The AFL has labelled the last 5 years from their perspective as a learning phase. The AFL prior to this time frame seemed more embarrassed than anything about calls from certain quarters for more support for international playing/development of the game.

A few people though – in at head office saw potential. Former AFL commissioner Colin Carter (of late work with Crawford on the Cricket review, and is now President of GeelongFC) on a personal basis got involved in South AFrica. And game development manager Dave Matthews did his best given it was a low priority in his portfolio.

Over the last 2-3 years, we’ve seen the AFL institute a full time international manager (Tony Woods), introduce 2 international sides in the National U16s championships (Div 2), and more recently sign an MOU with the Fed Govt (DFAT) to help promote the game. (among a fair few other positive steps).

The signs are there that the AFL is now taking it seriously, and during the IC back in Aug they put forward some framework of goals for the near future.

Probably one of the more important things that might happen soon might be a PNG side in the NEAFL.

The AFL has never really spent any significant amount of money on international footy. But, for fans of it, the annoyance is the players seeking to extract every last million to divvy up when even a single million towards international footy would be a big thing!

The old adage – the only good footy jumper is one your gran can knit.

Adam – I tend to agree. For the AFL clubs, part of it I think has been a recognition of the value of their own heritage. The new world marketing 101 driven generic names and trendy designs that kicked in through the ’90s, hopefully, is dead and buried. With clubs having history’s dating back to the mid/late 1800s – it’s something to savour and promote.

Peter, I think the Clive Palmer article link above illustrates that even the filthy rich (Australian perspective) owners aren’t happy losing millions annually.

The comparison to Manchester Utd I wouldn’t think to be a business model that an A-League club would aspire to in the short term!! Currently the entire league is trying to consolidate it’s position. A business model reliant upon the largesse of wealthy people in such a competitive sporting (football of all codes) market as Australia could not (in my opinion) be seen as wise.

Also, the ridiculous amount of money the AFL got? If it was ridiculous, do you then suggest that similar ridiculous amounts will naturally flow to NRL and FFA? or do you see the AFL premise as flawed whilst the NRL and FFA as not so? I’m just curious about how to ihterpret your statement.

for what it’s worth,

I agree with Fuss re Andy Maher,
I also tend to agree on the potential polarising nature of the ‘We are football’ campaign. It’ll annoy the ‘heathens’ and perhaps engender pride in the faithful.

However, I’ve seen enough of the moderates around the place who don’t like the antagonism, and I wonder how they’ll react.

and the Michael Cockerill piece, if only he could’ve followed Fuss’s position from the first paragraph of the first comment on this thread. It’s time Cockerill got over it (the failed WC bid – because his incessant whing is really annoying and he fails to view the topic from the real world).

bigears –
I don’t doubt that there’s grass roots attendance at soccer. But, what makes you believe that’s not the case elsewhere? Parents, friends etc turn up all around the country (I’m thinking Aust footy here, but, no doubt RL and RU people would suggest likewise). Actually Aust Footy requires more of the ‘attendees’ to be engaged in match day roles probably than any other of the codes (not necessarily a good thing, just a statement).

From an Aust Footy perspective, the level below the AFL sees good attendances across the VFL, SANFL, WAFL etc.

At the more community level, local Grand Finals in country and metro leagues will often draw many thousands, I heard a report that yesterdays Goulburn Valley Grand Final between Shepparton United and Mooroopna drew around 9000-10,000. In the NGFL Sale City travelled up to Traralgon to defeat Glengarry before a record crowd (and gate of $36,000). I know a couple of years back there was about 15,500 at an Ovens & Murray GF in Albury. I know GF’s aren’t the norm, but, regular matches will be drawings 100s to 1000s around the regions and the capacity to draw 10,000+ for a regional Grand Final is pretty indicative.

The game itself and those who attend is large.

You could make all these comparisons and the like, such as attendance as a ratio of capacity and blame/credit creative fixturing (for the best or worst of intentions).

At the end of the day though, the AFL has a nice little advantage. It’s killed of SoO and has no meaningful international ‘higher’ representation. The League is it. 22 rounds plus finals.

For Galaxy Hop – tension, strategy, character development etc was all over the Geel v Coll GF yesterday – – if you’re unable to identify those traits in the game then it’s your own loss.

Queanbeyan cricketers?? not quite.

He and his family moved to near the Grampians when he was quite young, about 5.

The cricketers in question were the Melbourne Cricket Club folk. However, the people to keep fit were more the people of the colony – to withstand possible invasion. His proposition (in his famous letter to the editor of Bell’s Life) was for either a football club or a rifle/shooting club.

Let’s not let facts get in the way. Also, he was far from the inventor of the game. He was one of a committee, and not even the chair of that committee, nor on all subsequent rules rivision committees.

topically North Melbourne do not have any pokies machines compared to Carlton with about 260.

Let’s work out what sort of footy clubs we want.

A hot topic in pubs and clubs across the country? really??

There’s generally released the ‘preliminary’ results – these are the overnight figures that are prior to accounting for the irregularities and accounting for the ‘time shift’ and other factors that are taken into account.

A couple of years back the NRL crowed about winning the GF ratings after the prelim figures, but, when the ‘corrected’ figures came out, it showed the AFL had won. The NRL figures generally take a hit because the biggest double dips occur in supposed NRL heartlands – Gold Coast and around Sydney.

Good to see Siddle back in and getting a tidy 4 for.

Johnson still has massive questions over him. Harris is to unsteady on his legs (sadly, I’ve always admired him), and Copeland is barely above Ewan Chatfield pace. Lyon caught them by surprise on debut and has come back to earth. I’m really trying to figure out the bowling line up?? Anyone who thinks questions have been answered on this tour would be kidding themselves.

re the article,

“The highest rating sports programs on Pay TV and Free-To-Air TV are also football games. ”

which are?

since when did any media focus on positives??

In support of Redb here – take note of Coll v WCE, on 5 city metro the figure is 944,000.

On 5 city metro plus regionals, it increases 101,000.

Now, really????

We can suppose there’s stuff all in Nth NSW, Sth NSW and QLD, and that leaves Vic Regional.

Because, Tassie, NT, WA country, SA country and Mildura and Broken Hill all miss out.

Just off the top of your head, you’d think, and even with country footy finals underway, you’d think 101,000 was a tad small. That WA country isn’t counted towards that published figure of 5 city plus regional given West Coast Eagles are playing – it’s a tad bit disingenuous.

what’s the bet that some of the posters the other way have links within the NSW Soccer federation or NSWRL?

And, IF Stabpass were linked to GWS, then, perhaps there might be some ‘informed’ discussion rather than the far ranging waffle and delirium contained herein.

Looked fabulous. Loved the scoreboard too.

Caven put himself in the ‘hole’ directly in the path of Lockett who was storming out on the lead. Caven deserved massive credit for courage, and Lockett was perhaps negligent or perhaps sent a message to all defenders – ‘occupy the hole at your own peril’.

At the time I thought Plugger was harshly treated because of the front page photos of Caven with blood everywhere – ironically at the same time, an RL SoO was being promoted at the MCG using something like ’10 Tooheys Big Hits’ pretty well highlighting brutal violence.

does the individual rules matter nearly as much as the grouping of rules. That Rugby types and soccer types both claim some form of owernship shows that the game then, as now, straddles the gap between those two style of games. It’s the combination that makes it. Which was actually what the original authors were charged to achieve – and why? because such a game did not already exist.

Not hard to grasp.

That the evolution of the rules signals some sense of ‘intent’ – because, seriously, 10 rules ain’t many and there’s more ‘unwritten’ than is written.

Unlike the Rugby school rules with 15 plus rules detailing off and on side, and the tree and the lake in the school grounds.

Umpiring was a bit dodge, although number 1, Donlon did okay, it was the other guys who got in a tangle.

How Taylor didn’t get a free (the one Denis commented on) is astounding.

Golly, how topical given the Karmichael Hunt thread today.

Had a laugh at the Santana vs Setanta typo……….and, seriously, it was only worthy of a chuckle, and not character assasination.

Karmichael Hunt is NOT expected to be a flying success this year. The examples of the past suggest that by sometime next year it should start to click. The clear exception to most the ‘convert’ rules was Marty Clarke at Collingwood who was able to add value inside his first season..

does it matter?

Or does it only matter next year?

Really odd that comments on an AFL tab that vastly and ignorantly misrepresent the AFL game development spend across 2007-2011 are retained on the site, however, comments illustrating the falsehood with correct and actual quotes to AFL annual reports (that are freely available and can be googled in an instant) are pulled down by the editors.

Is there an agenda at play?

btw – re project players – good to see Setanta back in the line up doing okay for the Blues.

That’s only the real question of your’e an AFL hater.

Once the AFL banks the money, it’s hardly a question they are going to ponder for the next five years.

They will continue to focus on growth, on getting more people interested in the game, on driving revenue, on driving value for the sponsors, and according to the Repucom report, AFL sponsorship represents the very best value in town.

By focusing on these business fundamentals, they will go to the next rights deal knowing they have all their bases covered.

AFL haters can please themselves.

I don’t see quarter time breaks as an issue for the NRL (if that’s what they want): it makes the product commercially more valuable, plus it gives the players a small break, and with the intensity of the modern game, that can’t be a bad thing.

If the woods go through undefeated this season, I’ll be the first to lay the colliewobbles jibe to rest.