HOBART will host three North Melbourne AFL games at Blundstone Arena next season after an agreement was struck at a highly-anticipated Hobart City Council meeting last night.
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The deal is worth $300,000 a year, with Hobart Mayor Damon Thomas saying the decision came down to the success of local Kangaroos games at Blundstone earlier this year.
``The issue was carried over the line by the social and economic benefits it has provided to the city in previous games,'' he said.
``Realistically, we also saw how well the Hawks games had gone in Launceston and how North Melbourne games had impacted our city.
``It was based on those reports and the continued benefits we think it will have down here.''
Alderman Marti Zucco said an official date for the first North Melbourne fixture of the 2015/16 AFL season at Blundstone Arena was yet to be determined.
Mr Zucco was confident the partnership sparked the beginning of a positive future for AFL in Tasmania however.
``There has been tentative talks that the first game could be sometime in April next year, but until the AFL conclude next season's fixtures we won't know,'' he said.
``As we have discussed with the AFL, the intent is to make sure the games don't clash with any other events.
``This result is another bonus for Hobart and it will hopefully increase the number of games played across Tasmania in the next couple of years.''