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AFL Corruption

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JoondalupJ said:
I think manipulation of players to promote Australian Rules in Sydney and Brisbane was an absolute plan set in place not just to relocate and survive but to eventually win flags. A fair while later both clubs have broken droughts.
Worse though than that is the later atrocities that have happened via the AFL and expanding and wanting to make huge money as well.

That very unfair advancing of footy adding 2 new clubs to the league and without a doubt in the world diluted the elite footballer's pool of new players.

I believe to play Australian Rules at its highest level is the hardest professional sport on earth to adapt too. To consistently play at a standard to elite level, against other elite players, the dedication is mind boggling!
Our ball goes anywhere. You don't just train for six months and "know" Aussie footy. There was nothing like it on earth!

So I see what you are saying very easily, and agree.

Sydney move was to save a club.
I guess Brisbane was a few years after the B/Bears, they grabbed Fitzroy, AFL virtually forcing it.

So that gave the AFL base to gather more money more fans in 2 new states and so when you get the greatest goal kicker Tony Lockett to your club, it can be nothing but good news. Not just for Brisbane /Fitzroy ( Brissy got a whole club).
But get whatever it takes send Tony so Sydney so Sydney don't fail in NSW! Or just draw crowds to watch Lockett?

That is now history, but when North refused to relocate to Gold Coast (QLD) and Footscray renamed the WESTERN Bulldogs, refused to go to Greater WESTERN Sydney NSW.The AFL saw its huge TV rights, massive money deals to grow the sport EVERYWHERE!!! ANYWHERE!!!!going down the toilet.
So they invented two newbies GC17 and GWS, who diluted the game and the level of capacity of new players to play elite footy at the level it was and only just meeting that level with 16 teams, as we witnessed for years and years sides that have not won flags for decades,and that 'll go on.

Hawthorn power dynasty was probably the last of the super teams, up until 2016 , it will be a long long time or never for a club to reach those heights in the modern age.

What I am saying is the AFL is only interested in making lots of money. TV broadcasts from all states and territories is the way to do it.

That's what they aimed at. They also aimed at making the game easier to play with ridiculous rule changes, that have slowly been sneaking into the sport to the point of viewer and fan anger and inconsistency, and such petty calling of free kicks and lots of not good at kicking at goal and many many handballs are allowed, but are THROWING.
Confusion from one umpire to another, and now the umpire can and does change momentum and results with perceptions of rules because the rules are so grey
This is NOT our game now.

If you've ever read anything I 've written about this, before, you would know what I mean by the destruction of contest contact and defencive play without giving a barley connecting arm touch, usually paid to a forward , so the scoring got better.

Lots of rules I say, are not even needed, and the only thing I can guess at, is, the AFL expansion has created this, Hocking, McGlachlans man has spent some time bending and twisting interpretations, tried to complicate the sport when it is a simple game, but they have gone overboard with petty unneeded rule changes.
I can name dozens of things happening now especially in the last 5 years but the rule fiddling has been happening since about 2003, when the idea of two new teams started being thought on.
Only one area, I think was wise, that of the head injury protection and banning sling tackling , I personally hate sling tackles someone will die from one in the end. Heavy clashes on the other hand are what any person who has ever played our game at any level understands, that is the game, not the biff and bash, just hard hard footy. Collisions are dangerous , still happen, always have, its called football.

But for me that is a corruption SO SO so much worse, and so damaging to our sport, that I know many people of different ages not all older people either, who have given up because of the RULES, the unfair interference and stop start scrum scrag typed pack game, now,
WHERE UMPIRES FOR SOME REASON ESPECIALLY THIS SEASON!! ALLOW THOSE HORRIBLE PACKS TO GO ON AND ON THAT FEW SECONDS LONGER.
Our game is meant to flow and umpires are not there to stop a flow of our game.
But they do every week, every game, and confusion is king!
Ruckmen??? why is anything they do,performing their craft , get any penalty at all, its stupid!

Twice in three weeks I 've watched a game that two ruckmen from either side heard the whistle, neither knew which one had infringed , it is stupid and it will be the death of Australian rules.
Our umps through no fault of their own except that they know all these ridiculous new things to the empth degree, they call what they are directed and they have changed the sport

So AFL money hungry ...yes! AFL manipulate the game to a point of changing it sop many don't watch.Yes!

You are a Geelong person I am Hawthorn, WE HAVE PLAYED BRILLIANT MATCHES AGAINST EACH OTHER, FOR DECADES, WE KNOW GREAT MATCHES.
BUT OUT OF THE NINE WE SEE EACH WEEK, NOW DAYS ABOUT TWO ARE WORTH A WATCH.

And we wait for finals or close to it to see the real hammer come down. I simply don't understand it, but Locketts move pales into insignificance when you see what they done to our game.
The good is still great, the bad is necessary! That is the weird thing. Sorry this is long its a pet hate of mine losing my sport. To a referee!
Click to expand...

Thanks for that great reply. I too feel devastated that our game has been taken from us. It's not the same, nowhere near it unfortunately and I'm not sure we will ever get it back to something similar to what it was. The fact that it is a business now and seems to be all about making money over everything else makes me sad as I was brought up to believe sport was about a contest between 2 teams and not about maximising revenue above all else. It's a real pity as we had such a great game that has been ruined and continues to be by the AFL constantly changing things in the name of profit. What can we do hey?

I hadn't heard that Lockett one which I why I posted, but obviously there are many many instances of corruption over the years or whatever you want to call it that has seen our great game diminish.

Anyway, I'll leave it there - thanks again for putting so much thought into your post. It's good to have some discussion about these things IMO.
 

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captain blood 17 said:
Labor Voters in Melbourne are more of a cult these days. But that tax payer cash does come in handy.


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Click to expand...
the ignorant protesters are a cult. long term dole bludgers get a pay rise.
any how different thread for this convo.
good luck to the tiges mate.
 
gingernuts said:
the ignorant protesters are a cult. long term dole bludgers get a pay rise.
any how different thread for this convo.
good luck to the tiges mate.
Click to expand...

Thanks mate. We got a one in eight chance now. Gonna be a wild finish.


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Roylion said:
That's not quite correct, although events were indeed manipulated by the AFL to suit their purposes.

In a nutshell is what happened.
  • Fitzroy Football Club's licence to compete in the AFL competition was surrendered by the Fitzroy administrator to the AFL and the Club was removed from the AFL competition. The Club still exists in its' own right but remains outside the competition to this day. Fitzroy FC are not part of the Brisbane Lions, other than what the Lions elect to commemoate of Fitzroy's VFL-AFL history.
  • Brisbane Bears rebranded themselves to the 'Brisbane Lions' using AFL's trademarked intellectual property (such as the 'Fitzroy Lion logo'). This was marketed as a "merger" by the AFL but there was no such thing. Any reference to a "merger" is merely AFL spin / marketing.
  • The Brisbane Bears were granted priority access to eight Fitzroy players and an extended list of 44, before all Fitzroy players (those who had years left on their contracts were taken over by the AFL or paid out) became "free agents" to be drafted by other clubs
  • The Brisbane Bears were granted $6 million of AFL funds (similar to how some clubs now receive greater funds from the AFL's distribution fund)
Click to expand...
Well that sounds much worse speaking for some friends I grew up with who actually both came from Fitzroy born and bred.
I think they got railroaded and maybe had no money no choice. I wonder how Melbourne Lions fans feel about the fact that the Brisbane Lions are not connected what so ever with Fitzroy, quite a culture shock, I thought they joined and Fitzroy people from the old club went with them, so I guess its propaganda,
Hope the real Fitzroy went back to Brunswick oval?
 

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WeAreGeelong said:
Thanks for that great reply. I too feel devastated that our game has been taken from us. It's not the same, nowhere near it unfortunately and I'm not sure we will ever get it back to something similar to what it was. The fact that it is a business now and seems to be all about making money over everything else makes me sad as I was brought up to believe sport was about a contest between 2 teams and not about maximising revenue above all else. It's a real pity as we had such a great game that has been ruined and continues to be by the AFL constantly changing things in the name of profit. What can we do hey?

I hadn't heard that Lockett one which I why I posted, but obviously there are many many instances of corruption over the years or whatever you want to call it that has seen our great game diminish.

Anyway, I'll leave it there - thanks again for putting so much thought into your post. It's good to have some discussion about these things IMO.
Click to expand...
Thanks mate it was a bit long , but when I get onto this sort of thing out it all comes. I have followed this game from my hometown in Melbourne all my life. I happen to live on the other side of the country now, but I have never changed from the Hawks.
Because the forty years I spent in my home state, football was life to me , actually to most, at home in Melbourne you could have a good footy discussion after the banter of having a shot at each other, and just about everyone in Melbourne could carry on a serious football conversation as good as the blokes who did it on the TV. It was ours. All of us any team .

I feel I've lost it now.
It feels like losing more than a sport, its what the real game means its about people.
Games changed by umpires, and those poor blokes and girl, just do the job and do it well, but the rules they have to guess at sometimes, have destroyed it.
All the best , I hope the Cats have a good run in the finals, at least my nerves will be calm , ha ha .
 
WeAreGeelong said:
I watched The Front Bar tonight and hearing John Northey speak about Tony Lockett, I was blown away by what he said re: Lockett and Richmond/Sydney.

Forigve my ignornance, but I didn't realise Lockett had all but signed at Richmond before he famously signed with Sydney. Northey said that Lockett wanted to play with Richmond and they were trying to arrange a deal with St. Kilda and St. Kilda would not answer his many calls. He then called AFL boss at the time Ian Collins and told him that he was trying to arrange a deal with the Saints to get Lockett to Richmond and Collins told him that Lockett would be playing at Sydney and nowhere else.

I might be reading more into this, but I am staggered that the AFL basically overruled this and made Lockett go to Sydney instead. I guess they wanted Sydney to flourish as they were trying to establish them into the NSW rugby market. I know corruption exists in many forms of life, but this staggered me and I think it is disgusting that Ian Collins by the sounds of it orchestrated Lockett's move to Sydney instead of where he actually wanted to go.

Can anyone else shed some light on this? I feel like this sort of stuff still happens particularly with the new clubs trying to gain a foothold into rugby territory. I know the integrity of the competition is severely compromised anyway by the AFL's want to make as much money as possible, but I just didn't know about this Lockett one to be honest. Would be interested to hear others thoughts and memories on this one.
Click to expand...
apparently Neale wanted to go to norf but they said nup you have to go to Brisbane
 
longsuffreosupp said:
Don't get on the wrong side of them, or you'll cop it..
Click to expand...

For mine it's up to the WA clubs to use their financial clout to change the AFL. Never has the AFL and the Victorian clubs been so financially under stress; Victoria is going to be a wasteland post JobKeeper and the basket case AFL franchises and minnow Victorian clubs will never be so vulnerable.

Western Australia's mining industry which is currently largely bank-rolling the country, together with the accumulation of debt has changed the power dynamics. The Western Australian clubs should as a minimum be demanding a third club in the State to reflect the strength of the WAFL and its contribution to the game; to have the same number of clubs in NSW and Queensland as you have in WA and SA is insulting. Reduce the competition to 16 clubs and get rid of the financially non-viable clubs.

Threaten the AFL with a break-away competition, I think you would find most of the powerful Victorian clubs are just as tired of being expected to bank-roll the AFL franchises and to have virtually every national draft be the sole resource of the basket-cases.

Fix the competition and then you can move on to fixing the corruption, the contrived outcomes, the abysmal media coverage and pathetic umpiring.
 

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smasha said:
We were a pile of rag to be stomped on then,I think the media were glee with joy when we were down.
Click to expand...

They’re worse To Us now we are up and about , this year perfect case in hand . Particularly that insecure Geelong media mafia . Look at vilification of Tom Lynch . They’re just willing us to loose . Makes winning all the more sweeter .


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JoondalupJ said:
Well that sounds much worse speaking for some friends I grew up with who actually both came from Fitzroy born and bred.
I think they got railroaded and maybe had no money no choice. I wonder how Melbourne Lions fans feel about the fact that the Brisbane Lions are not connected what so ever with Fitzroy, quite a culture shock, I thought they joined and Fitzroy people from the old club went with them, so I guess its propaganda,
Hope the real Fitzroy went back to Brunswick oval?
Click to expand...

An absolute disgrace the way Fitzroy were treated . Every Fitzroy person I’ve ever met were quality people . And what do we replace them with ? Port Power , no tradition , no class , just ferals.

fitzroy was a grand club with grand tradition and a Knack of turning out champions .


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bluespooner said:
For mine it's up to the WA clubs to use their financial clout to change the AFL. Never has the AFL and the Victorian clubs been so financially under stress; Victoria is going to be a wasteland post JobKeeper and the basket case AFL franchises and minnow Victorian clubs will never be so vulnerable.

Western Australia's mining industry which is currently largely bank-rolling the country, together with the accumulation of debt has changed the power dynamics. The Western Australian clubs should as a minimum be demanding a third club in the State to reflect the strength of the WAFL and its contribution to the game; to have the same number of clubs in NSW and Queensland as you have in WA and SA is insulting. Reduce the competition to 16 clubs and get rid of the financially non-viable clubs.

Threaten the AFL with a break-away competition, I think you would find most of the powerful Victorian clubs are just as tired of being expected to bank-roll the AFL franchises and to have virtually every national draft be the sole resource of the basket-cases.

Fix the competition and then you can move on to fixing the corruption, the contrived outcomes, the abysmal media coverage and pathetic umpiring.
Click to expand...
As ridiculous as it sounds I think you’re right. WA has a chance to correct the course and make significant change for the good of the game. Let’s hope they take it.

I agree that the big ViC clubs would be interested and many Vic fans are more than ready for the current regime to fall.

Crazy times
 
kaiserchief13 said:
There is corruption, just see the fixture each year, the umpiring run Bulldogs got in 2016 final series and the most recent decision to host 2020 GF at Gabba, yet we were told it is to be at MCG each year due to highest capacity, but there are 2 available stadiums with higher capacity than Gabba not utilised for some reason - probably certain people at the AFL cannot attend the GF in Adelaide or Perth....
Click to expand...
The bulldogs 2016 free kick run or the eagles 15 year run?
 
WeAreGeelong said:
I watched The Front Bar tonight and hearing John Northey speak about Tony Lockett, I was blown away by what he said re: Lockett and Richmond/Sydney.

Forigve my ignornance, but I didn't realise Lockett had all but signed at Richmond before he famously signed with Sydney. Northey said that Lockett wanted to play with Richmond and they were trying to arrange a deal with St. Kilda and St. Kilda would not answer his many calls. He then called AFL boss at the time Ian Collins and told him that he was trying to arrange a deal with the Saints to get Lockett to Richmond and Collins told him that Lockett would be playing at Sydney and nowhere else.

I might be reading more into this, but I am staggered that the AFL basically overruled this and made Lockett go to Sydney instead. I guess they wanted Sydney to flourish as they were trying to establish them into the NSW rugby market. I know corruption exists in many forms of life, but this staggered me and I think it is disgusting that Ian Collins by the sounds of it orchestrated Lockett's move to Sydney instead of where he actually wanted to go.

Can anyone else shed some light on this? I feel like this sort of stuff still happens particularly with the new clubs trying to gain a foothold into rugby territory. I know the integrity of the competition is severely compromised anyway by the AFL's want to make as much money as possible, but I just didn't know about this Lockett one to be honest. Would be interested to hear others thoughts and memories on this one.
Click to expand...

I remember watching that news report at the time and reading it in the herald sun the next day plugger was coming to tigerland. Imagine richo and plugger roaming the fwd line together, wow that would have been a thing of beauty. Alas the afl had to prop up their love child.
 
kaiserchief13 said:
There is corruption, just see the fixture each year, the umpiring run Bulldogs got in 2016 final series and the most recent decision to host 2020 GF at Gabba, yet we were told it is to be at MCG each year due to highest capacity, but there are 2 available stadiums with higher capacity than Gabba not utilised for some reason - probably certain people at the AFL cannot attend the GF in Adelaide or Perth....
Click to expand...
Obeanie1 said:
The AFL and the Commission have so many conflicts of interest some decisions will seem strange. They benefit some teams and "disadvantage others."
Click to expand...

Just like sands through the hourglass, So are the days of WC fans whining.

"And by others, yes I mean poor lil' WC"
 

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