by LPH » Thu May 30, 2013 10:36 pm
When the merge occurred, as far as I was concerned, West Torrens (the club I supported & played for) ceased to exist.
Woodville-West Torrens was a 'new' (newly formed @ least) Club.
Yes, it had ties with the 2 former clubs, but it was an entirely new entity as far as I was concerned.
I bought a Crows Season Ticket (which I gave up after the 1997 Season) & a WWT Scarf (still wear it actually).
The Leader of our Cheer Squad, I believe became one of the Leaders of the Crows Cheer Squad - please correct me if I'm wrong.
Like so many in 1991, many old West Torrens supporters (& others too) moved from SANFL to AFL - following the 'hype' that surrounded the Crows.
I don't think it was the merge necessarily that caused many of our supporters to disappear, more the advent of the 'New Boys in Town' - I still contend that had it not been for the advent of the AFC, West Torrens & Woodville may well have stayed on their own.
Anyone who was around then & remembers the 'panic & fear' for our SANFL competition surviving will acknowledge that - ultimately that's why PAFC were forced to stay in our competition & a 'corporate' team hastily assembled.
We are constantly 'bagged' as "quitters", "hybrids", "soft option takers" etc. etc. - that's fine, that is the nature of The Forum, but...
I now support 1 club - WWTFC.
If this club (that I am a paid up member of & have been for over a decade) vote to support AFL Reserves in he SANFL - I will 'wash my hands' of them.
My son (incidentally a Member since 2004 - 1st game was the 2003 Prelim Final vs Sturt as a 4 yr old) has known nothing but Woodville - West Torrens FC.
He, like all the other '2nd Generation' supporters of our club, knows only "The Eagles".
To him, what went on before means very little - he too will NOT support his club allowing the competition to become compromised.
We will take our patronage & our money & go somewhere else - probably the A-League.
This is not "giving up" or being "fair whether supporters" - it is simply because we love supporting the SANFL as a whole.
We will continue to go to the Grand Final - that is OUR Day together EVERY year, regardless of who's playing.
But we will not otherwise support a competition (& a club for that matter) that is considered a 'Mickey Mouse' "feeder" competition for the AFL Clubs in this state.
We have a competition that has been going for 136 years - it would be a travesty if that tradition were removed to simply pander to the Victorian Dominated so-called National Competition.
Stephen Trigg & Rob Chapman are SA Football Patriots