Clubs Outside Of Melbourne!

Being in Bendigo I am probably very biased in this topic as I think these clubs are vital to the future of the VFL as it gives the country kids an opportunity to play at VFL level without having to go to Melbourne. What do you guys think? I would hate to see the VFL just Melbourne based and I hope in the future we can include a team from Gippsland way.

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Victorian Football League - General Discussion

Dolphin Mon, 27 Sep 2004 - 22:56

I agree, and I may also be biased! It would have made significantly more sense to base Spirngvale (Waverly) (Dandenong) (Cranbourne) or whatever they are called today at a Gippsland base such as Packenham or even Narre Warren. They will be allocated the Gippsland Under18s and this would have made significantly more sence than the location at Cranbourne, when Franmkston is only 10 minutes away.' It puts a limitation on the attraction offered by both clubs having them so close together which flies in the face of a progressive competition. But hey, I could be just biased! Cheers

mattyc Tue, 28 Sep 2004 - 02:18

Certainly agree. Teams such as Bendigo and Ballarat are not only important in encouraging rural footballers to play at a higher level, but they make for a fun road trip from Wantirna (especially when we win.) I think, to keep a legitimate competition running the VFL needs to ensure these regions survive. I mean, we have managed to incorporate Tassie into the league with promising results. North Ballarat especially has a good following. Nurture the clubs. 8)

grub Tue, 28 Sep 2004 - 21:46

The Murray Kangaroos was a success from a players perspective as it gave a number of ex-Bushrangers are chance to stay in the area but still play in a high standard league. David Teague being the poster boy for this situation. The local leagues were very negative towards this as they believed the Kangaroos were taking ther players so the Murray Kangaroos were doomed from the start. The Kangaroos also weren't helped by hardly playing any games up here and basically putting in no effort in promoting the games at allor building a support base.I still vividly remember every visiting side having a far greater following at games up here. There is still an opportunity to base a side in the area but is would have to be organised a lot better.

caveman Topic starter Wed, 29 Sep 2004 - 08:16

true

i know this is a problem with Bendigo as the local leagues do not want a reserves team because they will take players from them but i think they need to look at the bigger picture. Short term they will lose players but long term after some of them have had a crack at VFL level they will filter back to the local leagues as better players. This is what happened in Ballarat as a few Rooster reserves players went to local club Redan and turned them into a successful club! Bendigo could be very successful but they need to be spot on with their marketing and promotion.