SA and Qld claim 2022 Toyota AFL National Inclusion Carnival titles

The 2022 Toyota AFL National Inclusion Carnival in the Barossa Valley concluded on Thursday with host state South Australia winning its first ever Division One title in thrilling fashion, defeating Victoria Metro by five points in the Grand Final.

SA triumphed in the decider 5.4 (34) to Vic Metro 4.5 (29). The home side led for most of the match before the Vics fought back to take the lead in the last quarter, only to see SA regain the lead with a late goal and take out the title.

SA's Luke Goodman was named best-on-ground, while his twin brother Jesse lifted the trophy as captain of the winning side.

Earlier, Queensland won the Division Two trophy with an emphatic 5.4 (34) to 0.3 (3) victory over Victoria Country in the Grand Final. It was Queensland's second-straight Division Two premiership after winning in 2019.

Queensland's Daniel Harvey was awarded best-on-ground honours.

The Toyota AFL National Inclusion Carnival is for men with an intellectual disability. The 2022 event, hosted by the Angaston Football Club and played for the first time since 2019, kicked off last Sunday with the eight state and territory representative sides competing in a lightning carnival format over the first two days. The top four teams on the ladder after the lightning carnival progressed to Division One and the remaining teams went into Division Two.

Divisional match-ups took place on Wednesday before the finals on Thursday. In the Division One battle for third and fourth, Western Australia prevailed in a tight contest over Tasmania 7.4 (46) to 7.2 (44). In the third/fourth playoff in Division Two, NSW/ACT won its first game at the carnival since 2018 when it knocked off Northern Territory 6.9 (45) to 6.3 (39). NT won the last Division One title in 2019.

Full results from the Carnival: Toyota AFL National Inclusion Carnival 2022 | PlayHQ

The 2022 Toyota AFL National Inclusion Carnival All Australian team:
 
Backs: Dylan Evans (Qld), Aaron Jewell (VM), David Hallows (WA), Jack White (SA)
Midfield: David Alford (VM), Joel Corbett (Tas), Luke Goodman (SA), Craig Blaschke (Tas)
Forwards: Lachlan Essing (VC), Aaron Nillson (NT), Damon Rowett (NSW/ACT), Lyndsay Ashworth (WA)
Interchange: Kyle Bird (VM), Jesse Goodman (SA), Blake Bonnitcha (Tas), Kai Williams (Qld)
 
Coach: Rob Klemm (VM)

Winners of the Toyota AFL National Inclusion Carnival:
  

Next on the AFL's Diversity and Inclusion calendar is the 2022 Toyota National Wheelchair Championships, set to take place from 22-25 November at the Diamond Valley Sports and Fitness Centre in Melbourne, Victoria.