This article may interest a few on here
Far out !!!..that slipped under the radar. If true, you can bet your bottom dollar that WCE and Freo will be pinching up and coming young players from other WAFL clubs left right and centre. It will also reduce the WAFL back to 8 teams. It would be hugely expensive for the AFL clubs and not sure what they’d gain from it tbh.
How does that reduce the WAFL to 8 teams BC? Are you assuming Peel becomes part of Fremantle reserves? I doubt that.
So the AFL will have control of the tier 1 + 2 competitions in Australia. The AFL ressies will cost a fortune to run with flights all over the country.The AFL clubs will need a big increase in salary caps.Players from the AFL runs colts will go straight into the AFL ressie system.And top up players will be recruited from the Wafl.Sanfl+Vfl.
Will be interesting what the AFL forward plans are here..And is there a future past 2022 for the Wafl.VFL+Sanfl.Do they become tier 3 competitions. The Wafl has survived the introduction of 2 àfl sides.The loss of the colts and soon ressies.Not sure it can survive the introduction of an elite tier 2 AFL reserves competition.
How does that reduce the WAFL to 8 teams BC? Are you assuming Peel becomes part of Fremantle reserves? I doubt that.
[/quote]
Either that or the alignment is dissolved and Freo puts together its own ressies and we go back to 9 teams in the WAFL…personally I’d prefer Peel to pi$$ off all together.
My assumption is that like the initial decision to expand the VFL that self same process will occur, the other teams reserves will play in an expanded VFL but it will be called the AFL reserves with the unaligned victorian teams either bailing into local leagues or just being funded by the AFL with the QFL, NEAFL, SANFL and WAFL left out to fight over the scraps.
If that is the case then there are some positives but the negatives far out wiergh them by the length of the phlemmington strait.
Grump would there be a Ressie salary cap.Or would it be included in the main clubs salary cap.AFL ressies might be worth a lot more money for the fill in players..
Other than for the Victorian clubs I cannot see how this afl reserves comp will be beneficial financially, logistically and the many other negatives for any of- WCE, Freo, Adel, Port, Bris, GCS, SS or GWS?
Don’t know just surmising!
If this does happen, it will signal the end the WAFL SANFL or what is left of it..
There will not be enough talent left at that level to support a semi professional league what will affectively be a 3 rd tier comp. The comp will become totally irrelevant to the top level of football and most supporters.
This begs the question about financial viability of the WAFL as funds will no longer be directed to WAFL, the host club deals will end and the WAFC will be forced to accept lower payments from the two AFL teams here as they fund a reserves set up…draft fees will be just about gone as well long term. If the WAFL doesn’t control the Colts and AFL teams can funnel players into reserves then the funds will end.
The future would most likely be some sort of top level Amateur League merger with a reduced number of sides.
You wouldn’t need a reserves salary cap as each club has just over 40 listed players with rookies covering long term injuries. Seniors use 22 + one spare, about 6 -8 on short term injury means the reserves would need up to a dozen top ups which most Victorians clubs already have. If they play as a curtain raiser then only additional costs are flying/accommodation for approx 30 who are travelling interstate
The NEAFL has been a year to year proposition for couple of years now because a number of the non-AFL clubs regularly threaten to slip back a level to the QAFL or AFL Sydney because they struggle to be competitive. The AFL seem to be worried that the NSW/Qld Reserves sides will therefore not have an adequate competition for them and have seen now as the best time to announce a timeframe to phase in a return to a Reserves competition.