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Since it’s off season i decided to ask what does the future of the comp look like long term and what it means for the standalone clubs since it has become clear we are disposable to the afl and we will have to go without the afl some day
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If you pick up the first Terry Keenan book in the trilogy published in 2005 it also talks about a new competition and separation of AFL clubs from the VFL - we may be talking about the same thing in another 20 years time. I do feel that the AFL doesn’t care too much about our clubs and the recent Preston situation confirms this. I feel the only reason that the stand alone clubs are still there is because it’s in the too hard basket concerning what they do with them and also because it’s got minor importance to the AFL.
I think they are happy to have the old vfa clubs there for the time being.
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I mentioned it in the Preston thread (https://vflfooty.com/comment/74012#comment-74012) but since administration of the competition was handed to the AFL, it has purely been run to the benefit of the AFL.
I'm not sure that anything will change in the coming years because of the commission was to restructure, the AFL would have to put money in to effect those changes.
* It's time to restore the VFA name.
Yea the afl don’t want people to care about the grassroots as thats taking money off of them and your point about the afl only doing things for the good of themselves extends to all of football you got country and suburban clubs folding vfa clubs without a league meanwhile the game is being dominated from private school boys from the inner east. Maybe I am overly pessimistic but the game has never been in a worse spot
As long as the standalone clubs remain financially viable and competitive I don’t see a change from the status quo. Every few years there are talks about a national reserves comp, however that is used more as a bargaining chip so the AFL clubs get their way with the SANFL and WAFL. Look what the AFL has done over the years. Moved the Swans to Sydney so they could break the VFA stranglehold on Sunday football. Forced Fitzroy out of the comp. Forced the VFA be renamed VFL just to name a few.
It has gotten to the point that I hardly recognise the game with the annual rule changes.
Yea even as someone who’s only ever known the game in the afl era 6 years ago the game was different and a lot better too. I would love to see a breakaway with the best local clubs but that’s a pipe dream really and we have spent so long that at least a lot of young blokes expect me self couldn’t care less sad really