AFL Sydney clubs to join NEAFL

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AFL Sydney clubs to join NEAFL

Authored by: Brett Northey
on Friday, July 01 2011 @ 03:39 pm ACST

I don't profess to know too much about ACT footy, but I don't think the results in the NEAFL should be too unexpected. QLD is going along very nicely, and GWS and Sydney Reserves are obviously packed with talent courtesy of the national draft etc.

I perceive ACT as a small population, split between Rugby League, Rugby Union, Aussie Rules and soccer. A bigger population like QLD can be split but for a smaller area like the ACT that means having depth will always be difficult. No doubt there will be occasiona stars emerge but the quality probably drops off quicker than in some other leagues. And yes if a club has 2 or 3 top players they probably will go to the AFL or SANFL/VFL.

Improved junior programs and talent ID always help, but at the end of the day for the ACT to rise up I would think they need a big population or Aussie Rules to take a bigger share of the pie. I know you don't like the GWS invasion as they will playhome games in the ACT but I suspect that over a few years, especially as GWS improve, they could gain a really strong following and boost crowds, which in turn will encourage more government and AFL investment, and strengthen the local teams. That will lay the groundwork for more juniors, winning the hearts and minds of locals, and who knows, developing more AFL players maybe oneday creating the right environment for their own AFL team.

Yes there is the risk of Tassie syndrome, whereby the AFL may benefit from support and viewership etc but not actually give them their own club, but I think we'll see Tasmania get there eventually, so perhaps the ACT will too. The population is growing and certainly it has some heavy hitters as our political centre.

As the NEAFL matures we may also see one or two "super" ACT clubs emerge as they reap the benefits of the NEAFL experience, prestige etc. So maybe one of those would then demonstrate an ACT claim to AFL elevation. Again, the NEAFL may help stop the player drain to other comps.

However at the end of the day Australia, if population growth continues, is going to have dozens of regions of about 300k to 600k people. Maybe 1 or 2 will be able to support AFL clubs, but certainly not a lot of them. It'll probably come down to just how passionate they are towards footy as a whole, and quite possibly whether there's a wealthy white knight to support a club, e.g. I gather that is the basis for Newcastle, NRL territory, being able to continue to have an NRL team.

All just my speculation though, as I said, I'm not well across ACT footy. And who knows, in 10 years we might be looking at a 20 team, 2 conference AFL. Like I said, there's a lot of change happening. Some of it is AFL driven by design, but some of it is unfolding organically.

---
Brett Northey - Co-founder and Chief Editor of WFN

AFL Sydney clubs to join NEAFL

Authored by: Rory Slater
on Friday, July 01 2011 @ 05:27 pm ACST

Ta for that.

You are correct re the tyranny i.e. our small population.

ACT footy has a strong history and it's honour list to AFL clubs over the years is testament to this however it is unlikely to be able to sustain this pedigree in the light of the growth in states i.e. of Qld.

I am not opposed to GWS but I am a sceptic in respect of any long term commitment they have to Canberra, i.e. to say I see their intent as purely commercial and expedient while they embark on the codes hard sell to what is alien territory, the ACT being a proven safety net and already boasting over half their membership.

I sincerely hope in hope that I am proven wrong Brett, as this is probably as good as it gets. They could very well be a boon to the code and open the door to bigger and better things in the nations capital

---
Brett Northey - Co-founder and Chief Editor of WFN

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