Southern Football League

[footy nut]

Swooper good to here that the atmosphere at Porties was good last Saturday.Was reading in the boot that is was the 109th meeting between them, good to see traditional rivals go at it.
Wont get in to the debate about any SFL side to be good enough in SAAFL but can tell you that Edwardstown may come to the SFL because there is no atmosphere at saafl games at all and there Juniors all play on a Sunday and dont mix with seniors at all, also fees to the SAAFL for a Div 1 club club is rumoured to be around $20,000 per season.

also heard rumour that Mclaren Vale wants to come back into SFL next year as well then finally we can go back to 2 divisions

[WHEELS&DEALS]

I think we would all like to see the SFL back to 2 divisions, so lets start the debate about who plays div 1 and who plays div 2. If you look at the 2 clubs talked about today edwardstown and mclaren vale and also chuck in a blackwood team that would have an 9 and 8 team comp. Those 3 teams would have to go straight into div1, who else Here is my 2 cents worth
DIVISION 1
M/VALE
REYNELLA
EDWARDSTOWN
COVE
BLACKWOOD
BRIGHTON
HAPPY VALLEY
MCLAREN VALE
PORT NOARLUNGA

DIVISION 2
MARION
CHRISTIES BEACH
OSB/LONSDALE
NOARLUNGA
FLAGSTAFF HILL
ALDINGA
MORPHETTVILLE PARK
SOUTHERN HAWKS

The SFL also have to make sure that they don't loose any of there current clubs aswell.

[The Girth]

blackwood have 4 senior sides so i dont know what they would do here. I wouldnt think that any club would wand to get rid of that many players however they could enter a c grade team or i spose bring down all sides and compete in both divisions as they do in the hills. The only problem i see with doing this is that if the SFL bring in a promotion and relegation system then you could have blackwood playing blackwood in the same division which i dont think would be what they are looking for. However i think we are on the right track to ensuring a more even brand of footy.

[Specky McGee]

Far out people need to relax im stating my opinion and as I do play against these sides in the A's it looked a far better standard from what I have played against currently you can take it or leave it at that I'll keep it at that.

Tight lines, you say that you cant have an opinion until you have seen these A1 teams play. Fair enough, but i take it you are from Cove, who are yet to play Morphett Vale. Does this mean your opinion isnt valid bacause you are yet to see Morphett Vale play?

[knees peterson]

morphett vale r good but they will not win a flag in A1 with inthe first 5 years of them bein there do morphett vale really know how to play football under presure every week cos thats what will happen playin A1 and i dont think that they could handle it

[Tight_Lines]

Far out people need to relax im stating my opinion and as I do play against these sides in the A's it looked a far better standard from what I have played against currently you can take it or leave it at that I'll keep it at that.

Tight lines, you say that you cant have an opinion until you have seen these A1 teams play. Fair enough, but i take it you are from Cove, who are yet to play Morphett Vale. Does this mean your opinion isnt valid bacause you are yet to see Morphett Vale play?

I Never said that i havent seen Morphett Vale play this year. Fact is I have so i'll have my opinion and knees is right there are only a handleful of pressure games each year in the SFL you cant judge what a entire year would do to a side would they half enough quality in their depth if players like Pollard, Short, Gaskin couldnt pull up and were soar after each game. There are no Hackhams or Morphies to rest players or just have an easy game. I Think this subject is dead and burried there never will be a winner to this arguement not unless Morphett Vale were ever to play A1

[sportsfan]

I think we would all like to see the SFL back to 2 divisions, so lets start the debate about who plays div 1 and who plays div 2. If you look at the 2 clubs talked about today edwardstown and mclaren vale and also chuck in a blackwood team that would have an 9 and 8 team comp. Those 3 teams would have to go straight into div1, who else Here is my 2 cents worth
DIVISION 1
M/VALE
REYNELLA
EDWARDSTOWN
COVE
BLACKWOOD
BRIGHTON
HAPPY VALLEY
MCLAREN VALE
PORT NOARLUNGA

DIVISION 2
MARION
CHRISTIES BEACH
OSB/LONSDALE
NOARLUNGA
FLAGSTAFF HILL
ALDINGA
MORPHETTVILLE PARK
SOUTHERN HAWKS

The SFL also have to make sure that they don't loose any of there current clubs aswell.

I'm new to this forum but play in the league, a very interesting concept, but will the standard of the div 2 teams worsen, if we were to split again? i might be wrong, but i play at cove and remember when we were div 2, alot of our long term juniors would simply not play seniors at our club, because they wanted to play div 1 footy, which is fair enough i spose. Or will people just leave the league altogether, go to GSFL or hills? But your right something does need to be done.

[footy nut]

well done Wheels & Deals that set up would be good, not sure Blackwood wants to come to SFL but are struggling to fill 4 teams and a b & c grade would be a better alternative for them. SFL Officials need to have an open mind about Juniors, there needs to be 2 divisions seperate from seniors to work right with a regulation system in place for them too. It can work with only the odd time that there not playing at the same place as seniors which is happening now anyway

[MatteeG]

Nice effort there wheels and deals, something for us to debate.

Only thing I think would change- McLaren would no way be div 1 in my opinion.

On form and reputation, all the rest seem about right..

[FootyMad]

Personally I think your all dreaming - McLaren Vale are not going anywhere.
The topic of going back to 2 divisions for the SFL has been done to death with almost all involved defending the current concept. In previous posts (even started a thread for it) I put the notion of two divisions in the SFL and the benefits to which the diehards said it wont happen.

[Tight_Lines]

Abit unfair on sides like Flagstaff Hill and Lonsdale who played in Div 1 Finals last year and at the moment the teams in the Div 2 you have are still giving the lower sides an absolute thumping that looks like just a lop sided league as the current one all be it smaller so they play them more often. 2 Divisions would only benefit Div 1 with more contested games each week were you'll find that 2 divisions is meant to be to help the lesser sides i cant see that helping. Everyone thinks that there is some quick fix solution to this it's going to take a long time and hard work for these sides to turn it around maybe they need to act now themselves instead of waiting for the league to try and help them. At least Aldinga have started to do something about it and are starting to improve slowly.

[croc11]

Good post sportsfan. 2 Divs would end up being a really weak league - the clubs trying to do the right thing would be decimated.

Interesting as well - what would happen if a Porties or a Brighton or one of the other so called guns do if they got relegated - they would lose half their club, just what happens in the Amateurs if sides get relegated.

And yes Cove were struggling in Div 2 - if no opportunity to get up into Div 1, could well be a different proposition.

Here is a poser - if the SFL try and create 2 Divs - what would be the fallout. I would suggest that a legal challenge could occur because there are some legitimate clubs trying to improve and I would doubt if the SFL have all their rules and constitutions worked out to stop a challenge.

I'm not advocating a legal challenge - rather why would the bottom clubs let this happen.

And it was only a year ago - the SFL sat down and formed a Futures Committee - this did not talk of 2 Divs. So they would be looking even sillier if 2 Divs suddenly sprung up.

Just more food for thought.

[Swooper16]

Personally I doubt whether the SFL has even entertained the thought of going back to 2 divs. Let alone act on it. I think with more and more housing developments happening in the south we will see some of the weaker clubs get stronger (Aldinga particularly). Think the league just needs to bite the bullet and axe Hackham. They have not shown any improvement and somehow managed to get even worse this year. Maybe allow them a C grade team (lets face it that’s what their A’s are equivalent to at the moment). Try and encourage Morphie Parks to move to Amateurs and hopefully recruit Edwardstown and maybe another club such as Mclaren Vale or Blackwood to the competition. All of a sudden with those 2 clubs replaced the comp is looking a lot more competitive again.

[Numbers]

You raise a great point there Swooper. I think that league officials wont go to 2 Divs as it was approached strongly late last year and we have continued with 1. Aldinga is a great example of a club heading in the right direction. They may not win a handful of games this year, but are far more competitive than last year. Unlike Hackham, which as you say the league needs to take a stance and axe them. (No improvement or even glipse of hope).

If the leauge was to get Blackwood & Edwardstown, imagine playing them two weeks in a row instead of Hackham & then Morphy Parks. The gap between top & bottom isn't only hard on the bottom sides it gives the top sides no motivation for those games.

Heres a proposed league:
Aldinga
Blackwood
Brighton
Christies Beach
Cove
Edwardstown
Flagstaff Hill
Happy Valley
Lonsdale
Marion
Morphett Vale
Noarlunga
Pt Noarlunga
Reynella

Longest trip would be Aldinga to Edwardstown (35Kms) not to bad if the league is balanced and can continue to have the structured juniors as it does. Means that rivalry will continue and there should be less blow outs!

Any thoughts?

[Old and Grey]

People are saying Aldinga have improved, but have they really? Lets have a look at the premiership table. They are sitting in 12th spot, 2 & 6 with a percentage of 31.43, marginally above Morphy Park and a reasonable amount below Flaggies and Noarlunga. In the B grade they are sitting bottom with no wins and a percentage of 12.40 and they have improved!!!

Gee spending that much coin you would think they would be a bit higher up than that.

2 Divisions for me, give clubs a chance to re-establish themselves.

[Tight_Lines]

People are saying Aldinga have improved, but have they really? Lets have a look at the premiership table. They are sitting in 12th spot, 2 & 6 with a percentage of 31.43, marginally above Morphy Park and a reasonable amount below Flaggies and Noarlunga. In the B grade they are sitting bottom with no wins and a percentage of 12.40 and they have improved!!!

Gee spending that much coin you would think they would be a bit higher up than that.

2 Divisions for me, give clubs a chance to re-establish themselves.

See this is peoples problems they are looking for the quick solution. Stats can be miss leading they have been far more competive this year but sides have flattered the scoreboards late so they still lack fitness and a few more qaulity players they now have an Under 18 side which should feed there seniors in the next few years.

Mate how much more do you expect from them? They've got off their ass and started to build for the future at least their not waiting for the league to pass out a helping hand. They bought a handful of players not a whole side it helps it doesnt fix things. Love to hear how you think 2 divs would help sides re-establish?

[SOTTERS]

People are saying Aldinga have improved, but have they really? Lets have a look at the premiership table. They are sitting in 12th spot, 2 & 6 with a percentage of 31.43, marginally above Morphy Park and a reasonable amount below Flaggies and Noarlunga. In the B grade they are sitting bottom with no wins and a percentage of 12.40 and they have improved!!!

Gee spending that much coin you would think they would be a bit higher up than that.

2 Divisions for me, give clubs a chance to re-establish themselves.

Aldinga have improved this year you just have to look at their results, their not expecting it to be an overnight miracle to become a powerhouse side. More like a three year plan where they need to concentrate on juniors, this year they have u/18 for the first time since 2000 although have lost their u/14 & u/16's this year. These two grades are a must for 2008. The club has had two poor performances this year being Flagstaff Hill and Port Noarlunga but have been more than competive in other games. So far have won two games and the club is confident they could land a few more yet. Also Aldinga dosn't spend a great deal of money on it's players majority playing for nothing.

[footy nut]

Hackham to C grade - ok, Morphie Park to amateurs - probably going to happen infact heard there was talk down there last week that if there wasnt 2 divs in sfl next year they were off to amateurs 2008
That leaves Lonsdale to talk about - already merged with OSB and kicked out of that oval, no juniors and the MV high school closing down within 2 years, whats their future????????

[Old and Grey]

People are saying Aldinga have improved, but have they really? Lets have a look at the premiership table. They are sitting in 12th spot, 2 & 6 with a percentage of 31.43, marginally above Morphy Park and a reasonable amount below Flaggies and Noarlunga. In the B grade they are sitting bottom with no wins and a percentage of 12.40 and they have improved!!!

Gee spending that much coin you would think they would be a bit higher up than that.

2 Divisions for me, give clubs a chance to re-establish themselves.

Aldinga have improved this year you just have to look at their results, their not expecting it to be an overnight miracle to become a powerhouse side. More like a three year plan where they need to concentrate on juniors, this year they have u/18 for the first time since 2000 although have lost their u/14 & u/16's this year. These two grades are a must for 2008. The club has had two poor performances this year being Flagstaff Hill and Port Noarlunga but have been more than competive in other games. So far have won two games and the club is confident they could land a few more yet. Also Aldinga dosn't spend a great deal of money on it's players majority playing for nothing.

Won two games - they have beaten Morphy Park and Smackem, beat them again later in the year and that's 4 wins so yes an improvement on last year. No U14s or U16s can't help much with the 3 year plan.

Hackham to C grade - ok, Morphie Park to amateurs - probably going to happen infact heard there was talk down there last week that if there wasnt 2 divs in sfl next year they were off to amateurs 2008
That leaves Lonsdale to talk about - already merged with OSB and kicked out of that oval, no juniors and the MV high school closing down within 2 years, whats their future????????

It's just so easy to say we'll send this club here or that club there, anyone would think that the M/Vales, Reynellas and Coves own the damned league or something.

What if the SFL kicked Cove out 5-6 years ago when they were languishing at the bottom of the Div 2 ladder??

[Tight_Lines]

People are saying Aldinga have improved, but have they really? Lets have a look at the premiership table. They are sitting in 12th spot, 2 & 6 with a percentage of 31.43, marginally above Morphy Park and a reasonable amount below Flaggies and Noarlunga. In the B grade they are sitting bottom with no wins and a percentage of 12.40 and they have improved!!!

Gee spending that much coin you would think they would be a bit higher up than that.

2 Divisions for me, give clubs a chance to re-establish themselves.

Aldinga have improved this year you just have to look at their results, their not expecting it to be an overnight miracle to become a powerhouse side. More like a three year plan where they need to concentrate on juniors, this year they have u/18 for the first time since 2000 although have lost their u/14 & u/16's this year. These two grades are a must for 2008. The club has had two poor performances this year being Flagstaff Hill and Port Noarlunga but have been more than competive in other games. So far have won two games and the club is confident they could land a few more yet. Also Aldinga dosn't spend a great deal of money on it's players majority playing for nothing.

Won two games - they have beaten Morphy Park and Smackem, beat them again later in the year and that's 4 wins so yes an improvement on last year. No U14s or U16s can't help much with the 3 year plan.

Hackham to C grade - ok, Morphie Park to amateurs - probably going to happen infact heard there was talk down there last week that if there wasnt 2 divs in sfl next year they were off to amateurs 2008
That leaves Lonsdale to talk about - already merged with OSB and kicked out of that oval, no juniors and the MV high school closing down within 2 years, whats their future????????

It's just so easy to say we'll send this club here or that club there, anyone would think that the M/Vales, Reynellas and Coves own the damned league or something.

What if the SFL kicked Cove out 5-6 years ago when they were languishing at the bottom of the Div 2 ladder??

Thats why you need to give sides like Aldinga and co time to improve and start from the bottom in juniors worry about them first. Hackham have a 14's side sitting inside the 8 at 5 and 3 theres a start. The wheel will turn theses sides will have their highs again.