Government’s $100k tender to assess ‘negative and positive social consequences’ of AFL team
The NT Government could spend up to $100,000 on a consultant to analyse the social and economic benefits of having an AFL team in the NT.
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THE Territory Government will spend up to $100,000 on a consultant to analyse the social and economic benefits of having an AFL team in the NT.
The Department of Territory Families, Housing and Communities has published a tender for a “suitably qualified consultancy”, specialising in social science, to undertake a Social Impact Evaluation study in relation to a AFL licence.
The successful consultant will assess the “potential socio-economic value and impact this could have on the lives of Northern Territorians”, tender documents reveal.
It will also identify the “likely positive and negative social consequences” of a Territory AFL team and the successful applicant will have two months to produce its findings by the end of June.
A taskforce, appointed in October last year that includes Sports Minister Kate Worden, has already started exploring opportunities for a “sustainable” AFL team in the NT.
The evaluation will also aim to increase the taskforce’s understanding of the difference that AFL programs make to the lives of Territorians.
It also aims to understand how an AFL team would enhance the resilience and long-term financial viability of the Territory.
“The evaluation will provide the foundation for strategic planning and good governance, and is critical to good decision-making in respect of the appropriate allocation of resources by funders,” it revealed.
It will also assess other options that could be created to provide additional social and economic value.
The taskforce has been informed by a 2019 report, which considered the feasibility of an AFL team in the NT, and will “unpack various elements of the report” before delivering its findings to the NT Chief Minister in December this year, tender documents reveal.
Minister Worden told NT News the evaluation would be a “vital piece of work” and provide the “why” for a Territory team.
“We want this team to become a sustainable part of Territory life, and a source of pride for all Territorians on the national stage,” Minister Worden said.
Taskforce co-chair Sean Bowden said the study would be an important piece of the puzzle.
“An AFL team is for all of the Territory and all Territorians so it’s important that we undertake this work,” Bowden said.
“It will be working side-by-side with the development of a businesses case, the two pieces of work will inform each other.”
The tender closes on April 7.
Clarkson calls for Territory AFL push to play the ‘long game’
FOUR-TIME AFL premiership coach Alastair Clarkson says the Territory must play “the long game” if it wants to one day have a team in the national competition.
Clarkson, in Darwin as the league’s ambassador for the NTFL grand finals at TIO Stadium on Saturday, spoke about how the NT had to be “methodical” with is expansions plans and his controversial exit at Hawthorn last year.
He said it would be a “recipe for disaster” if Tasmania and the NT entered the competition too quickly.
“I think it’s critical for both Tasmania and the Northern Territory (to play) ... what I call the long game ... that we just take our time, do it methodically, don't try to do it too hastily,” Clarkson said.
“If either Tasmania or the Northern Territory come into the competition too quickly, it’s a recipe for disaster.”
However, he said it wouldn’t be a true national competition without Territory representation.
“I’m truly of the belief if it’s a truly national competition then all regions of the country need to be represented,” he said.
“I’ve got a great passion for the game and what the competition should look like in the future.”
He hoped to speak to the AFL’s taskforce – which includes former Melbourne Football Club chief executive Peter Jackson – in coming days about its early plans for a Territory team.
“Anything I can fit in time-wise ... that can help grow the game in the long term, I’m open to help whenever I can,” he said.
Clarkson, who has advised a similar taskforce behind a proposed Tasmanian AFL outfit, said it made sense for the Apple Isle’s inclusion to tie in with the Territory’s entry.
“Nineteen (teams) isn’t a great number,” he said.
“I think that the natural progression is that we go to 20 teams. It would be great for the game.”
He believed GWS and the Gold Coast were “parachuted” into the competition without the necessary infrastructure to make them competitive from the start.
“And that’s what I think is really important with the set up of the Tasmanian and Northern Territory teams,” he said.
He also said there weren’t any issues with identifying local NT talent but rather providing them an opportunity to stay and play at home, ensuring they weren’t “dislocated”.
“It’s not about the talent, the talent is here,” he said.
“It’s whether or not these young lads, they’re dislocated from their families and their communities, can they acclimatise to the new environment (down south)?”
Meanwhile, Clarkson admitted there was “never going to be an easy time” for him to walk away from Hawthorn.
He eventually agreed to an early exit from the role he held for more than 15 years in July last year.
“It was probably going to take them to tell me, show me the door, rather than me walking away from it,” he said.
“I couldn’t walk away ... easily.
“That probably meant I would have stayed there until they marched me out, and that’s what they decided to do.
“It was probably the best way to do it, because otherwise I never would have put my hand up to leave.”
Clarkson said he was not seriously considering a return to AFL ranks and was happy reconnecting with “what life looked like before I was heavily involved in coaching”.
“I’m really enjoying what I’m doing now, I’ve been pleasantly surprised I haven’t missed it as much (as I thought I would),” he said.
“I’m not in any hurry to jump back into it.
“If a great opportunity comes along, terrific, if it doesn’t, I’m happy to continue what I’m doing.”
Watch the NTFL grand final livestream at TIO Stadium here.
A Territory AFL team could ‘lift the aspirations” of the region: Peter Jackson
An AFL team in the Top End has the potential to “lift the aspirations of the whole Territory”, former Melbourne Football Club chief executive Peter Jackson says.
Jackson, one member of a seven-person taskforce investigating what is required for an AFL team to be a success in the Territory, said there was an untapped talent pool up north.
“There is enough talent in the Top End,” Jackson told SEN on the weekend.
“There’s a talent pool up here that just hasn’t really ever been touched.”
It comes as former AFL star, Eddie Betts, who played NTFL football with Palmerston this season, told NT News the Territory’s talent was “amazing” and “really untapped to be honest.”
In a further development, Jackson said the taskforce planned to meet every second month in the Territory, and every other month online.
Jackson highlighted football’s ability to bring about positive social change in a variety of areas like health, education, numeracy, literacy.
He also was optimistic about the potential social impact of establishing a team.
“If you put an AFL team at the top of that hierarchy of footy up here, it’s got a chance to lift the aspirations of the whole Territory, you can have a bigger impact on social outcomes than you’re doing already with footy,” he said.
Mr Jackson, who watched two NTFL semi-finals on Saturday, was also impressed by the standard of play, calling it “open, fast... it’s fantastic”.
“I love watching it. The skills are unbelievable,” he said.
He also said he initially questioned the merit of an AFL team in the Top End and the idea was a “bit out of left field”
“Most people automatically say there’s not enough commercial base up here, so how can you… match it with the Collingwood’s and the Essendon’s and the West Coast Eagles commercially?”
“But it’s not about that, clearly, and the more I thought about it, I’ve seen the impact football has on community.”
AFL taskforce meets in the Territory for the first time
AN organised push towards an AFL team in the Territory has taken another step forward with a special taskforce meeting in the NT for the first time.
The seven-member taskforce, which includes Sports Minister Kate Worden, AFLNT chair Sean Bowden and former Melbourne Football Club chief executive Peter Jackson, met twice last year via video conference.
However, the panel met at the Michael Long Learning Centre and attended the NTFL finals on Saturday at TIO Stadium.
The taskforce discussed the “massive social impact” a Territory team would have and the work required over the coming 12 months to “identify a sustainable model”, a Territory Government statement revealed.
The taskforce will look to develop a business plan and lay the foundations which would “champion, lobby and drive the Territory’s AFL licence agenda”, it revealed.
“The taskforce has already stated that an NT team needs to be, not only successful and inclusive, but one which engages young people and creates widespread social benefits across the Territory,” the statement read.
Jackson, and fellow taskforce member Lewis Martin, a Seven Melbourne managing director, travelled to the Territory to “get a sense of how important the game is” to local people.
A Territory AFL team would need support from all levels of government, corporate and private industry and land councils, it stated.
It would also need to “uniquely look to the north” for support, including corporate, government and “expat communities” across South East Asia.
Minister Worden said the vision was to have a team “truly representative” of the entire Territory, becoming a pathway for both boys and girls.
“We want this team to become a sustainable part of Territory life, and a source of pride for all Territorians on the national stage,” Minister Worden said.
“We know that when the opportunity for an AFL licence becomes available, the Territory needs to be ready.”
Mr Bowden said the taskforce was a “crucial first step” towards an AFL team in the Territory, building on AFLNT’s feasibility study.
“It was great to have the taskforce members in the Territory and immerse themselves in what Territory footy has to offer,” Bowden said.
“The hard work started with a taskforce whose members are industry leaders with experience at all levels of the game.”
‘Why can’t we have one?’: McLeod in support of NT AFL team
ADELAIDE Crows legend Andrew McLeod is the latest footballing superstar to throw his support behind a future NT AFL side.
McLeod, whose son Connor played for Woodville-West Torrens against the NTFL rep side at the weekend, spoke on SEN Top End Footy saying it was great the NT had aspirations of having a team at the top level.
The games record holder for the Crows has already had discussions with NT taskforce chairman Sean Bowden on what an NT team may look like.
Part of his keenness to see such a team come to life is his eagerness to see NT talent given a proper platform and pathway.
The Territory is already the home of many AFL players including Michael McLean, Cyril Rioli Jr and Nathan Buckley.
“It’s great for the NT to have that aspiration of playing in the big league and I’ve spoken to them a number of times to get an idea on what that may look like,” McLeod said.
“As a Territory we kind of get forgotten about a bit but if you look across the board I think we bat way above our average in terms of providing talent.
“We’ve been very blessed with our talent and deserve our opportunity to put out a proposal to get a side in.
“I think it’s great to be able to keep that dream alive. We have some great role models, a great story, a great history, so why not? Why can’t we have a team?”
Post his time with the Crows McLeod played with NT Thunder in the inaugural NEAFL season calling the experience of playing with Territory legends such as Cam and Jarred Ilett and Iggy Vallejo one of the greatest of his career.
“One of my greatest footballing memories was being able to come home and play alongside some of the greats of NT footy,” he said.
“I was very lucky to come up in October and celebrate the 10-year reunion of our first NEAFL premiership.”
He is the latest name in a long list to throw his support behind a Territory team with Eddie Betts and Buckley also in full support.
‘Keep the dream alive’: Buckley throws support behind NT AFL team
AFL legend Nathan Buckley has urged Territorians to “keep the dream alive” when it comes to aspirations of an NT AFL team ahead of what promises to be a blockbuster weekend of rep footy.
The former Collingwood player and coach has always had a strong connection with Territory footy having grown up in Darwin and played for Southern Districts.
And a return to the Territory now is in part to see the lay of land in terms of what the Darwin AFL team could look like and suggested he would want to contribute in some part.
An NT AFL team has been in the talks for some time ramping up over the past few months with the release of a feasibility study and discussions around a possible new Darwin stadium.
“There’s always going to be discussion about an NT AFL team and my answer to that is ‘keep the dream alive’. If you’re not prepared to dream it won’t happen,” Buckley said.
“Never say never. The AFL is an ever-changing environment and the world is always getting smaller. Distance and size have been an issue but that may not always be the case.
“Part of coming up here was to get a bit more of an understanding of what it looks like, what plans are in place and what the possibilities may be. If I can contribute to that is what I’m here to find out.
“And while we don’t know what a team looks like what I do know is that if there was a team based in the NT it would be one of the most passionately supported teams you could ever find.”
Buckley practically grew up in the Territory with his father Ray coaching NTFL sides St Mary’s, Nightcliff and Southern Districts before becoming the Director of Coaching.
The younger Buckley, who went on to play for Southern Districts, got his first taste of getting up close and personal with an AFL club when a visiting St Kilda came to play the rep side.
That team went on to play an NTFL side full of champion names such as the Riolis, Longs and Dunns.
Only a couple of years later Buckley was playing in the NTFL rep side himself in three successive years from 1991-93 against Hawthorn, Geelong and Melbourne.
From there he found success in the SANFL winning the Magarey Medal with Port Adelaide and was drafted to the Brisbane Bears and later Collingwood.
Now he has brought his own children to Darwin for the first time to watch the NTFL representative team take on SANFL champions Woodville-West Torrens.
“I spent a lot of my time in Darwin between the ages of four and 15. It was a big part of my life and it’s great to come back and bring my two young boys along for the first time as well,” Buckley said.
“The rep game is a concept with an impact you can’t overestimate. It is crucial for the next generation to see these games happen so the youth of the Territory see the pathway.
“It used to be only the fellas had that but now the guys and girls both get to sit in the stands and watch their heroes from the NTFL playing against a southern team.
“As a 16-year-old I remember going on an excursion to the crocodile farm with St Kilda, sitting behind Robert Harvey and thinking how lucky I was to be so close to an AFL team.
“All I wanted to do as a young bloke was represent the NT in a rep game. And to know there’s a group of men and women that get that opportunity is awesome and something we need to foster.”
An AFL club in the NT may seem far away now but Buckley was proud to see the passion shown by the NTFL teams set to run out at TIO Stadium on Saturday.
“The thing that stood out to me about these NTFL sides was their passion and I know two passionate sides will run out onto that field,” Buckley said.
“It’s crucial for our juniors to see guys push through as for some Melbourne is so far away. The rep game is so important in that regard, getting juniors there to see the pathway.”
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