Expansion National reserves competition in 2025. Are you in favour?

[eth-dog]

I still think the best suggestion I've seen is a reserves for everyone outside Victoria plus maybe Southport.

AFL "reserves":

Adelaide
Brisbane
Fremantle
Gold Coast
GWS
Port Adelaide
Southport
Sydney
Tasmania
West Coast

Play everyone twice. Everyone gets 3 or 4 byes during the year. Have a final 5 like below.

Week 1:

SF2: 2 v 3
SF1: 4 v 5

Week 2:

QF: 1 v WSF2
EF: LSF2 v WSF1

PF: LQF v WEF

GF: WQF v WPF

VFL:

Box Hill (Haw)
Carlton
Casey (Mel)
Coburg
Collingwood
Essendon
Footscray
Frankston
Geelong
North Melbourne
Port Melbourne
Preston Bullants
Richmond
Sandringham (St Kilda)
Werribee
Williamstown

16 teams, 24 rounds. Everyone gets 2 byes, all the stand alone can play each other twice.

 

[eth-dog]

The only issue if we have a national reserves competition , it would kill off the SANFL and WAFL. Which I hope is not the case.

Nah. They'd survive. The VFL wouldn't.

 

[RonnieRaven]

The only issue if we have a national reserves competition , it would kill off the SANFL and WAFL. Which I hope is not the case.

The VFL would die the most if it’s a proper AFL reserves.
The Sanfl will only lose port

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

The only issue if we have a national reserves competition , it would kill off the SANFL and WAFL. Which I hope is not the case.

SANFL and WAFL would survive easily. Port Adelaide Magpies are the big question, they could/should aim to play AFL Reserves and SANFL but may not be feasible.
VFL/VFA would need a lot of assistance. Formerly aligned clubs have disappeared or become uncompetitive on the end of the alignment, thanks in part to having been basically a separate entity in name only and losing control of their own identity.

All three of those state leagues would at least regain their integrity as competitions and not some hybrid mish-mash of clubs with completely different aims and reasons for existence. VFL in particular is an utter mess.
In the SANFL and WAFL even the standard probably wouldn't drop that much. There are plenty of mid-career players on state league lists currently better than 18-19 year olds on AFL lists playing "reserves" in a state league. Many of those used to be the 18-19 year olds on AFL lists, just as many of those now on AFL lists at18-19 will be the mid-career state league players in five years time.

 

[Tandy]

I still think the best suggestion I've seen is a reserves for everyone outside Victoria plus maybe Southport.

AFL "reserves":

Adelaide
Brisbane
Fremantle
Gold Coast
GWS
Port Adelaide
Southport
Sydney
Tasmania
West Coast

Play everyone twice. Everyone gets 3 or 4 byes during the year. Have a final 5 like below.

Week 1:

SF2: 2 v 3
SF1: 4 v 5

Week 2:

QF: 1 v WSF2
EF: LSF2 v WSF1

PF: LQF v WEF

GF: WQF v WPF

VFL:

Box Hill (Haw)
Carlton
Casey (Mel)
Coburg
Collingwood
Essendon
Footscray
Frankston
Geelong
North Melbourne
Port Melbourne
Preston Bullants
Richmond
Sandringham (St Kilda)
Werribee
Williamstown

16 teams, 24 rounds. Everyone gets 2 byes, all the stand alone can play each other twice.

Would it be unfair or uneven on club resources and spending if we only have the interstate teams reserves travelling all over the country. Whilst the Melbourne clubs stay in Vic. Unless the AFL is willing to completely foot the bill

 

[Engimal v3]

If they do it has to be a proper reserves.
No unaffiliated clubs

Agreed, but sad for the unaffiliated VFL teams.

 

[eth-dog]

Would it be unfair or uneven on club resources and spending if we only have the interstate teams reserves travelling all over the country. Whilst the Melbourne clubs stay in Vic. Unless the AFL is willing to completely foot the bill

The reality is that the Victorian clubs don't need AFL reserves and AFL reserves would kill off one state league. The SANFL and WAFL aren't dominated by AFL clubs so they can afford to lose Adelaide, Freo, Port and WC.

The VFL wouldn't survive without the AFL clubs. I hate it but it's true. Victorian clubs don't need the reserves, the VFL need the AFL clubs in Victoria and the AFL clubs outside of Victoria seemingly want reserves.

 

[Walshawk]

Would it be unfair or uneven on club resources and spending if we only have the interstate teams reserves travelling all over the country. Whilst the Melbourne clubs stay in Vic. Unless the AFL is willing to completely foot the bill

Stay in the WAFL/SANFL then.

 

[Bjo187]

It's too expensive just coz kochie is having a whinge. Port were top of the ladder most of the year it can't have made too much difference.

 

[Bianconeri]

The reality is that the Victorian clubs don't need AFL reserves and AFL reserves would kill off one state league. The SANFL and WAFL aren't dominated by AFL clubs so they can afford to lose Adelaide, Freo, Port and WC.

The VFL wouldn't survive without the AFL clubs. I hate it but it's true. Victorian clubs don't need the reserves, the VFL need the AFL clubs in Victoria and the AFL clubs outside of Victoria seemingly want reserves.

Would anyone really call the VFL in its current state surviving?

 

[eth-dog]

Would anyone really call the VFL in its current state surviving?

In its current state? Eh. If it reverted back to before, yes. It was a proper state league.

 

[Redline]

I still think the best suggestion I've seen is a reserves for everyone outside Victoria plus maybe Southport.

AFL "reserves":

Adelaide
Brisbane
Fremantle
Gold Coast
GWS
Port Adelaide
Southport
Sydney
Tasmania
West Coast

Play everyone twice. Everyone gets 3 or 4 byes during the year. Have a final 5 like below.

Week 1:

SF2: 2 v 3
SF1: 4 v 5

Week 2:

QF: 1 v WSF2
EF: LSF2 v WSF1

PF: LQF v WEF

GF: WQF v WPF

VFL:

Box Hill (Haw)
Carlton
Casey (Mel)
Coburg
Collingwood
Essendon
Footscray
Frankston
Geelong
North Melbourne
Port Melbourne
Preston Bullants
Richmond
Sandringham (St Kilda)
Werribee
Williamstown

16 teams, 24 rounds. Everyone gets 2 byes, all the stand alone can play each other twice.

I think that finals series is too long. Once the AFL team is out clubs want to start thinking about next year. I wouldn't bother with a long finals series, just play a SF in the pre finals bye and maybe a GF in the first week of the finals. I know that doesn't reward the top team but it's reserves football where there are so many variables it doesn't really matter.

 

[Howard Littlejohn]

I still think the best suggestion I've seen is a reserves for everyone outside Victoria plus maybe Southport.

AFL "reserves":

Adelaide
Brisbane
Fremantle
Gold Coast
GWS
Port Adelaide
Southport
Sydney
Tasmania
West Coast

Play everyone twice. Everyone gets 3 or 4 byes during the year. Have a final 5 like below.

Week 1:

SF2: 2 v 3
SF1: 4 v 5

Week 2:

QF: 1 v WSF2
EF: LSF2 v WSF1

PF: LQF v WEF

GF: WQF v WPF

VFL:

Box Hill (Haw)
Carlton
Casey (Mel)
Coburg
Collingwood
Essendon
Footscray
Frankston
Geelong
North Melbourne
Port Melbourne
Preston Bullants
Richmond
Sandringham (St Kilda)
Werribee
Williamstown

16 teams, 24 rounds. Everyone gets 2 byes, all the stand alone can play each other twice.

Reserves are reserves, AFL reserve teams only - and all AFL teams.

VFL is VFL. No more alignments, no more bastardisation of state comps into hybrid non-competition messes. AFL clubs could also wish to apply, or retain in Port Adelaide's case, a state league team; but as an entirely different list from their AFL team.

State leagues need assistance as it is, VFL would need more at least to begin with. Especially the clubs losing their alignments that have already lost their identity and ability to run themselves; Box Hill, Casey, etc; to avoid what has happened to other sides who have lost their alignment in recent years.

 

[Walshawk]

Would anyone really call the VFL in its current state surviving?

Yep. Love the VFL. It was better before the NSW/QLD clubs joined.

It doesn’t help any Victoria AFL clubs by moving to a AFL reserves structure, it just means more costs and more travel. It is simply unnecessary. I doubt Port or WC want it either - they just want a better deal with SANFL/WAFL.

I can’t see it getting up any time soon.

 

[GC2015]

Yep. Love the VFL. It was better before the NSW/QLD clubs joined.

What does that say about the VFL if it's been dominated by Queensland teams for the last three seasons while they've been involved? Southport were clearly one of the standouts in the 2021 VFL season and looked very likely at least make the GF until the season got cancelled due to COVID restrictions, three of the four prelim teams in the 2022 VFL season were from Queensland and Southport became the first team to make a VFL GF that year, and of course we saw the Suns become the first non-Victorian team to win a VFL flag in 2023. Brisbane also made the VFL prelim last year.

So how was it better before 2020? All three Queensland VFL teams have proven themselves as better teams than the majority of the Victorian teams. Surely that suggests the quality of the league has increased with the inclusion of Queensland teams.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

Would it be unfair or uneven on club resources and spending if we only have the interstate teams reserves travelling all over the country. Whilst the Melbourne clubs stay in Vic. Unless the AFL is willing to completely foot the bill

They don’t have to. They have state leagues.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

I still think the best suggestion I've seen is a reserves for everyone outside Victoria plus maybe Southport.

AFL "reserves":

Adelaide
Brisbane
Fremantle
Gold Coast
GWS
Port Adelaide
Southport
Sydney
Tasmania
West Coast

Play everyone twice. Everyone gets 3 or 4 byes during the year. Have a final 5 like below.

Week 1:

SF2: 2 v 3
SF1: 4 v 5

Week 2:

QF: 1 v WSF2
EF: LSF2 v WSF1

PF: LQF v WEF

GF: WQF v WPF

VFL:

Box Hill (Haw)
Carlton
Casey (Mel)
Coburg
Collingwood
Essendon
Footscray
Frankston
Geelong
North Melbourne
Port Melbourne
Preston Bullants
Richmond
Sandringham (St Kilda)
Werribee
Williamstown

16 teams, 24 rounds. Everyone gets 2 byes, all the stand alone can play each other twice.

Surely it's the best solution if national reserves HAS to happen.

Brisbane
Gold Coast
Sydney
GWS
Adelaide
Port Adelaide
Tasmania
West Coast
Fremantle
Southport

Ten clubs, call it AFL2. Perhaps you could have 12 clubs if there were two other state league clubs interested in applying, or if it would be useful to have them for development purposes.

AFL would have to cover travel costs of course.

The Vic clubs already have reserves and the Vic state league survives - it is required for players who don't get drafted.

 

[LordLucifer]

Some people are sentimental to history, as much as you might hate the idea, it makes sense. Teams need more than 23 players on their list due to injuries, form etc so there will always be a dozen or so players who need to develop and fit within the senior team's ideals and structures.

What it means for the other competitions around Australia doesn't seem great atm but perhaps this is where the AFL need to step in and show some actual ownership. Re-align the states comps, support them with decent funding so they can fully support not just the AFL teams and reserves but their own competitions.

State teams are struggling financially, the revenue isn't what it used to be, so they need long term security. They still play a vital role to the AFL though; they are comps that keep players in the system whether they are young or mature age so the AFL could really use this opportunity to make the game even stronger.

How the State comps look will depend on what the reserve teams look like, will mature aged players make up the numbers? I would think that makes more sense to me. Give the state comps a purpose, let them develop younger players, those who don't get drafted could spend 4, 5 or even 6 years in these leagues, AFL clubs have the draft and midseason draft to stock up on kids, dont go cutting the state leagues knees off even further taking these kids and then discarding them after a year or 2.

There is a real opportunity to restructure the competitions australia wide so it works out for all.

Been saying the same thing for years, there needs to be a symposium convenerd with footy people from across the states to come upo with an overall gameplan for the future.

The AFL keep making random changes/decisions that are not in the interests of footy at the other levels and its time they did.

 

[LordLucifer]

I like this, would love a Canberra side to jump on

Just relocate North Melbourne to Canberra permanently.


Canberra Kangaroos

 

[Bjo187]

Surely it's the best solution if national reserves HAS to happen.

Brisbane
Gold Coast
Sydney
GWS
Adelaide
Port Adelaide
Tasmania
West Coast
Fremantle
Southport

Ten clubs, call it AFL2. Perhaps you could have 12 clubs if there were two other state league clubs interested in applying, or if it would be useful to have them for development purposes.

AFL would have to cover travel costs of course.

The Vic clubs already have reserves and the Vic state league survives - it is required for players who don't get drafted.

Actually you could add ACT and N.T based state teams to that competition. All areas in Australia covered either in the AFL or second tier comps. Instead of the ridiculous assertion that N.T could have a team in the AFL with their tiny population.

 

[Burtyl78]

Good, then we could get the vfa back in some form

 

[juss]

I would love it. Would 100% watch our kids/reserves take on every other clubs kids/reserves in a second tier comp, with a lot more interest than the current second tier which means nothing to me. Would make for logical and obvious double header opportunities leading into AFL games.

 

[peetoo]

Flying reserves players, especially ones recovering from injury is madness. Byes are a bad idea too for similar reasons

 

[eth-dog]

Good, then we could get the vfa back in some form

If Carlton, Collingwood, Essendon etc leave for national reserves then there will maybe be one year of "VFA" before it dies.

 

[Tandy]

Surely it's the best solution if national reserves HAS to happen.

Brisbane
Gold Coast
Sydney
GWS
Adelaide
Port Adelaide
Tasmania
West Coast
Fremantle
Southport

Ten clubs, call it AFL2. Perhaps you could have 12 clubs if there were two other state league clubs interested in applying, or if it would be useful to have them for development purposes.

AFL would have to cover travel costs of course.

The Vic clubs already have reserves and the Vic state league survives - it is required for players who don't get drafted.

2 conferences, they each have a conference championship. then a grand final vs the winners. I reckon a pretty intense rivalry between interstate conference vs Vic conference would develop.