SANFL needs to change...

[Grahaml]

Wow, what I'm having trouble with isn't which I agree or disagree with, but which is the worst suggestion I've ever heard.

1. Removing the "National" does nothing particularly useful, but just rips a little at the fabric of the SA footy scene. Taking away premierships and records would see massive amounts of people following the SANFL just leave. Most current fans go because they or their family "have always gone". Get rid of the history, and those people may decide they no longer have a connection and just leave.

2. 20% of the footy population in the state are magpies followers. You would be removing the single best supported SANFL club we have. Memberships and attendances support the view that the magpies are well supported enough to be viable. It's the off field stuff they didn't (IMHO) set up well enough before 1997.

3. This means 5 weeks less footy in the year, with finals either not being played or played in winter. I know footy's a winter sport, but finals are best played in dry conditions not in the wet. We would get more GFs resembling 1989. And cutting finals out and going with the premiership race of the EPL is crazy. Suddenly teams hit July and their season is over. Our game is all about winning finals.

4. You must be a Woodville fan. So what about we cut them out and go with West Torrens. They were around first after all. Not to mention the fact they merged because NEITHER were going well enough.

5,6. For what benefit? Sounds like you just want to change whatever names you can find. And you want to name it after Russell Ebert, yet he's a name from the past as well. You want to have a break from the past apparently, yet decide to link it back?

If you were to design a comp from scratch, you would first and foremost want to represent the areas of Adelaide. North, South, East, West, outer West, North-West, Hills and North East. You'll find that those areas actually match very well all our clubs, barring a sharing of the western region by West and WWT and perhaps a lack of representation North East (as much as Norwood try). Your assumption that the second club is on it's knees might be true in terms of it's own money, but we are all led to believe that they actually generate a profit for footy in the state. And all the work they've done shows both AFL clubs making good finances (not to mention the SANFL and SACA making some better coin) by moving to the city. How many years to make back the $700m if we make $20m a year more because of it? Ah, the 20-30 years you're supposedly looking at with such short sightedness.

Finally, you want to know why there has been no public debate on this (apart from the ability of all voters to make their feelings known through the ballot box and through the media)? Because they would get idiotic suggestions and input like the one we've all just had the "pleasure" of reading.

[Stevie_K]

http://www.facebook.com/#!/group.php?gi ... 698&ref=ts

[Reddeer]

Don't worry. Too soon it will be the round ball game that attracts the big crowds all over Australia and Aussie rules as we once knew it will be a very poor cousin

[Wedgie]

Don't worry. Too soon it will be the round ball game that attracts the big crowds all over Australia and Aussie rules as we once knew it will be a very poor cousin

The A League will be lucky to last another season the way it's going.

[Booney]

I cant believe this thread is still going....

[prowling panther]

I cant believe this thread is still going....

'

Well, dont keep writing abut it.

[Mic]

Don't worry. Too soon it will be the round ball game that attracts the big crowds all over Australia and Aussie rules as we once knew it will be a very poor cousin

Even with teams like North and West boring football fans with their game-plans, and Centrals dominating the comp for the past decade, the SANFL will never ever be as boring as soccer.