When it comes to AFL, the Northern Territory punches above its weight in plenty of ways: per capita more people participate in the sport than anywhere else in the country.The NT has also produced some of the game's most celebrated players, so naturally, the prospect of the Territory getting its own AFL team has been talked about for decades.Back in about 1988, former AFLNT board member and secretary Darryl Window took three months off work and secured a NT government grant to investigate taking Territory AFL to the next level.
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23 Mar 20. Tas had a great successful VFL team, dropped by the AFL,
A Territory team in the AFL would be pretty cool," he said.This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced. Curious Darwin is our series where you send us your questions, vote for your favourite, and we investigate. The AFL was proved wrong on multiple counts when confectionery company Mars The AFL’s argument regarding low supporter bases also had holes poked in it, when soon after it was announced the hypothetical Tasmanian team had secured over 20,000 potential members.
With a strong expectation that Tasmania will be added as the AFL’s 19th team, it also raises the question of including a twentieth. "If you truly think Tasmania deserves a team then act on it," Godfrey said. I’m not sure.”In the league’s view, starting a side in a state with poor location and limited supporter base is not likely to attract interest from major sponsors. And that’s just the average – big clubs like Hawthorn and Collingwood easily rack up expenditure bills in excess of $40 million annually.Economic issues also relate to another factor in the argument for a Tasmanian club.Cornelius recalls a meeting he and several other Tasmanian-based AFL representatives had met with Andrew Demetriou in the months after the two expansion teams were announced.“I was at the Lions when that was going on, and we actually got spoken to by Demetriou about the reasons they went with teams in the Gold Coast and Western Sydney,” he said.“I actually asked the question at that meeting ‘Will there be a side in Tasmania?’, and Demetriou said the AFL was only really looking at putting new clubs in growth areas.“The league thought they could get in those markets and create more interest in the game, whereas in Tasmania that interest is already there and can’t really be built on any more than it already is.“There were about five other Tassie boys in the room that day, and none of us had a leg to stand on by the time they’d finished giving us the facts. "I have spoken to the CEO of the AFL Gil McLachlan about the potential of a Territory team, and he is supportive of giving Territory talent a better avenue to play AFL footy while living at home. If a club does comes to fruition, it needs to be challenging for a finals spot in a couple of years – a la Gold Coast – to prove its credibility at senior level.Cornelius is adamant that to get a club playing at league quality, they first need experience playing against it.“Tasmania needs to get a VFL side before it can look at the bigger picture. NOT HAPPY Roos take action on AFL's worst injury toll "It's so big for our club and our members down there as well," Rawlings said. Although he's a Northern Territorian, Jacob Long, 16, barracks for the Hawthorn Hawks, because his cousin Cyril used to play for them.Prior to 2008 he was an Essendon Bombers fan, when uncle Michael was on the team.Asked if he would switch allegiances again if the NT fielded an AFL team, Mr Long said he probably would.He also thought it would help him follow his famous family members — Cyril Rioli and Michael Long — to "make it" in the top league.But he couldn't understand why it didn't have one already: "[I'm] not too sure, I reckon we've got the skill," he said.An ABC reader was also surprised and contacted Curious Darwin for answers. It's time to reveal who really is the best of the best in womens.afl's AFLW Team of the Year. Someone needs to be brave enough to say they will take this seriously.