SANFL - NTFL talks have re-commenced

[Pseudo]

Funny thing is, I've grown to like the bye. Good to have a week off sometimes, or even to go down the Bay and watch the Tiges. Be weird not having a bye

I agree; the bye does give one a break. It helps to keep 'er indoors mollified during the football season.

Although if I got to go down to the Bay and watch the Tiges during the bye, I'd learn to like it even more

[smac]

Funny thing is, I've grown to like the bye. Good to have a week off sometimes, or even to go down the Bay and watch the Tiges. Be weird not having a bye

I agree; the bye does give one a break. It helps to keep 'er indoors mollified during the football season.

Although if I got to go down to the Bay and watch the Tiges during the bye, I'd learn to like it even more

That implies you're looking for a new team to support. All the bandwagons are rolling your way, take your pick.

[MatteeG]

Can we give this up again already.

Keep the 9 teams. We dont need to be travelling to the NT for games FFS.

1 game a year, Big Deal.

If it is found to be viable i would be all for it, i think it would be great.

If the SANFL can make this viable when they were prepared to pull the pin on the mini league because it wasnt cost effective, then I for one will be amazed...

[Dogsbody]

If the NTFL get a team in please SANFL make them play all there games in Darwin after seeing what happened in the Alice Springs GF, there is no way ill be going to watch the Dogs in Alice and i lived there for a year.

Agreed... besides, TIO Stadium is a great ground going by the pics at Austadiums.com, its flood-lit with a lot of grassed standing room and good vantage points in the grandstand.

They won't have the Doggies play in Alice... they'll want that for Marrara.

[Ian]

TIO Stadium is a great place to watch footy, I'm sure I could safetly say that all North supporters that wer at last Feburary's trial between the Teritory and the Roosters were very impressed.
Lighting was very good, stand had a bit of a AAMI feel (but better), with plenty of grassed outer to enjoy the footy from.

[Ian]

From the Messenger

Clubs get behind NT bid

Reece Homfray

16Oct07

SANFL clubs have urged the league to investigate a bid by the Northern Territory to enter a team in the competition within two years.

Club bosses say they like idea of a 10th side, but are worried about the long-term viability of a team from the Top End.
They are also worried about travel costs, fixture changes and whether the Darwin-based team would be competitive.
The AFL NT wants to field a team in either the West Australian or South Australian state league as early as 2009.
Talks are under way and last week, the SANFL met with its clubs to discuss the proposal.
Port Adelaide chief executive Matthew Richardson said ``anything that strengthens the SANFL or helps it to grow should be investigated''.
Glenelg chief executive Darren Chandler said he was ``open'' to the idea of a 10th team, but it needed long-term viability.
``If it goes ahead it needs to be around for 20 or 30 years and be on-going he said,'' Mr Chandler said.
Woodville-West Torrens chief executive John Kantilaftas said he welcomed the idea of a 10th team for the competition but questioned whether the NT was the ``best option''.
Two players who have backed the move Essendon star Alwyn Davey and Sturt spearhead Brant Chambers said from their experiences in Darwin, the team would be more than capable of mixing it with the best down south.
Davey grew up in Darwin and played with Palmerston Magpies in the Northern Territory Football League (NTFL) before joining South Adelaide in 2004.
Three years later he was drafted to Essendon in the AFL and was a revelation this season, managing 14 games before breaking his arm against Geelong.
``Having a team (in the SANFL) when I was around would have made it a bit easier and I wouldn't have had to move interstate,'' he said.
``It would give some young players a chance to play in a top league and get drafted.
``It should be a great challenge for the boys. They're pretty quick but their body size and height might be lacking a bit.''
Chambers, who booted 106 goals for Sturt this year, spent three seasons with Nightcliff in the NTFL between 2000 and 2004.
He said players from the NT were ``very skilful''.
``The footy can be a bit scrappy but it's during the wet season when it's 100 per cent humidity, your hands are slippery and it rains a lot,'' he said.
``Pace and skill are their key attributes so if you got the best players in the competition together, they would definitely be competitive down here.''

[BPBRB]

Personally I think that the NT will struggle for a few years - especially in our conditions. The NTFL standard is good with many quick skillful types but they will need to get hold of a lot of bigger bodied blokes and learn to play a more defensive game. I also can't see the long term financial viability of the whole exercise - the travel alone to SA for 10 games will be enormous plus the league subsidising each of our 9 clubs one trip to the NT adds even more onto it.

It will be a novelty for a year or two but reality might set in after a couple of years with the financial strain especially if the NT struggle to make an impact on field. I think their game style is more suited to the WAFL in all honesty.

[Wedgie]

The NTFL are in the prime position at the minute, if we want them we'll have th throw in a sweetener as I think despite the distance they'd be leaning towards the WAFL at the moment as they'd have more chance of being competitive there to begin with.
As far as income for the new team I'd assume it would all be from sponsorship and home gate takings which I doubt would be impacted on which league they choose so its probably just a matter of choosing the league they'll be better in. I also think the WAFL style of play would suit them more too.
I doubt the SANFL could throw too much of a sweetener in as if we dropped back to an 18 round year that would already be a hell of a lot of revenue lost for the SANFL and the clubs.

[Jardarf]

Personally, I don't like the idea of the Northern Territory fielding a team in the SANFL. I don't think it would have any benefit on the local competition other than get rid of the bye. The costs associated with travelling up North would be a frustration at all clubs, the NT team particularly would also feel the pinch of travelling to Adelaide every second weekend, and I doubt the team could be successful for a number of years playing in 'our' league.

I've felt for a while now that the best way to resolve the issue is to set up a new team called the 'Adelaide City Crows'. There are so many brainwashed kids out there who have no knowledge of the SANFL teams that by fielding a team that resembles the Adelaide Crows (AFL) the kids are likely to wake up and pay attention to the local league. My idea is that this team could operate at either Adelaide or Thebarton Oval and initially be set up by the Adelaide Football Club board but after 10 years it becomes its own identity. Much the same as the association between Port Power and the Port Magpies, which from what I understand has severed financial ties in the last year.

With a team called the Adelaide City Crows in the league, it's sure to generate considerable support from the community, particularly people who have little knowledge or interest in the current SANFL format. Certainly a lot of families would be happy to pay the lower price of gate admission at Thebarton to see a Crows team rather than the huge amount they would have to pay at AAMI stadium, even if the team has very few players who play for the AFL Crows.

It wouldn't take much to make a small redistribution of the recruitment zones around Adelaide, particularly in Adelaide's Northern and Southern Suburbs which will only expand with land developments over time. There are probably a lot of other aspects of a plan like this (pros and cons) that I haven't gone into but it's worth consideration.

Personally, I would just like the opportunity to have 5 games playing every weekend in Adelaide, and how many of you guys would like to see your team (Sturt/Centrals/Port/etc) knock off a team called the Adelaide Crows?

Anyway, that's my rant, I apologise if this topic has been discussed in length before (which I'm sure it has). I rarely contribute to the forum and this idea has been on my mind for sometime.

Thanks Guys!

[JamesH]

What concerns me is the reduction of the season to 18 rounds. Does that mean that the SANFL season starts 5 weeks after the AFL? Will a pre-season comp be re-introduced to make up for it and allow AFL listed players match practice, or do clubs have to play 5 or 6 trial games?

An 18 round SANFL could be disastrous.

If the league wants a shorter season it can do it without the NT team. 9 teams playing each other twice doesnt need 23 rounds..... only 18...... same as with an NT team

[Ian]

They don'y play themselves, so if they were to play all 8 other sides only twice, the season would be reduced to 16 games per team.

[stampy]

i dont want any interstate invasion be it from nt or tas, it will only stuff up our league FFS! leave it alone, if its not broke dont f'n try to fix it!!!!!!

[JK]

Personally I think that the NT will struggle for a few years - especially in our conditions. The NTFL standard is good with many quick skillful types but they will need to get hold of a lot of bigger bodied blokes and learn to play a more defensive game. I also can't see the long term financial viability of the whole exercise - the travel alone to SA for 10 games will be enormous plus the league subsidising each of our 9 clubs one trip to the NT adds even more onto it.

It will be a novelty for a year or two but reality might set in after a couple of years with the financial strain especially if the NT struggle to make an impact on field. I think their game style is more suited to the WAFL in all honesty.

Spot on I reckon mate

[Ian]

i dont want any interstate invasion be it from nt or tas, it will only stuff up our league FFS! leave it alone, if its not broke dont f'n try to fix it!!!!!!

Looks like your only option to get rid of the bye is....................

[therisingblues]

Still all for this idea. I can't say what logistics are involved, but as I said earlier, this is the SANFL, you could throw a "C" into that acronym to denote the "Cautious" nature of this organisation and make it the "SACNFL". That's enough convincing I need of this idea's viability, looking at their track record there is nothing there to suggest the SANFL is going to take an undue risk.
I also think we need to do something to inject interest in the competition. As time passes those of us that had our allegiances forged in the old days will gradually pass on, and it is us old bastards that are keeping the current crowd figures so high. Phil H provided some figures recently that show the SANFL boasts an abnormally high attendance when compared to all other second string competitions around Australia.
Abnormally high and falling in a zig zag pattern.
SANFL is trying a few different things to address this situation, but if the SANFL were to get attendances in proportion to a second string league in a city of 1,000,000 people, attendances would average a bit less than 1000 per match IMO.
If it is viable to spread our league beyond our own borders then I see this as a genuine step in the right direction. Not a fix-all, but a step in the right direction.

[doggies4eva]

i dont want any interstate invasion be it from nt or tas, it will only stuff up our league FFS! leave it alone, if its not broke dont f'n try to fix it!!!!!!

Mate it IS broke - look at the impact that having 2 AFL sides has had on the comp.

If I was running the comp I'd not only chase NT I'd add another two country composite teams take the number to 12 - 22 minor rounds and a much wider potential audience - chance of attracting more sponsors and media - reverse the trend over the past 15 years

[am Bays]

i dont want any interstate invasion be it from nt or tas, it will only stuff up our league FFS! leave it alone, if its not broke dont f'n try to fix it!!!!!!

Mate it IS broke - look at the impact that having 2 AFL sides has had on the comp.

If I was running the comp I'd not only chase NT I'd add another two country composite teams take the number to 12 - 22 minor rounds and a much wider potential audience - chance of attracting more sponsors and media - reverse the trend over the past 15 years

And the $4 Million to run an extra three clubs in the league is going to come from where and the 50 extra league players in SA (not including the NT side) are going to come from???? Not to mention the support staff and reserves players needed to run a viable league team.

In the words of Darryl Kerrigan a 12 team SANFL - "Tell 'im 'es dreamin'"

[Psyber]

If it falls through, perhaps a team from Mt Gambier, Pt Augusta, Broken Hill???

[Mr66]

If it falls through, perhaps a team from Mt Gambier, Pt Augusta, Broken Hill???

I've always wondered why there hasn't been a push for regional SA town to be
the 10th team,especially since 1991.
Does population play a role in this?

[Ian]

You could throw the Riverland into that mix as well, none of the towns are as big, but collectively they have a good population, 2 - 2 1/2 hrs from Adelaide, with a few very good grounds, Loxton have night games already, not sure about the other grounds though.