Div 2 2026

[pjxm]

They have high player points in the seniors, their reserves are poor and they don’t have Under 19s. So the model they have is pretty clear and not a strong one.

They have Auskick and juniors in U9, U11 and U15. So they can keep building for the future.

Bulleen Temp is a far bigger junior club with boys and girls from U8 to U16. So the future is interesting given those kids will now be able to come thru to their own EFNL club. But why would anybody worry about an existing club when we can bring in a new one??

Existing clubs have always been forgotten by the EFNL

 

[Bunk Moreland]

So bulleen shouldnt of been allowed in because there junior club is big an templestowe instead of building there own juniors perfer to take bulleens juniors?


In general though the non school
Based clubs are leaving the vafa.

I’d first look at any new club entrant through the view of the existing clubs.

If it’s potentially going to cannibalise exisiting clubs, then why on earth should they come in?

Have clubs built the league for decades just to now have to share it for… what reason?

Being an EFNL club is a point of difference from an amateur club down the road. That’s something you can use to recruit kids. I don’t know why clubs should just be expected to give that up.

Some probably think “meh, it’s just a Div 4 club” without considering how very quickly clubs can move toward divisions. In less than a decade you can be competing directly.

And it’s not just a case of “building your own juniors”. They’re simply isn’t enough kids on some areas - Templestowe being one of them.

 

[MortlockWatcher]

The Doncaster-Templestowe region has had issues with junior numbers since the late 1980s, a lot of it caused by private school students living in the area and finding themselves playing for old boys teams in the VAFA after leaving school instead of playing for their junior or local club.

Doncaster East, Doncaster and Templestowe have scrapped for the same pool of juniors from Beverley Hills, East Doncaster (now Doncaster), Doncaster Heights and Bulleen-Templestowe to fill their colts teams in the EDFL/EFL for as long as I can remember, meaning that if they do field a team then the squad can be the bare minimum in number and if injuries or unavailability wreak havoc, the team doesn't have the depth to be competitive and playing with as few as 18 some weeks (this has been the case since the early 1990s).

The three clubs have increasingly relied on recruitment at senior level to allow for this over the past few decades. Meanwhile, Bulleen-Templestowe has had a disconnect in recent years where their top-end juniors haven't transitioned to the seniors because they have struggled at senior level.

Now that they have changed leagues and can now offer payments to players, they may be able to stem the tide of players moving to other clubs but it will come down to how competitive their seniors are. This year, all three EFNL teams have made improvements on last year's performances in the VAFA and if it can continue, they may well be in a position where they can be compared to Surrey Park in the next few years (good juniors, struggling seniors who then improve through increased junior retention and gain promotion to higher divisions).

I don't think there will be issues affecting the four EFNL clubs. There is a place for all given there is some distance between each of the quartet and all will find their level naturally - for example, Templestowe has spent most of its time in the Eastern league being competitive in the third tier and challenging for promotion to the second tier. A loss of financial backing saw Doncaster encounter issues in recent years causing it to go into recess this year. If they come back out of recess, you would expect the new committee to adopt more prudent practices which will allow them to find their level but they need to improve their access to local juniors instead of focusing too much on paying players.

I think it would be wrong to compare the Doncaster-Templestowe region to the scenario with the clubs around Forest Hill-Nunawading as there seems to be more access to players around the Doncaster-Templestowe area and those clubs are more sustainable and competitive.

 

[Brown Bottle]

The Doncaster-Templestowe region has had issues with junior numbers since the late 1980s, a lot of it caused by private school students living in the area and finding themselves playing for old boys teams in the VAFA after leaving school instead of playing for their junior or local club.

Doncaster East, Doncaster and Templestowe have scrapped for the same pool of juniors from Beverley Hills, East Doncaster (now Doncaster), Doncaster Heights and Bulleen-Templestowe to fill their colts teams in the EDFL/EFL for as long as I can remember, meaning that if they do field a team then the squad can be the bare minimum in number and if injuries or unavailability wreak havoc, the team doesn't have the depth to be competitive and playing with as few as 18 some weeks (this has been the case since the early 1990s).

The three clubs have increasingly relied on recruitment at senior level to allow for this over the past few decades. Meanwhile, Bulleen-Templestowe has had a disconnect in recent years where their top-end juniors haven't transitioned to the seniors because they have struggled at senior level.

Now that they have changed leagues and can now offer payments to players, they may be able to stem the tide of players moving to other clubs but it will come down to how competitive their seniors are. This year, all three EFNL teams have made improvements on last year's performances in the VAFA and if it can continue, they may well be in a position where they can be compared to Surrey Park in the next few years (good juniors, struggling seniors who then improve through increased junior retention and gain promotion to higher divisions).

I don't think there will be issues affecting the four EFNL clubs. There is a place for all given there is some distance between each of the quartet and all will find their level naturally - for example, Templestowe has spent most of its time in the Eastern league being competitive in the third tier and challenging for promotion to the second tier. A loss of financial backing saw Doncaster encounter issues in recent years causing it to go into recess this year. If they come back out of recess, you would expect the new committee to adopt more prudent practices which will allow them to find their level but they need to improve their access to local juniors instead of focusing too much on paying players.

I think it would be wrong to compare the Doncaster-Templestowe region to the scenario with the clubs around Forest Hill-Nunawading as there seems to be more access to players around the Doncaster-Templestowe area and those clubs are more sustainable and competitive.

What's the nearest state high school to Bulleen-Temp? I'm assuming Marcellin works pretty hard to hold onto its boys and get them thru to U19s. Does B-T have kids feeding thru from other schools, or is its challenge is to prise them out of Marcellin and convince them to move up to Ted Ajani?

 

[MortlockWatcher]

Don't think there are any now. The high school used to overlook Ted Ajani Reserve and Tempy Tech, which was on High Street, both went by the wayside some 20 years ago.

Google tells me Doncaster Secondary College, just to the east of Schramms Reserve or else it would be Heidelberg.

 

[Brown Bottle]

Don't think there are any now. The high school used to overlook Ted Ajani Reserve and Tempy Tech, which was on High Street, both went by the wayside some 20 years ago.

Google tells me Doncaster Secondary College, just to the east of Schramms Reserve or else it would be Heidelberg.

That probably explains why B-T kids seem to move to clubs to their East - Koonung High and Box Hill High must pick some up too.

 

[eflreceiver]

Congrats, Wantirna South.

 

[BIGticket]

What a Grand Final. Walker Park is easily the best venue in the league.