Footy overhaul requires patience from community: NTFA boss

At least, that is association president Damien Rhind's position after he asked for time to ensure the changes came to fruition when speaking with The Examiner.

With the Tasmania Football Club, now known as Tasmania Devils, launching their colours, name and guernsey on Monday night as they forge their way towards becoming the AFL's 19^th team, the state's sport body has completely restructured the football pathway.

Scrapping the State League at the end of this year, AFL Tasmania have opted for a three-pronged regional model that will feed the Devils' VFL and VFLW teams - although when they begin playing is yet to be confirmed.

As a result, Launceston and North Launceston will be moved back to the NTFA in what has initially been called the Northern Premier League, but will likely be re-named the NTFA Premier League to avoid confusion with Tasmanian soccer's National Premier League.

Set to create a three-division association from 2025 onwards, four NTFA clubs will join the relegated TSL sides.

Asked whether the restructure would be a successful one, Rhind said the association would be staying vigilant.

"It will be change for the better, but I think there needs to be some patience, it needs time to grow and evolve," he said.

"And not only the clubs, the players and the association as well. We're aspiring to be the best that we can be in the future, to try and feed into those VFLW and VFL teams and hopefully the AFL teams as well."

With the NTFA PL clubs set to be announced on Friday afternoon ahead of the season launch, Rhind said the decisions made so far were a step in the right direction, albeit a small one.

"We've made a little bit of progress, but for the board it's really one step at a time, we've got to be very mindful of trying to lump everything all in at once," he said.

"We're just taking those small baby steps, consulting with all the stakeholders, and progressing together as a unit like an NTFA community is really the way that we want to work."

While the immediate future has required a thoughtful approach to ensure the NTFA moves forward in the right direction, Rhind was more upbeat on the Tasmania Devils launch, calling it a "historic moment".

"It's absolutely amazing to think that the state's going to have its very own AFL team in 2028," he said.

"What excites me is not only the team here and the passion I've seen in the last dozen years here in Tasmania, but also for us as an association, that potentially a lot of kids are going to see this and they're going to start playing football."

Rhind added he thought the Devils will be successful should they join the elite level, due to a point of difference shared with only a handful of other clubs.

"It's going to be great because the crowds will be a bit smaller and so player interaction will be better, so you'll be able to see some of the players walking down the street and be able to say g'day," he said.

"There's going to be a big attraction for players coming from interstate to have that sort of lifestyle here and not be caught in that Melbourne bubble or the pressure in Adelaide and Perth. The freedom will be desirable."