NTFA says AFL roster is 'good for Tassie footy'

Entering the penultimate season of a five-year deal with Tasmania, Hawthorn will visit Launceston for four Saturday afternoon games - a timeslot which has traditionally pulled smaller crowds due to clashes with NTFA matches.

But NTFA president Scott Rigby welcomed the fixturing - which includes an Anzac Day battle with West Coast - saying the state's widest-reaching league would work closely with its clubs to help support AFL in Launceston.

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"The positives of an Anzac Day clash like that ... I think it's going to be good for Tassie footy," Rigby said.

"Now we know the roster's out and the games have been dealt we'll go through the normal process with our rostering and get a draft happening very soon.

"We've already been openly talking with our clubs about having flexibility in our roster and thinking outside the square and they've welcomed that and we'll just see what happens.

"We'll discuss it with clubs and hopefully have the roster printed out in December."

Potential solutions for fixture clashes include playing NTFA games on Friday and Saturday nights, however, double-ups appear largely unavoidable.

Rigby said discussions with Hawthorn's Tasmanian operations manager David Cox had been fruitful and would see both organisations working together more in the future.

"We're building some relationships which is really good," Rigby said.

"We'll do absolutely what we can to maximise the attendance at the Hawks games because we all want to see that thrive. Ultimately it leads to promoting the game which makes it better for us."

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