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This week’s grand final has put a compression bandage over the AFL’s wounds of 2016.
The bandage has not stopped the bleeding, just managed the cut until they get themselves off to hospital in the upcoming weeks.
The AFL could not have hoped for a better decoy or result really, unless it was GWS versus the Bulldogs, bringing a slight redemption to their failed expansion scheme of five years ago.
I say failed, because the financial and membership support of GWS and the Suns, compared to the figures of the worst established club of the league, five years on that road, leaves a lot to be desired.
With limited seats last weekend, the Bulldogs still had more support at Spotless!
Bums on seats create football clubs, not just when you are winning, but when you are losing.
That is why the Bulldogs deserve the win this week, their loyal and faithful supporters, have continued to show up and support through 55 years of no return.
The euphoria of our two largest cities’ western suburbs teams battling it out for premiership honours would have made for a greater story, considering the residing demographic of our games supporters come from the working masses of these two cities.
The AFL will still be pleased as it serves up dinner for two, with one third of the audience using cutlery and then the remaining two thirds, the sentimentalists, eating straight off the plate with their hands.
The upper house versus the lower house, the Swan versus the Dog. The Swans have been showered in success after moving to the Harbour City, a move forced by the VFL’s need for expansion in the 1980s toward a national competition. It still took over 20 years of doubt, failures and controversy of that relocation to finally see silverware in the cabinet.
The other team, the scrappers of the competition, were the victim of their own publicity and nearly fell under the bus they so proudly ride.
If Oakley and the committee of the day had got it right, then we would be looking at a different scenario this Saturday – with the Swans versus the Western Roos, or the Western Lions.
In truth, that fight forced the AFL to look interstate for its expansion opportunities, forced them down the hard road of starting new franchises, and not remain on the path they were on, of relocating current franchises.
The expansion game is played with less risk, if the team already has a dedicated supporter base in Melbourne. Although they are still trying to incentivise the move of a current franchise to Tasmania or Canberra.
I once had the opportunity to read a 15-year plan developed secretly by a high profile figure in the game’s administration of that time, outlining his vision for a truly national/international competition.
The focus brief was simple, we want as many cities/regions as possible supporting an AFL team!
It was thought that Victoria would house six clubs, NSW would have two, Queensland would have three – with two in the south east and one being in North Queensland.
The Northern Territory would have one, South Australia would have three, Western Australia would have three, ACT one, Tasmania one and New Zealand one.
This would be a total of 22 teams, who play each other once in a regular season, with each team having 11 home games.
The plan outlined that the six Victorian teams would be Essendon, Collingwood, Melbourne, Carlton, Geelong and Richmond, with Footscray, North Melbourne, Hawthorn, Fitzroy, St Kilda the teams to be relocated and amalgamated to new states.
The failures of the VFL/AFL to sell the game to the north eastern states is not their fault, it is just misguided arrogance to think that the entire state of NSW/ Queensland will swap their rugby boots for Aussie Rules boots. It will never happen no matter the money they throw at it.
The general consensus of true blood Queenslanders and New South Welshmen is that AFL football has no rules, has no structure or system, is impossible to understand, because the rules change each week.
Somehow the powers that be have created a game unrecognisable to the same game of 15 years ago.
The simple folk of NSW and Queensland don’t warm to the game, because they don’t understand it, to them it is aerial ping pong, and the only game in the world where you get a point for missing?
The AFL have to stop creating a game of politics and create a game of incentive. Stop hiding behind the focus groups and get out into the suburbs and see what is going on. The direction of our game is up to the people to decide, stop ignoring the people and making it all about money.
Once upon a time our administration worked for the love of it, I am not suggesting that be the case, just drop a zero or two.
This weeks grand final brings the sentiment back into the game. The traditionalists will feel like it is the first game of footy they have seen or more importantly felt for ten years.
The AFL could make some inroads on their reputation this week and shorten the bridge between the bureaucracy of the game and the people who pay to enjoy it.
Good luck Footscray, my heart says you deserve it, my head says you will be beaten by a better team.
But thank you for putting the F back into football.
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