So it's official - 18 teams by 2011

[aussierules0k]

Caro's had the meeting with Dimwit. 18 teams. 2 new teams.

How do we feel about that?
For over 1 hundred years the Saints have fought to stay in this league, yet 2 fly by nighters are being given a free ride. Our games against these teams will be devalued - in spirit at least.

Could someone explain... have the 16 teams all asked the AFL for 2 more? Who's running the league - the teams or the AFL?

18 teams.... most supporters will have no hope of ever seeing a flag.

Contested pack marks are gone, speckies - gone, argy bargy - gone, any reason to get emotional - gone. Now 2 "new" teams.... they must be joking.

[bigcarl]

our board has agreed to it, unfortunately, despite strong feeling among many members that it is not the right way to go.

my main objection is that two extra teams will give st kilda less of a chance of winning the premiership.

[Batnoe]

Less chance of winning a premiership!!!

i say if you deserve to win, then who cares how many teams there are

Geelong would have beaten 100 teams last year, if you are the best team you will win regardless, if we cant win a premiership by 2011, our chances are gone for a while and we will have to re build

Yes i do want to win, we cant do anything about it tho. decision is made now get used to it

[Otiman]

Less chance of winning a premiership!!!

Less chance to come last too. As a Saints fan, I'll take that!

[bigcarl]

the decision is made now get used to it

i can live with it, but i don't have to like it.

i think we're heading for a 20 or 24 team competition with two conferences and a promotion-relegation system.

there is something to be said for that as it would iron out some of the deficiencies with the current hopelessly-compromised draw.

one day we might even snag a premiership in one of the divisions.

my sincere hope is that collingwood, carlton and essendon end up in division two and can't win promotion.

[bigcarl]

Less chance to come last too. As a Saints fan, I'll take that!

it's a bit sad that you are thinking that way otiman. understandable though

[Solar]

the decision is made now get used to it

i can live with it, but i don't have to like it.

i think we're heading for a 20 or 24 team competition with two conferences and a promotion-relegation system.

there is something to be said for that as it would iron out some of the deficiencies with the current hopelessly-compromised draw.

one day we might even snag a premiership in one of the divisions.

my sincere hope is that collingwood, carlton and essendon end up in division two and can't win promotion.

disagree, watch it go back to 14 clubs. Attrition will end up killing a few teams.

[iwantmeseats]

Im more worried about how the player lists will be contrived, and all the ridiculous advantages they will get, more so than the actual additions of the teams themselves.

And a relegation/promotion system will never work. Loss of revenue from crowds and memberships will kill clubs quicker than lightning! Must avoid that at all costs. Cant see it happening.

[bigcarl]

disagree, watch it go back to 14 clubs. Attrition will end up killing a few teams.

well i sincerely hope you are right that it goes back to 14. sixteen is too many already.

[saintsRrising]

disagree, watch it go back to 14 clubs. Attrition will end up killing a few teams.

well i sincerely hope you are right that it goes back to 14. sixteen is too many already.

Though be careful about what you wish for...

If 4 clubs go.....odds are that they would all be Melbourne clubs....and I would not include Geelong in that as they are viewed as a "Regional City"

Then take out the Pies and the Dons from consideration as they already get too many sweatheart deals to have support withdrawn.

Also take out the Tassie Hawks.

So are you feeling lucky????

[riccardo]

Expect the skill level to decrease even further as lists are pushed to the limit and players who would not have been considered AFL standard before 2011 are suddenly on a list.

The standard of play is thus is bound to decrease. I'nm not looking forward to it at all.

[evertonfc]

I like the expansion.

I might be in the minority, but I think it's good for the game. We should be an ambitious sport; we should ambitious enough to be Australia's national sport.

Harder to win a premiership? Puh-lease.

It will be even sweeter when we do, knowing we had to topple 18 others, not just 10 teams.

18 is fine by me. Our population is growing; our national football code should grow with it. The talent pool argument is very, very thin argument - the growing population and the unleashing of new markets will ensure any reduction to the talent pool will prove to be an argument short on truth.

Ten years from now, we will look at each and wonder 'what the hell?' when it comes to questions over the talent pool.

[bob__71]

Hawks are not a tassie team....and what pisses me off is that Tassie still arnet getting a team....we bloody well deserve one !!!!!

[Dan Warna]

screw the AFL

let them rot.

st kilda or nothing.

demetriou is a cancer on football, like so many of the administrators over the last 20 years.

[bozza1980]

Expect the skill level to decrease even further as lists are pushed to the limit and players who would not have been considered AFL standard before 2011 are suddenly on a list.

The standard of play is thus is bound to decrease. I'nm not looking forward to it at all.

In theory you are 100% correct.

However in practice it won't be so.

We live in an age when a player is washed up if he hasn't played a league game at 22, where 27 year olds can't get games at other clubs if they're current club decides to screw them when it comes to contract negotiation time.

There are more than enough league standard players going around for 18 teams, it just means the clubs need to work harder on finding the nugget of gold that everyone else has missed ala Sam Mitchell.

[bigcarl]

I might be in the minority, but I think it's good for the game. We should be an ambitious sport; we should ambitious enough to be Australia's national sport.

no problem at all with the expansion. that is the right way to go. it is two extra opponents i don't like.

we have 10 clubs in melbourne ... a market place that clearly cannot support them all ... the logical solution was to relocate a couple of them.

the kangaroos (who are broke and cannot pay their bills) should have taken the gold coast deal when it was on the table. it would have ensured their survival as an entity.

they've scraped together a half-decent following in 2008, but it will take only one bad season for them to go the wall.

if relocation was our only real hope of survival i'd vote to move and live rather than stay and die, which is what i fear will happen to the kangaroos

[riccardo]

Now they are saying the Gold Coast team may make its debut as early as next year in one of the state comps.

Pity the NRL already thought of this with the mooted return of the Perth/Western Reds.

[plugger66]

Lets go back to the VFL when all teams were broke. Stuff the AFL. They are not successful. Only 350000 went to last weeks matches.

And 18 teams what hope has the Saints got because when we had four we didnt win. When we had 9 we didnt win. We one won when there was 12 and the last time we made the GF there were 16. How can we win with 18 sides.

I hope the AFL go broke and every club except the Saints. Stuff the AFL. They have wrecked the game.

[Enrico_Misso]

Blame our insipid Board.

They agreed to it.
They agreed to it without canvassing the members.
They agreed to it without consulting the members.
They agreed to it without any debate.
They didn't have it as part of their platform.

Why ?

Because they were too scaredy scaredy of Big Fat Andrew.
Scared that if they didn't say yes Dimwit might extract revenge.
Too timid to stand up to this ridiculous decision.
Too timid to even demand further debate and discussion.
It was bulldozed through by Big Fat Andrew and all the timid little Presidents cowered and said Yes.

Thanks Westaway.
You and your insipid peers will not be forgotten.

[bigcarl]

the board of every other club also rolled over on it, possibly for reasons of short-term financial gain.

[Enrico_Misso]

the board of every other club also rolled over on it, possibly for reasons of short-term financial gain.

We could include that provisioning in our budget.
By supporting the introduction of a new club each year for the next 10 we could increase our income substantially.

[bigcarl]

the board of every other club also rolled over on it, possibly for reasons of short-term financial gain.

We could include that provisioning in our budget.
By supporting the introduction of a new club each year for the next 10 we could increase our income substantially.

that is the way it is going. open slather now. roll on 20 clubs and two conferences.

at least the draw won't be so hopelessly compromised and st kilda would have a chance to win one of the divisions occasionally i guess.

[saintspremiers]

I support 18 teams, and here's my summary:

(1) Population growth and membership/attendance growth suggests the comp can grow also.

(2) TV ratings are sound and with 9 games per round the product could be packaged differently to obtain the incremental increase in TV revenue required to subsidise the new clubs/poor Melbourne clubs that need AFL funding.

(3) Saturday twilight and/or Monday night footy appeals to me timings wise....especially Monday night footy, as it would likely be on FTA!

(4) Not too happy though with Gold Coast as venue - I think Tassie or a 3rd WA team may be a better option.

(5) Happy for a 2nd team in Sydney, as it should help cannabalise the Shytmey Swans chances of being successful!