Every time I talk up the importance of our club not being just ‘footy focussed’, needing to be great commercially too (like Collingwood / Richmond/ Geelong etc) I get shouted down.
Reality is, our club has almost no cash reserves and needs to invest upwards of $50M to bring to life the redevelopment of Windy Hill as a community, AFLW and VFL centrepiece. The Hangar is now 10 years old (stage 1) and it too will need investment in the coming years. Point being, club needs to improve its commercial operations to fund improved facilities to facilitate attendance growth which is what we / AFLW need to do in the new CBA based on its new metrics.
There’s obviously a piece around procuring government and council assistance. And, I think there will be opportunities to soon buy a seat in the Reynolds Stand to help find vital sources of funding. Watch this space I say!
I have to say Sophie Alexander has started this season off really well. I was unsure about her last year but this year she’s been really good so far. Hope it continues!
No.
It won’t.
As I’ve mentioned a few times, when we win our first final and struggle to house 15k supporters to watch training, it’ll be an absolute meltdown.
In all aspects.
Tulla is Crown land and makes it difficult to do things quickly.
Windy Hill is landlocked.
As it is now, the opposition team’s change rooms are in the gymnasium.
The Windy Hill redevelopment at one stage was to put the AFLW footy department there. But there’s just not enough space for it and there’s too much cross over of staff to have them working in two different locations.
How to deal with this stuff needs planning now.
I’m sure they’ll get to it next year. But the way the building industry is, it’ll take four years minimum to go from feasibility study, authorities, design and building.
I think the club learned just how painful things can be when they installed the seating at Tulla.
Finally watched a replay…
Doonan is bloody dangerous in the first quarter in the forward line.
She has the running power to work up the ground.
Gets involved in the play without getting possessions.
I think it’s her best AFLW game.
She can break open games by winning a contested ball and running away.
Hopefully, she keeps getting selected.
Yeah.
That got me flummoxed.
There is a scrimmage at Whitten Oval tomorrow morning and I think she’s playing in that this weekend.
She doesn’t seem to have a midfield spot. She was having a good battle with Maddy P in one of the drills. Bannister and Clarke are played ahead of her. She seems in good spirits though.
You’ll be glad to know that Chaston and Bella joined in at training tonight. Uges as well. And Ashley Cooper too. There may have been a few more that I didn’t recognise.
