That's why those arguing that a review into football's future in Tasmania needs to have a focus on juniors are spot on.

Aussie Rules, like most sports, relies on younger people taking up the game in their youth and continuing into the senior ranks.

Where there are fewer juniors coming through than in years gone by and it is fairly obvious that clubs will struggle to field teams.

There are, of course, other problems facing the sport in this region, including declining volunteer numbers and money.

Frankly, it is a disgrace that footballers are being paid just to play in the country associations, distorting, as it does, competitions and making stronger clubs stronger.

Yet that's far from a new concern and it is doubtful that a solution can be found.

Similarly though, attracting and retaining more juniors will be a challenge.

While many in the football world, well-intentioned as they are, have their heads stuck firmly in the sand, the past or a little of both, it makes change difficult.

There needs first of all to be an understanding of why there are fewer young people kicking the Sherrin today.

It's easy to blame the demise of school sport, which can, arguably, be traced back to the fallout from education reforms in the early '90s, but there's more to it than that.

On one hand, there is more choice in sport and activities than ever before, and, on the other, changing family and work commitments make it difficult for parents to get their kids to everything they want to do.

An AFL push in schools sounds all well and good, but it would rely on volunteers to coach teams, to umpire games and so forth.

And that's already proving difficult at all levels, including the Auskick junior programs and at clubs.

It's not all negative though. It is positive, for instance, that administrators and generally people who just love the game are facing up to the fact that change is necessary.

Time will tell how committed Tasmania's AFL community is to trying different ideas, different approaches, different structures even to make the game more sustainable.