AFL PLAYERS’ Association president Joel Bowden is concerned already depleted player lists could be reduced even further with the extra talent required to fill teams from Sydney’s west and the Gold Coast.
While the Richmond defender says he doesn’t believe expanding the league to 18 teams will lower the standard of the competition, he’s still unsure how the introduction of two new clubs will impact on player depth.
“Last year we lost two ruckmen and had no-one left. Gone are they days when I started where you had 50 on your list with reserve back-ups.”
The AFL Players Association (AFLPA) have yet to meet to discuss the AFL’s announcement to expand by at least one team by 2012, but Bowden says the organisation will be seeking feedback from its members regarding the plans.
“I haven’t discussed it with the PA or the executive yet. The first I’ve heard about it was on the weekend on the front page of The Age,” he said.
“When they came out and said 18 (teams), I was slightly surprised but that’s obviously a goal for them down the track.
“We’ll talk about that in the PA and we’ll canvas our members and then we’ll get back to the AFL.”
The Richmond veteran insists that there will be many issues for the AFLPA to address.
“There will be questions that need to be answered. Like what will the facilities by like? Who’s going to coach them? Where will the players come from? Are there going to be incentives or salary cap exemptions?
“All those issues will be thrashed out in the media. When some questions are answered there’ll be more light on the issue and we’ll move on from there.”
The All-Australian defender says one of the most important things for the AFL when they consider expansion is ensuring that the competition remains competitive.
“You’d hope that they could keep the evenness in the competition,” Bowden said.
“It’s important for supporters to think that even if their club have a poor year they can rebuild and get up quickly and you would hope that if it’s a new club starting up, then to get members quickly, success is the best way.”
However, Bowden is aware of the obvious benefits to the AFL’s ambitious plans for players.
“One advantage is more clubs, more employment opportunities for players,” he said.
