The AFL wants 22 teams. Name your next four.

Feb 5, 2018
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But seriously.... maybe

Tasmania
Perth
ACT
Norwood or Gosford or Newcastle


I can also see some Melbourne teams having a relocation or partial relocation to places like Ballarat & Bendigo. Especially suited to if and when that fast train is up and running. Probably in August 2085. Bookmark it.

Riverena team incoming in that case.
 

kranger

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So my thinking is that currently there needs to be less teams not more, but thats a whole other discussion. So if there were to be four new teams, and none should be relocations they should be:

1: Newcastle; the current largest Australian city without a team. And has the Hunter Valley around.

2: Tasmania; Hobart is just as big as Geelong. And Tasmania would have as many people behind one team, as the ten Victorian teams have when dividing Melbourne/Geelongs population each. Games would be split with two thirds in Hobart and one third in Launceston.

3. Northern Australia; based in Darwin, with one game a year played in each of Alice Springs, Cairns, Townsville and Karratha, with all others in Darwin.

4. Nowhere else. But if it had to be pushed, either a third Perth team; Canberra properly with GWS focusing on Sydney; or Chatswood to focus on northern Sydney.
 
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Jul 1, 2005
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WA3, especially after seeing the new stadium.
Canberra
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NT

If the comp is to be national, this is the way to go. Can't see a new team either than a 3rd WA team being added for at least 10 years though.
This, but maybe swap NT for NZ.

Really it's hard enough to win a premiership with 18 teams - now 22??. You'd have to have legitible conferences, with conference champions to at least have more to play for.

Id actually prefer to see a super league style comp set up with Less teams, more money for the stars, real h/a fixture. AFL needs to stop acting as if they own the sport.
 

Seedsfan

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The AFL looking for financial growth will probably go
Perth
North Shore
Sunshine Coast/North Queensland
NZ

While it seems like Tasmania is inevitable I am not sure if it will ever get a side as economically it doesn’t grow the game
 

NoobPie

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The AFL looking for financial growth will probably go
Perth
North Shore
Sunshine Coast/North Queensland
NZ

While it seems like Tasmania is inevitable I am not sure if it will ever get a side as economically it doesn’t grow the game

It would be sunshine coast (unlikely) before north Queensland and Newcastle before north shore I suspect.

Swans have a strong presence on the north shore already they wouldnt want cut in to
 

Seedsfan

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It would be sunshine coast (unlikely) before north Queensland and Newcastle before north shore I suspect.

Swans have a strong presence on the north shore already they wouldnt want cut in to
I would suspect North shore is more likely Manly is in the gun with the NRL. If they go the North Sydney Bears have gone it opens up a big area that has no pro team. Also I have stated in a different thread I would see a North Shore team developing a secondary market in Newcastle.

Newy is to small and to rusty on to league to support a team on its own. The Knights almost died and they are the only team in a RL strong hold
 
Oct 6, 2011
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So my thinking is that currently there needs to be less teams not more, but thats a whole other discussion. So if there were to be four new teams, and none should be relocations they should be:

using on Sydney; or Chatswood to focus on northern Sydney.

Feel like Chatswood wouldn't ever be a good area especially with the large Asian population there. I wouldnt be adding a NSW 3rd team unless both of the Sydney AFL sides are doing well marketwise on and off field. I'd like to see a GWS win a premiership or when they get consistently crowds of above 30,000 (possibly in a bigger stadium) then would be the time to push a 3rd NSW side. I believe its possible with AFL getting more popular over here.

A team that represented the: North Sydney/North Shore/Northern Beaches/Newcastle in the AFL could appeal as the old Bears supporters in the NRL are very disgruntled having lost their side. If I could think of a team name how about the Northern Sydney Beaches? Northern NSW ________ ? North NSW ________? A suggestion might be to play half of their games in Newcastle , half of their games possibly at North Sydney Oval and possibly 1 game up in Manly.

Think in future Swans = would have the Eastern Suburbs+ City market
GWS= Western Suburb market
Northern NSW team= could have Northern Suburbs/Northern Beaches/Newcastle market
 
Mar 20, 2002
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For the AFL to grow to 22 teams in total (thus playing a 21-week season, i.e. everyone once), the new entities would be :

1. Sunshine Coast (Saints ??)
2. Illawarra
3. Newcastle
4. Central Coast
5. Tasmania

Initially one Melbourne based club would have to relocate to one of those new locations or two clubs could merge to become one. There is just too many clubs based there already.

Further down the track, I can also see these new stand alone entities being created here :

6. Canberra
7. NZ North Island
8. NZ South Island

This would require further rationalisation of the Melbourne-based clubs to make happen.
 
Apr 12, 2012
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For the AFL to grow to 22 teams in total (thus playing a 21-week season, i.e. everyone once), the new entities would be :

1. Sunshine Coast (Saints ??)
2. Illawarra
3. Newcastle
4. Central Coast
5. Tasmania

Initially one Melbourne based club would have to relocate to one of those new locations or two clubs could merge to become one. There is just too many clubs based there already.

Further down the track, I can also see these new stand alone entities being created here :

6. Canberra
7. NZ North Island
8. NZ South Island

This would require further rationalisation of the Melbourne-based clubs to make happen.

Central coast I doubt. If they were looking in that area it would be North Sydney.
And Tassie and Canberra would be ahead of sunshine coast, Illawarra, Newcastle and pretty much any area.

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk
 
Mar 20, 2002
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Central coast I doubt. If they were looking in that area it would be North Sydney.
And Tassie and Canberra would be ahead of sunshine coast, Illawarra, Newcastle and pretty much any area.

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk


I didn't make that list in any order or priority, just listed them as they came out of my head.
 
Sep 24, 2006
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A team based in the NT just won't work, the NTAFL plays its footy in our cricket season & vice versa.
Whilst I agree that a NT team wouldn't work for a long time, it isn't for this reason. The NT Thunder play in the NEAFL in the dry season, which is actually much better up there for footy. The reason the local NTAFL plays in the Summer wet season is historical, with the local grounds reserved for cricket in the dry season. However the main stadium is used year round for footy.
 
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Demonoid

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I think Tassie is the logical next choice. Its population and economy are finally moving the right way (up) and that is a big factor for the AFL. But the fact that 99% of people say "Tasmania" and not "Hobart" or "Launceston" shows you that the state is hopelessly divided and I believe this is the main reason why a Tassie team has not taken off. Half the population live in Greater Hobart and surrounds, and the other half live in the northern half of the state. Had we have a homogenous 500,000 people in the one sport, it would have happened by now in my opinion. But Gill said all the right things in the past week or so, and I believe it will happen one day. Reckon it will need some serious Tassie state government support.

Should Tassie get up, and to keep an even number of teams, I hope Canberra would be the 20th team, and yes I am a bit biased as I live here. The population of Canberra has passed 400,000 and when you factor in the footy mad Riverina/southern new south wales region, you're well over 500,000 people within a 2 hour drive to Canberra.Hopefully one day GWS become Western Sydney and Canberra gets in next team.

I have no idea about another 2 teams on top of that. I doubt a 3rd team in Perth or Adelaide would add much. Port nearly folded a few years ago and the WA economy is still on its knees. In any case, further expansion is still a decade away IMO.
 

Demonoid

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Dec 17, 2007
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So my thinking is that currently there needs to be less teams not more, but thats a whole other discussion. So if there were to be four new teams, and none should be relocations they should be:

1: Newcastle; the current largest Australian city without a team. And has the Hunter Valley around.

2: Tasmania; Hobart is just as big as Geelong. And Tasmania would have as many people behind one team, as the ten Victorian teams have when dividing Melbourne/Geelongs population each. Games would be split with two thirds in Hobart and one third in Launceston.

3. Northern Australia; based in Darwin, with one game a year played in each of Alice Springs, Cairns, Townsville and Karratha, with all others in Darwin.

4. Nowhere else. But if it had to be pushed, either a third Perth team; Canberra properly with GWS focusing on Sydney; or Chatswood to focus on northern Sydney.
Wrong. According to Wikipedia, Canberra with over 400,000 people as a city has more than Newcastle with about 320,000. They also have the highest socio-economic status in Australia which means they have more money to spend. When you combine that with the fact that people in Canberra care more about the AFL than people in Newcastle, I really think the choice is obvious.

Granted, the greater Hunter valley brings the total up to about 550,000 but this is also the case for ACT/Southern NSW. Again, the regions south of Canberra are far more passionate about Aussie Rules than the Hunter.
 

kranger

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Wrong. According to Wikipedia, Canberra with over 400,000 people as a city has more than Newcastle with about 320,000. They also have the highest socio-economic status in Australia which means they have more money to spend. When you combine that with the fact that people in Canberra care more about the AFL than people in Newcastle, I really think the choice is obvious.

Granted, the greater Hunter valley brings the total up to about 550,000 but this is also the case for ACT/Southern NSW. Again, the regions south of Canberra are far more passionate about Aussie Rules than the Hunter.

I guess it depends which list you use on wikipedia, and the age old debate of what is defined as a City.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cities_in_Australia_by_population
 

jmac91

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If changed my mind on my next 4 teams. I wouldn't count relocations this time compared to my last picks.
1. Tasmania: Bellerive Oval/ York Park (No explanation needed)
2. 3rd Perth: Perth Stadium (Give Perth and WA a needed 3rd team to fill that gap in the market and it gives the Eagles and the Dockers less travel)
3. Canberra: Manuka Oval (Gives Canberra a team of their own to support)
4. NT: Marrara Oval/ Traeger Park (Fill the gap in the market and gives the NT a team for a full year rather than 2 games from the Demons)
5. Nth QLD: Cazaly's Stadium/ Riverway Stadium (the games at Cazaly's Stadium has been a success, maybe they will be able to support a team of their own)
6. 3rd Adelaide: Adelaide Oval (Why not)
 

Silent Alarm

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Very interesting how little North Queensland's being marked on here.

Tasmania Mariners, North Queensland Croppers / North Queensland Millers, Fitzroy Football Club.

Tassie would alternate between Hobart and Launceston, you'd imagine there'd have to be a sizeable upgrade in the former. A stadium of at least 45,000. Dark green, white, and maroon. North Queensland would be doing the Tassie thing up there too, Cairns and Townsville, but with boutique 15,000-20,000 stadiums. Cheap to build (relatively) due to the humidity allowing more open, less concourse focused stadiums. Black and gold.

Fitzroy come back in. Playing games between Marvel and a new Princes Park (35,000).

Next best comes from either North Sydney Heart (just for the beautiful North Sydney Oval to get a gig), Peel, northern flung Perth suburbia, Wollongong, Newcastle Hunters, Canberra Academical / Canberra Cannons.
 
Sep 22, 2011
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Riverena team incoming in that case.

Dunno about Riverina strictly but I wonder whether some sort of ACT/Southern NSW club could work, given it’s such a footy-rich area.

Probably based at Manuka... maybe a couple of games a year at Lavington, and a couple a year at Wagga Tigers.

A real regional setup. It’d take in a lot of population.
 

Demonoid

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Dunno about Riverina strictly but I wonder whether some sort of ACT/Southern NSW club could work, given it’s such a footy-rich area.

Probably based at Manuka... maybe a couple of games a year at Lavington, and a couple a year at Wagga Tigers.

A real regional setup. It’d take in a lot of population.
If you are going to have a team "based at Manuka" (Canberra) then you may as well have a Canberra team, and let GWS focus on the WS part. Agree Southern NSW/Riverina is footy rich and I could possibly see a game in Wagga. But Lavington (Albury) is as far away from Canberra (about 3 hours) as it is from Melbourne.
 
Sep 22, 2011
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If you are going to have a team "based at Manuka" (Canberra) then you may as well have a Canberra team, and let GWS focus on the WS part. Agree Southern NSW/Riverina is footy rich and I could possibly see a game in Wagga. But Lavington (Albury) is as far away from Canberra (about 3 hours) as it is from Melbourne.

Fair enough, I didn’t take into account how far away Albury is. Think I just made the leap from Wagga and thought meh, it’s not that far!
 
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