If I were the Commissioner of the league, I'd tell the owners to buck up and throw a few million to start youth teams in Australia. Get a few gluts of guys through after getting top high school / junior college level coaching and equipment and get them recruited to colleges for two-three years of eligibility.
Meanwhile, the league gives some money to the top level semi-pro outfits so that kids that aren't given scholarships will be able to play.
With enough persistence, there could be enough Aussie players in the league as well as built interest in the semi-pro league that it becomes a draw comparable to the minor leagues in the USA to further Australian interest in the sport.
The NFL might never reach the popularity of the AFL and cricket, but I think a long-term investment in creating new fans under the Southern Cross Sky will be just as effective as trying to make NFL London a "thing.,
I think that the support for the AFL and rugby in Australia would be a boon to making new NFL players because those sports need all around better athletes than the sport of football does. If you take the guys who can't be rugby backs for X reason, you can still take their raw athletic talent and translate it into football effectiveness.
Originally Posted by Discuss Thrower:
Poor bastards with mismatched helmets and unis.
If I were the Commissioner of the league, I'd tell the owners to buck up and throw a few million to start youth teams in Australia. Get a few gluts of guys through after getting top high school / junior college level coaching and equipment and get them recruited to colleges for two-three years of eligibility.
Meanwhile, the league gives some money to the top level semi-pro outfits so that kids that aren't given scholarships will be able to play.
With enough persistence, there could be enough Aussie players in the league as well as built interest in the semi-pro league that it becomes a draw comparable to the minor leagues in the USA to further Australian interest in the sport.
The NFL might never reach the popularity of the AFL and cricket, but I think a long-term investment in creating new fans under the Southern Cross Sky will be just as effective as trying to make NFL London a "thing.,
I think that the support for the AFL and rugby in Australia would be a boon to making new NFL players because those sports need all around better athletes than the sport of football does. If you take the guys who can't be rugby backs for X reason, you can still take their raw athletic talent and translate it into football effectiveness.
The mismatched helmets are their club/local teams, just like the pro bowl. :-) e.g. Sydney university
But yeah, American football is definitely gaining popularity here.
Originally Posted by AussieChiefsFan:
The mismatched helmets are their club/local teams, just like the pro bowl. :-) e.g. Sydney university
But yeah, American football is definitely gaining popularity here.
As for the score, NSW (my state) is up like 49-0.
Don't know why there isn't a concerted effort from the league to develop down under.
Fucking rugby guys are all strong safety, 4-3 OLB type guys. Find the guys that aren't good enough to play AFL or the big rugby codes and slap some pads on them.
Originally Posted by Discuss Thrower:
Don't know why there isn't a concerted effort from the league to develop down under.
Fucking rugby guys are all strong safety, 4-3 OLB type guys. Find the guys that aren't good enough to play AFL or the big rugby codes and slap some pads on them.
The leagues are actually pretty well organized already, considering the funding available. The sport has expanded a lot, even since say five years ago. There's even a women's league now, and not the gimmicky lingerie stuff either.
Originally Posted by AussieChiefsFan:
The leagues are actually pretty well organized already, considering the funding available. The sport has expanded a lot, even since say five years ago. There's even a women's league now, and not the gimmicky lingerie stuff either.
So the groundwork is there to an extent.
The NFL needs to get 15-19 year olds playing the sport bigtime.
