Benny Gale on Ch 7 / Senior coaches on collision course with AFL over cuts

[one-eyed]

@TomBrowne7 has exclusive details tonight suggesting senior coaches could be on a collision course with the AFL over drastic pay cuts.

https://7news.com.au/sport/afl/afl-coaches-collision-course-could-lead-to-big-growth-opportunity-for-junior-footy-c-1030520

Ch 7 had a graphic with Dimma being the third highest paid coach on an estimated $1 million behind Clarkson and Longmire.

Benny Gale was interviewed and he was concerned about the impacts of drastic cuts on the clubs going forward (eg: talent spotting).

Watch here: https://twitter.com/7NewsMelbourne/status/1259768168098091009

[WilliamPowell]

Report also spoke about cuts to footy departments

Lower soft cap plus club's will only allowed to have a set number in their footy depts. Who's will impact m club's like ours and the Pies the most

Like the cutting of lists I don't think this way is fair.

I have no issue with cutting the soft cap but saying how many people you are allowed to have in your footy depts is wrong (-Tom Browne said the number is likely to be 25, granted his recent predictions have been poor)

If the cap is $6 million then the RFC should be allowed to have as many people in the footy dept as they like. How any club choses to spread the cap is up to them not the AFL. If the RFC can keep all heads within the $6 million cap they should be allowed to.

AFL cannot have it both ways...

[one-eyed]

It seems the AFL are wanting it both ways. They're put a 24-person maximum on club staff.

-------------------------------------------------------------

In the update to clubs, the AFL has also referenced the savage financial cuts that will be applied to all clubs' football departments.

Within the document, there are stern warnings against both breaking the outlined procedures - so as to not risk losing the confidence of governments and medical authorities – and breaching new protocols around expenditure in the football departments.

A maximum of 24 staff will be allowed, with a doctor, psychologist and player development manager among the legislated necessary staff.

Clubs have forecast losing half "normal" revenues, and the AFL has warned that pre-COVID-19 levels of finances may not be seen for up to five years, "if at all".

A financial limit has been placed on clubs as they set about returning to play, and the AFL has warned that a breach would result in luxury taxes being applied and it has also said financial safeguards that have been provided under new deals with banks would potentially be jeopardised.

As per "BAU (business as usual)" averages, clubs spend $730,000. Upon resumption, the AFL has told clubs they must reduce costs by 40 per cent, to about $430,000.

That figure is allowed to be increased to more than $500,000 when matches begin, which is expected to be mid to late June.

https://www.afl.com.au/news/433227/stern-warnings-afl-s-memo-to-clubs-all-players-must-test-for-covid-19

[one-eyed]

"The diversity of our talent is a great growth story for our club and the whole code and we wouldn't want to put that at risk." 🎥 CEO @brendongale25 speaks to @7NewsMelbourne...

https://twitter.com/Richmond_FC/status/1260032812532371457

[tdy]

The AFL have been looking to lit the systems nature of football for a while. It might be good but once the genie is out of the bottle it can't go back in. soccer has suffered this for decades. NFL too.

[one-eyed]

Official AFL statement:

FOOTBALL DEPARTMENT EXPENDITURE LIMITS

* Clubs were also advised of the football department expenditure limits which will apply during the Return to Train and Return to Play periods which will enable them to plan their staffing levels for the remainder of 2020 accordingly with further communications to be made with key Club staff over the coming days. 
   
* The 2020 figure has been developed considering the significant operational and financial disruption caused by Covid-19 to the 2020 Toyota AFL Premiership Season and future years by a working party that includes key club representatives.
   
* The AFL will not prescribe every role the Club needs to employ under these revised expenditure limits, but the following roles must be filled:
        - Club Doctor
        - Psychologist
        - Player Development Manager
   
* Clubs were also advised of the requirements for staff who will have administration and training facility access when clubs do return to training.
   
* No AFL-listed player will be permitted to participate in a second-tier competition in 2020.
   
* The AFL is currently considering alternative arrangements where players not selected to play in their AFL team participate in matches between other AFL clubs in a controlled environment, in line with Government and AFL protocols, in order to have continuity in game play and improve their possibility for selection.

https://www.afl.com.au/news/433243/afl-statement-on-return-to-train-and-return-to-play-update

[one-eyed]

COVID fallout: The dollar figure forcing AFL clubs to pick and choose

Digital Staff with Tom Browne
7News
Tuesday, 12 May 2020

While the AFL mandates a doctor, psychologist and player development manager must be retained, how the remaining 21 positions are filled will be up to the clubs.

7NEWS.com.au understands they will have $438,000 a month to spread around the 24 employees.

It’s understood the new monthly football department spend will rise slightly when the season returns in June, with that figure likely to last into next year.

The 2021 soft cap could settle at around $6.1m, down from $9.7m in 2019 and this year’s reduced $8.7m mark.

7NEWS.com.au understands redundancy payments for staff members let go will not count towards the cap.

https://7news.com.au/sport/afl/revealed-the-dollar-figure-forcing-afl-clubs-to-pick-and-choose-who-stays-c-1032629

[one-eyed]

Savage AFL cuts could mean the next Dusty is ‘lost to the game’

May 14, 2020 8:31pm
Max Laughton
FOX SPORTS

Long-time AFL commentator Hudson said he had spoken with several club officials on Thursday and they believed some draftees will be able to adapt to footy’s new reality, but others will struggle.

That could see project players, or those who just need more help to make it to AFL standard, either not live up to their potential or abandon the sport entirely.

“A certain number of kids, and they’ll be fine. OK, they won’t get the same level of development they will now, but they’ll be fine,” he said on Fox Footy Live.

“But there’ll be others who’ll come in that will potentially be lost to the system. Either they’ll get in and struggle and get off the rails, or they won’t even be recruited in the first place because the club knows of those issues that they’ve had.

“Richmond straight away, you put up Sydney Stack, or Marlion Pickett and those sort of issues. Even a Dustin Martin, who had his issues early on. Imagine if a Dustin Martin or another superstar was lost to the game.”

https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-2020-football-department-cuts-players-lost-to-the-game-development-coaches-next-dustin-martin-coronavirus/news-story/4d91b889d2b071d06610f7bd82b1cea4

[one-eyed]

Dramatic cuts: What the 25-person footy department might look like

By Marc McGowan
afl.com.au
17 May 2020

AFL CLUBS are prioritising employees with broader skillsets as they slash about half of their football department staff to fit competition guidelines.

Club media teams are not part of the head count, while it's important to note that other staff who are able to work remotely can still be employed outside the 25.

Recruiters and development coaches are set to suffer the most in the cull, whereas high performance and sports science staff are being prioritised.

Specialist skills coaches – ruck and goalkicking, more specifically – and part-time and casual staff, including masseurs, whose role will be inherited by physiotherapists, are among those gone.

List managers will be the sole list management representative in most cases, although it’s believed one from a Victorian club will be involved in the compliance manager role, one of the most critical positions in upholding integrity in these unique circumstances.

The banning of AFL players from second-tier competitions this year and subsequent withdrawals of affiliated teams also has a flow-on effect to coaches and related staff.

Most teams employ double-digit coaches but as few as four and probably up to only six or seven – other than the senior coach – will be part of the capped group.

All clubs had to submit their 25 to the AFL this week.

WHAT THE 25 MIGHT LOOK LIKE

1 x general manager of football

1 x football operations manager

1 x senior coach

6 x assistant/development coaches

2 x analysts

1 x list manager

2 x doctors

5 x high performance/sports science staff

3 x physiotherapists (one mainly as a masseur)

1 x psychologist

1 x player development manager

1 x compliance manager

https://www.afl.com.au/news/433991/dramatic-cuts-what-the-25-person-footy-department-might-look-like

[one-eyed]

Tom Browne on Ch 7 news tonight said Richmond (and Geelong) have told him they have not lost any full-time coaches due to the cuts.

Coaches of aligned VFL-teams at other AFL clubs have been stood down but not at Punt Rd apparently. So Craig McRae must still be part of our 25.

https://7news.com.au/sport/afl/billy-slater-garry-hocking-and-luke-ball-out-of-work-in-afl-covid-cash-crisis-c-1049829

[taztiger4]

Tom Browne on Ch 7 news tonight said Richmond (and Geelong) have told him they have not lost any full-time coaches due to the cuts.

Coaches of aligned VFL-teams at other AFL clubs have been stood down but not at Punt Rd apparently. So Craig McRae must still be part of our 25.

https://7news.com.au/sport/afl/billy-slater-garry-hocking-and-luke-ball-out-of-work-in-afl-covid-cash-crisis-c-1049829

Craig McRae isn't our VFL coach, X Clarke is

Both were at training yesterday as was Dimma obviously, Lonergan,Ferguson,Maric,Kingsley, Mini Mcqualter & Leppa

So all 9 of our Coaching Staff look to be still in jobs

[one-eyed]

Tom Browne on Ch 7 news tonight said Richmond (and Geelong) have told him they have not lost any full-time coaches due to the cuts.

Coaches of aligned VFL-teams at other AFL clubs have been stood down but not at Punt Rd apparently. So Craig McRae must still be part of our 25.

https://7news.com.au/sport/afl/billy-slater-garry-hocking-and-luke-ball-out-of-work-in-afl-covid-cash-crisis-c-1049829

Craig McRae isn't our VFL coach, X Clarke is

Both were at training yesterday as was Dimma obviously, Lonergan,Ferguson,Maric,Kingsley, Mini Mcqualter & Leppa

So all 9 of our Coaching Staff look to be still in jobs

You're right taz. Thanks for the correction . I was still thinking of us doing the double in 2019  .

[WilliamPowell]

It seems it's 25 people with structure up to the clubs

Would think if a club is smart you could give a coach a title of say Development manager and that means they can still be hands on coaching wise

[crackertiger]

We need to be creative in these situations. Wives and Girlfriends should be up skilled to be physios etc. Rub downs can be done at home etc. Any way to manipulate this arrangement.

[one-eyed]

Mark Stevens on Ch 7 news tonight said Balmey will not be part of our match-day "bubble". He's been given a more general role given the cuts.