Bankstown: Swans or GWS?

**ShortHalfHead** · 6 February 2013, 11:13 AM

Haha

Nicely worded.

"Do you want to play 15 minutes away or an hour away?"

"Vote now and see in 15 minutes time at the AGM if we still have a club"

**tara** · 6 February 2013, 11:56 AM

Dont know that they Swans are confident seeing as someone at the acadamey told a kid training with us he had to join Ramsgate not us

**muddybulldog** · 6 February 2013, 12:45 PM

my understanding is the acadamey is based on where you live not where you play.

**unconfuseme** · 6 February 2013, 06:13 PM

Originally posted by Offal

Dear members and life members,

In accordance with the constitution of the Bankstown Sports Junior Australian Rules football club you are cordially invited to a Special General Meeting at the Bankstown Sports Club on Tuesday 12 February at 7.30pm Garrison Room. There will be an information session run by the GWS at 6.30pm at the Sports Club prior to the constituted meeting of the Bankstown Sports Junior Australian Rules football club.

Please be aware the current committee and Sponsor The Bankstown Sports Club wants the Bankstown Sports Junior Australian Rules football club to continue to provide opportunity for young boys and girls to develop and enjoy the culture provided at the Club. The AFL has deemed the Bankstown Sports Junior Australian Rules football club a Greater Western Sydney aligned Club with competition and development provided by the Greater Western Sydney area of the AFL.

The meeting is to obtain votes from members as to whether they wish the Bankstown Sports Junior Australian Rules football club to be aligned with the Sydney Swans playing in the Sydney South Competition then transitioned to the Harbour competition with the other Swans aligned Sydney South Clubs such as Penshurst Bangor or GWS playing in the Western Sydney competition with other GWS clubs such as Camden, Penrith.

The current Executive Committee and our Sponsors want the Club to continue to provide opportunities for young boys and girls to develop their character, fitness and football skills and believe the Bankstown Sports Junior Australian Rules football club is a good vehicle to provide this.

The proposed agenda for the meeting is below:

1. Welcome

2. Information on the where the Club is positioned

3. Q and A with current committee members

4. Vote on club alignment GWS or Swans

5. Next steps in accordance with the Bankstown Sports Junior Australian Rules football club constitution.

Please be assured the current executive committee will remain and guide the club during this process.

We look forward to seeing members with an interest in the future of the Club on Tuesday 12 February at 7.30pm.

^That is from the Bankstown Sports AFL website. Bankstown Sports AFL Home Bankstown Sports AFL. Play AFL in Bankstown

Interestingly, it is a very different message to the one that the AFL's "Participation and Engagement Manager" (now there's an oxymoron!), had dispatched to the registered players of the club, inviting them to attend at the same venue, an hour before the club's Special General Meeting, which basically says;

"Staff from AFL NSW/ACT will be holding a crisis meeting"

That "the 2012 Committee had exhausted all efforts in trying to establish a new committee for the upcoming season"

... and that if new parents don't step up and volunteer "the club is likely to disappear and your child will not have anywhere to play football locally".

Those comments are not factual.

1. For the vast majority of the current Bankstown players, Olds Park and Penshurst Panthers AFL Club is just as convenient for them as Kelso "to play AFL locally", just as a number of other Sydney South and even Sydney Harbour based clubs would be.

2. The 2012 Committee are still appointed and working and still trying to get transparency from the AFL, as they have been for months, so that they can fully inform their members and parents, and they can then make their own "informed" decisions regarding next season and beyond.

In fact, the AFL letter still makes no reference to the fact, that in spite of assurances for the past 3 years that it would never happen, the club is now being railroaded into the GWS competition ...

.

Anyway, looking forward to being a "fly on the wall"

**justabaraker** · 6 February 2013, 07:45 PM

Originally posted by unconfuseme

^That is from the Bankstown Sports AFL website. Bankstown Sports AFL Home Bankstown Sports AFL. Play AFL in Bankstown

Interestingly, it is a very different message to the one that the AFL's "Participation and Engagement Manager" (now there's an oxymoron!), had dispatched to the registered players of the club, inviting them to attend at the same venue, an hour before the club's Special General Meeting, which basically says;

"Staff from AFL NSW/ACT will be holding a crisis meeting"

That "the 2012 Committee had exhausted all efforts in trying to establish a new committee for the upcoming season"

... and that if new parents don't step up and volunteer "the club is likely to disappear and your child will not have anywhere to play football locally".

Those comments are not factual.

1. For the vast majority of the current Bankstown players, Olds Park and Penshurst Panthers AFL Club is just as convenient for them as Kelso "to play AFL locally", just as a number of other Sydney South and even Sydney Harbour based clubs would be.

2. The 2012 Committee are still appointed and working and still trying to get transparency from the AFL, as they have been for months, so that they can fully inform their members and parents, and they can then make their own "informed" decisions regarding next season and beyond.

In fact, the AFL letter still makes no reference to the fact, that in spite of assurances for the past 3 years that it would never happen, the club is now being railroaded into the GWS competition ...

.

Anyway, looking forward to being a "fly on the wall"

A fly on the wall indeed !!
The AFL/GWS will put their most persuasive case then the members have their vote...
If the case is persuasive enough then the vote will be to go overwhelmingly with the GWS option. Problem solved.
But if the vote is to stay with the Southern Sydney option, then the AFL/GWS would have to walk away with a loss, and come up with a new strategy.
If the vote is close then my hunch is that the AFL would gain oxygen for their plan, and somehow or another, the nucleus of the Bankstown club go west, either in name or else under a new identity.

This will be an interesting show of strength as to how much the AFL respects the footy community of Sydney.

**tara** · 6 February 2013, 08:50 PM

Unfortunately I suspect the afl is happy for kids to find new homes and then start afresh with their backing resources and toeing the company line.

Having played senior footy for bankstown sports it is very sad to see the juniors no go especially after the hard work of a few people I know and like well to build it into a strong club.

Which western Sydney club will be next.

**Offal** · 6 February 2013, 09:06 PM

Originally posted by tara

Unfortunately I suspect the afl is happy for kids to find new homes and then start afresh with their backing resources and toeing the company line.

Having played senior footy for bankstown sports it is very sad to see the juniors no go especially after the hard work of a few people I know and like well to build it into a strong club.

Which western Sydney club will be next.

I am genuinely sorry to hear thisTara. As a fellow AFL club man coming up to 20 years in Sydney AFL, to have a potental junior pathway put into confusion with the Bankstown dillema and Mac Giants, really gets on the nerves.

We toil to make this great game top of mind for people in our communities.

I hope the viability of SWS is no affected by this debacle.

**The Student** · 6 February 2013, 10:01 PM

I understand that Bangor's committee are meeting in the coming days to work out how to approach the impending demise of Bankstown - their fear is that a lot of the kids will go ten mins down Henry Lawson Drive to Penshurst which will put the other clubs in the comp at a disadvantage. Either way it would be sad to see the Bombers go, I'd be showing my age here but I remember a few of their sides playing in merged teams with Croydon Park for a season or two and they managed to survive that. Shame the AFL isn't helping them out in this case.

**unconfuseme** · 6 February 2013, 11:31 PM

Originally posted by justabaraker

A fly on the wall indeed !!
The AFL/GWS will put their most persuasive case then the members have their vote...
If the case is persuasive enough then the vote will be to go overwhelmingly with the GWS option. Problem solved.
But if the vote is to stay with the Southern Sydney option, then the AFL/GWS would have to walk away with a loss, and come up with a new strategy.
If the vote is close then my hunch is that the AFL would gain oxygen for their plan, and somehow or another, the nucleus of the Bankstown club go west, either in name or else under a new identity.

This will be an interesting show of strength as to how much the AFL respects the footy community of Sydney.

The subject has been addressed by the club, and voted on, and polled, ad nauseum for the past 25 years, and the results have never changed ... the last family that was in favour of the move west left the club years ago ... they live at Campbelltown by the way!

**unconfuseme** · 6 February 2013, 11:44 PM

Originally posted by The Student

I understand that Bangor's committee are meeting in the coming days to work out how to approach the impending demise of Bankstown - their fear is that a lot of the kids will go ten mins down Henry Lawson Drive to Penshurst which will put the other clubs in the comp at a disadvantage. Either way it would be sad to see the Bombers go, I'd be showing my age here but I remember a few of their sides playing in merged teams with Croydon Park for a season or two and they managed to survive that. Shame the AFL isn't helping them out in this case.

... and therein lies the biggest problem in Junior sport across all codes!!! ... those pathetic idiots are not concerned about developing the code, being inclusive, seeing kids participate, seeing them develop and have fun ... they are just worried about winning another u/10's comp!!!

Wake up and have a good look at yourselves, you are supposed to be the adults! ... don't you realise that's why you no longer have control over your own region???!!!

**muddybulldog** · 7 February 2013, 08:55 AM

Originally posted by The Student

I understand that Bangor's committee are meeting in the coming days to work out how to approach the impending demise of Bankstown - their fear is that a lot of the kids will go ten mins down Henry Lawson Drive to Penshurst which will put the other clubs in the comp at a disadvantage. Either way it would be sad to see the Bombers go, I'd be showing my age here but I remember a few of their sides playing in merged teams with Croydon Park for a season or two and they managed to survive that. Shame the AFL isn't helping them out in this case.

I am told that each of the clubs in the South Comp have been told by the AFL not to register any player from Bansktown. Untill the situation is sorted out. They are permitted ot take expressions of interest but not register or take registration fees. I have been told one club have not done so and did register players last weekend.

**ShortHalfHead** · 7 February 2013, 11:09 AM

I was born and bred in Belmore (A long, long time ago). It was the true west. In fact, we believed that the great dividing range was the stop past Bankstown. Of course they should be GWSites. But for all the assistance they will get from the Giants, can't see them wanting to change. The Swans have probably looked after them well.

The problem seems to be AFL communication. Not uncommon to have emails ignored in the junior ranks. Happened for years. If they don't like the tone of the message, it's straight in the bin.

Funny thing about 9-10 years ago, there was a push from the AFL juniors chief to move 14's and 16's in the west to the northside comp. Apparently some lowly clubs in the north wanted to be able to win a game here and there and playing a Western Sydney side in its infancy was their best shot.

The regional clubs committe sent a strongly worded response with good reasoning saying why it should stay in the West (the Campbelltown/Camden/Southwest Tigers etc were being shunted to Southside).

The Juniors boss at the AFL passed it on to one of his staff to reply, with the email saying "can you reply to these West Sydney Knobs". The staff member replied to all the names of the western Sydney regional committee leaving the "knob" reference in.

Now Sunday football has been introduced beginning this year in Western Sydney. The league has been trying for years to implement it, but coming up against clubs with experienced "hard heads" who know it won't boom. Mostly new committees now that think they have no say in what happens, so ideal to bring in changes, for better or worse. I think the league has admitted defeat, advertising now that "Your kid can play two sports now, with AFL moving to Sundays" or something along those lines.

In short, Bankstown should probably be in the GWS zone, but volunteers shouldn't be railroaded or bullied into agreement. They are far too scarce.

**unconfuseme** · 7 February 2013, 02:11 PM

Originally posted by ShortHalfHead

I was born and bred in Belmore (A long, long time ago). It was the true west.

In short, Bankstown should probably be in the GWS zone, but volunteers shouldn't be railroaded or bullied into agreement. They are far too scarce.

Wests AFL Club is in Croydon Park ... they should be in GWS too!

Times change, demographics change, attitudes and habits change.

Reality is, that of the kids that have played AFL from Bankstown over the past dozen years, 95% are from South Bankstown, and those families do not cross the Georges River to the west FOR ANYTHING!

All of the research has been done (not by the AFL), all of the questions asked and answered, and the outcomes are all the same - they will not travel 10 minutes to Liverpool to play sport, shop, socialise (forget Campbelltown, Parramatta, or beyond!)... they will travel 30 minutes to Cronulla for all of those things.

So far as bullying is concerned, I think we will soon see how that works for them ... as per Muddie's post, can you imagine the backlash if they seriously tried to STOP kids who want to register and play at another club, from playing the game ... there are 21 established soccer clubs a stones throw from them who will snap them up and the parents won't have to do a thing! ... maybe they will take up cycling?

Reality is, Bankstown should be playing where the members of the club chose, where they can have a chance to thrive and grow.

**Offal** · 13 February 2013, 09:45 AM

More from the Bankstown Juniors website. There was also a meeting last night with the AFL. As a parent with a kid looking for a kick in the area, I would be pretty put off reading this.

2012 NSWAFL Third attempt to move Bankstown Sports AFL to the West was initiated

Our AFL Club?s new administrators were told at the commencement of the 2012 by the AFL it was now a GWS Club and the GWS would again take over the school development and Auskick programs. This was unanimously opposed by the club, the AFL proceeded regardless. The administrators of the Club advised the AFL they would closely monitor the impact of the involvement of the GWS on the participants of the club during season 2012.

Season 2012 is now referred to as the ?Snake Eyes Season?. Amongst many unlucky rolls of the dice for the Club items below are the most notable:

? Our AFL clubs Friday night community Auskick program was removed from the AFL?s 2012 draw.

? Our AFL clubs Friday night Youth Football, U16 fixtures all but stopped by the AFL in 2012.

? Our AFL clubs was allocated the Auskick Party Day for 2012, was later withdrawn by the AFL.

? Kelso not used for finals a second years in a row despite being the best facility in the region.

? Bankstown children allocated minimum opportunity to participate within the 2012 draw.

? By-law change notifications withheld by the AFL that would have increased opportunity for participation.

? Bankstown children allocated maximum number of byes and maximum travel within the 2012 draw.

? Bankstown Children within the umpiring fraternity receive minimum amount of game allocation.

? Bankstown talented players not advised of Sydney South Representative trials.

The overview of season 2012 under the care of the GWS was frustrating for all concerned as the roll of the dice seemed against the Club. All we wanted was a reasonable opportunity to maximise participation for the children and opportunities to fundraise, showcase our ground, sponsor and culture through end of year finals or Gala Days. We did not receive any support from the AFL or reasons as to why we were unsuccessful or how we could improve.

Bankstown: Swans or GWS?

Bankstown: Swans or GWS?

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