An emotional night beckons on Friday in the regional town of Bendigo as the town’s VFL side runs out onto Queen Elizabeth Oval for the last time.
It is a sad end for the team, who will play Collingwood. It is also a sad end for the town, as it will no longer be represented by a football club.
For 17 seasons the club had a presence in the heart of the region and the decision not to renew the club’s license is a stark look at the future of the VFL competition. Formed in 1998 as the Bendigo Diggers, the club struggled both on and off the field, until it formed an alliance with Essendon at the end of the 2002 season.
Essendon’s alliance provided much needed relief for the club. This also meant changing the name to the Bendigo Bombers and wearing the Red and Black colours.
At times, the relationship was not always friendly, as Bendigo folded its reserve side in the AFL development league and started playing home games at Windy Hill.
However, with the likes of Collingwood and Geelong already fielding their own reserves teams, and the great success they’ve had at AFL level as a result of being able to develop their young players, Essendon ended its 10-year alliance to field its own reserves team.
Sadly, this would be the downfall for the Bendigo team, as a lack of AFL support and the not having a social club, so there was no pokies revenue highlighted the struggles Bendigo faced. To top it all off, the club shared Queen Elizabeth Oval with two teams from the Bendigo football league – so more often than not it the team was forced to train at different ovals.
The lack of funding also hurt the team in terms of local talent as many TAC Cup players who were overlooked in the draft would either play at other VFL teams or chase the big bucks in the local leagues.
Coach Austin Jones knew it was going to be a tough task to make the team competitive, but not to the extent that the club would no longer exist beyond the 2014 season.
As an avid VFL fan it’s a glum feeling to know that a town which has produced the likes of Nick Dal Santo, Dustin Martin and of course the Selwood brothers won’t be represented at the highest possible level of football.
Win, lose or draw, let’s hope that the 18,000 seat capacity of Queen Elizabeth is full of locals cheering the team on for the very last time.
Who’s in your ultimate team? Pick the best team and compete with other fans for daily prizes on Draftstars. For the best odds on the game try out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Think. Is this a bet you really want to place? Set a deposit limit.
We’re taking a look at one player from each team that needs to make a difference this week, starting with the ANZAC Day games.
The Channel 9 commentator believes if anyone got a free kick it should have been Essendon for in the back not to Adelaide for…
Controversy has erupted following Essendon's thrilling three-point victory over Adelaide, with an umpire under fire for his decision to not award the Crows a…
Over the next few days, all discussion of Essendon's three-point win over Adelaide will likely centre on the decision, in the final seconds of…
Round 5 of the AFL provided plenty of action, from big scorelines to upset wins and pressure starting to build on some clubs and coaches already.
It's the seven-minute mark of the final quarter. Essendon lead the Western Bulldogs by 19 points in a match that has, since halfway through…
