AFL announces another game to be played in China but NT’s elite pathway team set to be scrapped

On the day the AFL trumpeted it was heading back to China it emerged the Northern Territory Thunder was set to be scrapped.

On the day the AFL trumpeted it was heading back to China it emerged the Northern Territory Thunder was set to be scrapped.

The Darwin-based elite pathway side has won two NEAFL premierships since being formed in 2009 but will be wound up in the coming weeks.

The move comes as the AFL Commission prepares to sign off on a rescue package aimed at reviving the beleaguered Gold Coast Suns.

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Cameron Ilett and Richard Tambling with the Thunder’s 2015 premiership cup.

The Suns are likely to be handed a new Darwin recruiting zone and could also play a game for premiership points at TIO Stadium.

But the decision to disband the NT Thunder will anger the Darwin football community.

“NT Thunder is a way of life, particularly for young indigenous men and women who are about to have their pathway stolen from them,” an industry figure said.

“It’s about Territorians having the ability to stay at home, surrounded by family, community and culture, and still play at the highest level possible. It still very much achieves this, something lost on the suits who never get out to community and see how real Thunder is to the little kids running around.

“Not everyone is going to be a big AFL star and nor do they want to be, but there’s great pride and responsibility in pulling on that NT jumper and that dream is being dashed.”

Confirming the news, AFLNT CEO Stuart Totham said: “This is a particularly difficult decision for a number of reasons; I was part of the original team to set it up and over my three-year tenure saw plenty of hard work go into the club, and plenty of quality people have invested a lot of time and effort into the teams.

“However, the evidence shows that we can’t keep doing the same things and expect different results so the time is right to pivot and to get more NT talent on AFL and AFLW lists as per our strategic plan and to do that we need to increase our commitment to Northern Territory football across all levels and across the whole of the Territory.”

NT Thunder players drafted to AFL clubs include Steven May, Nakia Cockatoo, Jed Anderson and Ryan Nyhuis.

Richmond assistant coach Xavier Clarke coached the Thunder to a flag in 2015 and Brisbane Lions assistant Murray Davis did the same in 2011.