tasmania football steering committee - AFL.com

TASMANIA FOOTBALL STEERING COMMITTEE FINDINGS JUNE 2018

TA S M A N I A F O O T B A L L S T E E R I N G CO M M I T T E E F I N D I N G S

TEAM TASMANIA Dear Tasmanian football followers, Since the announcement of our steering committee in March, and our work with a diverse group of stakeholders across the state, it is clearly evident there is extraordinary passion for football in Tasmania.

I would like to acknowledge the members of the steering committee who have dedicated themselves to ensuring they have been equipped with the right information to deliver these solutions: 33 AFL Tasmania CEO Trish Squires

Footy is a vital part of the community.

33 Carlton coach Brendon Bolton

More than 115 clubs, 16 leagues, 41,667 participants and in excess of 27,000 boys and girls are playing the game in some form.

33 Brisbane coach Chris Fagan

However, it is also clear there are some challenges. In order for footy to prosper in one of our founding footy states, we need help from the Tasmania football community to help create the solutions. This needs to be a team effort.

33 Former St Kilda captain Nick Riewoldt 33 AFL Head of Game Development Robert Auld 33 AFL National State League Manager Simon Laughton 33 AFL Head of Talent, Education and Projects Tristan Salter 33 AFL Talent Competitions & Operations Manager Marcus Ashcroft 33 AFL Club Strategy Lead Andrew Gennai-Garino Additionally, it is important to recognise the many participants that were part of the process, including the Premier of Tasmania Will Hodgman, Tasmanian Football Council chairman Paul Reynolds and the seven TSL presidents. The steering committee had a clear vision as to what it wished to achieve:

33 Tasmanian talent competing at every level of the game 33 More children – girls and boys – playing our game 33 Robust, sustainable community football that Tasmanians can support in their towns and regions Throughout the process, we identified some significant pressure points that need to be corrected: 33 The need to increase funding on talent development, participation and junior football 33 There was a fractured talent pathway for boys and girls 33 Community football is underresourced, affecting the ability to grow participation Challenges need to be addressed now, and in the long term, for the betterment of footy at all levels in the state. Over the next three years, our vision is to rebuild and ignite a TEAM TASMANIA union. The AFL will deliver an additional investment of $1.4 million into Tasmanian Football in 2019, with extra funding to be committed in 2020, 2021 and beyond.

The changes must start at a community level, the foundations that grow the number of Tasmanians participating in our game. We will: 33 Create three Football Administration Hubs in the South, North and North-West of the state, to support local leagues and clubs, reducing the burden on community volunteers and improve participation programs, competitions and talent pathways; and 33 Establish affiliation agreements with community football leagues and associations to enable a consistent and integrated approach to governance, support and AFL funding across the state. By being affiliated with AFL Tasmania, it delivers the clubs Sports TG support, JLT Insurance coverage and gives players an opportunity to be selected in the AFL talent programs. The Tasmanian State League will remain the premier competition in the state and will continue to receive AFL funding. The clubs have committed to working with community football within their zones. We will also revitalise our talent pathways to ensure all Tasmanians participating in the game have the

best possible chance to be drafted into the AFL and AFLW. We will: 33 Extend the Tasmanian youth talent pathway from under-12 through to under-18, provide more opportunities for involvement in intrastate competitions and state selection, and remove player levies to ensure broad access and affordability; 33 Establish a state-wide representative team to compete in the TAC Cup in 2019, supported by a full-time coach and regional coaching groups, allowing young Tasmanian talent to develop from all regions to compete at the highest level across a full season; 33 Grant a provisional licence for a standalone state-wide representative team to compete in the VFL in 2021, to enable senior talent from across the state to compete in a high-quality and sustainable state league program; and 33 Increase our investment in female talent, including the establishment of a TAC Cup Girls program, to provide girls the same level of opportunity as boys and support the North Melbourne Tasmanian Kangaroos AFLW team.

representing all regions of the Tasmanian Football community, to work with the AFL to develop the TAC Cup and VFL operating models.

We will bring all of this together through an Advisory Board,

Chief Executive Officer Australian Football League

We also want a name that all Tasmanians can own, stand united under and be proud of. All Tasmanian representative teams, from junior participation and talent pathways through to the selected TAC Cup and VFL programs, will sit under the one TEAM TASMANIA banner. The name is to be decided by the Tasmanian public. Today is a step in the right direction. We won’t let Tasmanian football go without. The passion needs to be harnessed and the time is now to unite. I, along with AFL Tasmania CEO Trish Squires, will ensure the right structure, resources and investment will be provided to ensure all Tasmanians – men, women, boys and girls – have every opportunity to play footy.

Gillon McLachlan

VISION

Establishing a team for Tasmanians to own and support across TAC Cup and VFL – underpinned by a sustainable, integrated and supported Tasmanian football community and reinvigorated pathways for Tasmanian talent to play at an elite level in the AFL and AFLW


VISION FOR FOOTBALL IN TASMANIA KEY PILLARS TO DELIVER ACTIONS / DETAIL

1

rive a vibrant D football community to grow the participation base

33 League support –

establish affiliation model and regional competition hubs 33 Junior participation – rebuild baseline participation through Auskick and schools 33 TSL – focusing on community engagement and participation in their zones

2

rovide the best P pathway for youth talent across the state to be drafted to AFL/AFLW

33 Integrated youth talent

program – regain control from U12-18 and run through AFL Tasmania 33 Full-time participation in TAC Cup Boys in 2019 – with coaches and talent managers supporting in each region 33 Additional female talent resource and participation in TAC Cup Girls from 2020

3

Provide the best pathway for senior talent across the state to be drafted to AFL/AFLW

33 Men’s – a standalone

VFL representative program; target entry in 2021 33 Women’s – additional funding into female talent, youth to senior, ensuring strong connection and participation in the North Melbourne Tasmanian Kangaroos team


FUTURE ARCHITECTURE FOR FOOTBALL IN TASMANIA VISION

Establishing a team for Tasmanians to own and support across the TAC Cup and VFL – underpinned by a sustainable, integrated and supported Tasmanian football community and reinvigorated pathways for Tasmanian talent to play at an elite level in the AFL and AFLW.

Vibrant Football Community Region

South

North NW

State-Wide

State League Program VFL Rep. Team

TSL

Senior Football

TSL clubs supporting development of senior clubs/leagues in their zones

Junior Football

TSL Clubs supporting development of Junior Clubs / Leagues in their zones

League Support

Best Talent Pathways

33 Region Hubs – Participation,

Competitions and Talent Managers 33 League affiliation with AFL Tasmania

TAC Cup Program Boys Rep. Team and Girls Rep. Team (both full-time)

U12-U18 Integrated AFL Talent Pathway & NMFC Next Gen Academy

Junior Participation Programs – Auskick, Schools

OUTCOMES ✔✔ One team for

Tasmanians to own and support across TAC Cup and VFL competitions ✔✔ More Tasmanians playing at an elite level in AFL/AFLW ✔✔ Parity restored on ratio of youth to senior participants (now 0.74 : 1) ✔✔ All regions in Tasmania appropriately resourced, supported and sustainable

ACTIONS / NEXT STEPS TO IMPLEMENT 1

rive a vibrant football D communityto grow the participation base

33 TSL Premier Competition in state

– TSL clubs working with community football in their zones to grow participation, increase capability and drive retention 33 Establish Affiliation Agreements with independent leagues and associations – to improve connections and collaboration 33 Implement Regional Competition Hubs with AFL funding – supported by a structure of Participation, Competition and Talent Managers in each region 33 Continue to grow baseline participation to get back to parity of youth teams to senior teams (0.74 : 1 today) – Auskick and schools

2

rovide the best pathway for P youth talent across the state to be drafted to AFL/AFLW

33 Establish an integrated, AFL-run

youth pathway from U12-18s – including participation in U16-17 National Carnival and U18 TAC Cup Boys from 2019 33 Appoint a Talent Manager in each region 33 Invest in coaching resources across state – full-time coach of talent program supported by regional coaching groups 33 Further increase female talent resources and target U18 TAC Cup

3

rovide the best pathway for P senior talent across the State to be drafted to AFL/AFLW

33 Prepare for entry into the VFL

by 2021 –building list depth through TAC Cup entry in 2019 33 Ensure sustainability – mirror Frankston VFL licenceapplication to ensure sustainable and competitive team 33 Implement female programs to ensure best possible pathways

TASMANIA FOOTBALL STEERING COMMITTEE GIllon McLachlan AFL Chief Executive Officer Trish Squires AFL Tasmania CEO Brendon Bolton Carlton Coach

Chris Fagan Brisbane Coach Nick Riewoldt Former St Kilda Captain Robert Auld AFL Head of Game Development Simon Laughton AFL National State League Manager

Tristan Salter AFL Head of Talent, Education and Projects Marcus Ashcroft AFL Talent Competitions & Operations Manager Andrew Gennai-Garino AFL Club Strategy Lead