From The Age
Reported by Samantha Lane
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THE Gold Coast team will join the VFL competition for 2010, and coach Guy McKenna said yesterday he would ideally play big-name recruit Karmichael Hunt in round one.
The decision to admit a 14th side in to the VFL competition one year before the Gold Coast becomes the 17th team in the AFL was confirmed to The Age yesterday.
VFL boss Peter Schwab and his off-sider John Hook will meet tomorrow to settle the finer details.
McKenna has spent this season directing his development list in the TAC Cup competition, but the extra team in the VFL - albeit a fleeting addition - has been supported by Schwab and will eliminate the bye necessitated after Tasmania left the competition in 2008.
''We think that's the best deal. These young kids will get a second year of travel, which we think is important, and they will play against boys that are actually also drafted but not playing senior football,'' McKenna told The Age yesterday.
''It also gives the other clubs down in Melbourne that obviously do a bit of travelling (the chance) to put their young kids through some travel, too. It will be a good opportunity for some of their boys to get on a kite and come up to the Gold Coast and play as well.''
Hunt, the 22-year-old international and state-of-origin star who sensationally signed with the new AFL side last month, is due to finish with the Brisbane Broncos at the end of this NRL season and will be solely committed to the Gold Coast by next May at the latest.
In the interim, Hunt has dreams of playing at the top level in three football codes over 18 months, playing a season of rugby union in Europe or Japan over the Australian summer. While the new Gold Coast franchise was supportive when it signed Hunt, when he met with members of the club's hierarchy in Brisbane early this week Hunt indicated he was uncertain whether he would pursue that goal.
McKenna, who was overwhelmed by Hunt's skill after having his first kick with him on Tuesday, said yesterday that if Hunt decided to take up Australian rules sooner rather than later he would not hesitate in playing him in the Gold Coast's debut match in round one of next year's VFL season. ''Don't worry about training him up and getting used to it, he'll be nice and fit, you'd throw him into the deep end and then work out what are the areas and the positions that he can get used to,'' the coach said.
''If he chooses not to play rugby union and plays with us, assuming form, fitness and he's going OK, he will probably play round one.''
