What happens to the State Leagues with the return of the Reserves?

[Still Crowing]

It’s always funny to hear Port supporters hating on the SANFL, blaming them for everything despite them being bailed out to the tune of $15m.
The SANFL passed their One Club proposal in 2010 to bring The Magpies Back into the fold only for the PAF. to go back on their promise to the members that they wouldn’t become an AFL Reserves team......4 years later guess what happened.
Then when they do they bitch and moan about losing their zones and junior teams even though it’s an AFL directive. But hey SANFL Wah Wah Wah.
They complain and cry SANFL conspiracy when they lose last years GF by 1 point to Sturt.

I felt sorry for the traditional Port Magpie supporters who didn’t jump onto the Power bandwagon when their team was turned into a Reserves side, I’d feel sorry for them if they have no stand alone SANFL team again but the truth is that it creates more trouble for the SANFL and the PAFC, so it’s better that they leave it altogether. I’ll enjoy not having to hear their paranoid conspiracies and bleating.

Hopefully the State Leagues can find their place in the Australian Football market and hopefully the AFL respects that place and supports it.
I’d like there to be a bit more interaction between State Leagues and possibly some clubs to create stronger ties with sister clubs in other comps. If all State Leagues can consolidate and work towards a united goal and hopefully a Champions of Australia tournament between all Grand Finalists.

There’s a place for suburban football of a high standard, not everyone wants to be bombarded by fireworks, incessant booming advertising over the PA selling McDonalds or fried chicken or some other bull$hit at AFL games.
Sometimes people just want to stand around, watch a game of footy, talk to their mates and have a few beers and have a bit of room for their kids to enjoy themselves also.

Great Post. Some people like me also enjoy being part of a club where there are only 3-5,000 members and for the cost of an AFL season ticket($300) you can feel like you’re really contributing to a club that appreciates each and every membership dollar.. that’s never going to be on offer at AFL level where clubs have 20,000+ members!


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[footyfan1978]

If the only issue you can identify is a few problems with five day breaks, then I think the huge expense of setting up a national reserves comp is cracking the nut with a sledgehammer.

Seriously, read over all my previous posts on this topic. That is only one issue. There are more. Reserves makes far more sense than dogs breakfast of last two decades of throwing in VFA and AFL seconds clubs together and thinking it would work well for all purposes. It is a mess. Sooner it is over with and untangled back to reserves for one league and another league for traditional VFA clubs, the better for all.

Like I said, clearly on different wavelengths if you not understanding where we came from to even get where we are today.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

Seriously, read over all my previous posts on this topic. That is only one issue. There are more. Reserves makes far more sense than dogs breakfast of last two decades of throwing in VFA and AFL seconds clubs together and thinking it would work well for all purposes. It is a mess. Sooner it is over with an untangled back to reserves for one league and another league for traditional VFA clubs, the better for all.

Like I said, clearly on different wavelengths if you not understanding where we came from to even get where we are today.

And you can read mine. I’m not proposing the status quo with VFA clubs.

The optimal setup for the Vic AFL clubs is a 10-club Victorian reserves competition. They play each other when their AFL teams do, and the others that week make up games against each other.

Eg for round 1

Carlton v Richmond
Hawthorn v Collingwood
Melbourne v Geelong

Put those AFL games in for every round, and Essendon, St Kilda, Bulldogs and North would play each other in the reserves, at the optimal time for the preceding and following week.

Making it national means huge expenses of travel, and they hate their players travelling anyway as it messes with their recovery. One of the big benefits of reserves is controlled playing returns of injured players, and flying them to interstate games is hardly conducive to that. They’d have their whole list jetting across the country rather than just the 23 senior players.

On top of that they’ll have to demand greater commitment/employment from supplementary players who may be called to make a two day interstate trip at the drop of a hat. That will cost.

If the only issue you can find with that is working out a fixture for the Victorian AFL clubs playing interstate each week (where 90% of the issues will be resolved with fixture planning anyway), then putting in a national reserves comp seems an enormous over-reaction.

 

[footyfan1978]

And you can read mine. I’m not proposing the status quo with VFA clubs.

The optimal setup for the Vic AFL clubs is a 10-club Victorian reserves competition. They play each other when their AFL teams do, and the others that week make up games against each other.

Eg for round 1

Carlton v Richmond
Hawthorn v Collingwood
Melbourne v Geelong

This can work too for us Vic based clubs but for the whole league, if they looking at reserves and funding it like we do Shield cricket for Cricket Australia then I am all for it. If they do it properly it will be great. The next best thing is a reserves comp here. What we have now though, has to go.

 

[Walshawk]

It can work fine as long as (a) it’s Melbourne based and doesn’t have regional clubs (b) it’s genuine top level local footy that the ex VFL clubs are happy to embrace - including promotion and relegation.

It works very well in the VAFA, it’s just a semi-pro version of that.

But the top suburban clubs don’t want it. Vermont are probably the biggest non AFL club in Melbourne after Port and Willi. They have no interest in travelling to the Western suburbs for games, nor in hosting teams from the other side of town. They want to play their traditional local rivals like all the strong clubs do. No suburban clubs will join. And once their AFL partners split, there is no Box Hill or Springvale, at a minimum. You would have around six clubs in year one and then it would fold.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

But the top suburban clubs don’t want it. Vermont are probably the biggest non AFL club in Melbourne after Port and Willi. They have no interest in travelling to the Western suburb s for games, nor in hosting team sports from the other side of town. No clubs will join. once their AFL partners split, there is no Box Hill or Springvale, at a minimum. You would have six clubs in year one and then it would fold.

I’m saying it can work if set up properly. As I’ve already said, I think initially the VFL would simply fold. From there a top level local comp across Melbourne could emerge, but there’d need to be the will to do it.

The travel isn’t an issue. It’s not the 1930s, it’s quick and easy to get around Melbourne. The same league you speak of has Lilydale and Noble Park in it.

 

[Walshawk]

I’m saying it can work if set up properly. As I’ve already said, I think initially the VFL would simply fold. From there a top level local comp across Melbourne could emerge, but there’d need to be the will to do it.

The travel isn’t an issue. It’s not the 1930s, it’s quick and easy to get around Melbourne. The same league you speak of has Lilydale and Noble Park in it.

There is not the will to do it. The issue is there are no rivalries, and no travelleing supporters if you have to cross Melbourne.
And Lilidale to Noble Park is half an hour via EastLink.

 

[3rd Grade Maggy]

Unless the Politburo is paying for this surely some back of the envelope calculations will have at least half a dozen clubs shitting their dax on the additional costs. Flying an extra 30 bodies round the country four times a year, plus paying for up to 20 additional supp players at the back end of a losing season where half your senior side is in for surgery is not going to be cheap.

 

[eth-dog]

VFL probably dies. Port and Willy will likely go to the Western League and dominate, Werribee going over and probably finish 3rd or 4th most years, Coburg would enter the EDFL and probably have a fairly strong side, Preston would completely merge with the VAFA club and go up pretty much every year, Box Hill would be decent in the EFL, Casey and Frankston would probably join the Peninsula League and Sandy would be very strong in the SFL.

 

[Apsaalooke]

Thunder will go to the sanfl I reckon. That’s what their original plan was

As for the neafl only 1 local club has won a premiership in its 6 year history. The local clubs are sick of being used as pawns and nearly everyone wants out.

What? Have never heard this before.

 

[chazwazza]

VFL probably dies. Port and Willy will likely go to the Western League and dominate, Werribee going over and probably finish 3rd or 4th most years, Coburg would enter the EDFL and probably have a fairly strong side, Preston would completely merge with the VAFA club and go up pretty much every year, Box Hill would be decent in the EFL, Casey and Frankston would probably join the Peninsula League and Sandy would be very strong in the SFL.

Port Melbourne and Williamstown can join the SANFL........for a nominal license fee of ummm ahhhh let’s say $2m each.

 

[chiwigi]

Great Post. Some people like me also enjoy being part of a club where there are only 3-5,000 members and for the cost of an AFL season ticket($300) you can feel like you’re really contributing to a club that appreciates each and every membership dollar.. that’s never going to be on offer at AFL level where clubs have 20,000+ members!


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You aren't REALLY happy with that, you'd LOVE for Norwood to be in the big league, but as you never will be you are happy to settle.

 

[eth-dog]

Port Melbourne and Williamstown can join the SANFL........for a nominal license fee of ummm ahhhh let’s say $2m each.

Yeah, why would they do that, given the travel costs on top of it?

 

[Bunk Moreland]

VFL probably dies. Port and Willy will likely go to the Western League and dominate, Werribee going over and probably finish 3rd or 4th most years, Coburg would enter the EDFL and probably have a fairly strong side, Preston would completely merge with the VAFA club and go up pretty much every year, Box Hill would be decent in the EFL, Casey and Frankston would probably join the Peninsula League and Sandy would be very strong in the SFL.

Can only hope this is the case and all the clubs survive.

 

[The_Wookie]

IF we got to an AFL reserves league, can Box Hill, Sandringham, Springvale and Preston survive without their AFL affiliations? Anything is possible if Coburg and Frankston are still alive. With Williamstown, Port Melbourne and Werribee thats a 9 team comp there.

 

[The_Reaper]

IF we got to an AFL reserves league, can Box Hill, Sandringham, Springvale and Preston survive without their AFL affiliations? Anything is possible if Coburg and Frankston are still alive. With Williamstown, Port Melbourne and Werribee thats a 9 team comp there.

Box Hill and Preston are already dead.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

IF we got to an AFL reserves league, can Box Hill, Sandringham, Springvale and Preston survive without their AFL affiliations? Anything is possible if Coburg and Frankston are still alive. With Williamstown, Port Melbourne and Werribee thats a 9 team comp there.

My guess

Williamstown - move to WRFL
Port - WRFL or SFL
Werribee - WRFL or GFL
Coburg - EDFL
Frankston - SFL or MPNFL, possibly merge with new Frankston Dolphins senior club in SFL.
Box Hill - EFL, possibly merge with Whitehorse
Sandy - SFL
Casey - who knows, could attempt to play on in SEFL, or move back to Springy, merge with Springvale Districts
Preston - merge with VAFA club

 

[eth-dog]

Box Hill and Preston are already dead.

That's what was said about Coburg when they split with Richmond.

 

[raymond35]

Box Hill and Preston are already dead.

And Springvale

 

[The_Wookie]

Box Hill and Preston are already dead.

Preston are currently merged with Carlton - that merger can be undone.

 

[The_Wookie]

That's what was said about Coburg when they split with Richmond.

which is my point. Coburg are still here despite the odds, and Frankston came back from having its license stripped. Anything is possible.

 

[chazwazza]

Yeah, why would they do that, given the travel costs on top of it?

It’s a joke son.

 

[chazwazza]

You aren't REALLY happy with that, you'd LOVE for Norwood to be in the big league, but as you never will be you are happy to settle.

Nothing wrong with being a realist, more Port supporters could give it a go.

 

[chiwigi]

Nothing wrong with being a realist, more Port supporters could give it a go.

We'd still be in the SANFL worrying about whether we should allow dog walkers on the oval if that was the case.
We'd still be playing on front of 20k at AAMI stadium as the Southern/Tasmanian Power.
We'd be having chook raffle to build a new roof for the grandstand.

We're good ta! Despite being held back by 'realists'.

 

[Still Crowing]

Nothing wrong with being a realist, more Port supporters could give it a go.

There’s something to be said for sure about living a less complicated existence. I get to go to as many Norwood away games as I feel like Even the trek to Noarlunga is just a ‘day trip’ with a packed lunch
Except for the continual barrage of AFL news in the local media, for the most part I can ignore being bombarded by the Circus-like BS that surrounds the AFL and everything they do that seems to register as ‘news’ in this city.

Besides.
Following Norwood makes me happy. It is arrogant in the extreme and projecting somewhat to determine what I ‘really’ want and what I don’t. hence why PB is now on my ‘ignore’ list.
If the SANFL suffers at the hands of the AFL Reserves? Norwood will still survive as a club. 140+ years, we're not going away anytime soon.