AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan’s fly in, fly out visit to the North-West Coast on Thursday appears to be the high-powered steering committee’s final fact-finding mission.
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A June 30 deadline for the committee to hand down its best-practice formula for Tasmanian football moving forward looms large.
All seven State League bosses, representatives from both Burnie and Devonport and NTFA president and Tasmanian Football Council chairman Paul Reynolds all spent time with the game’s head honcho and fellow committee members AFL boss Trisha Squires and her predecessor Rob Auld.
“It’s time to make some hard decisions,” McLachlan told media in Devonport.
“Money is not the problem here. Tasmania is a foundation AFL state and when there are challenges and issues all of football hurts.”
A multitude of options remain open for the committee but Reynolds said his discussions about community football were productive and that he left feeling heard.
“Little indication was given as to what the committee’s decision will be but they were receptive to the impact any decision would have on community football,” he said.
“It seems to me that during most of the committee’s deliberations to date had been solely and wholly focused on the future of the Tasmanian State League and talent pathways.
“There are other implications to consider and they did not appear to have been taken into account, and the Tasmanian Football Council wanted to ensure they were well aware of that.
It’s time to make some hard decisions.
- Gillon McLachlan
“For example, if the TSL was to discontinue next year, the year after or in 2020 – where do the current clubs go?
“How would they be received back into regional football? Would regional football then become responsible for junior pathways?
“All of these things and more needed to be raised.”
State League clubs are adamant that their competition should remain with North Launceston president Thane Brady and Tigers boss Paul Gadomski presenting their case in Melbourne last week.
Key TSL submission points included coaching investment, a full-time TAC Cup Mariners program, maintaining the TSL and investigating North-West reintroduction and a possible VFL side or North Melbourne affiliation.
“The way our significant group of stakeholders see things is the AFL has a licence agreement with us until 2023, therefore making the TSL not the priority for change,” Brady said.
“The AFL is not popular with the majority of Tasmanians. Many people share the view the AFL has failed Tasmania... not just in a lack investment, but in their management decisions.
“With AFL’s CEO so personally invested in this process we remain hopeful that instead of just shuffling a few dollars around the state or changing titles of a few people, Tasmania can receive real-dollar investment to make us AFL ready.
“ Without other Tasmanian football associations accepting affiliation with the AFL and recognising their competitions must change, then the AFL continues to have an easy way out – why invest in something out of their control?”
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.
