Quite simply, if you believe in a truly national competition for our only truly national game, you want a team in Tasmania and Northern Territory. I love this game, it’s unique characteristics and how the code both reflects and is born of our culture. As such, commercial considerations of those 2 new teams become irrelevant when bankrolled by a financial behemoth like the AFL. Which they should be, as they should be subsided by their state/territory governments, for obvious reasons. 
Concerns about 20 team talent spread and  fixturing issues aren’t relevant either when the game grows at the grass roots (admittedly along with umpiring, currently too neglected by the AFL), and new fixturing models can obviously be invented.

I just can’t see any long term downside, emphasis long term. 

Pipe dream. NT is a basket case economically and a tiny population. Conditions for footy are pretty harsh - think the spectacle of the Saints v Port game in Cairns every second week. Most players will bail as soon as possible. 

On 5/26/2022 at 6:21 PM, Ouch! said:

I totally get that, my point was more the condescending ill formed comments about every team in Tas apparently has failed thru history, the majority of people leave Tas in their 20s. 
I have no doubt however that the models being used for the business case are acutely aware of economical implications of a team in Tassie, as would those trying to put a case together for the NT.  

If you want to talk about every team somewhere in history failing, I think Gold Coast takes that mantle!

Bring in a team from Tassie.

Merge North Melbourne and GWS.

Rebrand Gold Coast Suns the Northern Australia Suns playing 7 games out of Darwin, 2 in Alice and 2 in Cairns.

Keeps an 18 team comp while allowing Tassie to come in, the Kangaroos jumper to keep rolling and potentially fix to mistakes that were made in setting up Gold Coast and GWS in the first place.