Very valid point. Think they should just can local footy completely and focus on the Indian market. Huge growth opportunities I’m hearing.
That is what migration is for. We could bring in Indians on footy scholarships and rule they have to play in the bush for three years. Maybe get Pauline on board.
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A declining local population would most certainly impact on player numbers. Economic factors are very small imo. Up here in Wide Bay (Qld), our local competition is struggling for numbers, despite the population tripling in the past 20 years. Our local economy is booming, thanks to construction, health care and NDIS handouts. Perhaps it is the nature of migration to our area, as health care workers are rarely into contact sport.
I blame the schoolteachers! Why not? Twenty-odd years ago we had our two local high school beating the crap out of each other and kids wagging school to come and watch. Now we have two high schools with over 1000 students each and we don’t even play each other. Private Schools? Not interested. PE? Oz tag, touch, soccer is the go.
We just had one team pull out of the A-Grade comp, pushing us back to four teams again. They only want to play Ressies, where they won’t get belted by 100 points every week.
Insurance is a killer. The whole Marsh insurance thingo is a scam. Wildly expensive and offers stuff-all. Adds a couple of hundred dollars to the cost for each player however. How this gets past ASIC is beyond me. As noted above, PlayHQ is a pain. PlayHQ loves telling people they can’t register and to see their administrator. That’s me! Stuffed if I know. The game certainly needs to be cheaper. Umpire costs alone require us to drink thousands of beers to just break even. If it wasn’t for sponsors, we would have to close the doors.
What can the AFL do? Reduce costs and promote the game for a start. Maybe think outside the box. Do juniors really need to play 18 a side on a ground on the size of the MCG, where it takes fifteen kicks to reach the other end. AFL X anyone? More teams equals, less travel. Hervey Bay to Bundaberg is a lot of fuel. If we don’t get kids playing, we won’t get seniors.
Getting hurt and missing work is certainly a concern. A hard one. Cheap shots and deliberately trying to injure your opponent is a feature of local footy. A harsher interpretation of unduly rough play might help.
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Good cricket club though.
Played in the premier grand final. Five Sri Lankans though, and all of them 35 plus. Dennington’s best footballers play for South Warrnambool though (which doesn’t have a cricket club). One of the expected top MSD picks is Lucas Herbert who plays for Geelong VFL but played for South down here at Port Fairy a fortnight ago.
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Sounds like a very nasty incident. Not in the news article but have read a few claims the involved player required CPR.
Unfortunately looks like the young fella is going to pass away.
https://www.facebook.com/100046026883425/posts/1740157630861783/?mibextid=rS40aB7S9Ucbxw6v
Had some indirect involvement with this at work this morning. Guy is a teacher at a college in the northern suburbs, very well-liked apparently, and numerous students were at the game and witnessed the incident. Must’ve been traumatic for everyone there from what I was told.
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I feel as though in these instances the news always focusses on the fact the person played football, cricket etc but there is always another story and other people affected in there.
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Absolutely horrible news. Life support was turned off last night.
It’s actually very close to Essendon given Zach Johnson’s dad is a teacher at the same school.
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