Happy Tassie Day!
An historic event will take place in the Apple Isle at 2pm as the long-held dream of a footy heartland is brought to reality.
The sentiment captured on the front page of The Mercury – Our Time Has Come.
It’s been a long time coming.
Alan Schwab once gave Tasmania genuine hope of entry to the growing national competition as the 16th team, but that licence went instead to Fremantle.
Port Adelaide filled the slot left vacant by Fitzroy.
And Tassie lost its place entirely when the AFL sought northern expansion.
Teams were imposed for reasons of population, economics and broadcast rights that had nothing to do with the groundswell of footy’s desires.
Successive AFL administrations told Tasmania it couldn’t financially support an AFL team, the North/South divide was insurmountable, and it was a captive market for footy – Tasmanians already watched AFL.
The dismissiveness changed on August 19, 2015 when Gil McLachlan made this statement at the National Press Club and changed the course of Tasmanian footy history.
“The big question mark in all that is Tasmania. Tasmania deserves its own team. It just does.
“In my view, they deserve their own team.”
It was an acknowledgement that lit the way. If McLachlan wasn’t open to Tasmania’s entry to the AFL it couldn’t have happened.
Rather than relying on sentiment and nostalgia, Tasmania got to work.
The Taskforce Report of December 2019 built a business case and exploded the historic myths and prejudices.
Critically, it also revealed that footy in Tassie was withering… if taken for granted a heartland would be lost.
This was the last time Tasmania would put its heart on the line for admission.
If the AFL spurned this approach the State was condemned to become a footy wasteland.
The concluding line of the Report stated: “The Tasmanian Taskforce believes the pathway to an AFL and AFLW licences exists. It should be pursued.”
And pursued it was.
It was at this point Tassie did roll out the sentiment and nostalgia. It tugged at heart strings and guilty consciences.
But rather than being a soft touch, Tasmania developed a ruthless edge. Then Premier Peter Gutwein strong-armed the AFL. He imposed deadlines and threatened existing deals. He vowed to banish the AFL rather than feed funds eternally. He would not be put off or brushed aside.
It’s the language the AFL understands.
The AFL asked Colin Carter to stress test the findings of the Task Force. A visionary figure Carter Report shored up Tasmania’s case. The economics were sound.
Where Carter excelled was identifying the AFL’s purpose.
Today, the AFL’s ‘purpose’ is: “Progress the game, so that everyone can share in its heritage and possibilities”.
Presumably, this applies to Tasmania. It seems fair to argue that the onus of proof is not on Tasmania to justify its inclusion. It is on those who say it should stay excluded.
Carter concluded: “It is the right thing to do.”
My hope is that we are now closer to seeing a team that is ‘owned’ by Tasmanians, but also financially strong and viewed as a formidable competitor. There will be setbacks – as there are for any team – but we should approach with anticipation the start of a great 100-year journey.
Armed with the recommendations, McLachlan got to work and did what he does best: Built consensus, secured an exceptional deal and won the day.
That day is today. Tasmania’s time has come.
It’s a glorious and uplifting moment in Australian football’s history.
I reckon there’d be a few pinching themselves, having never believed this would really happen.