TOPIC:

Why must we go down this path yet again? That is what makes me angry and confused! It has failed miserably before and here we are dealing with the same again! Not sure of others views but seriously, a vote of no confidence should be directed at this so called commission. May as well call the Wafl the Wrecked And Fuc*ed League, the way it stands at the moment. I feel sorry for the players as they are like the meat in the sandwich.

RE: sycophant eg Dorrington to replace him!
Yes and that is most concerning.

westaussieguy wrote: Why must we go down this path yet again? That is what makes me angry and confused! It has failed miserably before and here we are dealing with the same again! Not sure of others views but seriously, a vote of no confidence should be directed at this so called commission. May as well call the Wafl the Wrecked And Fuc*ed League, the way it stands at the moment. I feel sorry for the players as they are like the meat in the sandwich.

RE: sycophant eg Dorrington to replace him!
Yes and that is most concerning.

WAG whilst I fully agree with your sentiments you are singularly misguided, if not totally delusional, if you think the devils incarnate give one iota about what the alignment will do the WAFL competition and its clubs. From the Dockers' perspective you can already see that they have virtually no interest in whether "Peel" win or lose, With respect to the club formerly known as East Perth, the Eagles have no consideration for the impact it has had on many long term East Perth members and supporters and care even less when they are spurned and the Eagles try to get in bed with Perth.

The ultimate irony may well occur when the person who thinks that the WAFL should go back to 8 teams discovers that the team to go was his.

Yes that is correct swan42. The Mandurah coach has made his intent perfectly clear. Indeed the last statement from Jones made it abundantly so, just in case it needed reinforcing which it didn't. Have no fear there, if Perth are the next take-over targets, the current alignment will be dumped. Probably for another with Perth. I can't see 3 clubs sharing Lathlain. Mind you, when the new oval is built alongside the current one I suppose anything is possible?

Fark that Mandurah smoker & his masters - and as for the filth moving to Lathlain well I hope the Demon lads treat 'em like the lepers they are

westaussieguy wrote: Why must we go down this path yet again? That is what makes me angry and confused! It has failed miserably before and here we are dealing with the same again! Not sure of others views but seriously, a vote of no confidence should be directed at this so called commission. May as well call the Wafl the Wrecked And Fuc*ed League, the way it stands at the moment. I feel sorry for the players as they are like the meat in the sandwich.

RE: sycophant eg Dorrington to replace him!
Yes and that is most concerning.

Maybe the players themselves are the last hope for the comp. a 7 team player strike may be the atom bomb that needs to be dropped at all 3 levels of the comp. it may just be the only way to save the comp for future generations and would speak volumes for what the history of this comp means to the Perth community, now and in future. If you don't believe that imagine Perth without a state league. Junior clubs would fold across the state and then the real anger with the WAFC will commence and the shame the Eagles in particular have brought on our state footy will be shouted from the hills to the sea.

GOOD point DW... Lets be honest our WAFL players play for the love of the game as the rewards are minimal compared to the Professional AFL players.
Pity we didnt have a players association similar to the AFL who control player conditions similar to Union.
In hindsight we it would of been great if we had one as it would of been of small cost to the players and guaranteed their conditions and even got better conditions for them.

Would be great to see one start up now as not to late where Senior group from each club had a meeting outside of the WAFL and their club heirachy. totally independent.
Having said that I am sure a few club commitees would support them albeit from afar

Good idea as if all G7 Clubs players supported it or at least the majority and they didnt play.. Shit what would they do SACK THEM?
The players must realise they will bust their guts turn up for training and in the end the GF result will be one of the Aligned teams in particular EP.

I am certain if the WAFL players did this the WAFC would be thrown into total panic as not only would they be losing a great feeder comp for the AFL even if they started up another comp it would be a long and expensive road.
The WAFC lost 1.5 million in 2013. If a couple of rounds of WAFL were cancelled it would be a lot more.

They would be running about like chooks with their heads cut off and making sweetheart deals straight away and then the WAFL presidents could step in for the best deal.

Like I said the WAFL players should start up an association. Have a meeting of senior players and leading players of each club. These players then should have meeting of all players from their club and move a motion to not play their next fixtures. Those against could turn up but sure it would not achieve anything.

I am sure many WAFL supporters and lovers of the game would support this group and dig deep if they required funding.

Lets be honest if the eating away or Control by stealth continues by the WAFC the WAFL as a 130 year competition will just be a memory in the next 2 years if not sooner. I have spoken to many WAFL supporters and they are very disallusioned by the current changes and because of this will cease to follow a WAFL club in the next 2 years if not sooner.


Good input DW.

Good posts by DW and Cardy, but I disagree that any boycott must come from the players; rather, it must come from the boards of the seven; always keeping in mind that it was the members of the boards whom signed the agreement with the Commission. I could not careless if there is break up in WA football between the clubs and the two Victorian monstrosities. In such a situation, the WAFL will find its own level, which won't involve big crowds and big money. It will however, in such a future, be genuinely west aussie, one free of the manipulations of basically hostile interests from inside and outside the state.

ArkRoyal wrote: Good posts by DW and Cardy, but I disagree that any boycott must come from the players; rather, it must come from the boards of the seven; always keeping in mind that it was the members of the boards whom signed the agreement with the Commission. I could not careless if there is break up in WA football between the clubs and the two Victorian monstrosities. In such a situation, the WAFL will find its own level, which won't involve big crowds and big money. It will however, in such a future, be genuinely west aussie, one free of the manipulations of basically hostile interests from inside and outside the state.

Agree with you Ark in principle but I see nothing happening quickly without some kind of "atom bomb" type event to bring it to a head. Players actually have the most power here considering that without them all footy is doomed. The 7 boards will never come together as one, too much self interest and posturing. Hate to put it on the players, they don't deserve it, but ultimately this is their comp and they are the key to its survival. If the players boycott the 7 boards will have to support them.

A couple of points, firstly the ERT is not my idea and I do NOT support it.

The points raised here are the same ones raised consistently with the new twist being a boycott or something from the players.

I think that most players in the WAFL play for what ever financial return they can get, they play for the honour of playing for their club or in the WAFL (those who shift clubs may not have the same club loyalty) and they play in the WAFL to play against the best players possible.

If you ask most pro or semi pro athletes they will say that testing yourself against the best is a huge part of the process. In the light of that whilst a lot will say the alignment is unfair and wrong they are playing against a team that presumably has players in it that are supposedly better than the average WAFL player. (We all know that is not necessarily so and that some AFL listed players are actually not upto the standard - Cale Morton).

I know from being with the EP colts that most of the aligned players have developed over the season an interest in the 'club' and this is evidenced by the bulk of them asking about the colts results and being supportive of the ressies. This could be down to the salary they are payed by WCE or it could be due to politeness and or they have accepted their lot.

If the GF is between the ERT and whoever they outcome will be hollow for those of us that have a love for EP, except (in part) for the players that are EP like Fraser, Lee etc. Ask Jeremy Barnard and Rod Wheatly and please don't dis them as they are good guys, if they would give back their GF medals not likely.

The other issue for other clubs players is that now they have, by enlage, the bulk of the WCE or FFC heirarchy watching them thus increasing their chances of a mature age draft, another Matt Priddis or Tendai Mzungu. Do you not think that Horsley or Schloithe et al are thinking hey if I do well against the ERT I might increase my chances of being given a chance. Kuenen might think that with Cox's departure and Sinclairs not overly great performances that he might be in with a shot of being picked up by someone!

I hate the fact that in the near future my club might not exist as it once did but I think the rhetoric needs to be balanced by what might be other salient points.

Grump I hear what you are trying to say but I have just a couple of points to make from your above statements-
1) Keunan will be 32 next year so I would say he has as much chance of being drafted as I have!
2) The recruiters are already looking at the WAFL clubs players, I know for a FACT the Collingwood crew (and a few other clubs) are at Swans games from 9am until 5pm every Saturday & we are not playing ERT in those games!