Cats wait on list numbers
VFL: Soft cap could prevent club from playing, says Cook
GEELONG wants to remain in the VFL but chief executive Brian Cook says its participation will depend on changes to AFL list sizes.
The trimming of lists and football’s soft cap, which covers football department spending, will dictate the club’s state league future, he said.
Geelong is the only team to have continuously fielded an affiliated VFL team every year since the end of 1999.
List sizes are set to be cut next year because of the economic impacts caused by the coronavirus, but Cook said its state league status beyond this year was uncertain.
“If our list size is around 40, you might have a team play in a VFL competition but if the numbers are like 32, 33, 34 and you normally have about eight to 12 injuries per week, it’s not likely you would have a team in the VFL,” Cook said.
“You would probably just try and farm players out to preferably one other club but we’re just waiting on the AFL.
“That’s probably the key issue still to be sorted out at the AFL. Once they do that, we’ll be in a better position to understand what our soft cap will be next year and player payments for next year.”
It’s already been determined AFL-listed players can’t compete in any second-tier competitions in 2020 because of the strict COVID-19 medical protocols in place.
That has left the door open for organised scratch matches this year between non-selected players against rival clubs, giving those a chance to press their claims for a senior callup.
Geelong has a proud history in the VFL, winning premierships in 2002, 2007 and 2012.
Its state league side has also been an important pathway for players to reach the AFL, with Tom Stewart and Tom Atkins recent players to be recruited out of the development program.
Cook said Geelong’s preference was to remain in the VFL.
“Ideally it’s the best scenario; however, if the soft cap is cut dramatically and there’s talk of it being cut by nearly 50 per cent … you wouldn’t run a VFL team,” he said.
“If a list is 35 and you have 22 playing, you only have 13 (players remaining) and you’ll find half of those would be injured … and you have five or six left. In which case, it wouldn’t be a huge issue. They can be farmed out to one team.”