Port Melbourne to the SANFL

[NTRabbit]

Not sure where to put this, and I don't see anything else on it.

The internet reveals nothing, but channel 9 news just said that Port Melbourne of the VFL is, in response to the new AFL east coast 'feeder league' plans, going to approach the SANFL and ask to join.

Apparently two or three of the other VFL clubs are considering similar plans at board level, along with the Tasmanian VFL side, who have already made loud announcements of their desire to leave the VFL for the SANFL previously.

Are they serious? How much of a slap in the face of the AFL would you think this, if true, would be?

 

[Mitchell Madness]

Not sure where to put this, and I don't see anything else on it.

The internet reveals nothing, but channel 9 news just said that Port Melbourne of the VFL is, in response to the new AFL east coast 'feeder league' plans, going to approach the SANFL and ask to join.

Apparently two or three of the other VFL clubs are considering similar plans at board level, along with the Tasmanian VFL side, who have already made loud announcements of their desire to leave the VFL for the SANFL previously.

Are they serious? How much of a slap in the face of the AFL would you think this, if true, would be?

im going to call shenanigans, as there is no Tasmanian VFL team anymore

 

[NTRabbit]

im going to call shenanigans, as there is no Tasmanian VFL team anymore

Really? Well I've never seen a VFL game, but I do recall the last time I heard about a Tassie team they wanted out of the VFL. Perhaps the VFL decided to take the team away from Tasmania first.

Anyway, I added the bit about Tasmania - the Port Melbourne plus others I lifted straight from the Channel 9 Sports report on the 6pm news - Gary Ayers and the board either going to, or on the verge of deciding to, meet the SANFL here in Adelaide within the next few weeks with a view to joining the competition.

 

[Wednesday]

Really? Well I've never seen a VFL game, but I do recall the last time I heard about a Tassie team they wanted out of the VFL. Perhaps the VFL decided to take the team away from Tasmania first.

Anyway, I added the bit about Tasmania - the Port Melbourne plus others I lifted straight from the Channel 9 Sports report on the 6pm news - Gary Ayers and the board either going to, or on the verge of deciding to, meet the SANFL here in Adelaide within the next few weeks with a view to joining the competition.

The Port Melbourne chairman confirmed to 3AW they were discussing the idea. There is bad blood between the VFL and the AFL at the moment over the control of the VFL/AFL reserves competition so this may or may not be an idle threat. With all the new TV channels coming on board the idea of a second tier national comp may not be such a bad idea.

 

[NTRabbit]

Here's the report from the news

[YOUTUBE]WoqdEfkrO9Q[/YOUTUBE]

 

[onslaught]

Lets hope this goes to a vote by the members if it is true... I know a few other members of the Borough who will give up following the club if they move away from the VFA/VFL.

I think the idea has some good aspects to it, and could help stengthen the club.. but if it were to be done, and failed badly, it would be the death of the club.

 

[MightyFighting]

Lets hope this goes to a vote by the members if it is true... I know a few other members of the Borough who will give up following the club if they move away from the VFA/VFL.

They'd get over it, especially if Williamstown and one or two other clubs came too.

 

[Dr.Feelgood]

I'd hate for this to happen, even to arch rival Williamstown, it would be pretty ordinary.

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

An interesting one for the club and the SANFL.
The VFL is a nothing competition, with most clubs having half their players seeing themselves as being in the reserves and their personal goals have nothing to do with the club they are playing for. In the SANFL and WAFL that is far more diluted and the clubs control themselves a lot more.
But for a club to swap leagues, lose their tradition rivalries, etc; especially interstate like that; would be a huge thing. Could the club cope? How low is Victorian football sinking for their powerhouse clubs to be considering this (and is it a serious consideration or just a warning to the VFL to not allow the AFL to completely take over)?

 

[rooboy_88]

The VFL needs to establish itself as the elite suburban clubs of victoria like in the VFA days.

Get that local feel back and make the majority actually have pride for the club again. it is simply a poor mans AFL reserves comp and it must change. As I have said footy in victoria needs 2 be overhauled urgently.

Have a 10 team VFL comp with the TAC cup merging into the VFL and the AFL sides excluding WA and SA sides have there eastern seaboard comp. with GC 17, it would be a 13 team reserves comp.

 

[raboyle]

An interesting one for the club and the SANFL.
The VFL is a nothing competition, with most clubs having half their players seeing themselves as being in the reserves and their personal goals have nothing to do with the club they are playing for. In the SANFL and WAFL that is far more diluted and the clubs control themselves a lot more.
But for a club to swap leagues, lose their tradition rivalries, etc; especially interstate like that; would be a huge thing. Could the club cope? How low is Victorian football sinking for their powerhouse clubs to be considering this (and is it a serious consideration or just a warning to the VFL to not allow the AFL to completely take over)?

Tradition for North Ballarat was drastically changed when they left a country league for a state league did they not? Tradition for Port Adelaide changed somewhat when they entered the AFL, didn't it?

The AFL should never have been allowed to take over the running of the VFL... they were always going to push their agenda. If clubs need to leave to preserve their rightful status as a state league club, then so be it.

A new frontier awaits... and as the old saying goes, fortune favour the bold.

 

[juliand]

This is just Ports way of securing their future as in the next couple of years it will just be called the VFL/AFL reserves competition. AFL are just taking this slowly before taking over the VFL and this is fully supported by the POWERFUL AFL clubs (Geelong,Essendon,Collingwood,Carlton) so they really do have the control over there players. The end is nigh

 

[Hooligan87]

So who are the other clubs in question?

 

[Dr.Feelgood]

So who are the other clubs in question?

Possibly, arch rival Williamstown.

 

[Kingpin]

Really? Well I've never seen a VFL game, but I do recall the last time I heard about a Tassie team they wanted out of the VFL. Perhaps the VFL decided to take the team away from Tasmania first.

AFL Tasmania had made overtures to join the SANFL a couple of years ago for various reasons but nothing ever came of it.
In the end AFL Tasmania withdrew the ailing Tasmanian Devils from the VFL Roster and folded the 'team' late last year when it was clear that the ten Tasmanian clubs targeted to join the revamped Statewide League were given in priciple support by the financial members of those clubs and eventually would sign on.
The AFL owned the Tasmanian Devils and this team was started up after the demise of the original Statewide League in 2000.
The AFL is financially backing the Tasmanian State League which replaced the Devils VFL team.

 

[NTRabbit]

AFL Tasmania had made overtures to join the SANFL a couple of years ago for various reasons but nothing ever came of it.

I think what happened was, the SANFL was only interested in adding one new club at a time, and they were in the decade long process of courting a team from the NT.

They were pretty much down to the final few details when the AFL stepped in, and told the NT people they were going to be invited to the QLD AFL League, and that they were going to accept it, and they were going to like it.

 

[JM71]

Really? Well I've never seen a VFL game, but I do recall the last time I heard about a Tassie team they wanted out of the VFL. Perhaps the VFL decided to take the team away from Tasmania first.

Anyway, I added the bit about Tasmania - the Port Melbourne plus others I lifted straight from the Channel 9 Sports report on the 6pm news - Gary Ayers and the board either going to, or on the verge of deciding to, meet the SANFL here in Adelaide within the next few weeks with a view to joining the competition.

As the new Tasmanian State League has been launched the Tassie Devils no longer exist.

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

Tradition for North Ballarat was drastically changed when they left a country league for a state league did they not? Tradition for Port Adelaide changed somewhat when they entered the AFL, didn't it?

It did. I don't know the details, was it conentious at the time? Its a little different in that they were going for a definite step up, going from the VFL to SANFL is (in theory, though not in practice) going sideways and playing in another state's comp.
I'm not saying its necessarily a good or bad thing for the club, just that there would be lot to weigh up.

The AFL should never have been allowed to take over the running of the VFL... they were always going to push their agenda. If clubs need to leave to preserve their rightful status as a state league club, then so be it.

A new frontier awaits... and as the old saying goes, fortune favour the bold.

Certainly agree that having the AFL involved the way it is in the VFL/VFA has been to the league's detriment.
As for the new frontier; well, it would be, and fortune often favours the brave, but failure often favours the foolhardy.

If its under serious consideration, its a big decision to be made - by the club and the SANFL.

 

[stacksonthemill]

Time to re-form the VFA and wake it up from its 15-year slumber!

Let the $FL have their reserves in the VFL - everyone sees through it now and will continue to do so in the future.

Let Port, Frankston, Nth Ball, etc form the nucleus of the re-born VFA and we will see who the fans really follow at the tier below the AFL ... simple answer, the VFA over the VFL anyday!

 

[aRT8t]

Get the peoples game back on track.
Call in the vfA team
Da Da Da, Da Da DAA

 

[Battling Ruckman]

Time to re-form the VFA and wake it up from its 15-year slumber!

Let the $FL have their reserves in the VFL - everyone sees through it now and will continue to do so in the future.

Let Port, Frankston, Nth Ball, etc form the nucleus of the re-born VFA and we will see who the fans really follow at the tier below the AFL ... simple answer, the VFA over the VFL anyday!

And bring back the Oakleigh Devils!

 

[ballanFYNE]

Leave em in i say. It is good how it is, i think VFL is quite entertaining these days.

 

[Putney Magpies]

This will never happen....

 

[stacksonthemill]

Clink - how can you say Carlton's reserves playing Hawthorn's reserves is good?

The Preston and Box Hill communities have had their football club ripped away from them by $FL influences and now they have no true team to follow other than some $FL club's offcut players mixed with a couple of other blokes, with the true locals stuck in the VFL Reserves (e.g. 3rds football).

In SA and WA, clubs are not connected to $FL sides and the players are spread amongst the nine clubs. Therefore when Quinten Lynch goes up from West Perth or Bradd Dalzeil goes up from East Fremantle, there are still local players providing identity to a team and the side isn't affected greatly as a result of changes at $FL club level. This probably explains why there are 2500-3000 at WAFL and SANFL games and much less at VFL games.

I was a passionate Zebra fan until the $FL folded the VFA and took over the show to the detriment of suburban football. Sandy is not the best players from the area that is now covered by the Southern Football League, plus a couple of former League footballers ... it now consists mainly of players of who at best will be inconsistent $FL players who come from here there and everywhere. Most would not care much about the club (and these guys take up half the spots in the 1sts each week) because they only care about playing in the $FL side.

Give the $FL clubs their own reserves competition without a soul like the VFL is now and allow people the opportunity to see a metropolitan competition with 10-12 teams (equating to 2 per competition), with relegation for the lowest or two lowest clubs back to their affiliated competitions for that comp's premiers. That way the $FL gets their own competition for themselves and Victorian football followers get their tradition and identity back ... I am sure I know where the crowds would go!

 

[Putney Magpies]

Very true...