Changes to VFL team alignments looming from 2012

[MagpieBat]

http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/deadline-looms-for-vfl-team-decisions-20110727-1i0ck.html#ixzz1TL9nRO5U

[Presti35]

Geez its a tough one.

I love the VFL the way it is at the moment.

I did enjoy our alignment with Williamstown, but having a stand alone team has been fantastic.

Love playing at Vic Park for home games and its cool getting around the city for other away games.

I dont like the sounds of other teams having stand alone clubs and I dont like the sounds of old VFA teams being forced to change their names and colours to suit their AFL alignment.

So... either we go back to the old seconds competition or we continue with the AFL alignments. I just want to continue playing games at Vic Park, not as a curtain raiser to AFL games.

As far as the VFL goes, they are losing their identity. Bring back the Coburg Lions. Bring back the Box Hill Mustangs. Bring back the Preston Bullants. etc. etc. etc.

I think its a huge problem and I dont see how they are going to fix it.

Northern Blues is really really bad. It is terrible. It is disgusting.

Would it be possible to merge a seconds competition with the VFL?? Other teams can have curtain raisers at the MCG and other AFL venues, but I'd want all our home games at Vic Park. I supose Richmond could play at Punt road, Essendon at Windy Hill, etc, etc. Would that kill clubs like Frankston, Bendigo and Werribee??

Then you have interstate teams. Do they have stand alone clubs, or do they have alignments in their respective state leage?

And ofcourse there is the Foxtel Cup, which I think is a great idea, but after just one season it could be scrapped or have lost almost all interest if alignments are lost.

I dont know, its just a mess.

[MagpieBat]

My views on this pretty much line up with yours. I mean, the ex-VFA clubs have a proud history, and it would be more than just a shame to see that taken-over by some greedy AFL clubs that are too skint to field their own side.

Regarding sides like Frankston, Bendigo and Werribee, I've got a suspision that the way to go for these sides would be to pursue a regional identity path as stand alone teams. That is, becoming the official team of the greater municipal area (such as what Frankston are doing with the City of Frankston with their I Love Frankston promotion, or North Ballarat with the Ballarat council).

Werribee could go on a recruiting drive in the City of Wyndham Vale, which is one of the fastest growing areas of Melbourne. Bendigo, originally being a composite team (created in 1998, their old name is the Diggers), are currently in a similar arrangement with the City of Greater Bendigo. If Essendon bails out, Bendigo could remain in that arrangement and take up their old identity again. A composite team for all those non-Essendon Bendigo footy goers to support without holding their noses (any Bendigo-based Collingwood fans around here?). I doubt Essendon would let them keep the Bombers moniker anyway (you know how precious that club can be...)

I also want to stay at Vicky Park. We gave it up once before. Let's not do so again...

Would be great to have the AFL teams play at their old home grounds again. Thumping Richmond at Punt Road once again would be nice, for instance. And Geelong do reasonably well with having curtain-raisers at Kardinia Park.

If all the Victorian AFL sides went stand alone that would give us, what, 21 sides? So how do you organise it? Do you have a 21 team comp with, say, a top 10 or 12 and byes? Perhaps bring back the old VFA system of two divisions, working on a promotion/relegation system (would Mick be interested? ). Or maybe a system of conferences (eg: the new NEAFL), either organised by origin (all the old VFA teams in one conference and all the AFL stand alone sides in the other) or by random (all scrambled up?)

As for alignments, I reckon that alignments should come with strings attached for the AFL clubs. Rules such as you can't force changes to VFL club jumpers/songs/home grounds/nicknames, can only have a certain number of your AFL players in a side on game day (eg: bring back the 12/10 rule), etc.

One thing I do NOT want to lose: VFL matches on the ABC! Good commentary, decent humour, good local grounds, interesting characters and best of all no bloody ads! It's just a pity the ABC only show one match a round.

Might come back and write a longer piece after I've had some time to digest this news. I've got some ideas I'd like to flesh out...

[MagpieBat]

It's official - old Preston is to be no-more:

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/essendon-a-chance-to-stay-with-vfl-affiliate-bendigo/story-e6frf9jf-1226104683564

Not a take-over?! Me thinks the Bullants president is a bit like this guy:

http://www.welovetheiraqiinformationminister.com/images/07-minister.jpg

And the rub? The Scum will effectively have THREE sides, with the Bullants/Blues fielding a side in the VFL reserves as well as the VFL seniors!

I'm calling it - the dark hand of the AFL are trying to gift the Scum the 2012 AFL premiership!

[Presti35]

Get stuffed Carlton.

Bring in your own team like Collingwood and Geelong, rather than kill off a tradtional club like the Bullants.

What other team in sports are called the Bullants? Original name, original jumper. Gone.

This sucks!!

[MagpieBat]

Preston have one of the best and most unique guernseys going around in modern football. No fuss, just a simple red top with a white bullant.

Now to be buried and replaced by a knock-off of the jumper I hate the most in Aussie rules football.

The club that Ray Shaw once coached to back-to-back flags in 1983-84, that was once coached by the famous Cazaly himself, a club with such a rich history in Association football, is going to be torn down and pillaged by a bunch of septic penny-pinching thugs.

I HATE Carlton!

[cmfc_82]

For those of us from the north hoping that one day Carlton will piss off from their affiliate Preston allowing us to again, have a "soft-spot" for em, well, it just aint gonna happen now!!!

[Dr Pie]

What should happen is an end to the whole "alignment" system, which is mostly an attempt for AFL clubs to get a Reserves team on the cheap. The VFL should be restricted to clubs that were in the VFL before 1987. It would probably end up as an eight team comp, since South Melbourne and Fitzroy are beyond recall and North Melbourne and the team which should be called Footscray probably cannot afford stand alone teams. The other five clubs currently sponging off VFA clubs (Melbourne, Richmond, St Kilda, Hawthorn and Carlton) could afford stand alone clubs although Richmond may struggle for the first year or two.

At the same time the VFA should be revived. Preston, Coburg and Box Hill should be returned to their original names, jumpers, nicknames and homegrounds. The Scorpions should probably stay at Casey as Cranbourne is a stronger footy area than Springvale nowadays. Bendigo should be dissolved, it was always merely a front for Essendon and most locals seem to be more interested in the Bendigo League than the Bendigo Bombers.

This would of course lead to a drop in standard. Only Port Melbourne and maybe Williamstown could afford a team packed with recent AFL retirees and rejects such as the Borough currently fields. I think that is an acceptable price to pay for the survival of historical suburban clubs.

[MagpieBat]

Carlton seemed to have realized what Essendon knew in 2003: taking over and ransacking an existing VFL club will get you a stand-alone team on the cheap. Remember, for about five years the old Bendigo Diggers were a composite team to give the Bendigo area a presence in the new VFL, before the Bombers got their hooks into them...

As I mentioned, Carlton will effectively have THREE sides now, with teams in the AFL, VFL and VFL Reserves, while we only get two.

Are we unable to afford a VFL Reserves side for the rest of our top-up players? Or can't we be bothered? Or aren't we allowed to have one by the League?

I would have thought a VFL Reserves team would allow us to keep our top-up ranks in match fitness, as well as allowing for another option for returning senior players to match fitness... effectively being our "thirds". Could even play curtain raisers at Vicky Park!

[Presti35]

I think I mostly agree with Dr Pie, but gee the standards would drop!

Even just calling it the VFA again would be good.

I just love playing old VFA teams at Vic Park. If we lose the alignment system, then we'll never play those teams.

Would the intrest in the VFL also decline if we lost the alignments?

How about this?:

Port Melbourne (Stand alone).

Williamstown (Stand alone).

North Ballarat (Remain alinged with North Melbourne).

Northern Bullants (Reverts to Preston Bullants. Stand alone).

Casey Scorpions (Alinged with St Kilda).

Werribee Tigers (Alinged with Western Bulldogs).

Bendigo Bombers (Aligned with Essendon, or dispand as Essendon field their own team).

Box Hill Hawks (Remain aligned with Hawthown).

Sandringham (Back to alignment with Melbourne).

Geelong

Collingwood

Coburg Tigers (Reverts back to Coburg Lions, alignment with Richmond remains).

Frankston (Stand alone, or aligned with St Kilda).

Carlton (Introduce their own team).

14 team comp.

[MagpieBat]

Curioser and curioser...

http://www.bendigoadvertiser.com.au/news/local/sport/football-australian-rules/new-twist-to-bombers-plans/2247725.aspx

[Presti35]

Essendon; Have you cake and eat it too!

[MagpieBat]

I'd really like to see Bendigo become their own side again, away from Essendon. Would make for a bit of a road trip, watching the VFL Maggies play at QEO...

[MagpieBat]

Bendigo playing away to Werribee today, and they are wearing a clash strip!

Oh noes, the Bombers have changed their jumper. They'll all be ruined!

I think it looks quite good, myself...

[MagpieBat]

Jimmy James has been rolled...

http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/hirds-plans-shot-down-20110810-1imvo.html#ixzz1Uf4tnWlH