AFL: Tasmania boss Brendon Gale on possible draft concessions

As the current 18 AFL clubs await an announcement surrounding draft concessions for the Tassie Devils, CEO Brendon Gale has revealed he has been given an insight into possible plans.

Brendon Gale with young Tasmania Devils supporters at his first official press conference.

Tasmania Devils boss Brendon Gale says early indications suggest the club’s draft concessions “won’t be as generous” as those handed down to previous AFL expansion clubs.

On Thursday, Gale was officially unveiled as the 19th AFL club’s boss at the north-west Tasmania beachside town Penguin, where the former Richmond chief executive spent part of his childhood.

Gale confirmed he had viewed a preliminary outline of what the AFL’s concessions might look like, and indicated there’s still some common ground to reach.

Asked what concessions he’d like the club to receive, Gale replied: “Broad and deep.”

“It’s important, the AFL wants to set us up for success. The strength of the competition relies on a high degree of competitive balance.

“They’ll want to afford us the type of concessions that will get us competitive early, and get us the right mix of elite youth and hardened professionals.

“I’ve seen a draft set of proposals and they’re maybe not quite as generous as what was provided to the Giants and the Suns early doors.

“But they (AFL) are fully aware of the reasons behind that. We need to understand why and their motives behind us and land somewhere that’s good for us and the competition.”

While the head coach looms large as the next major announcement, Gale stressed taking advantage of list and draft concessions to ensure the club is competitive immediately is the priority.

“On the football side of things particularly around lsit management and recruiting (we have to make decisions) reasonably soon,” Gale said.

“We need some experience and acumen and old heads around the table to help us work our way through these list concessions, It has a huge bearing on how we establish and set up the club.

“The senior coach isn’t as urgent. A bit depends on the VFL and when we enter, but (still) earlier rather than later.”

Gale confirmed they had garnered plenty of intel from the Tasmania JackJumpers’ successful foray into the NBL, particularly their ability to engage the entire state.

It’s a significant passion for their coach Scott Roth, and Gale said the Devils are determined to build the same holistic and inclusive approach.

“I’ve watched Scott from afar, and have a great admiration for him and the JackJumpers,” Gale said.

“This is a ruthlessly competitive and tough business. We’re going to need the whole state to be behind this team for it to be successful, on the field and off, I can’t stress that enough.

“We’ve got to work really hard in everything we do and all the decisions we make to cut through the old (regional)parochialism and engage the whole state. ”We need the whole state behind this football club, investing their hearts and minds and where possible, their dollars.

“We want to build a club we feel our entire state feels they’re a part of.”

Penguin’s beautiful ocean backdrop also provided the perfect chance for Gale to spruik the benefits of his home state to potential recruiting targets.

“This is an incredible lifestyle. For young boys and girls you’ve got beaches, surfing, fishing, you can buy a little farm. You’ve got freedom you’ve got time, you can raise a young family,” he said.

“You can stay in Melbourne and spend half your life in a car in peak hour traffic, that’s good. I’ve been there and done that, but I prefer the alternative.

“There’s some really compelling attributes for being here. A lot of the big cities have the trappings and attractions, (but) you can come down here as a young man or woman and focus on your football and being elite.”

Originally published as AFL: Tasmania boss Brendon Gale on possible draft concessions