By RUSSELL BENNETT
AFL Gippsland’s Region Commission will launch a major review into senior footy across the region this year, with potential changes to be implemented in 2017.
But the cold, hard reality is that clubs like Ellinbank and Nyora may not have that long. There are no ifs, ands or buts about it – this is crunch time.
The review will incorporate the region’s five senior competitions; the Gippsland League, the Ellinbank and District Football League, the Alberton League, the North Gippsland Football League, and the Mid Gippsland Football League.
According to a media release sent out late last month by AFL Gippsland, “the aim of the review is to provide balanced competitions in Gippsland that promote the sustainability of clubs and increase participation”.
But Ellinbank Football Club president Steve Pratt said the future of his beloved Bankers was uncertain.
“Teams like us and Nyora are in a similar boat,” he told the Gazette.
“We’ve lost eight, maybe nine of our best 12 players.”
The club’s training numbers – as well as the amount of registered, senior-eligible players – are also concerning.
“We’re down on numbers in the 18s too and a lot of those boys won’t be up for seniors,” Pratt said.
“We’ll probably have to ring players who haven’t played in a couple of years (to come back).”
Amongst the players to leave the club, former junior league best-and-fairest winners Nathaniel Paredes and Will Jolley have made the switch to the Warragul Industrials.
Both the Barrands – Daniel and Matt – have also left.
Pratt said new coach Hayden Fredericks had lived up to his share of the bargain by bringing half a dozen players across, while the club had offered others “obscene money” by their standards but it just wasn’t enough to get them over the line.
Many of last season’s EDFL East clubs are all recruiting players out of the same local area – Warragul and Drouin.
Population changes and the geographical challenges of the AFL Gippsland Region will also be considered in the review.
AFL Gippsland Region Commission chair Brian Quigley said while the review was a significant undertaking, it was extremely important for the future of football in the region.
“What has been made clear to us through our extensive consultation with leagues and clubs over the past 12 months is there are major issues in football in our region that need to be addressed,” he said.
“We know some clubs are doing it tough at the moment and we need to look at the competitive balance of leagues where some areas are growing faster than others and some clubs have greater access to on-field and off-field resources.
“Our first and foremost obligation is to protect clubs and if that means re-structuring leagues, then that is what we will do.”
There are key meetings being held this week at both club and league level in the EDFL. Pick up a copy of next week’s Gazette for more.
