poita

Absolutely agree. We're going nowhere as a club if we're playing more than one of Melksham, Mihocek and McAdam in the same side. I'll be amazed if any of these guys are in our next finals side, and we need to be getting games into guys who will be.

It seems as though we are about to see a salary cap introduced for the AFLW, possibly before season 2027 but certainly before the new CBA commences from 2028. https://www.afl.com.au/aflw/news/1396344/clubs-growing-restless-over-aflw-contract-uncertainty I feel as though the current tiered structure has penalised the top teams who have had limited flexibility around contracts for mid-tier players, allowing them to be picked off by weaker teams who can place them in a higher tier. I know Eden Zanker left for lifestyle reasons, but it is also possible that Fremantle were able to offer her a contract on the top salary band, whereas she may have only been a tier three player at Melbourne. It is very interesting that Brisbane apparently have all players being paid within the third salary tier. I guess the lure of regular premierships and finals every year is more attractive than a few extra dollars. Once this is resolved it will also allow clubs to offer contracts that run beyond the length of the current CBA. AFLW Salary Tier Structure (2025–2026 Season) Tier 1 (Top Tier): ≈$109,760is approximately equal to $ 109 comma 760 ≈$109,760 (approx. 2 players per club) Tier 2: ≈$89,559is approximately equal to $ 89 comma 559 ≈$89,559 (approx. 6 players per club) Tier 3: ≈$76,091is approximately equal to $ 76 comma 091 ≈$76,091 (approx. 6 players per club) Tier 4 (Base Tier): ≈$67,337is approximately equal to $ 67 comma 337 ≈$67,337 (approx. 16 players per club)

A hypothetical scenario and a serious question. The AFL spends $100 million on Taylor Swift to play the 2026 Grand Final. She puts in a simply amazing performance - guest stars, dancers, fireworks, puppies; maybe she base jumps off one of the light towers in a wedding dress and gets married to Travis Kelce in the goal square. It is all the world talks about for a week, before something else happens and everyone moves on. What does it actually mean for the AFL, and how do the game, the clubs, the fans, the players at lower levels actually benefit from this long term? I find it hard to believe that this actually generates new fans. For one thing, the next game is not for 6 months and, outside the southern states of Australia, nobody thinks about football in that time. Most of the people watching Taylor Swift probably don't watch a single second of the game. Does one big spectacle actually generate additional sponsorship or membership dollars, does it add to the TV rights? Does it actually generate anything outside social media likes and video views? How does the NFL benefit long term from their half time shows? How would the AFL benefit from a similar extravaganza.

I couldn't care less what the media or the football public think of our chances, but clearly there are financial and football implications from having another garbage year. Memberships and sponsorships are clearly going to be well down compared with 3 years ago, and we're more likely to be shunted into crappy time slots with minimal TV coverage if we're not playing decent football. It's pretty tough to be asking third parties for funding for new premises if you're not even attractive to your own fans.

I don't think anyone is suggesting that a contract extension wasn't richly deserved. An extra one year, maybe a second (at a lower rate), on top of his existing deal would have been accepted by everyone. It is the final year of the deal that we all objected to at the time and which is looking incredibly stupid right now. There is absolutely no way that Geelong, to name one incredibly well-managed club, would have even contemplated this deal. Sadly, we went too long with both Viney and May, and also left ourselves hugely exposed with the length of the Petracca, Oliver and Brayshaw deals.

I doubt that most of the NFL's traditional fanbase, ie those dedicated souls who sit in blizzard-like conditions in the middle of January to watch their team play, had any interest in Bad Bunny. But then again, most of them have zero chance of ever attending a Super Bowl. So, yes, the once a year types who have the money to splash $20K plus on a day out probably loved the event. And the NFL would have loved all the social media posts and clicks, most of which probably come from people who have never watched a game of (American) football in their life. Sure the AFL could waste a fortune on a 15 minute half time event that will be targeted at people who will never watch a game of football and which will be immediately forgotten by most people unless it is horrifically bad. Or they could appeal to their supporter base by getting some of the greats of Australian live music to play for a fraction of the price, and spend the rest of the money propping up local and regional clubs so that the next generation of players has somewhere to play.

Not by 11 December, but she did a few days later. I won't link the article from Collingwood's website, but there is confirmation that she signed a two year deal.

My understanding that lack of parking is one of the major reasons that Hawthorn were desperate to leave Waverley. The public gym, the cafes and other businesses, and of course the residents are all fighting for a very limited number of car parks. Hawthorn were saying that they had outgrown Waverley when they started planning Dingley a decade ago, so not sure how we would fit everyone under one roof if Hawthorn couldn't. They also had no ability to run closed training sessions there, although we already have that problem with Gosch's. Clearly there would be a financial benefit to being there, but that would be all.

If the HS article is a legitimate framing of Lever's mindset he is completely delusional. He clearly feels that he is entitled to a spot in the team because he is Jake Lever; never mind that other players are performing better, are better suited to modern day football, and are a better fit for the game plan and the structure of the team. Lever has barely played a decent game since 2021, he is always injured or underdone and he is an absolute liability when it comes to being accountable for his opponent. We can't play him and Turner in the same team, and Turner deserves first crack at the role based on his efforts last year. And yes, May should spend the entire year at Casey unless we have multiple injuries to key defenders.

I have been in this comp in previous years, not sure about last year. I would be keen to play if there is room. Thanks.

Wade Derksen has signed with Carlton's VFL team for those who are still interested. https://www.zerohanger.com/ex-bomber-unwanted-giant-sign-with-victorian-club-for-2026-172525/

St Kilda's increase = free memberships to SMJFL players

Why would they? Guys like Brown and Woewodin worked their guts out at Casey each week for no reward, whilst the likes of Sharp and Sparrow were repeatedly gifted AFL games. In their position, I'd be certainly trying my luck elsewhere. Apparently the VFL fixture will be released in February "at the earliest". Last year's fixture was released on 24 February.

Not at all surprising. There might be positivity within the club, but externally there is still a residual stench from the on and off field messes we have navigated in the past two years.

Not sure about the sleeves, but otherwise that is a million times better than any of the club generated options.