Northern Territory Football League battles wild weather following Tasmania’s stadium saga
While Tasmania celebrates its stadium victory, the Northern Territory could face a similar challenge with NTFL players navigating wild weather as it chases the AFL’s next license. See the vision and pictures here.
Talk about the need for a roofed stadium!
The ongoing debate around Hobart’s Macquarie Point stadium, which was finally settled in Tasmanian parliament last week, has dominated the headlines ever since the AFL announced the Tasmania Devils had secured the competition’s 19th license back in 2023.
But with the eventual introduction of a 19th side now all but confirmed, attention is sure to turn to the home of a potential 20th.
Many states have already put themselves in the running, from a third team in Western Australia to the elevation of SANFL powerhouse Norwood in Adelaide, there seems to be more than one viable option for the AFL’s continued desire for expansion.
But if the ‘national’ competition does want to really be seen as such, following Tasmania’s entry with the introduction of a Northern Territory team seems the most logical step.
But if that’s the case, could the debate around the construction of a new roofed stadium just be handballed from the Apple Isle to the Top End?
No stranger to the effects of Mother Nature, the Northern Territory Football League has been hampered by wild weather this season.
A tropical cyclone in the lead up to round 7 saw a full round washout while this past Saturday’s clash between the Tiwi Bombers, the home of recently retired AFL star Willi Rioli, and Nightcliff once again showcased the crazy conditions the NTFL continues to face.
After bouts of heavy rain throughout the first half, nearby lightning strikes caused a near 30 minute delay after halftime.
While the game resumed, the second-half was played in less than ideal conditions, with players having to navigate large puddles of rain that had fallen during the break.
The push for an AFL team in the NT begun in 2021 with the release of a feasibility study and the formation of a Taskforce.
A business case followed in 2024 which indicated the push for the 20th licence went hand-in-hand with a new Darwin CBD based stadium, which would need to suit more events than just AFL.
A masterplan outlining 10 potential sites for the Darwin City Stadium was later released in 2025 with designs already released too.
The NT approach has consistently been about biding time and doing the ground work so that when a 20th licence does become available the Territory would be ready to take it on.
AFL chief executive Andrew Dillion told this masthead in May the NT needs to put the work in now to give itself a chance when the time comes.
While the NTFL season is played during the Territory’s ‘wet season’ and the AFL season is played during the NT’s ‘dry season’, the AFL’s desire for a state-of-the-art roofed stadium in Tasmania, in part due to the weather conditions, may see a similar condition placed upon any potential Northern Territory license.
Originally published as Northern Territory Football League battles wild weather following Tasmania’s stadium saga
