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100% agree JB. Australian sport isthejtoughest market in the world to gain new participants. And population doesn't equate to talent pool.I cast my eye across Sydney and I'm buggered if I can see where the untapped talent is. Sorry.
In the past we had two NEAFL teams in Sydney but one of them was mostly interstate fly-ins and marginals from elsewhere looking to top up their superannuation a bit. Since then, there has been a sort of consolidation that is now called Sydney Uni but that's about all there is.
The better young kids of NSW are in the system and already play NEAFL for Swans or GWS where possible, or otherwise they play Sydney paddock footy. But there just aren't very many of them. A few go interstate to try their luck (Dane Rampe was one of them).
There just aren't many outstanding footballers playing in our Sydney comp and those that there are, are ineligible to play NEAFL.
The truth is that not a lot of Sydney kids want to play AFL, preferring soccer, or our outstanding talent bank of pretty girls or our outstanding beaches. Or else they have exhorbitant rents to pay so they are putting their attention to earning money.
The GWS was set up with the grand vision of tapping into the 2 million or so who live in Western Sydney, but they have now pretty much deserted the West and have moved their epi-centre close to the Swans catchment area. Where the low-hanging fruit is and where the business executives from Adelaide and Melbourne come to live and take their kids to OzKick on Saturday mornings.
It's a tough market, and that's why there are so many empty seats on the TV screen when the GWS is playing at home.
JAB, I hear your and I believe that you are right in many ways, I remember we had the same attitude here in Brisbane some years back and then just as the Bears franchise started on the Gold Coast, the AFL injected more funds and better leaders into Qld, to get that "we can't compete with the others Codes here, as we are a Rugby and Rugby League State" out of all involved, with those Leaders and the extra funds QLD turned it around. We really can't IMO currently sustain 2 AFL Sides here in QLD, by the numbers attending and thats showing at both the Gabba and Metricon as these numbers are going down at a constant rate, but nearly everyone up here know who the Lions and the Suns are. This is through the junior programmes that The QFLQ via their AFLQ Junior Bodies have adopted and promoted. Once these two Qld based AFL sides start to be a little more competitive, these slowing attendance numbers will change, IMO that is because Qld's like their AFL Footy, but they love it when their team is winning - Why do they love it? Because IMO, their Children and their Grand Children love it because it has been educated into them by their local available Junior Competitions, their schools participation programmes and the Auskick programmes that the various Qld regional managers work tirelessly at 12 months a year to promote and then which the grass root clubs fight tirelessly to achieve participation to enable their long term survival and keep stamping their skin on the game.
All the AFL have done IMO, is spend a bucket full of money in NSW to inject the Giants into the Competition without ensuring that their state programs were developing quickly enough to anywhere near the same the same that Qld originally pre the Gold Coast Suns starting up.
If you and all of the other AFL supporters in Sydney and around NSW don't want and more importantly the States based AFLNSW Body don't want to fight for the slice of the Pie in the region that Qld achieved, through hard work and a never give up attitude, then yes I agree NSW is a waste of time to promote another NEAFL side in NSW, but more importantly, if the AFL and AFLNSW don't keep promoting and giving the kids of the State a love for the game and an arena to play it in then who is going to support the game down there in the future??????? Is the NSWAFL doing enough to promote the game like the AFLQ do in Queensland? I can't answer that, but this question may be a fair indicator as to why NSW cant support another NEAFL Team currently and Qld can support 3 NEAFL Teams with muting's of a Cairns Region side joining in the Future.
It's not about who supports the Swans or the Giants currently IMO, it about how we educate the kids of tomorrow to firstly play the game at a very junior level, transitioning on to playing it at the highest Level they can and then through this, as we all have in the past, they then go on to love and own the game for life!!!!!!
Excuses don't work in my house or at my work and they shouldn't work in the game off AFL and especially promoting the game of AFL - Give up and you loose, fight hard and never give up and you just might win.
Billy not sure you have any idea at all how difficult it is to promote afl footy in NSW from this post. Just saying "work harder, show some belief" isn't going to make people love it. Do you realise that the Canberra comp was just as good as qafl footy for a period of time?
Demographics play a huge part in the recruitment of players too. Western Sydney is obviously very multicultural. Think there are good reasons why boys in that part of town drift towards league and soccer.
It's not about giving up, it's about doing things smarter. I would get rid of 3 suburban teams and put into one side played out of Brisbane; at worst 2 teams on the north and south side. Whether you like it or not the non aligned teams can't compete if the afl sides are anywhere near full strength. Aspley did it for one year but big deal. Tha same year the Suns were putrid, As were the lions and gws finished on top and pulled half their players for operations once the senior teams season finished. Not saying it wasn't a superb effort by Aspley but still compromised I would suggest.
It's just hard work and I think confine the talent into less teams with a real mark of trying to develop draftees rather than win a premiership.
Gave you one earlier stuyd. Reduce the number of non afl teams. Puts more players into the qafl comp, spreads the player pool to be selected by NEAFL clubs to more qafl clubs too so less pressure on qafl clubs, increases qafl standard. As for the NEAFL, well 7 teams means every week a side plays a vfl side if thy can find a bye in that comp,as well.The more these teams play vfl sides the easier it is for recruiters to work out how good they are.I agree with most of the posts here from you guys and we could talk about it for yonks ,,, Where Im comimg from ,,, is what is the solution ????
I don't really go along with a lot of what you say TJP, but this is an excellent point. More locals are playing a better standard of footy and development has improved."............... NSW is that more locals are currently playing a better standard of footy and development of local players has improved - Swans NDS, Giants NDS, Uni, + Academies etc............ "
I was listening to ABC grandstand NRL commentators Matt Elliott and Andrew Moore last Sunday. They were asked why isn't there a national reserves comp for all NRL teams. As an AFL/NEAFL fan I was interested in the reply. Moore said it will never happen because of $$$ basically, but also lack of support from the broader community. Elliott said "it's already there"....he meant the local Sydney RL comp and the QRL comp.
I related their answers to the AFL. Sanfl, Vfl, Wafl, Tsl and now Neafl. All varying in standard, though all of a pretty good standard overall.
I feel that the top level footy ie AFL is so far away from the 2nd tier/reserves and getting further away.
As someone pointed out here recently there doesn't seem to be any appetite from AFL headquarters to have a National AFL reserves comp. $$$$?
I hope then that the community clubs in the Neafl can continue to attract and hold good players, be competitve against each other and hope we can get the AFL sides when they've got plenty of injuries!! (see GWS this year!)
I must be in a cranky mood this morning (I'm blaming my kids !!!) but I'm not with you on this one either.Ally Craft, I wish you were correct but.
The AFL Reserve sides are only going to get stronger I feel all over Australia, as players will soon not be getting injured through contacts, because the do-gooders are turning the game into a cross between Soccer and Netball, the game has become a game for athletes who once could not play because of the toughness required to go in and get the footy.
Hey guys was wondwring if anyone could get a list of players who are a chance to be deafted from neafl? Any standouts? Or even from qafl
http://www.afl.com.au/news/2017-07-13/southport-mid-set-to-soar-neafl-prospects-to-watchHey guys was wondwring if anyone could get a list of players who are a chance to be deafted from neafl? Any standouts? Or even from qafl
Can't be drafted out of qafl.
Are you being sarcasticCan't be drafted out of qafl.
Are you being sarcastic
Can't be drafted out of qafl.