West Coast Eagles Want Reserves Team
Advantages and Disadvantages for the AFL and WAFL
West Coast coach John Worsfold reportedly made a fresh push for a reserves team in the West Australian Football League, a proposal that was flatly rejected by the football commission a day after it was revealed. However, there are passionate arguments both in favour and against having AFL reserves teams competing in the WAFL and the issue is likely to arise again in the future.
Brisbane, Sydney, and all 10 Victorian clubs currently field reserves teams in the AFLQ, ACTAFL, and VFL respectively.
Worsfold's Plan for West Coast's Reserves
Under Worsfold's proposal:
- A 10th team will be created and will compete in the WAFL during the home and away season, but not the finals.
- All Eagles-listed players who are fit to play but not selected for AFL duties will play for this club, instead of being distributed among nine clubs.
- All matches against the Eagles reserves will be played at their opposing team's home ground.
- Recently retired Eagles players and footballers from amateur competitions will play for the Eagles reserves if they are short on numbers.
Arguments for an AFL Reserves Team in the WAFL
Neither the WA Football Commission, nor the Fremantle Dockers, are in favour of AFL reserves teams in the WAFL. However, should the proposal become a reality at some stage, the following benefits have been outlined as far as West Coast and the WAFL clubs are concerned:
- Eagles-listed players are able to play alongside one another, under a game plan devised by West Coast, enabling them to adjust more easily when they are called into the senior AFL team.
- West Coast would in turn become more efficient in their off-field management and more successful on-field.
- All profits from matches against the Eagles reserves would go to the opposing WAFL club.
- An Eagles reserves team would increase attendances at the WAFL and generate more revenue for the nine clubs.
- Introducing a 10th team would remove the bye currently caused by having an uneven number of teams in the WAFL.
Arguments Against an AFL Reserves Team in the WAFL
- The Eagles reserves would dominate the competition.
- There was previously a "host club" arrangement in which all Eagles-listed players represented East Perth and all Dockers-listed players represented South Fremantle. It was replaced by an alignment deal in which interstate AFL recruits would play for the host club, while local recruits remained with their original WAFL club. Both systems proved unpopular as the host clubs were thought to have an unfair advantage over other teams.
- Support and media coverage of the actual WAFL clubs would diminish, further weakening a competition that provides the only pathway into the AFL for footballers based in WA.
- West Coast has more than one player vying for a particular positions or roles within the team. At their respective WAFL teams, they will get more game time in this position than if all of them were playing in one team each week.
While many of the arguments on both sides are hypothetical, it appears that the advantages of an Eagles reserves team are relatively short-term, even for the Eagles. There is no evidence to suggest that having a reserves team in the WAFL would result in more premierships; some Victorian AFL clubs have not won a flag in decades.
Moreover, AFL clubs already get a huge say in what positions WAFL coaches put their players in. If they are unhappy with a WAFL club, they are able to move players to different teams, which has occurred in the past. An Eagles reserves team is likely to deliver only marginal benefits at the expense of long-term viability of the WAFL.
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