D3 Division 3 2026

[God Yeah]

So majority of those leaving were offered cash from other clubs?

Wonder if those left over play elsewhere (Forest Hill and Nuna have no reserves as it sits) or sit the year out

Another poster said they had 30 blokes available this weekend. The poster states, "A lot came back to help the club provided it was in the thirds comp and not have play senior footy as they’re not at that level"

Regardless of numbers, that's not sustainable for a season anyway.

 

[Don Woody]

Another poster said they had 30 blokes available this weekend. The poster states, "A lot came back to help the club provided it was in the thirds comp and not have play senior footy as they’re not at that level"

Regardless of numbers, that's not sustainable for a season anyway.

Disappointing for the 30 blokes who are without a game and the fact clubs have sat waiting for fixtures to be released.

Social functions pending home games and volunteers being sourced is a nightmare as is without being kept in the dark until a week before.

None the less, best of luck to the 5 remaining teams

On a side note, maybe time for a clubbies thread

 

[God Yeah]

Centrals & Hawthorn to both record home wins this weekend.

 

[God Yeah]

Disappointing for the 30 blokes who are without a game and the fact clubs have sat waiting for fixtures to be released.

Social functions pending home games and volunteers being sourced is a nightmare as is without being kept in the dark until a week before.

None the less, best of luck to the 5 remaining teams

On a side note, maybe time for a clubbies thread

Thirds thread has been created

 

[rightfoot_sloth]

A few things to unpack here,

The Box Hill North list in 2025 was older than others. So it’s a possibility a few players have moved onto Superrules. Which reduced the playing numbers by an unknown quantity,

In 2023/24 a lot of experienced players joined the club from Ashwood, Nunawading and Donvale. It’s a distinct possibility some of the players have returned back to their previous comps. Maybe sighting travel and other issues.

The resurgence of Doncaster and throwing cash around has hurt the club make no bones apart it. Box Hill North and Swinburne Uni were both impacted by this returning club.

Saying this I have never seen such number of senior players leave a single club in one swoop.

In regards to the playing numbers. Based on my experiences. This time of year is the busiest for committees to get ready for the season ahead. So if I was on the committee I would be asking the footy manager and / or coach how numbers were looking in January. If numbers are looking lowish you’d flag it to the VAFA early,

By being transparent you are more likely to give yourself at the best chance of surviving into the future.

Yes playing groups are different nowadays but if you manage things better. The possibility of players blindsiding you is lessened.

It’s possible to recover from here. Other clubs have done it. A lot of hard work but there are precedents elsewhere in the footy world.

 

[outside_off]

A few things to unpack here,

The Box Hill North list in 2025 was older than others. So it’s a possibility a few players have moved onto Superrules. Which reduced the playing numbers by an unknown quantity,

In 2023/24 a lot of experienced players joined the club from Ashwood, Nunawading and Donvale. It’s a distinct possibility some of the players have returned back to their previous comps. Maybe sighting travel and other issues.

The resurgence of Doncaster and throwing cash around has hurt the club make no bones apart it. Box Hill North and Swinburne Uni were both impacted by this returning club.

Saying this I have never seen such number of senior players leave a single club in one swoop.

In regards to the playing numbers. Based on my experiences. This time of year is the busiest for committees to get ready for the season ahead. So if I was on the committee I would be asking the footy manager and / or coach how numbers were looking in January. If numbers are looking lowish you’d flag it to the VAFA early,

By being transparent you are more likely to give yourself at the best chance of surviving into the future.

Yes playing groups are different nowadays but if you manage things better. The possibility of players blindsiding you is lessened.

It’s possible to recover from here. Other clubs have done it. A lot of hard work but there are precedents elsewhere in the footy world.

With no juniors and no ability to buy-in players this is going to be an almighty task to resurrect if club is in recess. Cant Box Hill North and VAFA hug it out and try for a thirds team this season?

 

[yeetgoat]

With no juniors and no ability to buy-in players this is going to be an almighty task to resurrect if club is in recess. Cant Box Hill North and VAFA hug it out and try for a thirds team this season?

Looks like its done and dusted. Vafa has posted it on their website

 

[Don__]

Cant Box Hill North and VAFA hug it out and try for a thirds team this season?

BHN attempted merges, getting old players to return and filling up with players not getting a game from other clubs each week as the vafa asked us to do.
Tried every avenue to get a team up and attempted everything the vafa asked, but can’t go ahead with 17 committed vafa div 3 players.
The 30 odd players I mentioned earlier was including players that would only play if it was thirds footy.
None of this was new to the VAFA they’ve been informed the whole way through.
Vafa were very stubborn and said well it’s Div 3 or nothing.
There’s no hugging it out, bhn tried everything to keep the club going in 2026 but they shafted us.

 

[rightfoot_sloth]

BHN attempted merges, getting old players to return and filling up with players not getting a game from other clubs each week as the vafa asked us to do.
Tried every avenue to get a team up and attempted everything the vafa asked, but can’t go ahead with 17 committed vafa div 3 players.
The 30 odd players I mentioned earlier was including players that would only play if it was thirds footy.
None of this was new to the VAFA they’ve been informed the whole way through.
Vafa were very stubborn and said well it’s Div 3 or nothing.
There’s no hugging it out, bhn tried everything to keep the club going in 2026 but they shafted us.

Have you got a timeline you can share when the club contacted the VAFA around your circumstances?

 

[Long time lurker]

It's actually very easy to facilitate as Thirds team submissions were end of March and now the have to deal with 5 team D3 anyway.

The VAFA spent 5+ weeks trying to bully BHN into playing D3 instead of accepting the reality of the situation, we simply didn't have the numbers to field a side in D3. The VAFA refused to listen.

I feel for BHN in so far as requesting to play 3rds. Like you, I think it was easily doable if the VAFA had the will. It seems they did not, and it looks like either stubborness at best, or an additional punishment at worst.

Two questions for you...

1. Why didn't the club remove the offensive pics when first asked?
2. Do you connect the player suspensions to the player exits? Or are the player exits unrelated?

 

[hansie]

Transfers page not updated by the looks of it 17 of best 22 players from last season transferred out.

Also women's captain was not ignored. The issue was investigated immediately upon her request. She did not like the clubs outcome which was an education program and warnings to the players involved. I believe she wanted game suspensions and players stood down from leadership positions (looks like she got her way).

Also note: The AFL Vic investigator did not sustain the blackface charge.

Don't believe everything you read.

Can’t imagine BHN (if they get back up) will return to vafa after this EB?!?

Also - did the vafa attempt any form of mediation between BHN and eley park who are just down the road and worked a joint solution that kept these sides in d3?

 

[Egg Boy]

Two questions for you...

1. Why didn't the club remove the offensive pics when first asked?
2. Do you connect the player suspensions to the player exits? Or are the player exits unrelated?

From what I’ve gathered over the last 4 months:

1. St Kilda school girl photo was story on Instagram, which disappeared after 24hrs. The NOT blackface photo was not part of the initial complaint and was only brought up later and was taken down immediately.

2. The player suspensions and photo debacle in general played a significant role in the player exodus, mainly due to poor advice from the VAFA/AFL VIC to remain radio silent on socials and in general during January. The players didn’t know what was happening with the upcoming season. The other big reason is Doncaster throwing around ridiculous $$

 

[JS#35]

Aren't there only 1-2 BHN players at Donny that played senior footy? Chivers is the only one I know by name, he is a solid player. Donny is a strange scapegoat

If anyone relies on club updates on FB then they're in the stone age. Most have a message group with the coach and captain etc updating the boys.

 

[Long time lurker]

From what I’ve gathered over the last 4 months:

1. St Kilda school girl photo was story on Instagram, which disappeared after 24hrs. The NOT blackface photo was not part of the initial complaint and was only brought up later and was taken down immediately.

2. The player suspensions and photo debacle in general played a significant role in the player exodus, mainly due to poor advice from the VAFA/AFL VIC to remain radio silent on socials and in general during January. The players didn’t know what was happening with the upcoming season. The other big reason is Doncaster throwing around ridiculous $$

Interesting. The media articles definitely painted a picture of BHN being unresponsive to the complaint. Any punter reading it got the impression that BHN didn't think the pics should come down. As you say, don't believe everything you read.

With the pic saga as a backdrop, it reeks of the VAFA dishing out additional punishment by blocking the move to Thirds. Blocking the move makes no sense. I would be having a good look at the Thirds fixtures if they ever get released. If any Div has a bye, I would reach out to the other clubs in that Div to get their backing to fill the bye and lobby the VAFA board members on the footy ops committee to overrule the CEO.

 

[Agsi]

Does anyone know if a merger between BHN and EP was ever considered? Its baffling to me that both clubs have been in the bottom rung for so long, co-existing a stones throw away from each other. Surely the Box Hill North Sharks would have been a better outcome. Surprised even 1 of them still exists at any level.

 

[ExtraChickenSalt]

I guess this means the Egg Boy v Extra Chicken Salt Div 3 Tipping Comp is no more? You can take our teams VAFA but when you start messing with our tipping comp that's when we have a problem.

 

[Voice of the G]

Does anyone know if a merger between BHN and EP was ever considered? Its baffling to me that both clubs have been in the bottom rung for so long, co-existing a stones throw away from each other. Surely the Box Hill North Sharks would have been a better outcome. Surprised even 1 of them still exists at any level.

Perhaps EP might move to the vacant BHN ground.The rooms at BHN are new and EP, they are terrible.

 

[Egg Boy]

Perhaps EP might move to the vacant BHN ground.The rooms at BHN are new and EP, they are terrible.

Not vacant, 4 masters teams playing out of Elgar Park

 

[ButchersDog]

Not vacant, 4 masters teams playing out of Elgar Park

Lucky someone’s using the scoreboard

 

[Fidel]

Does anyone know if a merger between BHN and EP was ever considered? Its baffling to me that both clubs have been in the bottom rung for so long, co-existing a stones throw away from each other. Surely the Box Hill North Sharks would have been a better outcome. Surprised even 1 of them still exists at any level.

Box Hills behaviour in recent games against the Sharks hasn't been great.
I dont think they would entertain a merger.

 

[Agsi]

Box Hills behaviour in recent games against the Sharks hasn't been great.
I dont think they would entertain a merger.

That could be true.

my point is that 2 long suffering teams in bottom division vafa so close together couldnt exist forever and the writing was on the wall years ago. I cant understand why it didnt happen 5 years ago.

 

[Don__]

Does anyone know if a merger between BHN and EP was ever considered? It’s baffling to me that both clubs have been in the bottom rung for so long, co-existing a stones throw away from each other. Surely the Box Hill North Sharks would have been a better outcome. Surprised even 1 of them still exists at any level.

The question was asked, yes. Every avenue was looked at.

 

[Don__]

That could be true.

my point is that 2 long suffering teams in bottom division vafa so close together couldnt exist forever and the writing was on the wall years ago. I cant understand why it didnt happen 5 years ago.

Why should 2 teams with seperate identities and history merge just because they’re close by and in a lower division.

 

[Agsi]

Why should 2 teams with seperate identities and history merge just because they’re close by and in a lower division.

Those 2 reasons are plenty enough to consider merging. Particularly in the VAFA where lower division non-school aligned clubs are extremely fragile and only ever one bad year or pre-season away from disappearing.

They weren't just in a lower division. Both clubs have been absolutely starved of success for a long time.

No one ever wants to merge, it's never a preferred option and I'm sure there was more to it and BHN was probably thinking why would we want to merge with EP.

I just wonder if the clubs had done this before it was too late, it wouldve created a stronger entity that was still around fielding a senior and reserves side.

 

[outside_off]

Why should 2 teams with seperate identities and history merge just because they’re close by and in a lower division.

Perhaps ask someone from Yarra Valley, Glen Eira or St Mary's.