VFL IS DEAD AND GONE

[saynta]

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/ ... 4088aa3224

[Saintmatt]

Sandy granted a license to the new 2nd tier competition and still aligned to St Kilda - https://www.sandringhamfc.com.au/latest ... ompetition

[saynta]

Sandy granted a license to the new 2nd tier competition and still aligned to St Kilda - https://www.sandringhamfc.com.au/latest ... ompetition

Yep.

"Queensland clubs Southport and Aspley will come in to the competition along with reigning VFL premiers Port Melbourne, after the competition was abandoned din 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the re-born Northern Bullants.

Confirmed licences for the VFL and East Coast Second-Tier Competition:

Stand-alone Second-Tier Clubs: Aspley, Coburg, Frankston, Northern Bullants, Port Melbourne, Southport, Werribee, Williamstown

Stand-alone AFL Clubs: Brisbane Lions, Carlton, Collingwood, Essendon, Footscray, Geelong Cats, Gold Coast SUNS, GWS GIANTS, North Melbourne, Richmond, Sydney Swans

Aligned Clubs: Sandringham, Box Hill Hawks, Casey Demons"

[skeptic]

I think I’m okay with it

[Wayne42]

What will they call this League, it's no longer the VFL ?

[Mr Magic]

What will they call this League, it's no longer the VFL ?

EAFL?
Eastern Australia Football League

[ace]

22 clubs in the competition.
How many years before that gets broken into a first and second division.
Who is paying for the airfares.

[Wayne42]

22 clubs in the competition.
How many years before that gets broken into a first and second division.
Who is paying for the airfares.

As per the attached article,
there will be no license fee payable by any club to participate in the 2021 Second-Tier Competition with the AFL to subsidise all approved Club travel for interstate matches.

https://www.afl.com.au/news/523282/east ... -locked-in

[Wayne42]

What will they call this League, it's no longer the VFL ?

EAFL?
Eastern Australia Football League

Definitely an option i would think.

[bangaulegend]

As sad as it is IMO pretty much inevitable ,sign of the times . Country footy has been doing it for years & I hate it but what can you do ? Towns get smaller no jobs & kids move to the where the work is & football clubs literally die. Where I grew up it was called the Northern District Football League 8 teams 40 km the longest trip & at the time Pyramid Hill seemed so far. These day's things have changed out of all the teams only Kerang is a stand alone club the rest have amalgamated or joined another league. What once was a buoyant thriving farming community where the football club has the heart & soul of every the town is now pretty much gone for ever.

[shanegrambeau]

As sad as it is IMO pretty much inevitable ,sign of the times . Country footy has been doing it for years & I hate it but what can you do ? Towns get smaller no jobs & kids move to the where the work is & football clubs literally die. Where I grew up it was called the Northern District Football League 8 teams 40 km the longest trip & at the time Pyramid Hill seemed so far. These day's things have changed out of all the teams only Kerang is a stand alone club the rest have amalgamated or joined another league. What once was a buoyant thriving farming community where the football club has the heart & soul of every the town is now pretty much gone for ever.

Was that a steady decline or can you remember moments or events along the way?

[bangaulegend]

As sad as it is IMO pretty much inevitable ,sign of the times . Country footy has been doing it for years & I hate it but what can you do ? Towns get smaller no jobs & kids move to the where the work is & football clubs literally die. Where I grew up it was called the Northern District Football League 8 teams 40 km the longest trip & at the time Pyramid Hill seemed so far. These day's things have changed out of all the teams only Kerang is a stand alone club the rest have amalgamated or joined another league. What once was a buoyant thriving farming community where the football club has the heart & soul of every the town is now pretty much gone for ever.

Was that a steady decline or can you remember moments or events along the way?

Pretty much a steady decline . Being a dairy farming area, back in the day there were 100's of small farms in production now there is a scattering of bigger farms as it is no longer viable to run a small farm.

[mcadam05]

Wow so the once mighty VFA dies without a whimper very sad day indeed

[samuraisaint]

This could prove unworkable in 2021 because under the current restrictions, there is no freedom of movement between metropolitan and regional Victoria and State Borders are sealed as tight as a drum.
I would suggest it is extremely unlikely that 2021 - especially until Easter - will be normal in terms of people traveling for work and recreation.

[damienc]

Why don't we field a stand alone St Kilda Reserves team?

Many of you here, are not as old as me, but I remember the good old days when it was the VFL for real.

Teams played at Melbourne suburban grounds and going to the footy on a Saturday was a huge treat.

If you got to the game early enough, there was the Under 19s, then the Reserves and then the main game.

You got to see the up and coming talent and a first hand glimpse at who was knocking on the door of senior selection.

Of course, we have a national competition now, and nothing stays the same, but it would be great to have a St Kilda Reserves side wearing the red, white and black with the games played as curtain raiser to the main main event.

Just saying.

[samuraisaint]

Why don't we field a stand alone St Kilda Reserves team?

Many of you here, are not as old as me, but I remember the good old days when it was the VFL for real.

Teams played at Melbourne suburban grounds and going to the footy on a Saturday was a huge treat.

If you got to the game early enough, there was the Under 19s, then the Reserves and then the main game.

You got to see the up and coming talent and a first hand glimpse at who was knocking on the door of senior selection.

Of course, we have a national competition now, and nothing stays the same, but it would be great to have a St Kilda Reserves side wearing the red, white and black with the games played as curtain raiser to the main main event.

Just saying.

Sandringham have been doing that already - playing in the tricolour with shield - at Docklands before matches and at Moorabbin - in 2019.

Only a matter of time before the proud Zebs undergo a name/uniform change now, I think. I think they may well have to move from the Trevor Barker Oval to Moorabbin and make their base there too. COVID has sped up the financial decimation of the old VFA clubs.

[Yorkeys]

Gee there is a lot of tradition, talent and excellent infrastructure attached to VFL. Hard to see it going quietly, if at all really. Just a reengineering?

[shanegrambeau]

So what’s with the Tasmania thing? No Tassie teams capable of joining?

Either that might be a signal that a ‘real’ AFL team is n the works, or Tassie is just a lost cause.

I wouldn’t blame them if they just went rugby at this point, but I know it doesn’t work like that. It just starves and dies.