On the weekend I went to the Noble Park v Vermont match which was played at Noble Park. They are in the Eastern Football League 1st Division.
Noble Park has facilities which would put any VFL club to shame.
They have pokies, a lounge area as well as a TAB.
You can also watch the game from the balcony area which is under cover.
Of the cuurent VFL clubs the social clubs are ranked as follows :
North Ballarat
Probably as close to Noble park of the VFL teams. Has heaps of dollars due to pokies and greast longe area.
Frankston
Has good viewing area as well as small area for pokies.
Sandringham
Good size social club with greta trophy cabinet on show. There was a band playing at the social club after the game.
Werribee
Also has a good social club with good viewing area.
Box Hill
It is ok but too small
Williamstown
Still uses a shelter shed. Wait until 2008 until new social is built in the back of the current stand.
Preston
Smallish but cosy social club with VFA feel to it.
Casey
Can get too packed but will no doubt extend in near future.
Bendigo
Has area in the half forward flank.
Also has old Sandhurst rooms which is a relic.
Port Melbourne
Great atmoshere in the back of the old grandstand.
Geelong
Geelong Social club tabaret area.
It is ok but cannot watch games from there.
York Park- Aurora Stadium is not too bad. The older bar downstairs is ok but can get too crammed.
Devonport Oval- good old fashion social club.
North Hobart- a bit like Sandhurst on Queen Elizabeth Oval. An old relic.
Coburg
Part of grandstand burnt which affected part of social club. Very small but worth a visit.
Forums
VFA,
Funnily enough i was also at the Noble Park Vs Vermont game & you are right Noble Park do have good facilities. Pretty good standard of footy was played too.
I was at Noble Park v. Vermont, plenty of spectators, very hot pies and icy cold beer.
Yet another who attended this game,didn't have a "rat coffin"but i can vouch for the beer.
Excellent crowd,fantastic facilities,high standard of play but i left a bit cross eyed trying to tell who was who,both wore almost identical colour scheme.
If the Springvale shift doesn't succeed Noble Park could look at joining the VFL,they wouldn't be out of place.
I've no idea how ambitious a club they are but Noble Park C.C have already won 2 championships since joining Sub-District about 6 or 7 years ago?
Be interested in anyone's opinions who might know more about them.
I think Noble Park is a fair way from Casey Fields, so they [i]could [/i]probably both play in the VFL.
But I doubt any metropolitan club would actually want to come up to the VFL nowdays, if it would just mean becoming someone else's reserves team.
I think Noble Park is a fair way from Casey Fields, so they [i]could [/i]probably both play in the VFL.
But I doubt any metropolitan club would actually want to come up to the VFL nowdays, if it would just mean becoming someone else's reserves team.[/quote]
No reason for them to be somebody elses "reserves team".
I think you might find that they enjoy being a biggish fish in a smallish pond.
Would like to think that they actually had the balls to have a try but they wouldn't be quite up to the standard at the moment.
Would take them a couple of years of struggling to get up to the pace, and their ego's might not handle it.
They would have to go on a recruiting spree just to be competitive. But I think until either Port Melbourne or Frankston wins a premiership, there will be a view that stand-alone clubs cannot lead the league. (I'm not saying that it's necessarily right, I'm just saying it's what people think.)
Can understand why VFA said such facilities would put VFL social clubs to facilties, but then again not all VFL clubs are made of money.
This is a different story in local football, a lot of players are chosing to leave the VFL due to there being more money available at the level below.
Not 100% sure, but i think they might have already attempted to join the VFL, money i don't think is any issue, with the pokies and TAB. something i think that springvale applied for were pokies however were rejected.
Someone would surely know more on the issue, does anyone know:
1. if they did attempt to join VFL
2. Reasons why (if they did attempt) they were rejected
3. how long ago it was??
That's just my point. They would need to build for a couple of years.
I remember a year or two back there was an article in the Dandy paper stating they spoke to the VFL about representing the Dandenong area when Springvale said they wanted to go to Casey.
Not sure what sort of response they got or if they were serious about joining though.