League News Archive

The West Sydney Pirates Week 6 game against the Sydney University Lions marked a milestone in the coaching career of Head Coach, Ian Taylor. Coach Taylor became the first person in Gridiron NSW League history to have coached 200 Division 1 games. Congratulations to Coach Taylor who begun coaching in 1993.

The International Federation of American Football has completed the coaching staff that will lead the IFAF World Team against Team USA in USA Football’s International Bowl in Texas on February 1.

The state capital of Austin will host the third annual game – formerly known as USA vs. The World – on Wednesday, February 1, 2012. The international competition will feature an IFAF World Team of teenage football players selected from as many as five continents playing against American’s Under-19 National Team, composed of current high school seniors (class of 2012). Both teams will field a 50-player roster.

PAUL MANERA Offensive Line

Last year Manera served as the IFAF World Team offensive coordinator. In 2007 he was the head coach of the Australia Outback senior national team and as a player, was a three-year letterman at the University Of Hawaii from 1989 to 1991 playing at offensive tackle and was an Academic All Western Athletic Conference selection in 1991. He served as a student assistant coach at Hawaii and has also coached in the Japanese X League with the Recruit Seagulls in Tokyo and extensively in his native Australia.

“It is a real honor and a privilege to be selected again as part of the World Team coaching staff, it means a lot to me and I am really looking forward to working with the coaches, players and support staff. Every time you participate in this kind of event you learn new things as well as share things with other coaches and players and that’s what makes it really special.”

In total, 10 countries from among the 62 nations on six continents governed by IFAF that play some form of American football will be represented on the IFAF World Team coaching staff.

World Team Coaching Staff:

Coach Country Position

Greg Marshall Canada Head Coach

Warren Craney Canada Defensive Coordinator

Edgar Zapata Mexico Offensive Coordinator

Shinzo Yamada Japan Special Teams Coordinator

Masato Itai Japan Quarterbacks

Max Von Garnier Germany Running Backs

Jakob Dieplinger Austria Wide Receivers

Paul Manera Australia Offensive Line

Sause “Pooch” Ta’ase American Samoa Linebackers

Tuomas Heikkinen Finland Defensive Backs

John Leijten Australia Defensive Line

Giorgio Longhi Italy Defensive Assistant

Niclas Carlson Sweden Strength & Conditioning