For the Love of the Dollar
May 20th 2008 06:05
Attention AFL: Enough. No more.
When did the AFL forget what it was all about and begin shameless and soullessly searching for money? "At's all a business now: the teams, the stadiums, the players and managers, all a business." No, it doesn't have to be and it shouldn't be.
Andrew Demetriou is on the biggest criminals in that respect. What wouldn't that man mess around with for a slight more stacked wallet? New teams, unbalanced fixturing, TV rights... nothing is sacred any more. Whatever happened to 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it?
When the new teams agenda was first announced, I thought it was a pipe dream. But it seems as though they're serious now. Never mind the fact that the league is working fine at present. Never mind the continual ridiculing of the idea that Sydney is interested in a second AFL team. Never mind the unlucky team that finishes last before the Gold Coast team enters, and is robbed of the first pick that any wooden spooner deserves. Never mind all of that. More teams = more money.
The fixture, on the other hand, was not only 'not broke,' but was working excellently. After 15 rounds, we used to have a clear indication of how our teams were going because everyone had played everyone once. Then have your seven rematches. Now, we'll have no idea because some teams won't have played Geelong or Hawthorn, like Carlton, who only meets the Hawks in Round 22. And why switch? Works better for TV scheduling. Basing the fixture around TV rights is not a legitimate reason to have Sydney play St Kilda, Port Adelaide AND West Coast in the first 12 rounds.
Another real soulless entity is Channel Seven. It could not be more obvious that they regained the rights to the football because it's lucrative, not because they like football! Nothing live, ad breaks squeezed in wherever they can (especially between quarters)... even when they didn't have the rights, Friday night programming was called 'Footy Free Friday.' They were revolving their shows around football even when it wasn't there!
So stop it! Don't you understand that people do not want more teams, a flashy 150th anniversary bonanza, interchange rule changes, send-off rules, or the bounce to go. We just want football. As soon as it captures this many people's emotional attachments, it's more than just a business.
When did the AFL forget what it was all about and begin shameless and soullessly searching for money? "At's all a business now: the teams, the stadiums, the players and managers, all a business." No, it doesn't have to be and it shouldn't be.
Andrew Demetriou is on the biggest criminals in that respect. What wouldn't that man mess around with for a slight more stacked wallet? New teams, unbalanced fixturing, TV rights... nothing is sacred any more. Whatever happened to 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it?
When the new teams agenda was first announced, I thought it was a pipe dream. But it seems as though they're serious now. Never mind the fact that the league is working fine at present. Never mind the continual ridiculing of the idea that Sydney is interested in a second AFL team. Never mind the unlucky team that finishes last before the Gold Coast team enters, and is robbed of the first pick that any wooden spooner deserves. Never mind all of that. More teams = more money.
The fixture, on the other hand, was not only 'not broke,' but was working excellently. After 15 rounds, we used to have a clear indication of how our teams were going because everyone had played everyone once. Then have your seven rematches. Now, we'll have no idea because some teams won't have played Geelong or Hawthorn, like Carlton, who only meets the Hawks in Round 22. And why switch? Works better for TV scheduling. Basing the fixture around TV rights is not a legitimate reason to have Sydney play St Kilda, Port Adelaide AND West Coast in the first 12 rounds.
Another real soulless entity is Channel Seven. It could not be more obvious that they regained the rights to the football because it's lucrative, not because they like football! Nothing live, ad breaks squeezed in wherever they can (especially between quarters)... even when they didn't have the rights, Friday night programming was called 'Footy Free Friday.' They were revolving their shows around football even when it wasn't there!
So stop it! Don't you understand that people do not want more teams, a flashy 150th anniversary bonanza, interchange rule changes, send-off rules, or the bounce to go. We just want football. As soon as it captures this many people's emotional attachments, it's more than just a business.
| 61 |
| Vote |
subscribe to this blog
