Tasmania AFL licence: This is for all those who dared to dream
So many Tasmanian footy legends have led us to where we are today. Names like Baldock, Hudson, Hart and Stewart. Today is the day the league finally paid us all back, says BRETT STUBBS
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This is for the Doc, Royce, Stewie and Huddo.
This is for Dougy Barwick’s torpedo goal from the North Hobart wing, for Matthew Febey’s incredible mark at Bellerive Oval, for Dickie Collins’ stolen goalposts, for York Park’s sirengate, for Disco Roach’s and Lynchy’s hangers (and for everyone of Jeremy Howe’s).
This is for all the kilometres Nick Riewoldt ran, for every one of “mad” Mitch Robinson’s bumps, for every step of Ben Brown’s goalkicking routine, for every cheeky Jack Riewoldt grin, for every Paul Williams dash, for Verdun Howell’s Brownlow won from fullback, for Brendon Gale’s decision making on and off the field, for Chris Fagan’s remarkable coaching story.
This is for Jessica Wuetschner, Nicole Bresnehan, Brittney Gibson and the others that forged the state’s reputation without the state’s own team in the AFLW.
This is for Derek Peardon, a member of the Stolen Generation who showcased the palawa people’s athleticism and skill on the biggest stage by becoming Richmond’s first Indigenous player.
This is for every volunteer who filled water bottles on freezing, wet winter nights, or strapped wonky ankles, or sold raffle tickets or stocked the pie ovens.
It’s for every umpire that blew a whistle or waved a flag across every Tasmanian footy field from King Island to Kermandie.
This is for Brett Godfrey, James Henderson, Grant O’Brien and the rest of the taskforce who the state owes a debt of gratitude that can never be repaid.
This is for those who fought the battle behind the scenes at personal cost, such as Michael Kent, Scott Wade, Tim Lane, Robert Shaw, former Premier Peter Gutwein – who gave the campaign a public hard edge – and for all the politicians of all persuasions, business owners, community leaders and the Mercury, which never surrendered despite the odds.
This is for the 90,000 plus who pledged their support for a Tasmanian team.
And all those who hoped but dare not believe – now is the time to get on board.
This is even for departing AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan, who can now add a Tasmanian team to his legacy of the AFLW and saving the game during Covid.
This also a nod to team ambassador Alastair Clarkson and those AFL presidents who backed the AFL becoming a truly national competition and for those that derided and undermined us? Well, to pinch a footy phrase, ‘we stuck it right up ‘em!’
But most of all, this is for the next generation of Tasmanian boys and girls who can now chase their dreams of playing AFL or AFLW and do it while representing their home state – a dream all those who came before them could never achieve.
The AFL’s momentous decision to allow a Tasmanian team into the league finally corrects a decades old injustice, but it is not about the past, now it is about the future.
Just as the NBL JackJumpers showed how the state can unite behind a club that embraces and represents us, the Tasmanian AFL side will do the same, but on a much larger scale. It’s impact economically, socially, and spiritually will be like nothing we have witnessed before.
The passion for Australian rules in the heartland state has diminished in recent times due to years of neglect, but it is not extinct, merely dormant under the famous “Map” and is ready to explode once those colours are again seen on the footy field.
The announcement on May 3 that Tassie has been accepted into the big league is a day to stir the hearts and emotions of all Tasmanians, on and off the island.
It is the culmination of a campaign built on passion and a business case that in the end could not be refuted.
But it is not the end of the journey, merely just the end of the first, long chapter.
The emotions felt today will only grow as the club is built, has its first training run, takes the field for the first time and then finally sings the team song in victory.
There is much to be excited about and to reflect on, but there is oh so much more to come.
Now the state gets the chance to shape its football future as an equal and for its players to shine as Tasmanians, representing Tasmania.
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