Balmain Dockers Under 18's Withdraw

[Mug Punter]

I would have hoped that Riverview would look at entering an "old boys" team in the senior ranks eventually. I would be surprised if they did not have currently a dozen rugby old boys teams.

I would have thought that should be on the NSWAFL's radar.

Very sad news re the Tigers' U18s though no great surprise. A real indictment on the clowns running that club. Most of those kids are now lost to the game never to return....

[48 Hour Detox]

I would have thought that should be on the NSWAFL's radar.

Very sad news re the Tigers' U18s though no great surprise. A real indictment on the clowns running that club. Most of those kids are now lost to the game never to return....

So Mug Punter, when teams are forfeiting u18's....you say its not the clubs fault, but moreso the fault of the AFL. Balmain, who has not forfeited any u18's game s and did their utmost to get a team of on te field each and every week, but when its became apparent that they simply could not get the numbers and forfeits were inevitable almost at a weekly level.....then its the clubs fault?????? Not sure how that works?? Campbelltown forfeit due to numbers and its no fault of the club. balmain withdraw due to numbers and they are clowns??

[48 Hour Detox]

This is what you said Mug Punter

"Yes, the youth of today.

What a joke to use that as an excuse. If we cannot get 200 kids in the U18 age group playing AFL each weekend then the game is fundamentally weak in this city. Once all the fake registrations fall away at auskick level we have a game that is very very shakey at the grassroots level.

Not sure what the solutuion is but I fail to see how it is the club's fault..."

[Mug Punter]

So Mug Punter, when teams are forfeiting u18's....you say its not the clubs fault, but moreso the fault of the AFL. Balmain, who has not forfeited any u18's game s and did their utmost to get a team of on te field each and every week, but when its became apparent that they simply could not get the numbers and forfeits were inevitable almost at a weekly level.....then its the clubs fault?????? Not sure how that works?? Campbelltown forfeit due to numbers and its no fault of the club. balmain withdraw due to numbers and they are clowns??

Last time I checked those mentioned clubs weren't paying AFL footballers $1,000 a week to walk around the park every weekend.

Your club clearly has completely misguided priorities and all your words at the start of the year of building a club from the ground up, doing things the right way etc etc are clearly very very hollow....

[Mr PHD]

Mug Punter and 48 hr detox,

Can you two just ring each other up and sort it out?
There isnt a problem at all mug punter- you should become a "smart punter."
48 hr detox keep up the good work.


However a question to you both- When was the last time a player kicked 10 goals in reserves, firsts have not looked like winning a game, and that goal kicking genius was not promoted to firsts the following week?

This is what you said Mug Punter

"Yes, the youth of today.

What a joke to use that as an excuse. If we cannot get 200 kids in the U18 age group playing AFL each weekend then the game is fundamentally weak in this city. Once all the fake registrations fall away at auskick level we have a game that is very very shakey at the grassroots level.

Not sure what the solutuion is but I fail to see how it is the club's fault..."

[beameup]

However a question to you both- When was the last time a player kicked 10 goals in reserves, firsts have not looked like winning a game, and that goal kicking genius was not promoted to firsts the following week?[/QUOTE]

Ouch!!!!!

[48 Hour Detox]

Last time I checked those mentioned clubs weren't paying AFL footballers $1,000 a week to walk around the park every weekend.

Your club clearly has completely misguided priorities and all your words at the start of the year of building a club from the ground up, doing things the right way etc etc are clearly very very hollow....

Paying first graders has nothing to do with numbers of kids under the age of 18! Nothing! Reality is there are not enough kids........there is no difference between balmain and other clubs struggling with numbers on that front.

But as usual, its OK for other clubs, but when its balmain, its not OK.

Again, more than happy for you to come and introduce yourself to one of the board members or coaching staff and they will run you thorugh that they are trying to achieve. As again, you don;t know what the Balmain footy club are trying to achieve.

[48 Hour Detox]

Mug Punter and 48 hr detox,

Can you two just ring each other up and sort it out?
There isnt a problem at all mug punter- you should become a "smart punter."
48 hr detox keep up the good work.


However a question to you both- When was the last time a player kicked 10 goals in reserves, firsts have not looked like winning a game, and that goal kicking genius was not promoted to firsts the following week?

MR PHD....I have been trying to get Mug Punter to speak to one of the people at Balmain and to sort things out....but he never wants to!!

re your 10 goal hero......my mail is that Kipperreanu was playing on a 12yr old and that and was gifted 8 of those goals.

[Mug Punter]

There isnt a problem at all mug punter

Keep up the good work at Tigerland fellas, looks like your 5 year plan is coming along a treat.......

[48 Hour Detox]

Keep up the good work at Tigerland fellas, looks like your 5 year plan is coming along a treat.......

Thanks mate.....as always, the invitation to come and have a listen to what the plan actually is, is wide open!!

[Shotties]

Why don't you cut out the middle man and just say it?

[BIGSHOW]

As Kippa the evergreen anchor of the ressies didn't kick ten goals against parra on Saturday he has been dropped due to poor form for the game against Sydney uni.

[unconfuseme]

The simple problem is that there are too many senior clubs in Sydney as a ratio to junior clubs, and too many of them only pay lip service to junior development.

Balmain and Campbelltown do not have sufficient juniors feeding to them to be sustainable ... it's just facts!

In Balmain's case it's the inner city demographic ... in Campbelltown's case, well how can you blow it with the junior area they have???

So would it be far fetched for them to do what the NRL did? ... Wests Tigers seems to work for them.

The AFL has done no planning in this regard, so you get what you get.

Loads of Auskick clinics, but no leadership or planning for senior footy clubs.

Then they beat their chest about 2 new clubs joining this year ... like Camden, not new clubs at all! ... and where will the juniors come from to support them?

[Mug Punter]

The simple problem is that there are too many senior clubs in Sydney as a ratio to junior clubs, and too many of them only pay lip service to junior development.

Balmain and Campbelltown do not have sufficient juniors feeding to them to be sustainable ... it's just facts!

In Balmain's case it's the inner city demographic ... in Campbelltown's case, well how can you blow it with the junior area they have???

So would it be far fetched for them to do what the NRL did? ... Wests Tigers seems to work for them.

The AFL has done no planning in this regard, so you get what you get.

Loads of Auskick clinics, but no leadership or planning for senior footy clubs.

Then they beat their chest about 2 new clubs joining this year ... like Camden, not new clubs at all! ... and where will the juniors come from to support them?

Yes, let's merge juniro clubs. What a brilliant idea to develop the game

Well before the game had all the millions injected into it we had a very very viable U19 and U20 system in Sydney. WIth the junior clubs out Campbelltown way there is absolutely no way the numbers are not there. Similarly with Balmain and their 3 junior clubs.

If we can't get at least 20 under age teams on the field in a city of 5M people then we may as well give up given how much the AFL have allegedly invested here. I see it more as a misue of the resources - they simply cut out at the junior level - if a kid aint gping to be drafted they simply don't care.

Surely it is time for the AFL to get serious about some real development of the game at senior level in Sydney.

I still think the idea of reverting to the U19/U20 model has enormous merit.....

[mountainsofpain]

Surely it is time for the AFL to get serious about some real development of the game at senior level in Sydney.

If you are talking of doing this via way of further resources being input to senior football in Sydney, it won't happen. You've essentially answered why yourself:

I see it more as a misue of the resources - they simply cut out at the junior level - if a kid aint gping to be drafted they simply don't care.

Funds are poured into NSW by the AFL for two reasons - firstly, as you said, to develop kids via the elite programmes in the hope of developing a talent pool for the draft. And secondly, it is poured into the game at the junior level to develop AFL consumers - ie to make sure all the kids who go through the Auskick & junior ranks will gobble up AFL product as kids and adults (that is to go to games, watch it on TV, buy and wear merchandise, and generally be AFL friendly in what used to be a very hostile environment).

The AFL doesn't pour these millions into NSW to see the Sydney AFL grow and develop. It spends the money to either generate further revenue or to directly benefit the national competition. Whether the Sydney AFL thrives or not really is irrelevant to them - I doubt if Andrew D gives a rats to be honest.

Don't get me wrong - I think the AFL should care about grassroots senior football (not just in NSW either), because that is one of its responsibilities as the caretaker of the code. However, while another of its responsibilities is to run the multi-multi-multi-million dollar AFL competition the money generating areas of the game will always dominate its priorities - and grassroots senior footy isn't one of them.