THE Northern Tasmanian Football Association is the state’s largest amateur administrator.
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It oversees two divisions, a combined 21 clubs, 51 teams and well over 1000 players.
But like most sports, times are a-changing.
Players are becoming increasingly hard to find and the dwindling participation numbers at a junior level have long been on the radar of the state’s AFL hierarchy.
At the start of this season AFL Tasmania chief executive Robert Auld and his team received extra funding from AFL House not only to streamline and strengthen its development pathways, but to increase junior participation levels.
They stated that an 11.5 per cent rise in Auskick participation must be achieved this year through spending more time in schools, with additional growth year-on-year to keep feeding Tasmania’s regional and State League competitions.
The junior numbers simply aren’t high enough to sustain all existing clubs long into the future.
As it is now many clubs in the NTFA for example are undeniably struggling.
Reserves teams in both division 1 and 2 are packed full of club stalwarts that have long seen better days mixed in with a mild injection of youth looking to take the next step.
Without naming the clubs and kicking them while they are down, there were instances this season in division 2 whereby clubs had to forfeit their reserves side and as it has been the case for some years, many reserves or under-18 players are forced to play more than one match on a Saturday to prop up their seniors as well.
Those scenarios are only likely to become increasingly more common, making the current model unsustainable unless something dramatically changes.
Clubs will only look to spend money well above their means chasing success and all of a sudden they are defunct – just like we have witnessed in the North East Football Union over the past decade.
The geographical composition of the NTFA’s members clubs may be the answer. As it stands, seven of its clubs are Launceston based – Prospect, Old Launcestonians, Old Scotch, St Pats and Uni-Mowbray in division 2 with Rocherlea and South Launceston in division 1.
That is a lot of sides in a city of Launceston’s size to sustain in a declining market when you add in two State League clubs and a couple of NTFA clubs on Launceston’s periphery.
Perhaps it’s time for an unbiased independent study into the sustainability of such a high number?
Perhaps it’s time, particularly in division 2 where so often the less-strong clubs are belted by cricket-score margins, to consider merging a few teams together.
It’s not going to be easy with pride, history and the narrowed visioned standing in the way, but at some stage the NTFA has to get serious about what it wants to look like in a decade’s time.
Nine or eight teams in division 1 seems to be the optimal number but 12 in division 2 with five based in Launceston sends alarm bells ringing.
This is particularly so when a lot of the sides towards the bottom end of the table have been there for many years, finishing season after season with a couple of wins and a percentage of 50 or below.
The decision to admit East Coast and Bridport for this season was controversial and now the NEFU is reportedly interested in requesting that Scottsdale Crows and Winnaleah or a combined team also join division 2.
It is highly unlikely that the NTFA council will vote that in because the division 2 clubs are already under enough pressure
And if the division 2 clubs don’t want it then division 1 clubs generally rub their comrades’ feet in expectation they will do the same on a matter that involves their competition.
The idea of a division 3 competition has long been bandied around and has not received support for the same reason.
So at some stage soon the boys’ club is going to have to be split and decisions are going to have to be made, it’s just a matter of when because the status quo looks shaky.