Poll: Standard of SFL

[Mug Punter]

Reckon the SFL is the weakest I can remember in over 30 years, Whadayareckon?

[Tom Wills]

MP - I am a relatively new person to Sydney Footy, about 10 years and cant really comment on your survey.
Though... I would make an assertion that today's SFL is predominantly made of Sydney / NSW born and bred players and not expats or imports. My understanding was that in decades past the best sides were full of Non Sydney players, sides like Easts, North Shore, Penno and Wests used to "buy" in players with jobs and money or at least fight over those footballers who relocated for work.

Today's 2 best SFL slides, Manly and Penno are almost exclusively local product players.

In summary I don't see the point in comparing a competition of Expat Footballers from the 1980 or 1990 to today's locally produced Footballers.

[Norris Lurker]

I wasn't around Sydney footy in the 80s & 90s so I can't really say too much about what it was like then. But I can imagine it would be like now - very hit & miss. Sometimes you'll get a game with some good footy being played, sometimes you won't. There's good football played by the top teams in Premier Division, but it falls off quickly.

But one thing that has changed considerably in the 10 years I've been around. Quality is subjective, quantity is easier to determine objectively - and we're seeing more people playing the game than ever before. A couple of NEAFL teams, six open-age divisions and two under 19s comps; plus 2 comps for the girls. And we've gone a third of the way through the season, and (touch wood), only one forfeit.

[cartman48]

The top sides are fitter now but there are less "Elite" players at the SFL level for a variety of reasons.

[justabaraker]

MP - I am a relatively new person to Sydney Footy, about 10 years and cant really comment on your survey.
Though... I would make an assertion that today's SFL is predominantly made of Sydney / NSW born and bred players and not expats or imports. My understanding was that in decades past the best sides were full of Non Sydney players, sides like Easts, North Shore, Penno and Wests used to "buy" in players with jobs and money or at least fight over those footballers who relocated for work.

Today's 2 best SFL slides, Manly and Penno are almost exclusively local product players.

In summary I don't see the point in comparing a competition of Expat Footballers from the 1980 or 1990 to today's locally produced Footballers.

Well done Mug on an interesting topic. So there !

Tom W has nailed it already...well done to Tom.
The teams of the 1980s-90s were indeed fortified by expats and imports. There were a lot of class Swans who stayed around after their elite career was over - I'm thinking Barthomemauous, Ironmonger, Eustice, Duursma, Luff, Daniel McPherson, the Swan who coached StGeorge when they became the Crows (I think he wore No 11), Thripp, Brunton.
Then there were the elites from other states - Klomp, Clisby, Barratt, Bennett, Gerke, Headland and Peter Banks at Penno are the first to come to mind, then those army behemoths from Campbelltown.....hey, who can remember the late Peter Ruscuklic nailing them from the centre of Trumper in 1980 ?

So the teams of the 1980s-90s had hard hitters at the top, and the skinny little local kids making up the numbers were made to look good by the heavies. But, despite all that interstate talent, of course Penno didn't win a premiership in the 1990s, because of the not-so-classy second tier, whereas there were more imports at Campbelltown and Ron Thomas' monsters at Wests.
Penno only won in 2000 because the Swans Reserves rolled over.

Those elite imports have pretty much dried up - the last two were probably Seebeck and Rhys McAllister. But I'm keeping an eye on Williamson at Wests (via Tasmania) who might be the next elite player in our comp.
Nowadays, SFL doesn't look very attractive to interstaters so they find their way to NEAFL where there is a little more money/sponsors, better grounds (other than No 1), better competition and better job opportunities/networks.

The SFL products that went onto play AFL (the Jack boys, the McVeigh boys, Addison, Lenny Hayes) never really got to show their wares in Sydney because they were snapped up by the Talented programmes. So they didn't get to strengthen our comp. The talented kids now being steered into the Talented programmes are too young to be considered the best in town.

My answer to Mug's poll is that, if today's SFL best played the SFL best of the 1990s then the old comp would smash 'em. But, if today's SFL best (mostly local product) played the best local product of the 1990s then the current comp would easily win because of speed, nutrition, sports science and fitness, in-and-under, quick reflexes and decision making.

The elite players are still around in Sydney, playing in the NEAFL rather than the SFL, and nurturing the better young talent. That's not a bad thing.