Club Mgmt. We finally got an AFLW license!!! - Season starts last weekend of August

[Lore]

Dons' defining day: AFLW licence granted
Essendon Football Club has today become truly whole, with the AFL Commission granting an AFLW licence for the Bombers to join the national women’s competition for the 2022/2023 season onwards.

The AFL announced Essendon, Hawthorn, Sydney and Port Adelaide as the remaining clubs to secure licences after reviewing the Bombers’ formal submission document presented to the AFL Commission in early July.

President Paul Brasher said it was a defining day in the history of the Essendon Football Club.

“We are a football club with a proud, rich, diverse, inclusive and successful history, but today, the Essendon Football Club becomes whole. Today is a landmark day for the red and black,” Brasher said.

“We have never been better positioned to enter the AFLW competition and on behalf of the club, I wish to thank Richard Goyder and the AFL Commission for reaching this outcome.

“Likewise, I wish to thank the many staff within our own organisation who have worked tirelessly on not only this submission but through their contribution in ensuring strong foundations have been laid across our club and VFLW program over a number of years. We have particularly drawn inspiration from the players in our VFLW team during that period.

“Through our commitment to growing the game and establishing pathways across Melbourne’s northern corridor and the Northern Territory, through our relationship with Calder Cannons and our NGA programs and our flagship First Nation’s Women’s Pathway Program, we believe we will have the emerging talent to underpin the list profile for our AFLW team.

“With our bespoke AFLW facilities now completed at the NEC Hangar, and with our long-term vision of AFLW games being played at Windy Hill, our impact in the AFLW competition will only be further strengthened.

“We again thank the Victorian State Government for their support in establishing these facilities and their ongoing commitment to providing opportunities for women to participate in our great game of AFL at every level.

“Finally, every young Bomber – boy or girl – can dream of one day representing the mighty red and black, and for us this is exactly why our football club is now truly whole.”

Dons' defining day: AFLW licence granted

Essendon has been granted a licence to join the AFLW in 2022.

www.essendonfc.com.au

 

[Jack Richards]

While they are training/playing for the AFLW team? They will be covered by whatever insurance is part of the AFLW club's situation. It would all be worked out, same as the current arrangement for Port Melbourne or Melbourne Uni VFLW players currently contracted to a different club at AFLW level. Possibly they pay for their own health insurance, could also be club insurance. I'm sure there is something in place though, we won't be footing the bill if they do an ACL while playing for Brisbane or Carlton or something.

Hope so. Would be telling the players you're free to sign, but any season ending injury we wont pay that year of salary.

 

[Lore]

White text tho

 

[SherbertLemon]

The sky is falling.

The sky is falling.

 

[Doss]

Disappointing, but not much we can do. Hawthorne could be similarly annoyed I guess.

Oh well, bring on 2021.

 

[kelvin_sheedy]

Missed the boat again but hardly surprising.

 

[BrunoV]

I think that people are forgetting that this league was hastily cobbled together because AFL had fallen so far behind the likes of the women's BBL.

Yes, there is a need to have a league with a strong national presence but that still means having teams in states that don't care about Australian Football. It's still means a league propped up by the big clubs.

How far can the AFL extend itself without any profitability? What will sponsors really look at and really pay for? It's not just the feel good story (and I'm not dismissing the story because I love it) it's the story and the commercial reality. The presence of the big club's is a huge kick start for a league that would run over the top of all competition.

It's one thing attracting talent but that's never been the issue for women's sport. It's basically all elite no matter what the code. What sets AFL apart from other sports is the rabid support of it's fans. It's that support that makes AFLW more than juylst an exercise in equality it give it the chance to be truly professional.

It's the wrong decision and it will cost the AFL even more than it otherwise had to spend in a climate where it's main revenue source must start to become uncertain where commercial networks run huge losses to pay TV rights to prop up viewer numbers to support their failing networks.

 

[ant555]

Personally I think they have gone down the wrong path too quickly despite being a bit of a fan.
Before a National comp they should have beefed up the state leagues (VFL,SANFL,WAFL) and run that for a few years while developing the juniors. The Feb/Mar period could have been used as a National State of Origin Carnival while the regular season could have seen the VFWL played along side the VFL. The same with the other states.
Currently the VFWL is pretty much a Metro footy comp. The set up would have been a lot better if they had the Melbourne based AFL sides as the top level VFL comp and then the current comp as the enxt level down.

Eventually the comp will have to move to run through the same time period as the AFL.anyway so what Bruno has said rings true.

 

[TheGreatBarryB]

It's going to be way too diluted talent wise. 14 clubs should ideal number for men let alone women.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

Personally I don't really care tbh.

 

[HirdsTheWord]

probably wouldnt watch it even if their was an essendon team.

Talent pool needs a good 5 years before its not completely boring. Adding in another 3 teams will only make it that much more spread out and crap to watch.

good on the girls for giving it a crack though. hopwfully it develops into something not totally bad to watch

 

[Vindicater]

Disapointed.

But at least for now I can continue to watch the champions live and say I barracked for them from the beginning. (Adelaide)

 

[Lore]

Old AFLW thread is 2.5 years out of date. So here's a new one.

I would also like to briefly touch on our pathway to the AFLW competition. I know our members, supporters and key stakeholders feel equally as passionate about our entry into the AFLW competition, I can confirm that we have recently written to AFL GM Football Steve Hocking to request clarity on the AFL’s position on the growth and future expansion of the AFLW competition and absolute certainty on our entry point.

We have had a long and proud history of developing the game and providing opportunities for women on and off the field. By the end of the year, in line with the completion of the second stage of the facility expansion, we will have the best facilities anywhere in the country – boasting the most outstanding and comprehensive female facilities in the game. The Essendon Football Club will be equipped. As such, it is our strong desire to enter the AFLW competition by 2022. And no later than 2023.

From the club email.

Club facilities should be done by our 150th anniversary next year, and we want an AFLW team to use them in the year or two years after that (2022-2023).

Seems to me XC has unfinished business.

 

[eth-dog]

Seriously? The comp is already overexpanded for 2023 right now.

 

[Lore]

Seriously? The comp is already overexpanded for 2023 right now.

I'm interested to know where the grassroots are at expansion wise. At some point they have to start coming through U18s in significant numbers, once they do that for a few years you'll have some players at the peak of their careers that never had to leave the sport and have trained in elite environments since they were kids.

Not sure if that's 2023 but it's probably more likely than 2020.

 

[eth-dog]

I'm interested to know where the grassroots are at expansion wise. At some point they have to start coming through U18s in significant numbers, once they do that for a few years you'll have some players at the peak of their careers that never had to leave the sport and have trained in elite environments since they were kids.

Not sure if that's 2023 but it's probably more likely than 2020.

Grassroots wise, the VAFA are opening a 3rds comp after 4 years, nothing to be sneezed at.

Most experts didn't even want 10 teams at this stage. 14 is way too many.

 

[ghostdog]

Grassroots wise, the VAFA are opening a 3rds comp after 4 years, nothing to be sneezed at.

Most experts didn't even want 10 teams at this stage. 14 is way too many.

Why wasn't EFC in the conversation to be one of the original 10 teams?

 

[table tennis]

Why wasn't EFC in the conversation to be one of the original 10 teams?

We upset some people in the last decade

 

[jmoo wan]

Why wasn't EFC in the conversation to be one of the original 10 teams?

oh bless your little cotton socks!

(it was because of the whole drugs thing)

 

[TheGreatBarryB]

18 clubs is too much for men let alone a new women’s comp in a few years. Big mistake expanding to 14.

 

[faible]

Seriously? The comp is already overexpanded for 2023 right now.

Yes, talent wise. But having an associated AFLW team will mean a lot more AFL supporters will tune in to AFLW in the off-season given it's 'their' club.

 

[Zach Package]

I’m more than happy to sit back and focus on grassroots stuff and developing a VFL program to grow something sustainable.

The comp is amateur hour s**t at the moment (in terms of the way that it’s run) so I’m not too concerned to not be in it.

The odd part is the fact that we’ve got a rabid fan base that will attend anything, if the AFL want to run a loss making exercise they may as well do so with people in the grandstand.

 

[andleanback]

Why wasn't EFC in the conversation to be one of the original 10 teams?

We didn’t want it, we wanted to concentrate on getting the club back up and running after the dark days.

 

[Bombermania]

Seriously? The comp is already overexpanded for 2023 right now.

That might be true but its not a fair dinkum comp until Essendon is in it. The AFLW cannot be taken seriously if it snubs a club with a strong women supporter base and one of the few with an actual women based coterie groups.

 

[yodellinhank]

Ruby Svarc is off to Brisbane AFLW. Not sure there's a general Essendon thread for the women's footy side?

Still think the club dropped the ball in not getting behind women's footy. Wonder if they made any cash off of the Esports.

 

[ghostdog]

Ruby Svarc is off to Brisbane AFLW. Not sure there's a general Essendon thread for the women's footy side?

Still think the club dropped the ball in not getting behind women's footy. Wonder if they made any cash off of the Esports.

Pffft! The club can't even manage one footy department, let alone the women's as well. Maybe put a fork in the men's completely and start all over again with the women's. Andrea McGrath for Captain.