TOPIC:

Unfortunately there is no easy answer, perhaps one of our intrepid AFL lovers and WAFL haters can provide some insight.

West Coast has it's own stand alone team in the WAFL supplemented by ammos or other recruits whilst Peel has a restriction of 11 aligned players in it's league team and the rest play ressies. At least that way there's hope for some home grown players to progress through the system.

BC wrote: West Coast has it's own stand alone team in the WAFL supplemented by ammos or other recruits whilst Peel has a restriction of 11 aligned players in it's league team and the rest play ressies. At least that way there's hope for some home grown players to progress through the system.

Agree BC thats the "least worst" of the available options and certainly better than the shambles we have at the moment. The other benefit to this model is that it eliminates the bye as well.

ooollllrrrrrry2 wrote: Unfortunately there is no easy answer, perhaps one of our intrepid AFL lovers and WAFL haters can provide some insight.

Ooolll considering our intrepid OP was calling for Meek to be given a game for Sandilands this week (he was actually dropped to Peel's Reserves side last week) and Apeness was apparently in ripping form before injury (he had a massive 5 possessions vs SD in said game) it would be fair to say he knows SFA about the WAFL let alone able to offer some insight!!!

ooollllrrrrrry2 wrote: Unfortunately there is no easy answer, perhaps one of our intrepid AFL lovers and WAFL haters can provide some insight.

Steady on ool, there hasn’t been any evidence of a WAFL “hater” on this site, not that I’ve seen.

BC wrote: West Coast has it's own stand alone team in the WAFL supplemented by ammos or other recruits whilst Peel has a restriction of 11 aligned players in it's league team and the rest play ressies. At least that way there's hope for some home grown players to progress through the system.

BC, after our AGM in February, I asked the Club President if the WAFC could switch alignment Clubs or if West Coast could have their own stand-alone team in the WAFL.

The reply to both was NO.

East Perth (read-Bronte Howson) won't give up the alignment until the WAFC come clean and make transparent their plans to all WAFL Clubs, something they have failed to do ever since the Boston Report was commissioned and the Colts competition was re-vamped.

He is concerned that a "clean" East Perth would not be able to survive in the current economic situation without money coming into the WAFL from the AFL Clubs.
Which is strange because if we were to dump the alignment, we would be in the same situation as the other unaligned Clubs, but perhaps with more in the bank than most of the others.

As far as West Coast having a stand-alone team; well why they want to spend money on that? They already "own" East Perth. And they will have to save their pennies for when their women's team is accepted into the AFLW.

mikeh wrote:

BC wrote: West Coast has it's own stand alone team in the WAFL supplemented by ammos or other recruits whilst Peel has a restriction of 11 aligned players in it's league team and the rest play ressies. At least that way there's hope for some home grown players to progress through the system.

Agree BC thats the "least worst" of the available options and certainly better than the shambles we have at the moment. The other benefit to this model is that it eliminates the bye as well.

With the greatest of respect it is not the best solution. The best solution is to go back to the situation where the players remain at their WAFL club. It is complete and utter crap that it inhibits the players' development. I repeat complete and utter crap.

swan42 wrote:

mikeh wrote:

BC wrote: West Coast has it's own stand alone team in the WAFL supplemented by ammos or other recruits whilst Peel has a restriction of 11 aligned players in it's league team and the rest play ressies. At least that way there's hope for some home grown players to progress through the system.

Agree BC thats the "least worst" of the available options and certainly better than the shambles we have at the moment. The other benefit to this model is that it eliminates the bye as well.

With the greatest of respect it is not the best solution. The best solution is to go back to the situation where the players remain at their WAFL club. It is complete and utter crap that it inhibits the players' development. I repeat complete and utter crap.

Swan 42 I chose my words carefully. Note that I said "least worst option" not best solution .Maybe I should have added 'realistic' to my sentence because although I agree with you that the model before the alignment of local players staying at their WAFL clubs was working well, hell will freeze over before they go back to that. As you have said yourself the WAFL is very close to extinction and the only way out that I can see is to give the Eagles what they always wanted ( stand alone team not competing for a premiership) and that way we will get a competition which will be better funded by the AFL and restore the traditional 8 teams. It is a distasteful prospect for someone like me who has faithfully followed the WAFL for 50 years but I would rather see some chance of the competition continuing as an entity rather than the slow death it is going through right now.

Swan42 you are right (of course) but unfortunately wrong too. We have to go for least worst.

Without having read this thread I put up a post on WAFL General Chat along lines seeking to get some consensus from fans about what we want. If we get that consensus then I plan to take things further.