TAS Tassie Devils to fold

[walhawk]

Runoured for a while & reported in today's Herald-Sun that the Devils will fold after this season.
If that is true, it is a real shame.
The Devils got off to a great start with great crowds & results before being sabotaged by the Kangaroos and Football Tas by moving almost all games to Hobart. Tas footy got greedy & have mucked up a great opportunity.
Both moves helped to destroy the fabric of what could have been the biggest club outside the AFL and what would have logically become Tassies' AFL side if they ever make it.
Quite frankly, I don't think they ever will.
Couldn't run a chook raffle down there.

 

[Rob]

That is a real shame - wasn't it only a few years ago when they were getting 10k plus to Bellerive?

Really makes their AFL push look bad as well - pity Mars couldn't put some of their promised money behind a real team.

 

[Doctor Jolly]

Runoured for a while & reported in today's Herald-Sun that the Devils will fold after this season.
If that is true, it is a real shame.
The Devils got off to a great start with great crowds & results before being sabotaged by the Kangaroos and Football Tas by moving almost all games to Hobart. Tas footy got greedy & have mucked up a great opportunity.
Both moves helped to destroy the fabric of what could have been the biggest club outside the AFL and what would have logically become Tassies' AFL side if they ever make it.
Quite frankly, I don't think they ever will.
Couldn't run a chook raffle down there.

Out of interest, how did the Kangaroos sabotage it ?

 

[ben_cats_fan]

Out of interest, how did the Kangaroos sabotage it ?

Kangaroos became our AFL affiliate. Basically, instead of being a stand-alone club like we initially were, after severing ties with Port Melbourne, the Kangaroos sent half of their players outside of the AFL to play with Tassie on a weekly basis. It had a number of affects, least of all the restriction of young tasmanians playing with the Devils & a clear divide in the team. Couldn't get it together, and no wonder, when you consider half were playing and training out of Tasmania, the other in Victoria.

 

[saints__01]

Out of interest, how did the Kangaroos sabotage it ?

The Kangaroos sabotaged Tassie with their secret weapon.....Hay

 

[Denmark AFL]

Replace them with the tassie royals - named after mary and frederick

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

The Devils were always a second best option. Tasmania needs to stand on its own again, and stop being part of Victorian (or any other state's) football.
That means a new state league, and no Devils. Most importantly it means an administration that focusses on football within the state, rather than one team that provides few opportunities for players and condemns much of the state to bush league footy only.
But the state league as proposed, and with current management in place, is doomed to suffer the fate of the old one. Too many clubs, too many of the best players playing in other comps, too much incompetence and favourtism at AFL Tas and too little focus on grassroots - at state, regional and local level. (And too little public support, along with too little money.)

As for North "sabotaging" the Devils, the alliance did do that to a degree; but not the club. The whole concept of the Devils was to give Tasmanian a pathway that disappeared when the TFL was wound up through a combnation of mismanagement, the Hodgman ego, deliberate undermining from the NTFL, and neglect from the AFL.
Aligning with any AFL club was "sabotaging" the (stated) reason for the Devils existence. Centralising everything in Hobart, along with an AFL club alignment and numerous other things, took away even that reason for cyphening the whole state's football resources to compete in the bastardised hybrid league that is the VFL.

The Devils were an experiment born out of despearation and the time has come for Tassie football to get back on track.

Not that any of this has any bearing one way or the other on the prospects of an AFL team.
There won't be one, and there can't be one sustained. What happens to the Devils, or at any other level of football, changes none of that.

 

[walhawk]

'Sabotaged' was probably the wrong word and it was not aimed at the Kangaroos. But the failed alignment was one of the reasons the 'club' hit the skids.

 

[numchuks]

Kangaroos became our AFL affiliate. Basically, instead of being a stand-alone club like we initially were, after severing ties with Port Melbourne, the Kangaroos sent half of their players outside of the AFL to play with Tassie on a weekly basis. It had a number of affects, least of all the restriction of young tasmanians playing with the Devils & a clear divide in the team. Couldn't get it together, and no wonder, when you consider half were playing and training out of Tasmania, the other in Victoria.

Rightio, so the Kanga's are at fault because the Devils voluntary agreed to align with us?

What a load of crap.

 

[Rob]

Rightio, so the Kanga's are at fault because the Devils voluntary agreed to align with us?

What a load of crap.

Settle down, that's not what he said.

 

[fishmonger]

Those Kangaroos certainly have the midas touch ....

seriously though, the Devils are part of an AFL agenda to keep Tasmania on the periphery.

I hope that any Tasmanian AFL team can still use the name "Devils"

 

[Black Falcon]

I hope that any Tasmanian AFL team can still use the name "Devils"

I'm sure that will happen FM! Perhaps the clearing away of the VFL Devils entity, will allow the AFL Devils to emerge with a cleaner slate.

 

[krudmonk]

Out of interest, how did the Kangaroos sabotage it ?

Hawthorn says so.

It was not an ideal setup, but the choice of words is ridiculous hyperbole.

 

[stiza_007]

Tasmania to stay in VFL next season
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/afl/story/0,26576,24148970-19742,00.html

 

[Doctor Jolly]

Those Kangaroos certainly have the midas touch ....

seriously though, the Devils are part of an AFL agenda to keep Tasmania on the periphery.

I hope that any Tasmanian AFL team can still use the name "Devils"

If Tasmanians cant manage a VFL side, they shouldnt be put anywhere near an AFL side.

 

[ben_cats_fan]

Rightio, so the Kanga's are at fault because the Devils voluntary agreed to align with us?

What a load of crap.

Never said that? Was more implying that the devils were stupid for agreeing to align with the Kangaroos. It had no benefit for us and sure as hell would not have benefited the 'Roos. Dumb move by the devils higher-ups imo.

 

[ben_cats_fan]

If Tasmanians cant manage a VFL side, they shouldnt be put anywhere near an AFL side.

Don't go chucking us all in the same basket. It's a select group of people who, in my opinion, would be nowhere near the AFL team, should we in fact get one. I for one would be lobbying to make sure this is the case and I know of many others who would be too.

Fact is, Tasmanian's don't care about a team playing in a second rate competition. Why would you? It's like supporting a League or a Union side

 

[Falchoon]

Tassie needs to get 2 teams going in the SANFL, foster that north-south rivalry in a legitimate comp.

 

[pies_this_year]

If Tasmanians cant manage a VFL side, they shouldnt be put anywhere near an AFL side.

Pfft, understand the situation, perhaps?

They are getting rid of the AFL to concentrate resources into a statewide league. Hopefully they know what they are doing in the long run, however, as it doesn't seem to be right atm. Too similar to previous attempts, with southern clubs especially worried about this administration and its capacity to run their proposal. The ideas on the right track though...

 

[pies_this_year]

Tassie needs to get 2 teams going in the SANFL, foster that north-south rivalry in a legitimate comp.

\

However good those games would be to watch, we really need to be sticking together and forging ties if we are to have any chance of an AFL team.

 

[Black Falcon]

That is the great stumbling block Taswegians need to solve.

Also if everyone in Tassie now supports a Melb club, with those ties being generational, then who'll be supporting the new club? Will their old club allegiances become their joint or 'second' team? Many AFL fans support more than one club.

 

[Gibbke]

Tasmania to stay in VFL next season
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/afl/story/0,26576,24148970-19742,00.html

http://www.news.com.au/mercury/story/0,22884,24205051-13222,00.html

Unfortunately, here's some more up to date info. Then scroll down to the bottom of the page for a second article...

 

[Beaussie]

Really makes their AFL push look bad as well - pity Mars couldn't put some of their promised money behind a real team.

Meanwhile, it looks like Telstra is keen to be involved with GC17.

"We already have 20,000 supporters but we would like to see that figure increase up to between 30,000 to 40,000," he said.

"Telstra has seen the support behind the bid and they want to be involved. I'm asking the Gold Coast to get behind the bid and jump online to push those numbers up."

http://www.goldcoast.com.au/article/2008/08/19/15217_gold-coast-news.html

 

[Black Falcon]

This current round of AFL expansion is starting to look like smokes and mirrors, Barnum and Bailey. Who will AD pull out of his hat on Oct 14? GC or Tas?

I never realised AR was a bit like netball !!!!!!!! According to the CEO of a bid team. GSMe

 

[Fire]

If Tasmanians cant manage a VFL side, they shouldnt be put anywhere near an AFL side.

I knew this vacuous argument would come up.

I bet the GC and WS wouldn't be able to manage a VFL side either. But of course, it would be stupid to suggest they should, right?