girls from all over Christchurch together this year and with renewed support from the AFL, the future looks bright for our juniors. Many players who have started in the CAFL Youth program have gone on to achieve national representation – AFL is a game for all ages and sizes, and the skills learned in AFL will improve players’ performance in many other sports. Shaun Johnson (NZ Warriors), Sam Dickson (All Blacks Sevens), Will Warbrick (All Blacks Sevens, Kiwis Rugby League, Melbourne Storm) and Jason Woodward (Hurricanes, Melbourne Rebels) are just some of the household names who played AFL in their junior years.
League life member and serial entrepreneur Steve Langridge will again be broadcasting many of the games live on Facebook and will bring his media background to the fore in entertaining and informative ways again this year. The CAFL Grand Final will be broadcast live on YouTube and will attract a large audience from around the globe – stay tuned for more details later in the season.
As with any amateur sport, Canterbury AFL relies heavily on the goodwill of supporters, donors, and sponsors – we are truly grateful to Ray White New Brighton, Geeks on Wheels, Pulse Energy, Feet First, and MTF Finance Northlands.
If you’re looking to support the game and have your business promoted to a new and wider audience, please get in touch and we’d be thrilled to have you join us as a partner.
To keep up with the action, follow Canterbury AFL and Canterbury AFL Womens on social media, and be sure to watch the last two rounds and the finals series of the AFL season on Sky Sports or WatchAFL – this season has been the most competitive in many years and many of the finals will go down to the wire and with no clear premiership favourite, which team will win the Grand Final is anyone’s guess.
For more information, please get in touch via president@canterburyafl.co.nz