2015: 7 Pure A-Grade Divisions

[marbles]

THE PROBLEM

"Numbers at clubs with C-Grade sides who have to play A-Grade sides are fading, 5 Div 1 & 2 clubs in the last 14 months have forfeited their D-Grade sides"

# Next season faces a dilemma with the likeliness of these Div 7 participants (Shocs, Smosh, Modbury, Flinders Parks and possibly henley) refusing to no longer playing agrade clubs and will be wanting to go to a div 8. having their cgraders play cgraders only means players will stick around and these clubs want to attract & keep players, not turn them off the game to never play again

# ALSO if kilburn fail to fill a side all teams will go up 1 spot, so this will leave another vacant spot in Div 7 (5 vacancies)
# ALSO it is also not known whether Angle Vale Flinders Uni, & mitchell park will be capapble of attracting enough players to fill a reserves side (could they only have one team once again)

THE RESULT

# Div 7 now faces 5 vacant spots having only 5 clubs (4 clubs if kilburn fold)
# See below...

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A SOLUTION

The following is a solution, the problem above is coming and IT IS NOT fictional, but the solution below at this stage is fictional

# So now how to fix Div 7 and its 5 vacant BYEs???
# The league bites the bullet & moves these byes into Div 3, Div 4 & Div 5, Div 6, Div 7
# So each div will have 9 sides only & some clubs will have to face not going up a div this year, and quite possibly going down a div
# Div 7 will have A-Grade sides only (excluding Uni because they are a clubs with 7 sides)

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so clubs going down a div will be cranky all preseason, sooking & crying about it, but come Round 1, no one will care, because a premiership is on the line

in the C-Grade super leagues, the participation rates will explode, as the league will consequently become bigger, having more players on its books

So this is very controversial & radical, rather than insulting the solution why not suggest how to improve the solution?

essentially the only consequence to most clubs is that theyll have to take a week off twice a year. also some clubs may go down a division. but maybe the following season, the league could declare that 3 sides will be promoted & relegated just to return a clubs true standing across the divisions for the following 2016 season.

also remember in 1978 or 79 the league randomly decided 4 clubs will be relegated instead of 2 (so its happened before)

[X Runna]

All for the sake of the C Grade comp.........

Don't worry about screwing up the rest of the league, as long as Marbles gets his C Grade/no A Grade wish. Something that nobody else gives a toss about.

[finn]

All for the sake of the C Grade comp.........

Don't worry about screwing up the rest of the league, as long as Marbles gets his C Grade/no A Grade wish. Something that nobody else gives a toss about.

The C grade sides are of clubs in the amateur league, it's not a separate competition. The lower grade premierships mean as much to those playing as those in higher echelons.
And, as it has been pointed out before, the clubs in trouble are a and b grade only sides. The SAAFL is concerned about what is happening in the lower divisions (6 & 7) and I'm sure the clubs in those divisions aren't too keen on forfeits and byes.

I'll address the concerns of Marble; to make the distinction between C and A grade official all clubs C/D grade sides would have to be lumped together. If Uni drop from div 7 to the C1/D8 giving Div 7 8 teams and a final four and C1 10 teams taking the bye out of both divisions.
I can't see Wingfield and possibly Flinders Uni going around again.
I'd look at some geographical divisions in the C1-C4 divisions; Central, northern and southern.

[Q.]

It's an excellent model, but you're gonna have a hard time convincing clubs to drop down.

[Esteban Vihaio]

[morell]

I've got a solution.

You play where the league tells you to play.

[tomo]

There is only four A grade teams in div 7 at moment,
Wingfield is one of them ad im sure no c grade side has issues playing them.

North Pines is another and last year finished bottom and this year is only just in the top 5 !!!

Smithfield will go up obviously and the only other team is us who hopefully will earn the right to move up a division this year as we just fell short last year!!!!

So really I dont think the issue is as big as what it is being made out to be!!!!

[marbles]

constructive discussions boys good job

um the cgrade clubs can also be held accountable for corruptings seasons of late too. Ttg with the div 6 drop out, flinders parks using agrader wingfield as their whipping boy, broadview pulled the pin on their dgrades half way through the season, and shocs now causing voids on match days. so the dismal numbers at cgrade clubs are taking toll on u agraders too

maybe its time for agraders to say nah weve had enough of the uncertainty too. a club like ingle farm will disagree because theyve just slaughtered all the cgraders won a flag and aint looking back. now this season the same ridiculous gap of men vs boys is happening again with smithfield playing the big fish in small pond. and as a result shocs are the latest to say nah its no longer fun, we not gonna show up and field a side. so thats another spanner in the works. the season before that it was mitchell park playing the smash the rest on undefeated season despite one game

so whos next to drop off, and next season when ricky oloughlins legacy meets its second season and attracts even more big gun recruits, north pines will be the out & out clear favourite smashing everyone in sight by a country mile

my solution aside, smosh, shocs, possibly modbury, possibly henley are gonna pull the pin & say nah enough is enough, were tired of being stepping stones for these bottom of the barrel agraders, we just want to play other cgrade clubs

so my mathematics state that div 7 may only have 5 sides with smithfield & houghton going up. if my solution t

[LaughingKookaburra]

I actually think it has merrit. Having an extra bye during the year would assist many many clubs in my opinion. I know I like the extra week off around the middle of the year when it comes up...

[Yank Man]

Isn't that the reason Div 8 was brought in, so C grade clubs had their own promotion and relegation system. Div 6 will fine in 2015 with MP and AV going back and Smithfield and Houghton or Nth pines going up. Adel Uni can stay down if they choose to do so even if they play in the GF.

Clubs will always drop off during the season and that's happened for eternity. Simple solution is A B and C grade only and if you have too many players send em elsewhere to even the comp.

[marbles]

oh yep your actually right there, i didnt know houghton wanted to go up, div 6 will be fine

meanwhile div 7 micthell park, angle vale, finders uni, north pines and adelaide uni.... 5 teams huh, are just gonna play each other 3 times? cos really what does mp care if cgrade sides are being slaughtered. thats what div 7 is for right? we' re just your guinea pigs being sacrificed to keep u agrade clubs alive yeah?

[tomo]

oh yep your actually right there, i didnt know houghton wanted to go up, div 6 will be fine

meanwhile div 7 micthell park, angle vale, finders uni, north pines and adelaide uni.... 5 teams huh, are just gonna play each other 3 times? cos really what does mp care if cgrade sides are being slaughtered. thats what div 7 is for right? we' re just your guinea pigs being sacrificed to keep u agrade clubs alive yeah?

Hey,
We can only play the teams that are put in front of us!!!
There is no agenda or conspiracy mate!!!

Last year if we had won 1 more game we would have earnt the right to go up, but we just fell short!!!

[jo172]

Isn't that the reason Div 8 was brought in, so C grade clubs had their own promotion and relegation system. Div 6 will fine in 2015 with MP and AV going back and Smithfield and Houghton or Nth pines going up. Adel Uni can stay down if they choose to do so even if they play in the GF.

Clubs will always drop off during the season and that's happened for eternity. Simple solution is A B and C grade only and if you have too many players send em elsewhere to even the comp.

I agree with this. I'm all for club's being able to field D's, E's, F's etc. so long as they have the numbers, but making special adjustments to cater for these clubs at the expense of A Grade competition is baffling.

I'll reiterate my primary view of this, you never hear any whinging from Uni, Henley, SHOC's or Flinders Park's C's and D's when they're playing in Grand Finals. They just don't seem prepared to accept the feast or famine approach to premierships that the rest of the League does.

[marbles]

oh yep your actually right there, i didnt know houghton wanted to go up, div 6 will be fine

meanwhile div 7 micthell park, angle vale, finders uni, north pines and adelaide uni.... 5 teams huh, are just gonna play each other 3 times? cos really what does mp care if cgrade sides are being slaughtered. thats what div 7 is for right? we' re just your guinea pigs being sacrificed to keep u agrade clubs alive yeah?

Hey,
We can only play the teams that are put in front of us!!!
There is no agenda or conspiracy mate!!!

Last year if we had won 1 more game we would have earnt the right to go up, but we just fell short!!!

haha yeah all good champ my voice of emotion there is in regards to why an ingle fam or mitchell park would fall into the mindset of 'oh theres no issue here, our agrade paid players were superb against you cgrade bunnies it was a fantastic day for our club, yeah great memories, boy we were good'

[marbles]

Isn't that the reason Div 8 was brought in, so C grade clubs had their own promotion and relegation system. Div 6 will fine in 2015 with MP and AV going back and Smithfield and Houghton or Nth pines going up. Adel Uni can stay down if they choose to do so even if they play in the GF.

Clubs will always drop off during the season and that's happened for eternity. Simple solution is A B and C grade only and if you have too many players send em elsewhere to even the comp.

I agree with this. I'm all for club's being able to field D's, E's, F's etc. so long as they have the numbers, but making special adjustments to cater for these clubs at the expense of A Grade competition is baffling.

I'll reiterate my primary view of this, you never hear any whinging from Uni, Henley, SHOC's or Flinders Park's C's and D's when they're playing in Grand Finals. They just don't seem prepared to accept the feast or famine approach to premierships that the rest of the League does.

your right mate every 4 or 5 seasons a CGrader gets crazy full with depth and you lower grade a-grade clubs have had to accept defeat to the depth of Div 1 and Div 2 clubs

isnt that ammunition towards agreeing that its time to seperate from playing these Div 1 third sides and simply playing A's versus A's and not having to contend with the momentum storms of the div 1/2 clubs?

[Phantom Gossiper]

I support what you are saying marbles

[jo172]

Isn't that the reason Div 8 was brought in, so C grade clubs had their own promotion and relegation system. Div 6 will fine in 2015 with MP and AV going back and Smithfield and Houghton or Nth pines going up. Adel Uni can stay down if they choose to do so even if they play in the GF.

Clubs will always drop off during the season and that's happened for eternity. Simple solution is A B and C grade only and if you have too many players send em elsewhere to even the comp.

I agree with this. I'm all for club's being able to field D's, E's, F's etc. so long as they have the numbers, but making special adjustments to cater for these clubs at the expense of A Grade competition is baffling.

I'll reiterate my primary view of this, you never hear any whinging from Uni, Henley, SHOC's or Flinders Park's C's and D's when they're playing in Grand Finals. They just don't seem prepared to accept the feast or famine approach to premierships that the rest of the League does.

your right mate every 4 or 5 seasons a CGrader gets crazy full with depth and you lower grade a-grade clubs have had to accept defeat to the depth of Div 1 and Div 2 clubs

isnt that ammunition towards agreeing that its time to seperate from playing these Div 1 third sides and simply playing A's versus A's and not having to contend with the momentum storms of the div 1/2 clubs?

That's footy though. More often than not in every grade one team will get a sudden influx of players who suddenly make them much stronger than their peers. This is hardly limited to Divs 6-8 either, it happens in all the C Grades and can happen in higher divisions too. It's just the nature of footy, each club ebbs and flows*

I'd also be very weary of drawing any conclusions from this season. With the off-season's and subsequent seasons of Kilburn, Brahma, Angle Vale, Mitchell Park, Flinders Uni etc. this season appears to be the mother of all outlyers in terms of trying to analyse what's happening to the league on a greater scale. I honestly thing the League and the Club's need to take a deep breath and even adopting a wait and see approach before making massive structural changes in response to sudden problems which are too early to determine whether they're structural or limited to a few.

*except for Goodwood. They'll be playing A1 PF's and GF's until I die.

[X Runna]

I have a very easy solution. A Grade clubs could show some integrity and play their C Grade as their 3rd best side. This would reduce the gap between A Grade & C Grade teams markedly.

[Boosh]

Whilst I acknowledge this is a issue that needs to be addressed if my club were not permitted to be promoted in their A Grade to ensure some Div 1 and 2 clubs C and D Grade have a more even competition I would be taking a very dim view of that situation.

[Milly]

I have a very easy solution. A Grade clubs could show some integrity and play their C Grade as their 3rd best side. This would reduce the gap between A Grade & C Grade teams markedly.

That's a bit rich coming from an Ingle Farm poster who's C grade posses a few of last year's A grade premiership players