Tasmania’s push for an AFL license being copied by Northern Territory

Northern Territory has compiled a business case and is trying to jump Tasmania in the queue for a new AFL license - we say back off NT. DETAILS >>

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SO the Northern Territory wants its own AFL team and has compiled a report to support its brazen ambition - as one recent Australian Prime Minister said: “Fair shake of the sauce bottle, mate”.

Tasmanian footy fans say, back of the queue, Territorians.

Tasmania has been smacking the bottom of this sauce bottle ever since we beat Victoria on that glorious State of Origin day at North Hobart Oval in 1990 – a milestone occasion that went into the Tasmanian Football Hall of Fame in the Great Game category.

That’s 21 years of asking, preparing, pleading, preparing, broken promises and rejection.

What has NT done in that time? Seen Tasmania’s efforts and decided to cash in, ride our coat tails, and now it seems, jump the queue.

Tasmanians won’t have it.

LAUNCESTON, AUSTRALIA - MAY 15: Ben Cunnington of the Kangaroos is tackled by Luke Breust and Tom Mitchell of the Hawks during the 2021 AFL Round 09 match between the Hawthorn Hawks and the North Melbourne Kangaroos at UTAS Stadium on May 15, 2021 in Launceston, Australia. (Photo by Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

The next AFL license goes to us, and we have earned it.

Tasmania was hosting AFL games well before anyone in the NT even thought of it, and now they are copying our plan for a team.

Tasmania is a proven AFL state _ Hawthorn (aka the Tassie Hawks) can attest to that.

In 21 years of playing in Launceston Hawthorn has cultivated more than 10,000 Tasmanian members of its 72,000 signed-on Hawks in 2021.

North Melbourne, which started playing in Hobart in 2012, has 5500 Tasmanians among its 41,000 members.

LAUNCESTON, AUSTRALIA - MAY 15: Ben McEvoy of the Hawks and Tom Campbell of the Kangaroos compete for the ball during the 2021 AFL Round 09 match between the Hawthorn Hawks and the North Melbourne Kangaroos at UTAS Stadium on May 15, 2021 in Launceston, Australia. (Photo by Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Tasmania has provided legends of the game like four-time Richmond premiership player and twice as captain, Royce Hart, St Kilda’s only premiership captain Darrel Baldock, three-time Brownlow Medal winner Ian Stewart, and the greatest goal kicker [not the highest] of all-time, Peter Hudson.

LAUNCESTON, AUSTRALIA - MAY 15: Cameron Zurhaar of the Kangaroos celebrates a goal with Tom Powell during the 2021 AFL Round 09 match between the Hawthorn Hawks and the North Melbourne Kangaroos at UTAS Stadium on May 15, 2021 in Launceston, Australia. (Photo by Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Right now, we have two AFL coaches _ Chris Fagan at Brisbane and David Noble at North Melbourne _ two assistant-coaches, 22 players, one football department boss (Brady Rawlings, NM), one club CEO (Brendon Gale, Richmond), and one club chairman (Ben Buckley, NM).

Tasmania has a solid business plan backing our bid, a state government that will support it, and numerous options for a greenfield site on which to build our field of dreams.

If the AFL does expand, it might add two new teams and jump to a 20-strong competition to add a commercially valuable 10th game to each round rather than add one more team and create a bye.

If 20 teams is the AFL’s expansion plan, the Northern Territory will ride our coat tails into the big time.

If the AFL offers only one new license, we say to the NT, back off, the 19th team is ours.