HFL Division 1 (Central)

[Look Good In Leather]

Thanks Elmer - at least you understand where I am coming from.

I have deflected the blame from TV as they are naturally doing everything in their power to stay in Central.

Can the rest of the forum contributors now see why i am so damn pi**ed off at the HFL and the way they have handled the situation?

Happy to take our medicine if given the same opportunity as the team who are likely seeing us relegated.

Understandably I have Echunga's interests at heart - but still want an even and fair way for all to compete.

Currently this is not the case and if anyone can explain how i shouldn't blame the governing body for allowing this please let me know.

I guess the lesson in this is if the rules do not change and you go down, when you come back up it will be worth offering $25-50 a game to the better Senior colts and even junior colts at the surrounding clubs. That way you can ensure enough wins in the lower grades to stay up.

[Legs Man]

Unfortunately if we go down there wont be any coming back up as we wont have any juniors to fill sides.

We will be lucky to have 1 junior team combined (at best 2) and will lose our good senior footballers to other clubs who will offer them higher $$$.

I know it sounds all doom and gloom - but this is the reality we were faced with prior going up this season.

Effectively we saved our club by going up this year only to see the hard work possibly mean nothing.

[Look Good In Leather]

Unfortunately if we go down there wont be any coming back up as we wont have any juniors to fill sides.

We will be lucky to have 1 junior team combined (at best 2) and will lose our good senior footballers to other clubs who will offer them higher $$$.

I know it sounds all doom and gloom - but this is the reality we were faced with prior going up this season.

Effectively we saved our club by going up this year only to see the hard work possibly mean nothing.

Southern League?

[The Gimp]

Unfortunately if we go down there wont be any coming back up as we wont have any juniors to fill sides.

We will be lucky to have 1 junior team combined (at best 2) and will lose our good senior footballers to other clubs who will offer them higher $$$.

I know it sounds all doom and gloom - but this is the reality we were faced with prior going up this season.

Effectively we saved our club by going up this year only to see the hard work possibly mean nothing.

Yeah, that's just what Lofty bleated about!!

[cracka]

Unfortunately if we go down there wont be any coming back up as we wont have any juniors to fill sides.

We will be lucky to have 1 junior team combined (at best 2) and will lose our good senior footballers to other clubs who will offer them higher $$$.

I know it sounds all doom and gloom - but this is the reality we were faced with prior going up this season.

Effectively we saved our club by going up this year only to see the hard work possibly mean nothing.

Southern League?

Yeah, like SFL needs another struggling club.

[chopper7]

I think we are all mourning the lose of Echunga and Legs man at the moment.
But please HFL, make Torrens Valley do something about their facilities or send them back where they belong

[dangermouse]

Legsman- quick question, are Echunga playing up to their points allocation this season? (And I do understand that based on precedent you were allocated an unfairly low number of points).

[Peakedinhighschool]

Not sure if anyone on this forum has previously pointed this out but it's seems to me that if the HFL board simply followed the rules set out in the constitution then the league would run a whole lot smoother. As far as I am aware the rules involving relegation are clear and I'm unsure why a debate about which team should go down/ come up each year needs to occur. Sure we can all agree some teams are more deserving than others but rules are rules and they should be followed, why bother having a constitution at all if we don't follow it. The same disregard of the rules seems to occur with the points allocation each year also. Why not just stick to the points allocated by the constitution and leave it at that?

[jumbo20]

well said

[Whos ya daddy]

Finally, Looks Good in Leather - surprised you think Bridgewater are in danger given they have to play Uraidla and Echunga, so between the senior colts and B grade will be over 150 points without much effort.

A lot of assumptions here, but here goes.

Bridgewater - curr 139
Expecting them to lose their 3 remaining A-Grade games (Mount Barker, Echunga & Uraidla). They should account for Echunga in the Bs (5 points) but I would expect them to lose the other two. In the senior colts I expect them to beat Echunga & Uraidla (10 points), but the Mount Barker game is hard to call. In the Junior colts I expect them to lose to Mount Barker, with the Echunga and Uraidla games in the balance.

Predicted Final Range: 155-166


Echunga - curr 116
This week very important in the A's against TV with the winner gaining an extra 10 points against a fellow relegation candidate. I expect them to beat both Bridgewater and Hahndorf (20 points). Unlikely to win any of the remaining games in the Bs (0 points). Expecting them to lose the Senior colts against Bridgewater & Hahndorf, with the game against Torrens Valley in the balance. In the junior colts I don't see them beating Hahndorf, but both the Torrens Valley & Bridgewater games are a chance.

Predicted Final Range: 136-157


Torrens Valley - curr 111
As mentioned, this week very important against Echunga and likely to beat Hahndorf (10 points) with the Ironbank game also a chance. Expecting TV to win their B-Grade games against Echunga & Hahndorf (10 points) and a chance to beat Ironbank. Not expecting them to win the Senior colts against Hahndorf or Ironbank but the Echunga game could be a chance. Similar in the Junior Colts I expect losses to Hahndorf & Ironbank but toss a coin in the Echunga game with it being a close one earlier in the year.

Predicted Final Range: 131-164

If Torrens Valley beat Echunga this week then Bridgewater should be safe, but their performance in the A-Grade mean that if a few results go Echunga's way, Bridgewater also find themselves in danger.

Should be an exciting finish.

Updated:

Bridgewater - curr 139 no change

Missed out on the 5 points on offer in the Senior colts, but Echunga's results saved them

Predicted Final Range: 155-161


Torrens Valley - curr 131 +20
Picked up a massive 17 point advantage on Echunga this week. I expected the two colts games to go the opposite way. Have now put themselves in the box seat for survival. Winning the remaining senior games (as expected) should see them clear.

Predicted Final Result: 161


Echunga - curr 119 +3
Disappointing week only picking up the lowest yielding game in the 3 matches in the balance.
Hard to see how they will survive without creating an upset at B-Grade/junior level.
They could win every game at A-Grade level for the rest of the season, including finals and will still get relegated.

Predicted Final Range: 136-139 (relegated)

With Echunga Playing Bridgewater and Hahndorf over the next 2 weeks, You'd expect them to win both games comfortabley in the A Grade, will they drop a couple of their gun players down to B grade to try and win those 2 games and maybe save themsleves from relegation?

[Look Good In Leather]

With Echunga Playing Bridgewater and Hahndorf over the next 2 weeks, You'd expect them to win both games comfortabley in the A Grade, will they drop a couple of their gun players down to B grade to try and win those 2 games and maybe save themsleves from relegation?

If they win both B-grade games I have them finishing on 149 points and Bridgewater on 152
If they could win this week's Junior Colts game, that would be the difference and Bridgewater would go down.

As this is a question about the future of the club, Echunga need to do everything they can to win those remaining 2 B-Grade games - play their better Senior colts and drop a few back from the As (not too much, they still need to win the A-Grade) to make sure they survive.
Echunga can still possibly save themselves, but they will need to take some gambles at the selection table. - the remaining 2 B-Grade games are equally important as the two A-Grade games.

[no1rangler]

Round 17 this week isn't it LGIL??.....You would have thought that option was considered a while back?

[Elmer J Thudpucker]

As this is a question about the future of the club, Echunga need to do everything they can to win those remaining 2 B-Grade games - play their better Senior colts and drop a few back from the As (not too much, they still need to win the A-Grade) to make sure they survive.
Echunga can still possibly save themselves, but they will need to take some gambles at the selection table. - the remaining 2 B-Grade games are equally important as the two A-Grade games.

All this post highlights is how ridiculous the situation has become.

Imagine a team dropping players down a grade to win points in lower grade games - please tell me is hasn't come to this. What next, Bridgewater do the same then the B-Grade game becomes a quasi A-Grade game ?

[Legs Man]

Makes it a bit of a farce if we resort to this with our B grade.

There is unfortunately lots of inequities that have occurred with the whole system and points allocation.

We run at maximum points and have to play a senior colt every week to make the cap.

An extra 5 points would certainly assist - and give us the same opportunity as TV.

[no1rangler]

Legs M didn't Echunga get given additional points in A grade last year as evidently a lot of your players were looking to go elsewhere?

[Look Good In Leather]

Round 17 this week isn't it LGIL??.....You would have thought that option was considered a while back?

I am only looking at the scenario that is currently at hand, two rounds to go and Echunga needs to pick up 21 more points than Bridgewater.

There are only 20 points left on offer in the A-grade, so it comes down to the lower grades if they are going to have a chance to survive.

[no1rangler]

That's correct......

[lovethefooty]

I am no expert on the points system, and am not particularly experienced in the hfl, but it seems very strange to me that a team that could conceivably win the A grade premiership (Echunga could...Uraidla probably will though) will be relegated. Forgetting all the associated issues it just strikes me as very strange..

[Legs Man]

Not sure re last year but I reckon we were at 13 with an extra point for some unknown reason to me.

Anything to do with the HFL points system is a mystery it seems with the method of weighting junior games so heavily.

I reckon when it was structured the full range of possible scenarios weren't thought through entirely.

It nearly seems the allocation across the grades was done for ease of execution.

And yes it is totally bizarre that a side can play senior finals and be relegated - kinda defeats the purpose IMO.

Wonder if an Amateur league, or other competition's side, would be relegated should they not win enough reserves and junior games - having fielded all sides - and playing A grade finals.

Rules may be rules - but when they are either not adhered to stringently or governed equitably, chaos eventuates that effects all concerned.

[RAMS]

I think you are all forgetting there is a more than fair possibility that the entire structure of the League will change once the review is completed. The current state of Country Division is not sustainable and must be fixed, and I am confident a solution will be put forward for all clubs to consider and vote on to ensure the future of our competition as a whole.

Surely a strong Division 1 and Division 2 is the key and this is achievable if clubs look at the big picture and not just their situation.