A TSL powerbroker fears Tasmania’s VFL “gap year” will cost the state some of its best top-end talent
A TSL powerbroker fears Tasmania’s VFL “gap year” will cost the state some of its best top-end talent as they seek football careers interstate. What he said:
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A Tasmanian State League powerbroker fears Tasmania’s VFL “gap year” will cost the state many of its best top-end talent to football careers interstate and continue the talent drain from the state.
North Launceston boss Thane Brady, one of the TSL’s most outspoken presidents, believes a delay in starting a Tasmanian VFL team next year, now out to at least 2026 and possibly 2027, will force the cream of the State League’s players to seek futures in strong competitions interstate.
The creation of a VFL team was designed to underpin the Tasmania Devils in the AFL, and similarly the state’s VFLW team to back up the state’s AFLW team.
Brady was dubious from the start.
“I believe there was never going to be a VFL team for 2025,” he said.
“I seriously doubt it will occur until 2027 simply because it serves no benefit to the AFL nor its new 19th team [Devils] to waste time and serious amount of money on a 2025 program that will have no impact on developing AFL players for 2028.
“It was a smokescreen, a diversion to allow the silent murder of the TSL.”
Brady had AFL Tasmania CEO Damian Gill in his sights for facilitating the end of Tasmania’s premier competition at the end of this season to make way for a VFL team in 2025.
“This was a calculated strategy to elevate concerns raised regarding development opportunities for graduates of the under-18 Devils not drafted,” Brady said.
“The Tassie VFL program was championed as the missing link that would stop the talented players currently graduating out of TSL and into other state programs of a higher standard in VFL and SANFL.
“Outside of the AFL bubble, many hands-on club people like me were dubious of implementation in such a short time frame and questioned the sustainability and fairness of opportunity for players from all regions to step up significantly in standard from community footy to VFL.
“A reasonable explanation is yet to be communicated. Instead, Mr. Gill repeats like a broken record all the snappy one-line grabs that AFL House has approved.
“Yes Damian, we know all about the massive investment in 12-to-15-year-olds, the exciting times ahead of us for AFL and AFLWQ teams.
“But what about the here and now?”
The talent drain could not have been more obvious in the VFL-SANFL interstate match at the weekend, won by the South Australians by 14 points.
Tasmanians Aiden Grace, Mitch O’Niell, Jackson Callow and Baynen Lowe represented the SANFL while Hugh Dixon and Lachlan Young represented the VFL, which was coached by former North Launceston star Zane Littlejohn, now coach of the top-of-the-ladder Box Hill Hawks.
“His [Gill] organization is sacrificing the Tassie senior players of today, who put the most time and effort into the game. The hardest trainers, the most dedicated are the TSL players and the Devils players now, 90 odd percent of them will not be drafted this year and will only have community footy to move into in 2025.”
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