SA Footy

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/res ... 6080256976

The key word is he BELIEVES how about there will NEVER be a AFL reserves side in the SANFlthat would be more definite me thinks ??

Anyway this is what i posted on the Adelaide Now site.

Good stuff Leigh keep the AFL out of the SANFL which has a great and vibrant competition and is a fantastic alternative to the AFL which has lost its appeal for many fans because of the yearly tampering of the rules which has made AFL football too sanitised fast soft and insipid.

Comment 36 of 36

There won't be a AFL reserves side in the SANFL. No matter how much certain people bleat about it.

My theory is this ...

A few years back the AFL were under pressure from the Melbourne based clubs because of a perceived power imbalance to the non-Victorian teams that dominated the competition from 1997 - 2006. So they wound back concessions to these clubs (I don't have an opinion on this) and they let the Melbourne based teams set up quasi-reserves teams through affiliations with VFL teams.

Now the wheel has turned and it's Melbourne based teams at the top of the ladder. So now the AFL have created a situation where some teams have reserves and some don't and it just so happens to be the teams with affiliations that are on top. They should have either not allowed the VFL affiliations in the first place or created a proper AFL reserves competition. I don't think there is enough money or players to support a proper reserves competition and I don't think it's needed anyway. I am also not convinced the WA and SA teams need reserves teams to be competitive. At least not reserves teams as they were proposed by the WC and Freo.

With West Coast improving this year to the top 8 so far and Freo maybe a top 4 side when fit, despite not having reserves teams, I think this time the AFL need to hold firm and keep the status quo for the WA and SA AFL teams. This is going to happen regardless by the looks. The AFL then need to learn to stop trying to excessively control the cycle of form by tinkering with the system. Or, if they do tinker, keep it consistent for all teams as much as is possible.

Lets see where Collingwood and Geelong are in 5 years even with their 'almighty reserves' set-up. I really can't believe that people in this state cannot accept that the AFL is cyclical, all teams have their ups and downs. The SA sides are just in their downard phase at the moment.

It's also worth noting that Collingwood and Geelong's Reserves teams are 10th and 12th in a 13 team comp at the moment, Geelong having won 1 game out of 10, Collingwood 3. This, I suspect, underlines their emphasis on "development" rather than winning.

Geez dog your really fighting the power of the Advertiser here arent you .

Seriously I didnt really think this was such a surpirse really. I cant see it happening, people will bleat on about it, but if you have had your head under water you probably wouldnt realise that in Adelaide all people do is bleat on about stuff with no real action. seriously this topic would be discussed for the 5 years before someone was actually looking like being attempted. Even then it wouldnt even get close to getting through, as its only a minority who probably are for it and yes its always the minostill irty who mouth off the most, still no real chance in my opinion.

Stan this really isn't about our state and having a reputation fornot doing anything.This is an AFL issue not a decision being made in Parliament.

Lets see where Collingwood and Geelong are in 5 years even with their 'almighty reserves' set-up. I really can't believe that people in this state cannot accept that the AFL is cyclical, all teams have their ups and downs. The SA sides are just in their downard phase at the moment.

MD comment above is spot on. What heppens if they have reserves and are down the bottom and the top sides don't have reserves , will they say that the "model" is wrong and change it back. 40 (??) players on an AFL list sohow could they possibly field a team.

The Sleeping Giant wrote:There won't be a AFL reserves side in the SANFL. No matter how much certain people bleat about it.

Not sure how many times I've agreed with you in the past but I do on this TSG.

HOORAY PUNT wrote:Stan this really isn't about our state and having a reputation fornot doing anything.This is an AFL issue not a decision being made in Parliament.

Lets see where Collingwood and Geelong are in 5 years even with their 'almighty reserves' set-up. I really can't believe that people in this state cannot accept that the AFL is cyclical, all teams have their ups and downs. The SA sides are just in their downard phase at the moment.

MD comment above is spot on. What heppens if they have reserves and are down the bottom and the top sides don't have reserves , will they say that the "model" is wrong and change it back. 40 (??) players on an AFL list sohow could they possibly field a team.

Mate relax, it will not happen. It wont get through, by the time it does get through, the crows and probably port will be back up there, Collingwood and geelong will be heading south and we will all be saying "the current systems works well, players have to earn there spots etc" then it will die out.

I agree it won't happen as MD said the system is cyclical .

Geelong, one of the clubs being held up as the model to follow because of their Reserves team, had just 9 of their players play in their VFL team on the weekend. I think other clubs need to be looking elsewhere for reasons for Geelong's success.