No annual Tassie match between North, TigersCaroline Wilson
The Age, Advocate (Tasmania)
June 2, 2016North Melbourne have resisted overtures to commit to an annual clash in Hobart with Richmond as part of their new five-year agreement with the Spirit of Tasmania.
Nor are St Kilda, who have repeatedly pushed the AFL to become a regular 'away' team taking on both Hawthorn and North each year at Aurora Stadium and Blundstone Arena respectively, expected to get their wish.
AFL chief Gillon McLachlan, Tasmanian Premier Will Hodgman and Kangaroos bosses James Brayshaw and Carl Dilena are gathering in Hobart before Friday's historic North-Richmond night clash to formalise the new five-year deal with the Spirit of Tasmania.
Although the TT-Line company, which runs the ferry service between Tasmania and the mainland, remains a state government business enterprise with a commercial entity, the new North sponsorship deal will remain between the Spirit of Tasmania and the club, not the state government.
North's new agreement will ultimately see the Kangaroos' brand attached to the new statewide academy program although Friday's announcement is expected to remain focused on the new 15-game, five-year contract. Although Hawthorn had applied for the north of Tasmania as an academy that bid looks certain to be rejected.
The Kangaroos' official position is that it remains open to hosting a wide variety of AFL clubs. However North's preference, with a guaranteed six-figure sum each time they play in Hobart, is to play Richmond in Melbourne where it can come close to filling Etihad Stadium.
The Friday night round-11 game is virtually sold out with only partial viewing seats available at the stadium which has never held a night AFL game. McLachlan is hosting a large corporate contingent including Seven Network bosses Tim Worner and Lewis Martin.
With the final details still being negotiated with the Tasmanian government over development, academy and AFL community programs, Hodgman, whose state now commits more than $6 million a year to its two part-time AFL clubs, was holding out for a greater commitment from the game's head office to development for the state's dwindling talent programs.
Denied the opportunity to bid for a women's team in the new national league, the AFL's plan was to send the best Tasmanian female footballers to play for the GWS women's team.
Those negotiations are continuing but it is believed the government has assumed the financial risk of the football academy which is expected to see North given access to the entire state as a multicultural development zone.
Although the AFL has refused to date to make public Simon Garlick's review into the game in Tasmania, that report recommends a one-team academy model and also states a preference for a one AFL team model, a preference which cannot be realised until at least 2022 when the current Hawthorn and North deals have been completed.
North and the AFL were close to achieving a seven-game-a-season deal with the Tasmanian government in 2010 before Hawthorn renewed their deal with Launceston.
The new North deal, in line with the Hawks' four game annual agreement, will see the club host three home-and-away games a season at Blundstone Arena as well as ultimately progressing its highly regarded Huddle youth development and education programs across the state.
The TTLine company stepped in to make up the shortfall after the Hobart City Council announced it would pull out of funding the Kangaroos' games. The state and local governments are expected to contribute in a yet-to-be-completed deal to the extended Kangaroos community programs.
http://www.theadvocate.com.au/story/3944856/no-annual-tassie-match-between-north-tigers/
