Albany footballing legend Brett Hall selected by Australia to tour Ireland for International Rules series

Great Southern Football League legend and Albany Viking Brett Hall has been selected to represent the nation in the 2024 Masters International Rules tournament in Ireland next month. After a triumphant 2023 AFL National Masters series where WA clinched the over-50s title, Hall, along with six fellow teammates, garnered selection into the side that will play two games against Ireland in March. Hall, a North Albany games record holder and dual Kleemann medallist, had been plying his trade at the Albany Vikings for almost 15 years before being awarded with national selection. The Kangas’ legend said he did not expect to be picked, but it was not until he received his national playing kit that he truly grasped the significance of his selection. “It’s not really something that I was expecting,” Hall said. “Coming from a football background and then just jumping over to masters footy, I thought it was just going to be a little fun game of footy to have a kick with the boys and then all of a sudden I got into the State team. “And then the next step from that was getting chosen to play for Australia. “It’s awesome, especially when the merchandise rocked up and I put the jumper on. “I think that’s when it sort of got real and that’s when it sort of hit me ‘I’m actually going to be playing for Australia now’.” Hall insists the Ireland-bound team, brimming with determination to secure victory, is “not just going for a holiday”. “We’re going to go as hard as we can when we go over there to win the comp, 100 per cent,” he said. “We’ve been sending videos to each other just to gee ourselves up. “We’re going there to win it, there’s no doubt about that, we’re looking to take the whole thing out.” Hall admitted the toughest part of training was learning the art of kicking the round ball, but he has drawn on his Vikings teammates to help him in developing the skills. “I’ve leant on all my Vikings teammates in Albany and they’ve been really good,” he said. “They’ve been coming along and helping me train on Thursday nights using the Gaelic footy to try and hone my skills. “Because the ball is round, it’s actually really hard to kick. “I think that’s gonna be the biggest issue, learning to hit a target. “Playing the game itself will come naturally, but the kicking will be tough.” Hall has also been selected in a side to play a one-off Australian rules fixture for the national Masters team against England’s squad in London following the tournament.