AFL Tassie expansion: Women’s football pioneer Susan Alberti calls for clarity on future of Tasmanian AFL Women’s team

Women’s football pioneer Susan Alberti has hit out at the AFL for a lack of information regarding a Tasmanian AFLW side as she gave her suggestion for what the team should be called.

Women’s football pioneer Susan Alberti has called for clarity on the future of the Tasmanian AFL Women’s outfit.

The AFL — which is set to significantly increase soft cap allowances for AFLW teams — confirmed on Wednesday that Tasmania would receive the 19th licence to enter the competition, with the men’s side to be up and running for the 2028 season.

In its announcement, it said that a proposed timeline for a women’s team’s entry “to be worked through shortly”.

But Alberti — who has already told league chief executive Gillon McLachlan she wants the Tassie AFLW team to be nicknamed the “She Devils” — said information should have been forthcoming as part of the historic day.

“I (thought), have I missed something? There’s not much in there about an AFLW team. It’s all about the men. Again, the women miss out (on information),” Alberti said on Thursday.

“The women are always pushed aside. I think it’s so exciting, and when I was there (in Hobart on Wednesday), the people are so excited.

“Not good enough. I don’t want to stir the pot, but I just feel like why are the women always pushed aside? It’s always at the last-minute. I think its disrespectful to the women … they need to know so they can plan their futures and that there’s a pathway for them.

“It’s just not good enough.”

Susan Alberti says the AFL should have been more forthcoming with their plans for a Tasmanian AFLW team. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Media)

The league’s collective bargaining agreement negotiations with players could drag on amid a stand-off on deal length and a push from players to increase the number of games per season.

The AFL is resolute that the season should stay at 10 home and away games plus finals, with the players aiming to be playing 17 games by 2026.

Alberti said she had wasted no time hitting up the chief executive via text message with her suggested name for the Apple Isle’s future women’s outfit.

“I said the She Devils,” Alberti said.

“I thought, oh, I’ll send a message to Gill and he came back and said ‘I like it’.”

AFLW clubs were informed this week that the competition’s soft cap limit will be increased to $1 million for the upcoming season, up from $685,000.

The marked increase — which includes measures to increase the level of investment in healthcare resources for W players — comes as the league has also floated three rule changes with players and clubs who are currently considering the mooted shifts.

The AFL is proposing women’s players play longer quarters, have capped interchange rotations and use runners less in measures put to clubs over recent weeks.

Alberti says the She Devils is the perfect nickname for a Tassie AFLW team. (Photo by Michael Dodge/Getty Images)

The floated rule changes come as the league stands firm that the amount of AFLW games does not increase from 10 home and away games in coming years.

Under the proposal, quarters would be increased from 13 minutes plus time on to 15 minutes plus time on.

Runners would only be permitted onto the ground after goals and two additional times per quarter, and rotations capped at 55.

Concern from clubs canvassed by the Herald Sun is that less ability to utilize the runner would hinder player and skill development.

STARS PUSH BACK ON OFFERS PAST ‘27 AS TASSIE WAR CHEST LOOMS

— Glenn McFarlane

AFL clubs are finding the next wave of young stars reluctant to commit beyond 2027, as some leave the door ajar for potential lucrative approaches from Tasmania.

While the financial incentives on offer for potential marquee players to join the league’s newest franchise are still to be determined, it’s understood canny player managers are already looking to extend new deals through until the end of the 2027 season, but rarely beyond that.

That leaves a chunk of the game’s best young talent potentially on offer when the Tasmanian team prepares to join the competition for the 2028 season.

Only 17 of the AFL’s players across the board – including superstars such as Clayton Oliver, Christian Petracca, Darcy Moore and Charlie Curnow – have deals that run into 2028, which would put them off limits.

Gillon McLachlan, Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff, Deputy PM Richard Marles, and Jack Riewoldt are running through a banner as part of the announcement that there will be a 19th AFL team in Tasmania. Picture: Getty Images

Charlie Curnow has committed himself to the Blues. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)

AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan said there was still plenty to play out in terms of the pool to fund a sign-on bonus for players to join the Tasmanian team when it comes in.

Those figures would be exempt from the club’s salary cap and could be used to entice young stars south.

Asked about the concessions a Tasmanian team would receive, McLachlan said the clubs had been made aware of proposals but suggested a final decision had not been made.

“There is a whole body of work that is being done … whether that is salary cap concessions and how they (Tasmania) get access to free agency,” he said.

The AFL will continue to consult with the clubs and will set out list management rules for the new club in the coming months.

GILL: COMPROMISED DRAFTS, PLAYER RECRUITMENT NO ISSUE FOR TASSIE

The AFL has insisted the inclusion of Tasmania won’t lead to the highly-compromised national drafts that hindered existing AFL clubs when Gold Coast and Greater Western Sydney joined the national competition, with chief executive Gillon McLachlan saying he is certain marquee players will want to play for the new 19th franchise.

On a day when Richmond veteran Jack Riewoldt said he would consider an off-field role with the new club after his playing career ended, McLachlan said he was confident the AFL had learnt so much from past experience with the Suns and Giants.

He also revealed he had spoken with a number of current marquee players who expressed to him they would have had no issue moving to Hobart if that situation arose.

A discussion paper has already been shared with the 18 clubs who voted unanimously to admit Tasmania, which includes possible list build levers including early draft picks, some of which would need to be on-traded, likely father-son options and generous salary cap exceptions.

AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan says marquee players would have no issue with moving to a new franchise, similar to how Gary Ablett Jnr moved to the Gold Coast. Picture: Regi Varghese

But McLachlan said the imposition on clubs will be nothing like what happened a decade ago when Gold Coast had eight of the first 13 national draft picks in 2010, Greater Western Sydney had 11 of the first 14 picks in 2011 and when the Giants had the first three picks in 2012.

“We have learnt a lot, the drafts will be much less compromised than they have been in the past,” McLachlan said.

“Free agency has given us leverage to do that.

“We have seen a lot of mature-aged players … who are not getting a game across the board. There are more mechanisms and more liquidity in the player market (now).

“We think we can use that to have a very competitive team from day one, with much less impact on the competition.

“I think there is an acknowledgment that now the patience is less in our competition and the team will have to compete more aggressively on a week-to-week basis in year one.”

McLachlan said conversations with existing clubs around how best to build Tasmania’s list had been constructive and fruitful, with the expectation that a set of rules will be formalised soon.

The GWS Giants run out for their inaugural game with a now star-studded line-up. (AAP Image/Dean Lewins)

“We will really quickly, and with the support of the club, get a set of rules to put a squad together, and it will be (down to) good decision-making after that,” he said.

“We have learnt a lot about list builds and how we do that to ensure more immediate success rather than long term success.

“I think we have tools in free agency and we learnt a lot about how to do that with limited impact to the rest of the competition. In the end, we are a heavily regulated equalised game. It will be the right people in the right spots making the right decisions.”

McLachlan said the new club would have its own academy with the league envisaging “the vision that Tasmanians (would be) playing for a Tasmanian team.”

But he is certain the marquee players the new club will start targeting in the years ahead will be attracted to more than the big dollar signs that will be coming their way to move south.

“I have spoken to enough marquee players who love coming down here,” he said. “I am not worried about it (attracting and retaining mainland players). We have had legitimate concerns historically, but this is a different city and a different state.”

Gillon McLachlan, Deputy PM Richard Marles and Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff at the AFL’s Tasmanian expansion announcement. (Photo by Steve Bell/Getty Images)

Riewoldt flew down to his native state to attend the launch alongside former Lions star Alastair Lynch and North Melbourne AFLW player Nicole Bresnehan.

Riewoldt said he would be willing to help the new club if it needed any assistance when his own AFL career ends.

“I see these familiar faces who went out of their way to invest in me (as a young footballer). There is certainly a wealth for me to repay back to Tasmania and whatever form that is, I will be jumping at the opportunity.

“That is the thing that Tasmanians will do … they are littered across the AFL and AFLW in many different roles, whether that be players, coaches, assistant coaches, administrators, coaches, and they will all be putting their hands up to give back to the state that has given them so much.”

Originally published as AFL Tassie expansion: Women’s football pioneer Susan Alberti calls for clarity on future of Tasmanian AFL Women’s team