AFL Tasmania would need to sign a Heads Of Agreement. Possibly two.
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it would be established in Hobart, with most games played there
but they would play 2-4 home games in launceston and 1-2 at West Park for the north westerners
assuming Hawks don’t play here anymore.
I guess similar to how suns play some games in cairns
AFL could give them first rights to prelist any Tassie kids before the draft etc, would help with community support and players chance to stay in TAS. And to develop more Tasmanian players so are ready for the elite level.
I still fail to see there is the money to support an AFL team in Tasmania - M guess is player retention will also be an issue.
You’re showing your age with comments like that!
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Some time ago when Hird was with Gembs, he reportedly did a study commissioned by the AFL which indicated that a Tasmanian team could be viable.
AFL finances currently hit hard by COVID might not be capable of the long term support needed to establish a club in Tasmania, particularly given the shortage of sponsorship prospects. However, Colbeck as Minister for Sport might be able to tap into Fed funds.
In a close election, Tasmanian votes can determine which party governs, or which one gets more power in the Senate.
I suppose an analysis would be needed as to how much a team would influence votes in the House and Senate.
Why would there be a shortage of sponsors when nationwide exposure is available? They would get shown on TV just like the rest of the teams.
I was thinking of sponsorship from within Tasmania and how much could be raised by coteries and membership.
The ACT location for a team was never much of an option because no big rich private sector, sponsorship went mostly to League and Rugby and the ACT government was not prepared to allocate funding to Australian rules. ACT stopped funding North Melbourne presence.
Always wondered if one of the main blockers on a Tassie team might be players not really wanting to live there, but preferring the bigger Cities & warmer Weather on the Mainland, therefore highlighting player retention as a problem?
I’ve read many an article or report about how the motivated Young folk head to the Mainland in droves for Uni, Jobs & lifestyle ASAP for 2 decades now.
Gold Coast is a big ‘city’ and is pretty warm; how have they gone with player retention?
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I knew someone would do the “Whatabouting” despite it not being relevant to or addressing the query.
There’s a lot of folk heading to Tassie as well these days, but they are more on the mature side and/or non footy interested types.
I think your claim of the youngens heading to the north island was a thing 20-25 years ago and was, as you said, for the reason of lifestyle and Tassie being a bit sleepy.
But these days Tassie does have many of the things that young people thought they were missing out on e.g. cricket, AFL, concerts, nightlife, cafes and restaurants. And now that you can jump on a plane to Melb for 39 bucks and get cheap accommodation, its not such a thing to not be in one of the big cities.
I’m also not sure how jobs (or lack of) would be a retention issue for an AFL player who had a job to play football.
The major issue for a team in Tassie will be $$$$ and bums on seats, especially in the years after the novelty of a team wears off (and when the team is not successful).
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It wasn’t,… I said young’ns were leaving for them. (Uni etc)
If there aren’t a lot of young folk there, it would make it that much more dull for young men there was the point.
I take on board what you said re getting better, & I’ll take your word for it, but the last time I saw a report about them leaving wasn’t that long ago.
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… and maybe I’m not young enough to know. 
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Adelaide’s 5 times the size of Hobart.
It’s just small. That’s the thing. And population growth is going the right way, but it still isn’t strong. So it will continue to be the thing. From the league’s POV, they’d need to see an extraordinary business case to give it the time of day.
Right now it’s like the Melbourne Sydney high speed rail. An excuse for consultants to waste a few hundred grand on a feasibility study every 2 years.
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Should Tasmania have had a team in the 22 team reserves competition, which included teams like Southport and Broadbeach?
could have added a team or two from tasmania and had 2 conferences of 12 teams.
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So it’s true about the landing strips or complete deforestation ?
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And the digging of coal, if you want to go deeper
Finish your leaching and Fark off!
AFL Tasmania crisis: Premier demands team, threatens to end Hawthorn and North Melbourne deals
Tasmanian premier Peter Gutwein has sent a formal letter to the AFL threatening to end multimillion-dollar contract negotiations with Hawthorn and North Melbourne beyond 2021.
The letter, which was sent to league headquarters in recent days, demands the AFL to lock into a timetable for the introduction of a stand-alone Tasmanian team.
Until then, the state has declared it will not engage in conversations with the two Melbourne-based clubs who are entering the final year of lucrative deals to play four home games each in Tasmania.
Hawthorn president Jeff Kennett said he feared a stand-alone Tasmanian AFL side could be a financial “disaster” for the state and the code unless it received substantial, long-term funding from the state government.
Kennett told the Herald Sun on Thursday night that while the Hawks wanted to renew its two-decade long association with Tasmania, the club was already looking at potential exit strategies in case a new deal was off the table.
“From Hawthorn’s point of view, we have been there for 20 years, we have invested a great deal of time and effort into Tasmania and we would like to stay,” Kennett said.
“However, we have to think about our own obligations to our members.
“We would be irresponsible as club administrations if we weren’t considering all options now.”
North Melbourne chief executive Ben Amarfio said the Kangaroos remained committed to trying to strike a deal to extend their association with Tasmania.
But unless a resolution or a compromise is found — and soon — the league faces the prospect of no AFL matches in Tasmania in 2022 and beyond.
A spokesman for the Tasmanian Government confirmed Gutwein had a phone conversation with McLachlan after the letter had been sent and expected an answer back from the AFL in the coming days.
“The Premier has recently written to the AFL in relation to Tasmania’s continued bid for an AFL licence,” the spokesman said.
“We understand that there was an AFL Commission meeting this week which included discussion on a potential Tasmanian AFL licence.
“The Premier has had a telephone conversation with Mr McLachlan subsequent to this meeting and been advised that he will receive a response to his letter in coming days.”
Kennett understood the frank nature of Gutwein’s ultimatum and said the Hawks would accept the AFL’s decision.
But he feared that unless the Tasmanian Government was able to substantially underwrite the finances of a potential 19th AFL franchise in Tasmania for a number of years, it could prove “disastrous”.
“I appreciate the Premier putting it in those (frank) terms. He is entitled to do that as he is the Premier of a Sovereign State,” he said.
“But I would hate Tasmania to throw out Hawthorn and North Melbourne and end up with a team that is so financially bereft that it can’t compete.
“It would be a disaster for Tassie, it would be a disaster for the AFL and we know the AFL has had a tough year (in 2020).
“They have no liquid funds per se and this year we have already border closures, so we have no idea what this year will bring.”
Kennett said if the AFL did give Tasmania the go-ahead for a stand-alone, the Hawks had committed to providing whatever assistance it could.
Amarfio said: “We are aware that Premier Gutwein has written to the AFL and we are sure the AFL will respond in due course.”
“What I will say however is that we want to continue our association with Tasmania because we have a strong connection through our thousands of members and supporters and our valued partner Spirit of Tasmania.
“Tasmania is a staunch Aussie rules football state and we want it to remain that way. We have been investing and playing in Tassie on a regular basis for almost a decade and we are committed to doing everything we can to help football flourish there.”
The Tasmanian Task Force recommended the state have its own stand-alone AFL team by 2025, but any thoughts of that was put on hold owing to the league’s devastating financial squeeze caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Gutwein set the scene for the standoff last month when he suggested he was willing to push the contract negotiations back until the AFL provided a clearer picture on the future of football in the state.
But his letter has escalated that with an answer from the AFL set to soon determine a pathway for football in the state.
The AFL said last night it had no comment on the matter, but said it would continue to hold discussions with the Tasmanian Government.
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Either the Tasmanian Government blinks or there will be no footy in Tassie for 2022.