Eagles Academy Footy Trip 2026
Two experiences. One pathway. An experience you won't forget.
This is an invitation from Marcellin OCFC/Eagles Football Academy - not a school trip. It's open to boys currently:
Finished Marcellin School footy in 2025
Finishing up in a Victorian Marist school program
Finishing up in the school footy program
Still playing in the school program
Entering senior school footy
We're exploring two trip concepts for next
We're exploring two trip concepts for next year — built around footy, personal growth, and genuine connection. Indicative timing: 18–27 September 2026 (school holidays) — exact dates, duration, and itinerary will be confirmed based on interest and logistics. Nothing is locked in yet. Before we commit, we want to know who's keen.
Option 1: Darwin — Culture, Growth & Connection
01 / Elevate your football
A genuine training trip led by experienced elite coaches, our own coaches, & capped off with a match against a local Darwin side.
02 / Personal Growth & Culture —
Proper boyhood-to-manhood work, plus unique engagement with Indigenous culture most boys have never experienced.
03 / Purpose & Connection —
A social enterprise/service thread woven through the week, building perspective, gratitude, and a sense of contributing to something bigger than footy.
Trip Highlights
Real Football, Real Growth
2–3 training sessions and 1–2 games against local NT opposition — genuine football, not a holiday with a ball thrown in.
Train Like It Matters
Daily morning recovery and strength work, building habits that carry straight back into the season.
Boyhood to Manhood, Done Properly
Two dedicated sessions with real time to land — not a tacked-on talk, a genuine part of the week.
A Cultural Experience Most Boys Never Get
Unique engagement with Indigenous culture — a first for most of our group, and one they won't forget.
Give Something Back
A social enterprise and service thread woven through the week — building perspective and purpose beyond footy.
Note: this is an indicative structure — exact days, order, and activities will flex around travel times, opponent availability, and weather.
Option 2: Brisbane — NGA & Next Level Footy
01 / Elite Level Football
Time inside the Brisbane Lions' NGA program, training alongside AFL-program coaches, capped off with a match against a Marist or local Brisbane club.
02 / Personal Growth & Culture —
Proper boyhood-to-manhood work, done with real time to land, supported by elite coaches lifting the whole experience.
03 / Purpose & Connection —
A social enterprise/service thread woven through the week, building perspective, gratitude, and a sense of contributing to something bigger than footy.
Trip Highlights — Brisbane NGA Experience
Train Inside an AFL Program
Time inside the Brisbane Lions' Next Generation Academy — training and learning alongside AFL-program coaches, a level of exposure most boys never get.
A Genuine Match
A game against a Marist or local Brisbane club — real footy, real opposition, in a new environment.
Boyhood to Manhood, Done Properly
Dedicated time for this work, built into the week — not a tacked-on talk, a genuine part of the experience.
Give Something Back
A social enterprise component woven through the week — building perspective and purpose beyond footy.
Elevated by Elite Coaches
Sessions run alongside Brisbane Lions coaches, lifting the level of the whole trip while staying unmistakably Marcellin.
Note: this is an indicative structure — exact days, order, and activities will flex around travel times, opponent availability, and weather.
Why we are doing this
Every Marcellin footy trip should do three things:
Give the boys a genuinely unique football experience — something they can't get at a normal training session
Support real personal growth — clarity on who they're becoming, on and off the field
Build connection — to each other, to their coaches, and to this club
For the club, the goal is simple: strengthen the bridge from school footy into Old Boys, and build a stronger, more connected relationship with Marcellin footy for life.
For the boys: sharpen your footy, get clearer on your ambitions, and come home closer to your teammates than when you left.
Open to Everyone
This trip is open to all abilities and levels — it's not a rep team or a selected squad. You don't need to be joining MOCFC to come, and you can absolutely join MOCFC without ever doing this trip. It's simply here for boys who want it.
Cost support: the MOCFC Coterie is looking to help make this accessible for boys moving from school footy into the senior program, so cost isn't a barrier to being part of it at a time of immense change. Full details on what support looks like will be shared directly with players as EOIs progress.