THE Northern Tasmanian Football Association confirmed on Friday that the board was processing requests from the East Coast Swans and Bridport to join its competition from 2017.
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AFL Tasmania met with North East Football Union officials in Launceston on Thursday to discuss the four-team senior competition’s future with fears it could collapse.
NTFA president Ian Morrison said that no deadline had be set for a decision.
“Hypothetically, if there were extra teams that came into division 2 it would mean that the current 10-team roster would be extend,” Morrison said on Friday.
“You would not necessarily get complete rounds where every team played each other twice but that would need to be made up so each club get the same number of games against each other over a period of time. “To me, that’s not necessarily an issue.”
A third NTFA division has been previously discussed but Morrison said it was not being considered “at the moment”.
“There was a lot of conjecture and thoughts about it six months ago and current NTFA clubs weren’t interested so it was put on the back-burner,” he said.
Morrison also said there was capacity for the NTFA to take all four NEFU – including Winnaleah and Scottsdale Crows – but doubted whether it was a viable option. “There has been quite a bit of investigation and work done on whether the current NEFU clubs are sustainable and viable into the future and some of that is probably doubtful,” Morrison said.
There was a lot of conjecture and thoughts about it (a third division) six months ago and current NTFA clubs weren’t interested so it was put on the back-burner
- NTFA president Ian Morrison
“But there is more work to be done.”
NEFU president Kirk Wagner said despite the uncertainty he is confident senior football would remain in the region in some capacity.
“The meetings have been very productive, probably the best meetings we’ve ever had with AFL Tasmania,” Wagner said.
“The process from here is to keep working on our juniors and there is a process with the seniors underway at present that we can’t interrupt.” The next meeting will be held on Thursday, October 27, where Wagner said a the future of the NEFU would be made clearer.
He said football was something the North East could not afford to lose.
“It’s very important… we need to think clearly all the way through, look at every outcome and the pros and cons,” Wagner said.
Tasmanian Football Council general manager Jackson Hills said a suitable junior model for the region was a key priority.
Corey Martin
Having started at The Examiner as a cadet in 2009, I have held various positions telling the stories of Northern Tasmanians in sport and news. I was appointed deputy editor in 2019 and became editor in September 2021.
Having started at The Examiner as a cadet in 2009, I have held various positions telling the stories of Northern Tasmanians in sport and news. I was appointed deputy editor in 2019 and became editor in September 2021.
