My neighbor knows a guy who mows the lawns for the guy that read an AFL news story about Tasmania, today! so this is as real and accurate as it gets.
Teams bandied about who could move:
1. St Kilda
2. Western Bulldogs
3.North Melbourne
4.Hawthorn
Teams most likely to entertain the idea:
1. North Melbourne
2. Western Bulldogs
Teams who will never move to Tasmania:
1. All
Prediction:
Expansion team in Tasmania in 2025
Predicted benefits of a move:
1. AFL Sugar daddy - lots of cash
2. AFL premium draft picks for 3 years
3. A whole state to yourself - be it small they're footy mad.
4. A new stadium
5. Maximum tv coverage of games for 3 yrs
6. Tassie government claims it will implement 3 yr supplement on airfare and accomodation for interstate travellers ( only if its a team move not new team)
7. The report supposedly notes that the AFL and Tassie government & NZ government would co fund a permanent NZ footy ground / training facility for the new team for player development ( I don't see this working but almost every sporting code is doing it and succeeding after 20-25 yr investment).
Predicted negatives of a move:
1. Loss of mainland memberships - some estimate 50%
2. Loss of historical and cultural connections
3. Difficult to get and maintain players in wet, cold conditions ( that's just the summer months lol)
4. Player whine level set to maximum about how far it is from home.
5. Almost entire previous member base is now interstate.
Tassie Team: Pure Guesswork
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