These academies are a disgrace. Only reason they exist is to ensure the game grows in NRL heartland where there is growth for the AFL. These 4 clubs are extremely unlikely to slide down the ladder while it exists
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Not even close to the top 10 blitz rants
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The AFL wants these clubs to be successful so people will support them.
This is correct, I’d say the AFL would admit that……so, close thread?
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Look at Sydney Swans. ‘Bloods Culture’. Their 4 best players Warner, Gulden, Heeney and Blakey. All will be All Aus and the 3 latter are Academy prospects. 1.5 games clear on top they aren’t even in the top 8 without their academy rubbish
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Bringing it up because I don’t know how you expect clubs like Norf to climb ladder when clubs who make GF get the best kids for free in draft. GC 3 in the top 15 and many many many more next few years
Why do Swans and Lions even get this? They have access to FS which is nowhere near as good as academies
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Whinge whinge farking whinge.
You are not winning hearts and minds to your otherwise noble crusade
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GC and GWS operate at millions of dollar losses while big clubs like us prop them up. Then they get perks on top of that lol. And we haven’t won a final for 20 years. Yeah the club has had a hinge to the AFL the other day haha
You answered this in your opening post.
That is the issue. We sit here just accepting it while these clubs win finals while we go nowhere
Likely hard for you to imagine, but these, have done some great things for footy here in a Northern state.
I work at Rugby Union school, a proper big one. A few of us footy nuts have always found a way to enter school Aussie rules teams in whatever competitions we can find. In recent years, this has been in the form of the “Schools Cup.”
We have been a part of some unbelievable games of footy in this competition, and made some wonderful runs to the state finals. This has been on the back of the academy programs. I would love to claim our coaching, but the reality is we play more games than sessions done. We do, however, have anywhere from 10-15 kids each year who have been in an AFL club academy program at some stage because the local AFL team found them and brought them in. These kids help bring wins, and attract new kids to the sport who join local clubs. No longer do we need to find randoms on gameday to play who don’t know any rules. Now, the only kids playing for us who have not played much are talented athletes keen to see what it is like. It has been amazing to see.
3/4 kids will play Senior footy tomorrow in my city who had not played before they turned 15.
Developmentally, I do not like the academies. They specialise early and can be a meat market. But they are not a farce in a competition that could be described as a farce. Until you live in these places, you can not appreciate what they do for the sport.
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No issue with having academies. Just can go anywhere on draft night
don’t complain when they go home then…
Does"t help that we’ve shat the bed for the last 20 years. Got to help yourself bro.
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To paraphrase the psychedelic Dylan, Donovan, ‘Ah Windyhangar, you might as well chase the wind…
Yep I won’t. That’s a risk taking them
We don’t do that ■■■■ around here.
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