Booney wrote:Nobody cares about the integrity of the NEAFL. it only kicked off in 2011 so who in NSW/QLD gives a shit about that?
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The following (sourced from Wikipedia) does a fair job of describing the carnage around the formation of the NEAFL (which, lets face it , has been created purely for the convenience of the 4 AFL Reserves teams) Traditional Aussie Rules competitions and their rich histories left in tatters in its wake.
"A major restructure of the league was announced for the 2014 season. Five clubs left the competition and the conference system was abolished. Broadbeach, Labrador, Morningside and Mt. Gravatt joined a re-constructed Queensland Australian Football League, while Tuggeranong went back to the AFL Canberra Division One competition.[2] The possibility of a North Queensland side entering the competition for 2014 was considered but ruled out.[3]
Due to the financial challenges of participating in the competition and a proposal from the AFL for the existing Canberra clubs to contribute to a single Canberra team, Belconnen, Queanbeyan and the Sydney Hills Eagles chose to leave the NEAFL at the end of the 2014 season.[4][5] The ongoing desire by the AFL for a single Canberra team led Ainslie to withdraw at the end of the 2015 season. Both Canberra clubs - Ainslie and Eastlake - had a NEAFL licence until the end of 2016, but Ainslie withdrew from the competition after the AFL rejected their proposal to be Canberra's sole team from 2017. The AFL wanted Canberra's team to be either a combined Ainslie-Eastlake side or a representative team funded largely by all the local clubs in the Canberra area.[6]
Two teams changed their names prior to the 2016 season. Eastlake's NEAFL side started to play as the Canberra Demons in an attempt to be seen as Canberra's representative team in the NEAFL competition. The club wishes to provide a clear AFL pathway for local talent and to get rid of the baggage between other clubs in the ACT. As part of this decision the team also adopted a blue and gold guernsey for home games, reflecting the territory's traditional colours. The team will still wear Eastlake's red and black colours in away matches.[7] The Greater Western Sydney reserves team became known as the Western Sydney University Giants to reflect the re-branding of the university from University of Western Sydney.[8]
Players win touches, Teams win matches, Clubs win Premierships.