Analysis With so many clubs in jeopardy during the coronavirus, is it time for WA to bail out VIC again?

[Senor M]

The AFL run the competition, not West Coast. We have $45 million in CASH. No, we don't need support from the AFL but do you think they'd have different rules for different clubs?

Moving away from the misty-eyed thinking about the good old days of the suburban-leagues of the 1930's, most people realise that the AFL is a business these days and, as such, when your revenue dries up you need to cut costs accordingly. Your suggestion would be akin to saying to BHP that as of right now that they need to keep everyone in a job on full salary because by any measure they make heaps of cash. Ain't going to happen.

Who has BHP stepped down or give an 85% pay cut to in the past month?

 

[greatwhiteshark]

As a West Australian, this thread made me wince, then frown, put my head down and pinch the bridge of my nose.
Why even start these things?

And, am I the only person who thinks that things will get tight financially for the AFL, but generally, over time they will be fine?

I think the AFL have loaned the money so they can have everything exactly the same as quick as possible, all this talk about reduction in support staff etc won’t happen at AFL clubs. The only clubs that suffer from this virus will be every single club outside of the AFL.

 

[Dogs_r_barking]

And each year West Coast contribute about 4 million dollars to grassroots footy in WA through the WAFC royalty, ensuring that footy in WA stays healthy and viable.

No other club does more for footy than West Coast, and as supporters we get rewarded with consistent success on and off the field.

-4 flags from 7 grand finals
-24 finals series from 34 seasons
- Brand new facilities
- Brand new stadium
- 8 million in profits from 102 million revenue in 2019

On the other, Melbourne made a 2 million dollar loss and has attendances and membership plummet last year. The Demons are the competition vagrants with their admin and training base 25KM apart.

Just like the ole Roy boys, it's going to be a slow and painful death for the oldest club in the league.

The 2006 premiership should have been taken off you and given to Sydney with your team drug affected giving it an advantage in a one point victory. Not to mention the blind eye your club turned on the health of players like Cousins.

Soulless entity that your club is, you envy the history of our clubs, you envy the love and loyalty that has been handed down through the generations. You would love to be in a club like the Tigers, terrible for two decades, but can still bring in 100,00 members. We see what happens when your team is down your members turn away. Face it, you thought money would buy that and it hasn’t. So now you are bitter and throwing tantrums.

 

[Juddafideslenko]

I like Melbournians. They have such a great sense of humour - which I suppose comes from the great Victorian weather and beaches... oh, wait.

Hahaha weather and beaches, beaches and weather!!
It's all you lot have to hang your hat on.

And they were both there before any humans were.
I suppose you have King's Par...oh wait!

Ya's can dig the f*** out of a hole too i guess!
...for stuff that's always been there! Hahaha

Rottnest Island - Rinse and repeat!,

I spent 16 years in WA, and your Vic paranoia was/is mindblowing.
Always bleating about something anti-Victorian!,
Its bloody Perthetic! haha

It's like a dick measuring comp you could never win.
Because we (Victorians) don't spend hours upon hours on talk back radio or on internet forums trying to compare ourselves or put down another state to make ourselves feel good or important.

We're happy in our own skin, but judging on what i saw and heard when i lived there and the bleating on certain forums/FB etc, you lot are obviously not.

Get a grip or secede.
Have fun protecting your resources while watching the derby won't ya's!



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[Cotchins Hair Piece]

The 2006 premiership should have been taken off you and given to Sydney with your team drug affected giving it an advantage in a one point victory. Not to mention the blind eye your club turned on the health of players like Cousins.

Soulless entity that your club is, you envy the history of our clubs, you envy the love and loyalty that has been handed down through the generations. You would love to be in a club like the Tigers, terrible for two decades, but can still bring in 100,00 members. We see what happens when your team is down your members turn away. Face it, you thought money would buy that and it hasn’t. So now you are bitter and throwing tantrums.

Benny was passing around gear at half time during the GF. Gardiner and Chick were Rebels associates (before Gardiner was a nom) ******* mental.

 

[Juddafideslenko]

Are you trying to say Melbourne hasn't much of a music scene pal?
Haha Those four bands are about all you lot have produced in 25 years!

Your scene is crap...period!

Even the Adelade music scene is streets ahead!

Not really. I'm so angry. That's not even the word. I'm off to do some boxing classes and listen to some great Melbourne bands on my headphones while I sweat it out. You know, like Tame Impala, Birds of Tokyo, John Butler, Eskimo Joe... wait, no they're all from Perth..

Where were we going with this?

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[Mat Mann]

That last comment, the game was in crisis.

Yet the game continually breaks attendance (6954187 attended games in 2019 record) and tv rating records) all the time. The league is fine.

I'd argue the league is not fine at all, I'd argue that the AFL has rigged all the possible stats it can to attain said growth at the expense of a stable and solid core. The AFL has lined its pockets using the "bigger clubs" at the expense of the lower clubs ability to generate revenue in the same manner as others.

 

[Juddafideslenko]

AC/DC from Perth???

Errr try again buddy.
Bon Living there for a while doesn't count!

...I guess with your logic 'The Boy From Bassendean' is a died in The wool Worst Australian too?.

Gotta take the good with the bad ayyyy?..

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[Farang83150]

The 2006 premiership should have been taken off you and given to Sydney with your team drug affected giving it an advantage in a one point victory. Not to mention the blind eye your club turned on the health of players like Cousins.

Soulless entity that your club is, you envy the history of our clubs, you envy the love and loyalty that has been handed down through the generations. You would love to be in a club like the Tigers, terrible for two decades, but can still bring in 100,00 members. We see what happens when your team is down your members turn away. Face it, you thought money would buy that and it hasn’t. So now you are bitter and throwing tantrums.

LOL, Brilliant...The pauper in this one is strong..., the bitterness oozes from every pore of your salty little body.

 

[Farang83150]

AC/DC from Perth???

Errr try again buddy.
Bon Living there for a while doesn't count!

He's been in Perth(Freo) for years or didn't you know?

 

[Capriati]

The 2006 premiership should have been taken off you and given to Sydney with your team drug affected giving it an advantage in a one point victory. Not to mention the blind eye your club turned on the health of players like Cousins.

Soulless entity that your club is, you envy the history of our clubs, you envy the love and loyalty that has been handed down through the generations. You would love to be in a club like the Tigers, terrible for two decades, but can still bring in 100,00 members. We see what happens when your team is down your members turn away. Face it, you thought money would buy that and it hasn’t. So now you are bitter and throwing tantrums.

Reading this actually made me laugh.

The bitterness at our success from little minnows like you has you reaching new lows.

My personal opinion is drug addiction is a health issue, and for you to come on an internet forum and use those players personal problems and health issue in some internet argument is about as low as it gets. You should be ashamed of yourself, you little grub.

The players who used drugs in the mid-2000's were using recreational drugs. What they were doing had no performance enhancing qualities, so your point about our 06 flag is moot, and is a pathetic reach.

In terms of your characterisation of my club - no, sorry you are wrong. We are 90 000 strong and fill out our stadium for every game with over 50 000 fans every game.

I love how in trying to attack my club you had to use examples from Richmond, cos you know your peasant club is completely irrelevant so you had to use another club as an example. Let me remind you that Richmond only surpassed us in memberships after they won their first flag in 37 years (25K membership increase), from that you would conclude that it was Richmond supporters that turned their backs on the clubs (microwaved memberships/chicken s**t/spitting on frawley), not West Coast fans.

West Coast has always had a high membership base. There has been a wait list for reserved seating for Eagles games that goes way back to well before the 06 premiership, and there was still a huge wait list during the tough times of 08-10. That doesn't happen if fans are turning away from their club or are fair weather fans. Those fans have stuck around through thick and thin, including the difficult time the club experienced that you alluded to.

Our club has worked damn hard for everything we have achieved on and off the field. We started with no facilities, and having to pay other clubs to play us in Perth, to be four time Premiership club, the wealthiest sports club in Australia, and one of the most supported AFL clubs in the country (second behind only Richmond) with a stadium recognised around the world as state of the art.

All of that in just 33 years, while Bulldogs struggle to stay afloat year after year.

Time to shape up or ship out, my dude!

 

[JinmboJones]

The 2006 premiership should have been taken off you and given to Sydney with your team drug affected giving it an advantage in a one point victory. Not to mention the blind eye your club turned on the health of players like Cousins.

Soulless entity that your club is, you envy the history of our clubs, you envy the love and loyalty that has been handed down through the generations. You would love to be in a club like the Tigers, terrible for two decades, but can still bring in 100,00 members. We see what happens when your team is down your members turn away. Face it, you thought money would buy that and it hasn’t. So now you are bitter and throwing tantrums.

This is gold! Comedy Gold!! You win the Melt Of The Thread (MOTT) award!

The very notion that anyone other than a supporter of a VIC club (OK maybe Port supporters as well) gives any credence or consideration whatsoever to some part-time, amateur suburban league competition from 100 years ago is laughable to everyone outside of VIC - you can rest assured it's not even mentioned by other club members. Actually that's not true, in fact I overheard one of our members saying the last time we faced the Bulldogs - "Oh no Mike, be wary - we're playing the Western Bulldogs this weekend and they were established as a VFL club in the spring of 1877 don't you know?! They have lots of pokies and a distinct smell of Brut 33 in their change rooms, we need to be wary of this powerful club!".

You can keep calling us "soulless" and a "franchise" (whatever that means), we'll keep winning premierships whilst we sip on chardonnay from our new (voted best in the world) stadium. The things that give an AFL club credence? Premierships (from 1987 onwards), membership numbers and profit. Yes, that's right - the AFL is a business, and we're pretty bloody good at it. Maybe it's about time your mob (and several other VIC clubs) caught up.

 

[Coaster2012]

I'm not arguing over a 1 year discrepancy-- it's that your arguments are about as accurate & coherent as a Donald Trump press conference

If you cant understand the point then that's on you. Its pretty damn clear.

 

[Capriati]

I'm not arguing over a 1 year discrepancy-- it's that your arguments are about as accurate & coherent as a Donald Trump press conference

His argument was that West Coast has been around for 33 years and many people who support the Eagles (and many supporters of AFL teams in general) are of the age where they don't remember Aussie rules before the formation of West Coast.

 

[Vassp]

Guys, the clubs need to be much stronger, earn more profits and be financially better....this is what we need if we want this sport to last into the next century.
full stop, teams need to meet a certain criteria or fold/merge or relocate. That is the hard truth....
something a crisis like this can teach you if you’re open to the changes required.

 

[Roylion]

Guys, the clubs need to be much stronger, earn more profits and be financially better....this is what we need if we want this sport to last into the next century.
full stop, teams need to meet a certain criteria or fold/merge or relocate. That is the hard truth....

Once again. The media are talking mergers to fill air time and column inches in a period where they are still producing football content with no football to discuss. There is no serious talk about mergers or reduction of clubs - certainly not from the AFL.

Mergers are a very last resort for clubs and even then would only be considered if it was official AFL policy coupled with large financial incentives (highly unlikely now) and signfiicant on-field benefits (unlikely to be accepted by the other clubs). Interstate relocations are unlikely to be accepted by members (who in many cases have to ratify such a move via their constitutions). Outright ejection of clubs from the competition is also remote.

 

[Captain_Bender]

He's been in Perth(Freo) for years or didn't you know?

Born in Scotland, lived in Sunshine before he moved to Perth and was living in Adelaide by the time he join AC/DC

 

[hansie]

For all the anti Vic bias can someone here who has knowledge of wa footy history tell me the original name of the west Perth fc, a founding wafl club and why it was so named?

For the record i quite like Perth (as a Vic born and bred)


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[Boyd oh Boyd]

This is gold! Comedy Gold!! You win the Melt Of The Thread (MOTT) award!

The very notion that anyone other than a supporter of a VIC club (OK maybe Port supporters as well) gives any credence or consideration whatsoever to some part-time, amateur suburban league competition from 100 years ago is laughable to everyone outside of VIC - you can rest assured it's not even mentioned by other club members. Actually that's not true, in fact I overheard one of our members saying the last time we faced the Bulldogs - "Oh no Mike, be wary - we're playing the Western Bulldogs this weekend and they were established as a VFL club in the spring of 1877 don't you know?! They have lots of pokies and a distinct smell of Brut 33 in their change rooms, we need to be wary of this powerful club!".

You can keep calling us "soulless" and a "franchise" (whatever that means), we'll keep winning premierships whilst we sip on chardonnay from our new (voted best in the world) stadium. The things that give an AFL club credence? Premierships (from 1987 onwards), membership numbers and profit. Yes, that's right - the AFL is a business, and we're pretty bloody good at it. Maybe it's about time your mob (and several other VIC clubs) caught up.

This may be the most arrogant thing I've ever read, and it's all because you support a successful club. Kudos, I'm actually impressed.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

Reading this actually made me laugh.

The bitterness at our success from little minnows like you has you reaching new lows.

My personal opinion is drug addiction is a health issue, and for you to come on an internet forum and use those players personal problems and health issue in some internet argument is about as low as it gets. You should be ashamed of yourself, you little grub.

The players who used drugs in the mid-2000's were using recreational drugs. What they were doing had no performance enhancing qualities, so your point about our 06 flag is moot, and is a pathetic reach.

In terms of your characterisation of my club - no, sorry you are wrong. We are 90 000 strong and fill out our stadium for every game with over 50 000 fans every game.

I love how in trying to attack my club you had to use examples from Richmond, cos you know your peasant club is completely irrelevant so you had to use another club as an example. Let me remind you that Richmond only surpassed us in memberships after they won their first flag in 37 years (25K membership increase), from that you would conclude that it was Richmond supporters that turned their backs on the clubs (microwaved memberships/chicken s**t/spitting on frawley), not West Coast fans.

West Coast has always had a high membership base. There has been a wait list for reserved seating for Eagles games that goes way back to well before the 06 premiership, and there was still a huge wait list during the tough times of 08-10. That doesn't happen if fans are turning away from their club or are fair weather fans. Those fans have stuck around through thick and thin, including the difficult time the club experienced that you alluded to.

Our club has worked damn hard for everything we have achieved on and off the field. We started with no facilities, and having to pay other clubs to play us in Perth, to be four time Premiership club, the wealthiest sports club in Australia, and one of the most supported AFL clubs in the country (second behind only Richmond) with a stadium recognised around the world as state of the art.

All of that in just 33 years, while Bulldogs struggle to stay afloat year after year.

Time to shape up or ship out, my dude!

Luckily we sent a Victorian over to fix the joint and make you competitive. To think the first two Eagles coaches were Western Australians and they thought that would get the job done

 

[Farang83150]

Born in Scotland, lived in Sunshine before he moved to Perth and was living in Adelaide by the time he join AC/DC

He's been in Fremantle for the last 40 yrs

 

[Farang83150]

This may be the most arrogant thing I've ever read, and it's all because you support a successful club. Kudos, I'm actually impressed.

Guess you havent read the below then...

The 2006 premiership should have been taken off you and given to Sydney with your team drug affected giving it an advantage in a one point victory. Not to mention the blind eye your club turned on the health of players like Cousins.

Soulless entity that your club is, you envy the history of our clubs, you envy the love and loyalty that has been handed down through the generations. You would love to be in a club like the Tigers, terrible for two decades, but can still bring in 100,00 members. We see what happens when your team is down your members turn away. Face it, you thought money would buy that and it hasn’t. So now you are bitter and throwing tantrums.

 

[Captain_Bender]

He's been in Fremantle for the last 40 yrs

Are you saying the Bon Scott is a Fremantle supporter?

 

[Farang83150]

Are you saying the Bon Scott is a Fremantle supporter?

He may well be...

 

[Capriati]

Luckily we sent a Victorian over to fix the joint and make you competitive. To think the first two Eagles coaches were Western Australians and they thought that would get the job done

This is irony at its finest!

It isn't West Coast who had 34 players banned from the competition due to systematically cheating with doping their players with performance enhancing drugs. That was your club, Essendon.

Your favourite son took over Essendon with grand plans to take you to the promised land. Instead, he destroyed the club and left it clinging on for dear life...

When Essendon's was on its knees, and in their darkest hour, who did they turn to lead them through and clean up the club?

Two time West Coast premiership captain and West Coast Premiership Coach John Worsfold....

You're welcome.