Saints chase round three blockbuster to celebrate 150th anniversary
St Kilda are not shying away from being under the spotlight early in the season,lobbying the AFL to schedule a blockbuster home game at the MCG in round three to celebrate the club’s 150th anniversary.
The club hopes to gain a prime-time slot to celebrate the occasion and interest expected to be high at the start of the season due to the impact of their dramatic off season changes.
An opponent is yet to be determined but Collingwood shape as the logical choice given the club’s only premiership came in 1966 against the Magpies and their first game in the VFL in 1897 was against Collingwood.
They also drew then lost a grand final against Collingwood in 2010 with Lyon coaching the club.
However,AFL sources said the demand from clubs to play against the big drawing clubs such as Carlton,Richmond,Collingwood and Essendon is high meaning there is no certainty as to which opponent will be matched up against the Saints.
St Kilda came close to two premierships under Ross Lyon but could not seal the dealThe Age
St Kilda’s request to play the game at the MCG when their home venue is Marvel Stadium shows they are aiming to have a bumper crowd for the big occasion.
The Saints kicked off 2022 against Collingwood at Etihad Stadium with the match drawing 40,129 spectators - their biggest crowd of the year - as they battled to maintain early season form throughout the year.
St Kilda indicated in the that were released last Friday that they would now apply a “strong football lens” to any charitable cause games they participate in while they will not sell a home game to play in Cairns in 2023.
The Saints have undergone a dramatic shift off field after making a shock decision to less than 100 days after they had re-signed him to coach the club until 2024. They reunited with Lyon who had previously coached the club in 2011.
They played two finals under Ratten - in 2020 - but they are the only two finals the club has played since Lyon departed.
As part of the overhaul of the football department they appointed favourite sons,Lenny Hayes,Robert Harvey and Brendon Goddard to the coaching panel while David Misson returned as head of medical services. Experienced football administrator Geoff Walsh has been appointed as football manager.
They had a quiet trade period with Western Bulldogs’ defender Zaine Cordy joining the club as a free agent with the review recommending they build the foundations for future success through the national draft. The Saints are likely to take pick 9,28,32 and 47 into the draft.
St Kilda only average about two home and away matches at the MCG per season but are capable of drawing big crowds to the venue if they are playing well.
AFL boss in Tasmania this week with 19th licence bid unresolved
AFL boss Gillon McLachlan will face questions about Tasmania’s bid for the 19th licence and the ongoing funding of games in Hobart and Launceston in 2023 when he lands in Hobart on Friday to attend a corporate conference.
McLachlan is attending the SOHN Hearts and Minds Investment Leaders conference that brings together corporate heavyweights to present on a range of issues while raising money for Australian medical research.
However,the local sporting community and political leaders view his presence as an opportunity to ascertain the progress of their bid for a 19th licence,which is on hold until Federal government funding is secured for a waterfront stadium at Macquarie Point.
An artists’ impression of how the new stadium could look in Hobart.Supplied
The AFL has told the state liberal government led by premier Jeremy Rockliff that a successful licence bid is contingent on a stadium being built.
There has been opposition to the proposal from the ALP and the Greens who have both argued that investment in a stadium is a poor use of government money with the government already having committed $12 million per annum to the team for 12 years and $60 million to establish a high-performance centre.
asking for $250 million federal funding towards the stadium with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese saying he is open to the idea if the business case can convince Labor the infrastructure project is warranted.
AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan.Getty Images
McLachlan,who presented at the SOHN conference in 2018,is expected to reiterate the desire for the AFL community to bring a Tasmanian team into the competition and also their desire for Hawthorn and North Melbourne to continue playing games in the state until the new team is launched.
McLachlan is increasingly confident he can deliver support from AFL clubs to support the bid with Geelong,Richmond,Adelaide,Gold Coast and the Western Bulldogs among the clubs that have already declared their support for the 19th licence.
Hawthorn are also set to support the bid after their election for a new president in December.
Indigenous player development manager departs Hawks
Hawthorn have promised to appoint a full-time First Nations staff member in their football department as well as a new general manager of diversity and inclusion after the club’s Indigenous player development manager Brady Grey decided to join Fremantle as a development coach.
Grey,who played 21 games with the Dockers,only joined the club in February and leaves midway through the AFL’s investigation into the treatment of First Nations players at the club between 2008-2016.
That investigation came about as a result of allegations made about former Hawthorn officials Alastair Clarkson,Chris Fagan and Jason Burt and their actions relating to former Indigenous players and their families during a club commissioned cultural safety review.
Clarkson,Fagan and Burt have denied any wrongdoing.
Grey,who also worked at the Hawks as an assistant in the AFLW program,said his time at the club had been rewarding.
“I have been able to really develop my experience in both the player welfare and coaching spaces in my time here at the Hawks. Off the field,I have been able to be part of some significant work being done in the Indigenous space and that is something I am immensely proud of,” Grey said.
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