Opinion 13 Premierships Shared Between Just 4 Teams in the Last 17 years

[RUNVS]

Righto …

Time for you to put the bottle away for the night me thinks

That is what you said though, that the team that has the most talent and puts in the most effort will always win, implying that all teams are on an equal footing in regards to challenges.

 

[Shane Heard]

I think there was extra pressure on Adelaide and GWS due to the nature of free agency and the expectation that players needed to get where they wanted to go.

I suppose I am really arguing that it was "the vibe", but it is how I feel.

Today I think it is different (all players seem to think they are freer to move than ever before, even without being a FA or even out of contract).

I predict that trend will only continue to grow.

A lot of players want to play in front of the massive MCG crowds so they make moves to get to those clubs. This has been going on for 100 years.

WAFL and SANFL stars did it.

Toby Greene even mentioned it on the front bar the other night. He made it quite clear that it’s not ideal playing in front of tiny crowds at Giants. “ I’d rather be playing in front of 95,000 most of the time”

 

[Shane Heard]

That is what you said though, that the team that has the most talent and puts in the most effort will always win, implying that all teams are on an equal footing in regards to challenges.

I sure as f didn’t say most talent

 

[Caligo]

That is what you said though, that the team that has the most talent and puts in the most effort will always win, implying that all teams are on an equal footing in regards to challenges.

Concepts like talent and effort are too subjective to make definitive comments, but from my perspective most years the premier either was the most talented and hard-working over the season or the most talented and hard-working over the finals series. Fair minded people can disagree about particular exceptions (Geelong 2008 and Sydney 2016 are two that spring to mind for me).

Even this year, with a highly contentions grand final, Collingwood was clearly the most talented and hardest working club over the year. They were the best team in 2023, and in that sense deserve a flag (even if Brisbane were absolutely robbed by the umps yesterday).

 

[demondavey]

Why do we “need to see it” ?

So many carry on about a National competition and in the next breath complain that Vic clubs are winning flags.

Doesn’t matter who you are …if you win a flag it’s from nothing but hard work and a team effort and good administration and a decent coach.

Because since 2007 we’ve had two of them. We’ve now had 15 Victorian premiers in 17 years. Andrew Demetriou had a sook when non Vic teams won 6 in a row.

 

[go_the_dockers]

Hawks got super lucky with draft picks …Swans got handed a golden ticket of concessions and handouts …Geelong are just a good club with a superb culture and no one ever leaves ..except lil Gaz*

Geelong father son picks

 

[HairyO]

If you go from 1990 which many consider the start of the "AFL" era, its 14 clubs winning flags. With 3 clubs not even existing at that time.

Which is probably why the OP cherry picked the start date.

 

[Cmarsh]

Father son rule has to go.

 

[The King!]

We aren't here to take ****en turns, got to earn them

 

[Maze]

And yet 01-06 had 6 consecutive interstate teams...

Not really. It is when the Victorian clubs started dominating. Since 2007 non-Victorian clubs have only won 2 premierships, both winning them in the dying seconds so it could have very easily been no premierships.

 

[kranky al]

Um what?

The AFL were furious when the Swans signed Buddy, took away COLA and gave us a 2 year trade ban.

That’s dude revised history 1984 style.

The VFL wanted buddy at giants / suns.

 

[Swanssince91]

But your club benefited big time while it was around did they not?



lol, yeh good on the AFL for setting an example all the while Buddy would tear the competition a new one for a 5-6 year span all the while single-handedly taking Sydney to multiple grand finals.

And the AFL allowed Frank Costa to line your players pockets

 

[Gasometer]

Another interesting fact is that since 1999, Blues, Suns and North have not played in a GF

 

[Swanssince91]

Another interesting fact is that since 1999, Blues, Suns and North have not played in a GF

All have had plenty of draft picks to dig them out of the hole

 

[Gasometer]

All have had plenty of draft picks to dig them out of the hole

Correct. That is why by the end of this decade this fact will no longer exist with 2/3 of winning Flags

 

[Footy_Fan2007]

We aren't here to take *en turns, got to earn them

This.
They aren’t handed out so everyone gets one. They need to be earned, and the good clubs win them.

 

[juss]

What it tells me is that if you do things really well you can win clusters of premierships if you cash in on your time.

All of the multiple flag winners nailed their recruitment, trading, coaching strategies and it was made even better by each having some all time club great players at each of their respective clubs.

Do that, and it's possible to win multiple flags in a shortened period.

Any club is capable of this if they get their shit together.

 

[juss]

We aren't here to take *en turns, got to earn them

Couldn't say it much better.

Good clubs win flags because they're good clubs.

Poorly run clubs don't win flags until they become good clubs. Richmond is the perfect example. Trash for 30+ years then elite for a few because we worked hard to sort our shit out.

A flag is not a right or entitlement, nor is every club winning one a right or entitlement. It's a dog eat dog competitive league, be good enough to win or get your club in order to be good enough to challenge. Then luck plays its part too.

 

[LordLucifer]

Do you know what you are talking about? Roos was the temporary coach after Eade was sacked. It was only because the Swans fan base rallied that Swans management back down from signing Terry Wallace and instead signed Roos. The AFL had nothing to do with it.

If you are going to make assertions at least try and make it so they are not super easy to be proven false.

Clarification .........

Swans had already signed Wallace and when they decided to get Roos in, they had to pay Wallace about $600K for that upcoming season even though he didn't coach.

 

[MisterMarcus]

With the exception of Geelong, the other teams have just had this as part of their natural 'cycle'.

Hawthorn are now fully in a rebuilding phase and haven't been seen as contenders since about 2018.

Collingwood have had a bunch of ups and downs since 2010.

Richmond weren't taken very seriously before 2017 and have come down the other end of the cycle after 2020.

I think the question should be more: Why do some teams take so long to rebuild or become genuine premiership challengers again?

 

[Obeanie1]

I see you ignored the biggest free agent of them all, because he didn't fit your narrative?

Dangerfield. Fits the narrative.

 

[HairyO]

And the AFL allowed Frank Costa to line your players pockets

Im sure anyone can buy a waterfront pub in the Geelong area for $1.

 

[Obeanie1]

Pretty much. It’s more the movement of players from the expansion clubs to the big Victorian clubs. Hopper, Taranto, Lynch, Prestia, Cameron etc. Any concept of equalisation is as thin as piss, we’ve had a piss poor Gold Coast, and GWS only making one GF and a couple of PF. The AFL has parachuted in Hardwick for a last ditch effort to save them, with a premiership probably the only thing that might make retirees discuss something other than golf ball deals at their local clubhouse.

All that’s happened in the last 12 years since the expansion clubs came in is that Victorian clubs have become a lot stronger. From 2016 onwards, the following have left the expansion clubs and gone on to play in Victorian club flags;

Tom Boyd
Jacob Townsend
Josh Caddy
Dion Prestia
Tom Lynch
Steven May
Jeremy Cameron
Will Hoskin Elliott
Bobby Hill

That’s not to mention the players that didn’t play in premierships and have taken up their careers elsewhere with success.

All that’s happened is these clubs have just fed players back into Victoria for probably not much in return. Definitely not a good result for the game and definitely not good to see yet another Victorian club winning a flag. Next year we really need to see a non Victorian side winning. I’d hope GWS, Brisbane, Sydney or Port could lift it up.

GWS and Suns paid the top price at the draft. Developed them. Poached when they were ready to peak. Some at a discount others a premium. But players ready to perform.

Good way to supplement your list if you can attract those players.

Bad luck if they only want to live in Melbourne.

 

[Bearded Clam]

The draft and trade week nonsense needs to go.

Look at the record of the NRL for the 2000’s and then compare it with the AFL..

Sure.. there’s still been a couple of dominant clubs but the flag has been shared around a lot more in that comp this century.

The whole reason for the draft and the trade week which involves trading players for picks/compo/other players was to act as an equaliser.

Now its become more inportant to the AFL and its media arms as a sideshow from which to generate more money. A complete 24hr media circus.

Get rid of it all.. set it up the same as the NRL with nothing more than the salary cap providing the equalisation.

The one thing that will need to change however is the attitude of the clubs toward trading of players.. the AFL is so immature about this process when compared with the NRL.

 

[Caligo]

Dangerfield. Fits the narrative.

Bit late on that failed joke. Nice try though.