Booney wrote:It's a good story indeed, but our generation ( I'm assuming you're in your 30's ) might be about the last to experience that.
I grew up in Brooklyn Park, followed Port, my best mate from Lockleys was Glenelg, the third of our group was Norwood. All living in the Westies area.
With families more inclined to move for work and economic reasons ( where they can afford to buy / rent ) and kids likely to follow their Dad/Grand Dad's team the days of living in the area of the team you support is less likely to occur.
Couple that with SANFL clubs spending less time in schools than they did in our day ( remember pie and pasty nights? ) and where your zone is will become less and less relevant to who supports you.
I don't expect kids from North Haven to become Woodville-Port Adelaide-Le Fevre-North West Suburbs Eagles supporters over night.
hate to say it, but i agree with the Boonster..... (i feel so dirty
i am mid thirties, and until i looked it up when we had a boy two years ago, i didnt even realise that i lived in Noth Adelaides Zone
i have spent the majority of my life living in "other" clubs zones, yet i am still a lifelong North supporter (even if i no longer attend games). luckily for me i was a shit footballer and never got the opportunity to be asked to wear the prison bars, nor was i tough enough to be a dog
we have only been in this suburb for the last 6 years or so since i got married, and the sanfl zone wasnt even considered when we were house shopping
i think Zones havent meant a lot for a while, and it is just a few people that remember the "good old days" that are clinging onto it. nothing wrong with remembering the past, but i dont think kids today really care who they are playing for, they are just striving for the best level they can. and no offence intended to those unhappy with these changes. not saying you are wrong at all (im actually jealous that you had that much of a connection to your clubs)
personal opinion but it is probably part of the general shift away from loyalty in the game as a whole. it seems that more players are moving between clubs more often, at all levels. it is rare to see an individual play hundreds of games with the one club. and it works both ways too, clubs are less loyal to the players than ever before (moreso at the highest levels), the game is now a business.
not saying any of that is a good or bad thing, it just is. this changing of the club boundaries, while a more dramatic change than ever before, has been happening for a while, and will continue to happen into the future. by the time my boy is old enough to be considered for high level footy we may very well be in a different clubs zone altogether (or more likely he will be shit like his old man), either way, if he plays for someone in the aflsa* competition in future, ill still go watch him, all the while wearing my North gear
*i dont believe that by the time this occurs there will be any memories of the sanfl, apart from us old fat bastards on the sidelines whingeing about how much better it used to be.