Makeshift Adelaide Crows reserves team in SANFL has devalued the State league

SANFL leaders need to note their State league is measured by its weakest team — and a makeshift Adelaide Crows is not a good look for local football and might help fast-track the AFL national reserves competition.

The Adelaide Football Club should have a greater investment in the SANFL with more than an AFL reserves team that is reliant on “top-up” players from community clubs when the Crows AFL injury list rises. Picture: Matt Turner.

SO much of the SANFL-AFL reserves debate is built on hypocrisy.

“The SANFL is the best State league.” But on Saturday the measure of the competition was downgraded by a Crows SANFL team reliant on non-league standard players called from community football to make up the numbers while Adelaide deals with a heavy injury list.

For those not aware, Adelaide — unlike the traditional SANFL clubs — does not have a reserves or under-age team. It is a “fill-in” team in the State league.

“There is no reason for a national AFL reserves competition.” But on Saturday the Crows — and its AFL colleague in the SANFL, Port Adelaide — gained further reason to become interested in how a national reserves league would operate.

Bigger lists. Greater access to talent that would be drained from the SANFL ranks. Sounder development programs — and results.

“No-one,” it is said by the SANFL purists, “wants the Crows or Power reserves to win the SANFL premiership.” So is it a genuine 10-team competition then?

The SA Football Commission today needs to deal with this hypocrisy to ensure it delays the inevitable progress of a national AFL reserves competition. And the commission need only look west — to the WAFL where West Coast and Fremantle have “alliance” teams in the State league — to start a major rethink on how to structure the SANFL competition with the Crows and Power.

In the west, there is teenager Jason Carter wanting to follow a dream to the AFL. The 18-year-old was identified by WAFL club Claremont in the Tigers’ Kimberley recruiting zone.

AFL club Fremantle — like Port Adelaide — has an academy for indigenous talent and can — unlike the Power — earmark Aboriginal footballers from the “Next Generation Academy” for a priority pick in the AFL national draft.

Crows player Harrison Dear tries to extract the footy from Port Adelaide’s Jimmy Toumpas at Alberton Oval on Saturday. Picture: Tom Huntley

Fremantle has successfully petitioned the WA Football Commission to advance the consequences of this draft strategy by having Carter transferred from Claremont to the Dockers’ Peel Thunder WAFL unit. Claremont was handed no compensation for having Carter taken from the Tigers’ den to fast-track his development in the Fremantle program.

It is no surprise that Claremont took issue with the WAFC decision. Club president Grant Povey reacted saying: “We hope the decision doesn’t compromise the integrity of the West Australian football pathway.”

The WAFC noted Carter’s pathway to fulfilling his dream to be an AFL player was more relevant than Claremont hanging on to the teenager for just a year.

How would the same script play out in Adelaide? Would the SA Football Commission allow a talented teenager to advance his entry to an AFL program at Alberton or West Lakes or hold the lad to his SANFL club?

The Crows’ line-up in the SANFL Showdown at Alberton on Saturday highlighted the mistake made in not demanding — as Sturt recommended — the Adelaide Football Club have a full investment in the State league with league, reserves and academy teams.

A weak Crows SANFL team devalues the State league.

And it brings on the AFL national reserves competition.

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Originally published as Makeshift Adelaide Crows reserves team in SANFL has devalued the State league