American football is not a huge sport in Australia.

Although, the gridiron – as its known Down Under – has a small core of followers, most Aussies grow up playing Australian rules football, rugby, soccer or even cricket.

For Sydney native Nathan D’Cunha, 27, however, it’s all about putting on the pads.

That’s why D’Cunha flew 17 hours from Sydney to Seattle on March 7, to be on the field the next afternoon practicing with his new team, the South King County Colts.

“It was good, but pretty tiring,” said the jet-lagged D’Cunha, a 6-foot-6, 280-pound defensive end. “I’ve only just caught up on my sleep in the last couple of days. But it was good. All the guys are really friendly. I enjoyed it. I’m looking forward to putting on the pads.”

For D’Cunha, turning out for the semi-pro Colts is the next step in a football career that began in high school.

“I played basketball up until high school,” he said. “After that, I started playing football and just really fell in love with it. I made the Australian national team. That was the pinnacle there. I’ve been playing ever since.”

D’Cunha eventually developed and played for the Australian national traveling team, the Outbacks, before deciding, at age 21, to step up to the next level.

In 2007, D’Cunha enrolled at Santa Barbara (Calif.) City College and began his collegiate career as an offensive lineman.

It was an eye-opening experience.

“They take it more serious. The guys are better coached and the guys are faster,” he recalled. “There are pretty good athletes in Australia, some good players. But the level of coaching in Australia is not very high.”

After a year at the junior college, D’Cunha caught the eye of the University of Kansas program, where he transferred for the 2008 season.

“We won the Insight Bowl (defeating Minnesota 42-21 in Tempe, Ariz.) when I was there. It was a good experience,” D’Cunha said.

Among the many differences between football back in his native Australia and at the Division I level, D’Cunha said, the size of the crowds was the most striking, with the Jayhawks’ Memorial Stadium boasting a capacity of 50,071.

“In Australia, it’s just your parents and friends, basically,” D’Cunha said. “It was a bit of an eye opener when you see the crowds over here.”

After the 2008 season, D’Cunha returned to Australia, where he again lent his talents to the Aussie national team as well as the West Sydney Pirates amateur squad.

Not satisfied with returning to a lower level of competition, however, D’Cunha began corresponding with Colts coach Tim Reynolds.

“I wanted to go somewhere to play at a higher level than I could in Australia,” D’Cunha said. “I was looking at some semi-pro leagues online, and this one here fit in really well.”

“What he wanted to do is come (here) and work on his game and hopefully get a shot at an Arena (League) football team,” Reynolds said.

If things work out for D’Cunha, the Colts might not have him for long. Regardless, Reynolds is pleased with what he’s seen so far.

“He’s got good feet and he’s real athletic,” Reynolds said. “He’s really fast and athletic for being so big. He’ll fit right in and hopefully be able to take his game to the next level.”

D’Cunha – who plans to play for the Colts this season before returning to Australia for the Pirates season in September – is aware of the small window of opportunity he has left to play football professionally.

“Hopefully, I can help the team and just go from there,” D’Cunha  said. “I’ve thought about coaching eventually. Back in Australia, I coached the offensive line and wrote a big chunk of our playbook last year, so I’ve definitely thought about doing that in the future.”

The South King County Colts begin their season April 23 at the Kitsap County Bears.

The team’s home opener is 6 p.m. May 7 against the Grays Harbor Bearcats at Sunset Chev Stadium in Sumner.