He may don the black and white in Australia, but Collingwood’s Mason Cox was a proud Crows fan as returned to the US to watch his brother Nolan star in the USAFL finals earlier this month.
For the past four years, Nolan has worn the tricolours for the Austin Crows Football Club in Texas.
On Sunday, October 14, he led the side to their fourth national championship, as the Cox family watched on.
Ever since the Austin Crows were established back in 2002, the Club has seen many successes as Aussie Rules gained momentum in America.
Wearing uniforms donated by the Adelaide Football Club, the Austin side added another trophy to the cabinet after they defeated the Golden Gate Roos by five points in the division one grand final.
After watching his brother on the big stage last month, it was Nolan’s turn in the spotlight as Mason played a supporting role as water boy.
Cox brothers teaming up! Forward @nolanosu and water boy @masonsixtencox Go Austin Crows! #USAFLNationals pic.twitter.com/VJBN3aTxAz
— Phil Cox (@philcox18) October 14, 2018
The 31-year-old said Mason was probably the most overqualified water boy in football history.
“He always has a tough time sitting on the sidelines so he was kicking the footy with us and running water and jumping in the huddles,” Nolan told AFC Media.
For Nolan, seeing Mason’s success in Australia motivated him to take up footy.
“It’s my fourth season with the Crows now… I started when Mason started playing at Collingwood,” he said.
“I wanted a place to go and watch the games with a group of people who also loved the sport and then they convinced me to play.”
“My other brother Austin also plays in the USAFL, for Seattle, so Aussie Rules has given us another reason to all come together.”
He said the USAFL community loved watching Mason succeed in Australia.
“A lot of Americans still don’t know what AFL is so they don’t really understand how well he’s done but he’s had a lot of press recently in the US after his performance in the prelim final so he’s been in the spotlight a bit,” he said.
“None of us here (in the US) thought he (Mason) would take the path he’s taken and we never knew if he was going to make it to that level so it’s just so special that he has.”
As for his own football career, Nolan said his chances of playing AFL in Australia were behind him, but it may have been different had he found the sport as a youngster.
“I’m 31 now so I’ll leave that to Mason, I just love the culture around the sport, so I’ll keep playing for as long as I can,” he said.
“The older I get, the more I appreciate the sense of community that footy brings and it’s a great excuse to get the family together, whether it’s for the AFL Grand Final in Melbourne or a tournament in the USA.”
Mason wasn’t the only Aussie to make the trip as AFLW stars Erin Phillips and Sarah Perkins showed their support for the growing competition.
Captain of the English Roses and new Collingwood netball recruit Geva Mentor was also spotted watching on.
Former Adelaide local Hamish Pellew, who joined the Austin Crows after moving to Texas in 2016, said the Club was started by a group of Aussies who missed footy and is now half-filled with American players.
“We’re hoping to further the sport in the US and hopefully produce a few more Mason Cox’s of the world,” he said.
“The culture appeals to the American’s a lot – it’s very inclusive and less about being an amazing player than just being a good bloke.”
Pellew said many of the local players looked up to Adelaide stars Eddie Betts, Rory Sloane and Daniel Talia.
“Our style of play builds from the backline so we look up to Talia a lot and also Luke Brown,” he said.
“And obviously everyone wants to be Eddie Betts – he’s a magician.”
The Austin Crows celebrated their championship win in Aussie style with a Mad Monday.
