Team ACT?

[Mug Punter]

Love the concept of a 2nd Sydney team ... but when there are incompetents appointed to deliver it, the damage can be devastating ... and that's exactly what the GWS Jaffas are doing as we speak!

Agree 100%

This whole thing has been done in an arrogant presumptous way. The Melbourne Establishment has deemed that Sydney deserves a second team and therefore we shall have one. No community consultation, no building of local buy-in, just send in an ignoramous like Sheeds who comes up here not understanding tehlandscape and proceed to make yoruself a luaghing stock. And while you are at it, alienate the vast majority of faithful supporters of your existing team who you ahve done everything to stifle over they years.

I've no problem with Dungdrop and Cartman hating the Swans. No dramas there, I suspect they are from inter-state and have pre-existing loyalties.

The hard reality for the AFL now, given the way they have botched this exercise, is that they need to build a totally new supporter base from scratch. Yeah, they'll get a few westies who are from inter-state and who seitch their second team alliances. They may get a few Swans supporters who follow them "for the good of the game" but I doubt there'll be many.

The fact is most Sydney people who love AFL already have a team to support. They are a real team, not a figment of an AFL focus group and they are called the Sydney Swans and not many people will be switching sides.

So, how hard is it to build a supporter base when you are second player on the scene and the first team has already had a shot? Very diffcult I would say.

That's the challenge facing Team GWS and it will be an uphill battle. Had they sought community buy-in and some due diligence as with the Gold Coast Suns bid (where incidently theer is a ready made market for a new supporter base) then they may have a better chance.

It will be an uphill battle at best....

[GoEagles]

Agree 100%

This whole thing has been done in an arrogant presumptous way. The Melbourne Establishment has deemed that Sydney deserves a second team and therefore we shall have one. No community consultation, no building of local buy-in, just send in an ignoramous like Sheeds who comes up here not understanding tehlandscape and proceed to make yoruself a luaghing stock. And while you are at it, alienate the vast majority of faithful supporters of your existing team who you ahve done everything to stifle over they years.

I've no problem with Dungdrop and Cartman hating the Swans. No dramas there, I suspect they are from inter-state and have pre-existing loyalties.

The hard reality for the AFL now, given the way they have botched this exercise, is that they need to build a totally new supporter base from scratch. Yeah, they'll get a few westies who are from inter-state and who seitch their second team alliances. They may get a few Swans supporters who follow them "for the good of the game" but I doubt there'll be many.

The fact is most Sydney people who love AFL already have a team to support. They are a real team, not a figment of an AFL focus group and they are called the Sydney Swans and not many people will be switching sides.

So, how hard is it to build a supporter base when you are second player on the scene and the first team has already had a shot? Very diffcult I would say.

That's the challenge facing Team GWS and it will be an uphill battle. Had they sought community buy-in and some due diligence as with the Gold Coast Suns bid (where incidently theer is a ready made market for a new supporter base) then they may have a better chance.

It will be an uphill battle at best....

The AFL would recognsie that to only draw level with the NRL in the region they would only have to get 8,000 to 12,000 people to a game. That would be more than 2 NRL games put together.

That will be achieved easily.

As for creating a rivalry with the Sydney Swans that is extremely healthy. Pretty sure when the Dockers and Port Power came into the competition they did the same thing with West Coast and the Crows and it worked quite well, get speople talking about like we are now...

Embarace it doomsdayers..

[Pickup]

I agree with the up hill battle, I dont think anyone beleives anything less than that, The differnce between the Giants (Hate the name by the way) and Fremantle and Port is that they already had a suppoter base from the local comp, the new sides were the first teams into the comp.
Everyone has to remember the only reason's that matters.

Western sydney has a population equal to the rest of the country (might be a slight exageration), Im pretty confident that they can get 30000 members over the next 20 years. Thats all they will need to be classed as a success.

The eventual domination OF THE WORLD!!!!! by the (as fatty would say) the best product in the market.

I predict that because of the GIANT'S in 20 years there will be the first ever sydney native picked up in the preseason draft. What a great day that will be.
Olympic proportion celebration.

The AFL would recognsie that to only draw level with the NRL in the region they would only have to get 8,000 to 12,000 people to a game. That would be more than 2 NRL games put together.

That will be achieved easily.

As for creating a rivalry with the Sydney Swans that is extremely healthy. Pretty sure when the Dockers and Port Power came into the competition they did the same thing with West Coast and the Crows and it worked quite well, get speople talking about like we are now...

Embarace it doomsdayers..

[YoungKanga]

Swans contribute nothing to football in sydney...
Fingers crossed GWS can make up for where the Swans have failed in the past.

I wasnt a supporter of a second team in sydney at first..as i didnt believe it would be viable.
But im slowly coming around to the idea...

The only problem GWS will have is getting AFL current AFL supporters to switch..
Im not going to stop supporting my beloved saints.. But at least nows theres a chance of seeing them twice a year in sydney!

[Ken Oath]

Agree 100%

The fact is most Sydney people who love AFL already have a team to support. They are a real team, not a figment of an AFL focus group and they are called the Sydney Swans and not many people will be switching sides.

So, how hard is it to build a supporter base when you are second player on the scene and the first team has already had a shot? Very diffcult I would say.

This statement's a bit rich. Can't see how you can rip in to the GWS franchise by calling Sydney Swans a "real team"?

The only real teams are the Melbourne teams with rich cutlure and history. Every other team is a marketing operation.
The Swans are a relocation, an excuse of a team. They don't belong in Melbourne or Sydney. Their supporters have to be the worst in the country. Embarrassing. 90% of them turn up late, and that's if their in the top 8, sit down with a sandwich like their at a picnic.

In a generation the Swans will still be seen as a bastard club stuck in the middle, not knowing where they belong. We're Sydney, but we're really South Melbourne.
The Giants will claim that Sydney is the only city they serve.
And in a generation I'd expect the crowd at a Sydney derby to be more Orange than red.

[laughingnome]

The Giants will claim that Sydney is the only city they serve.

Except for Canberra.

[Mug Punter]

Swans contribute nothing to football in sydney...
Fingers crossed GWS can make up for where the Swans have failed in the past.

What a uninformed post. To say that the Swans have not been good for Sydney football is ridiculous. It's true they have not funded junior development but that is not their role. I think you'll find that they do do quite a bit in the community anyway.

The role of developing the code in NSW and Sydney in terms of junior funding etc has got to be the responsibility of the AFL. For years the Swans lobbied to be able to get first pick of the NSW draftees - fair enough too, why should they spend money developing players in Sydney when they have a 1/16th chance of drafting the lad. This was thwarted by muppets like Eddie Everywhere when interstate clubs started having the nerve to actually be successful.

Now, after almost 30 years the AFL suddenly decides junior develpment and the priority picks are the way to go now they are funding a team. When all they needed to do was give the Swans a decent crack.

I guess we should be thankful the Swans Acadamy and the like, things we have been lobbying for for years, are becoming a reality. I just hope we get a fair slice of the funding pie they wash down the drain out at Homebush.

I can actually see now why the Melbourne clubs were so keen to embrace the GWS experiment and the draft concessions after being so insular and mean-spirited before. Basically this whole deal secures the rest of the comp's future. There is NO WAY the AFL can let a club fold whilst Team GWS are having $10M a year losses covered by the AFL, no way in the world.

Makes North Melbourne's decision to stay put a very very smart one in hindsight.....

[Mug Punter]

This statement's a bit rich. Can't see how you can rip in to the GWS franchise by calling Sydney Swans a "real team"?

The only real teams are the Melbourne teams with rich cutlure and history. Every other team is a marketing operation.
The Swans are a relocation, an excuse of a team. They don't belong in Melbourne or Sydney. Their supporters have to be the worst in the country. Embarrassing. 90% of them turn up late, and that's if their in the top 8, sit down with a sandwich like their at a picnic.

In a generation the Swans will still be seen as a bastard club stuck in the middle, not knowing where they belong. We're Sydney, but we're really South Melbourne.
The Giants will claim that Sydney is the only city they serve.
And in a generation I'd expect the crowd at a Sydney derby to be more Orange than red.

Dream on, they'll be lucky to last one leadership change at the AFL. The first genuine crisis at the AFL (e.g. a couple of Melbourne clubs looking like they'll hit the wall, financial pressures across the league) and they will be a sink or swim case.....

[goswannie14]

Dream on, they'll be lucky to last one leadership change at the AFL. The first genuine crisis at the AFL (e.g. a couple of Melbourne clubs looking like they'll hit the wall, financial pressures across the league) and they will be a sink or swim case.....

No I think in that case we would see a merger as was the case with the Lions and Brisbane. It would ensure all most immediate success.

[Bert]

The Swans represent the latte sipping toffs of the Eastern Suburbs. The Giants are born and bred in the west and are a true representation of working class Sydney. The fair weather fine sailing Swans supporters are just worried about how it will affect them. Look at the big picture.

[laughingnome]

I predict that because of the GIANT'S in 20 years there will be the first ever sydney native picked up in the preseason draft. What a great day that will be. Olympic proportion celebration.

This just makes no sense. I assume you're not counting the National Draft because 'Sydney natives' have already been drafted to the Swans, including this one guy you might have heard of called Lewis Roberts-Thompson. The PSD is for recycled players who couldn't get a gig and couldn't secure a trade, so I'm not sure why you think there will be a massive celebration when one gets drafted through it.

Dream on, they'll be lucky to last one leadership change at the AFL. The first genuine crisis at the AFL (e.g. a couple of Melbourne clubs looking like they'll hit the wall, financial pressures across the league) and they will be a sink or swim case.....

I have thought for a while now that GWS will be the new Brisbane Bears, and I think it only a matter of time before a dying Melboune club merges with it.

The Swans represent the latte sipping toffs of the Eastern Suburbs. The Giants are born and bred in the west and are a true representation of working class Sydney. The fair weather fine sailing Swans supporters are just worried about how it will affect them. Look at the big picture.

The Giants are born of Andrew Dimmy's mind and his ideas on raking in the dosh. While in the carve up of Sydney the Swans got the Eastern Suburbs, they also got the North Shore, CBD, Pennant Hills, Chatswood, Strathfield, Inner West, Canterbury, Rockdale, Hurstville.... I'd call that a good representation of Sydney.

And if you think GWS won't have it's fair share of fair-weathered supporters, like every AFL club has, then you're just deluding yourself.

[Mug Punter]

I have thought for a while now that GWS will be the new Brisbane Bears, and I think it only a matter of time before a dying Melboune club merges with it.

The Giants are born of Andrew Dimmy's mind and his ideas on raking in the dosh. While in the carve up of Sydney the Swans got the Eastern Suburbs, they also got the North Shore, CBD, Pennant Hills, Chatswood, Strathfield, Inner West, Canterbury, Rockdale, Hurstville.... I'd call that a good representation of Sydney.

And if you think GWS won't have it's fair share of fair-weathered supporters, like every AFL club has, then you're just deluding yourself.

I merged Giants team will have the same essential issues in Sydney but I guess they'll be able to have a bit more history and substance if merged. I don't think the Lions-Bears merger really did much for the Fitzroy faithful though. I think that there is no way anyone in Melbourne accept one of their teams going under when this mob are shipping millions a year.

This is a business decision not a football one. I read an interesting atricle today by Roy Masters that basically said that the last TV deal that the AFL got should be seen as a one-off - it was essentially Packer's dying gift to the AFL by making his bid that the others had to match. If this is right and TV money starts to fall then this surreal world that Gonzo lives in may unravel.

[goswannie14]

This is a business decision not a football one. I read an interesting atricle today by Roy Masters that basically said that the last TV deal that the AFL got should be seen as a one-off - it was essentially Packer's dying gift to the AFL by making his bid that the others had to match. If this is right and TV money starts to fall then this surreal world that Gonzo lives in may unravel.

As much as I agree with some of your comments, I find it hard to take anything that Roy Masters says about the AFL seriously. It is a bit like quoting "Wikipedia" as a reliable source in an argument.

[Mug Punter]

As much as I agree with some of your comments, I find it hard to take anything that Roy Masters says about the AFL seriously. It is a bit like quoting "Wikipedia" as a reliable source in an argument.

Roy Masters is a respected senior journalist and his brother Chris Masters is an award winning investigative journo with 4 Corners. He's not commentiong on AFL the sport but the politocs and business, something he is well qualified to comment on

"A Senior TV executive recently told David Gallop of the AFL's expectations of its next broadcasting contract:"No one at the AFL wants to accedpt that they got hit on the arse by a rainbow with their last contract"

The comment was a reference to Channel 9's then owner, Kerry Packer, making a deathbed offer of $780 million over five years for the rights, a sum that a Chennel Seven-Ten consortium was forced to equal under its first-and-last rights deal with the AFL"

It then goes on the state that on all key indicators (advertising revenue, viewing numbers) that the NRL is an equally attrctive broabcasting proposition and that the end result will probably be the AFL having a reduced deal and the NRL having an increased deal.

[Pickup]

Laughing
Please give me a second to remove my tongue from my check so I am able to conjure a response.
I?m sure if we go through the history of the afl you can bring up Thrippy, Bomford, LRT, Jack etc etc. Just to go through 4 generations.
I am well aware of the multitudes of Sydney natives drafted, The point I was trying to make was the ratio per head was very small. Is this an indictment on Sydney football/ AFL/ Lack of AFL in schools, probably all of the above. Im sure that GWS will help in some small way to correct this. For a national comp there is still a huge percentage of Mexicans drafted compared to the alsorans. Unfortunately including Tassie in this as the rocket scientist running things down there has well and truly stuffed Tassie football. Anyone that complains about NSWAFL need to have a look at Mr Wade of the TFL to really understands how you can destroy a sport.
All you wegians out there hoping for a Tassie Devils team with an AFL badge on the Gernsy/Gersey are just ******* IN THE WIND.


[QUOTE=laughingnome;515034]This just makes no sense. I assume you're not counting the National Draft because 'Sydney natives' have already been drafted to the Swans, including this one guy you might have heard of called Lewis Roberts-Thompson. The PSD is for recycled players who couldn't get a gig and couldn't secure a trade, so I'm not sure why you think there will be a massive celebration when one gets drafted through it.