Garlick resigns as CEO of Western Bulldogs

But you have to factor in the television audience of European soccer and/or the EPL. Watching Perth Glory would be like watching the WAFL to an AFL follower because it is not the elite competition that people pay to watch, at least not in great numbers.

A few months ago I got to thinking about Melbourne's plight, after seeing them struggle to kick 3 goals in a game last season. The commentary team talked about the improvement they had made over the season, but I couldn't see it, so I compared Melbourne's last 10 years with Fitzroy's last 10, and found they were almost exactly the same in terms of games won and lost, and percentage. I think the only thing in Melbourne's favour was that they have had 2 draws in that time. Fitzroy averaged 6.5 wins per season over their last 10 years, Melbourne have averaged 6.3. Not that I think Melbourne should go, but it is something to think about.

I don't disagree at all. I think the powers that be wont let Melbourne fail. I think th Dog and Roos do a great job of representing those newer immigrant communities and this will be part of the reason they will edge out St Kilda over their long term.

And 3 years ago the Crows CEO said that Port Adel were damaging the AFL brand in S.A. He, of course, went on to really damage the AFL brand & the Crows. Go back another 3 years & Port Adel had played in the Grand Final. That disaster is the main reason Port fell so far - something most AFL clubs would find it just as difficult to recover from. Now, 7 years on Port Adel is tipped as a likely grand finalist. 50,000 members at this time of season may not be the financial cure-all, but it sure demonstrates the resilience & heart of Australian football.

"That's how bad it was and 3 years ago is not a long time indeed." Hahaha..... They say a week is a long time in football.

Not at club level though, WA is plenty ahead and IMO is the real important stat, plenty of QLD participation is focused at school level, which although good is not saturday morning club level.

I'm surprised that Qld has more participants than WA but I think you're right. I just read that Qld is the fastest growing state for AFL.

I'm not so sure of that Don. Both teams have their fair share of bogans but I think Freo wins the chocolates on this one

Andy - I'd suggest that fans for a 3rd WA club would come from a number of sources. Where they located the team is critical and the stakeholders involved would need to do their research before any commitments were made. I'll take a stab at some possibilities North or South of Perth city seems the most obvious choice ie Joondalup area for the North (167,000 residents) and Mandurah/Rockingham region for the South (200,000 residents). They are among the fastest growing cities in WA, if not Australia and seeing this is many years away there will be more potential fans if and when the time comes. They would gain fans that live in proximity to these cities and in the case of the Southern option they would also tap into the WA South-West region which includes Bunbury, Margaret River, Busselton and lot's of smaller towns. For example, I was a Cats fan and lived in Geelong for a few years as a young kid. The family moved to WA when i was 13 and when WC joined the comp I switched allegiances. Mainly because I wanted to see my team play more than once a year. Not everyone will swap teams but maybe enough of them to create the base it would need.

The average crowd at Perth Glory home games this season is 8,703 and they are top of the ladder. I know soccer is growing in popularity but those numbers tell me that it has a very, very long way to go in WA.

Andy - I've I've spent quite a few years in WA as my folks and some family live there but I've spent a lot of years away also.

Plenty of people would buy memberships to a new team, people on waiting lists, people who could not be bothered to get on a waiting list, people who do not like Freo or WCE, etc More than enough for a 3rd team.

I would have thought it is obviously the 30something thousand people who are unable to buy Freo or WCE memberships...

I still don't have an answer to my question- what supporter demographic might a new Perth team target? When Freo joined, the West Coast fans who went to them were mostly people who were working class and/or lived in the Fremantle area. These were people who identified strongly with the club's symbols and with the history of the WAFL clubs around Fremantle. Now that a healthy West Coast-Freo rivalry has formed and the two clubs have supporter bases largely divided along demographic lines, where exactly would a third club eat into that, especially if West Coast and Freo are playing well come that time? Would they target the domestic mining immigrants? Overseas immigrants? Aboriginal communities? Well?

Some of the discussion on here has switched to Perth and its suburbs where the migrant population exceeds 40%. (The average is 37%) The migrants themselves if interested in sport or not are aware of Soccer and Basketball before they arrive. So what do they do if they want their kids to play sport. This is the big question and a bigger challenge for our game. Read the article below and even if it is based on Melbourne experiences they are similar around the country. http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/essendons-david-zaharakis-admits-afl-faces-battle-to-attract-youngsters-20150122-12w2cz.html Just as a footnote AFL Victoria is reporting for 2014 that participation has jumped to a record 290,998 up from 267857 in 2013. Have not seen 2014 figures for WA but in 2013 the total was 161,429. QLD is really pushing things along with a jump to 180,132 from 157,704 in 2013. Will be interesting to see if QLD has passed WA. Do not have any more 2014 figures ATM.

I agree and disagree with this to some extent Don. When I initially mentioned at the start a possible relocation to the west, it was in reference to a potential Melbourne based team folding. Now due to contractual TV rights, there has to be 18 teams and the AFL would just prop up any struggling club due to their abundant resources. However, should one of these 4 clubs become a financial burden, then I think a possible relocation is on the cards that would coincide with any new TV deal. There is still 3 years on the current deal and I don't think anyone is going during this time period. Therefore these clubs have an 8 year window (assuming of course the next deal is 5 years, but Gill has mentioned a possible 10 year deal) to show their sustainability. Now the only place in Australia that is strong enough to take on a 'transplant' as you put it would be Perth. No where else has the ability to do this if the AFL wanted to cut dead weight and maintain an 18-team competition. I agree that Perth would also have the capacity to have it's own team outright, and is the more likely of the two scenarios to occur should a third team be introduced into Perth. Coinciding this with a new TV deal would also work well for the AFL, because although the number of teams would be the same, it's another game that could be played in a prime-time ratings slot here in the easter states - meaning greater negotiating power with the networks. Now that's a winner for all concerned and is why I give a window of about 8 years to these clubs. If they are self sustained...they stay with a possible third team in it's own right comes into the competition about a decade from now in Perth. This would then be followed shortly after by a 20th team hopefully in Tassie. That's what I would like to see personally if these Melbourne clubs can get their **** together.

@ dalgety, there is 2 or 3 types of migrants when it comes to footy. 1) They readily and enthusiastically embrace our game. 2) Initially are totally confused, don't like it but given a couple of years embrace it and become the most passionate supporters. 3) Don't like it never will. Footy really cuts through the multicultural barrier in Perth IMO.

There is virtually zero serious competition from other codes here. Aussie Rules definitely dominates. British and the Southern European migrants and their kids have readily adapted to the native game. A third team would be a healthy addition to reduce the media fawning that goes on over WC in WA, but that's a local thing and I don't think the AFL are interested in non-pioneering reasons for adding teams.

Most corporate types are suppressed bogans. They both leave a trail of victims.

Not quite right. WCE totally owns the bogan element. WCE is Commodore and Landcruiser utes. Freo is Citroens, Skodas, Old Alfas and Morris 1100s. ( I have a Renault and a Skoda)