ARTICLE: "Not Black and White", by John Townsend (Swan Districts oppose changes to WAFC), 13/6/2019.

It’s good to see that Swan Districts has the courage to stand up against the VFL demigods and their WA sycophants at the WAFC. Swans want grassroots people to have a say.

Not Black And White

JOHN TOWNSEND

ARTICLE: Swan Districts oppose WA Football Commission electoral changes. Swan Districts are the only WA football stakeholders to oppose constitutional changes to the WA Football Commission that would formalise the complex election system in place for most of this century.

The two AFL clubs and eight other WAFL clubs agreed to the constitutional changes required by all WA organisations before June 30 under the new Associations Incorporation Act.

A WAFC special general meeting was held at Subiaco Oval last night to formally ratify the changes that were endorsed by the clubs this month.

But Swans opposed the changes and want the WAFC to apply the recommendations of the 2017 structural review of football to overhaul the current governance structure.

Swans' chief executive Jeff Dennis declined to comment yesterday and president Peter Hodyl could not be contacted.

Under the WAFC constitution, the nine WAFL clubs have half the votes at commission elections while the two AFL clubs have the other half.

But that is not applied in practice with the WAFC using the model designed in the 2001 Crawford report that gives 20 per cent of the votes to each of West Coast and Fremantle, 30 per cent to the combined WAFL clubs, 20 per cent to the commission itself and the final 10 per cent to community football, such as amateur and country associations.

Swans argue that the current breakdown, with the AFL clubs and commission holding a majority of votes, ensures the WAFL clubs will be invariably outvoted in any matter that conflicts between the two levels of the game.

A WAFC spokesman said a full governance review would be undertaken and was expected to be finished next year.

ARTICLE: "Bassendean Oval: Home of hard men, on and off the field", by John Townsend, 18/9/2017

ARTICLE: As a boy growing up in Perth’s western suburbs in the 1970s, there were few prospects more terrifying than catching the train to Bassendean Oval to watch Claremont take on Swan Districts.

The train ride from Swanbourne was straightforward enough, even though the last couple of stops before Success Hill started to bring contact with characters best avoided once the game started.

A three-minute trot down Thompson Road, a right and then left to the main gates on Old Perth Road and you were in the ground.

Then the fun started.

The railway has played a major part in Swan Districts’ history, with Bassendean Oval’s position on the Midland line providing easy access to the city and eastern suburbs, which supplied many of its players over the decades.

Sports were played at the then Bassendean Reserve from the early part of the century, but it was the foresight of former South Fremantle player RA (Dick) McDonald in the mid-1920s, then a member of the Bassendean Road Board, that saw funds raised to convert Bassendean Oval into a facility suitable for senior football.

McDonald’s vision was to create a league club based in the district, a dream that would come true in 1934 when Swan Districts were admitted to the WA National Football League with their founding father the inaugural president.

Swans’ Haydn Bunton Jr vs. Perth, April 1964.

McDonald was also recognised with the naming of the 800-seat grandstand in his honour, an historic achievement lost on a small boy whose only ambition was to survive unscathed amid the most threatening football environment of his limited experience.

The RA McDonald Stand was the source of that terror; a wooden stand packed with the most ferocious and vocal supporters whose synchronised foot-stamping played tune to the fortunes of their team.

They had seen dark days — Swans failed to make finals for 15 consecutive seasons after World War II, a record that stood until Peel’s entry to the league nearly half a century later — followed by the most glorious reign as Haydn Bunton’s men won three straight flags from 1961.

Silky Bill Walker, a four-time Sandover medallist, roved alongside Bunton while Test cricketer Keith Slater dominated the ruck and a host of equally hard men, such as Ken Bagley, Tony Nesbit and Fred Castledine, played for keeps.

Bassendean Oval crowd, 1961

Swans struggled for success in the 1970s, as did Claremont, but their one or two battles a year at Bassendean were epic contests between two different worlds.

Crowds flocked to witness these encounters, with the crush in the outer only matched by that on the late train, with 10,000 and more fans often squeezed into the ground.

There were nearly that many on the devastating day in June 1976 when Claremont’s Norm Uncle kicked 10 goals, only for Swans’ Mark Olsen to answer with nine as the home team got the better of a 45-goal shootout.

It remains the closest any WAFL match has come to having opponents kick 10 goals.

[By John Townsend for The West Australian. This article was first published online on 18 September 2017 at the following link: https://thewest.com.au/sport/wafl/bassendean-oval-home-of-hard-men-on-and-off-the-field-ng-b88600154z]

Swan Districts versus West Perth at Bassendean Oval in 1964.

A game between Swan Districts and South Fremantle in 1962.

OPINION: President's response to today's West Australian, 8 Feb 2017; by Peter Hodyl (SDFC)

OPINION: President's response to today's West Australian, 8 Feb 2017, by Peter Hodyl (President, Swan Districts Football Club)

For the second time Mr Duffield has printed an article criticizing football in WA in relation to moving the AFL games to the new Burswood Stadium. It is clear he has no understanding at all about football in WA which covers Auskick to AFL. His views clearly come from looking through his rose coloured AFL glasses only from one of the many Media corporate suites he enjoys around the country and unfortunately like many 'self proclaimed' media experts writes a good story rarely based on any facts whatsoever.

I for one have never seen Mark Duffield attend any WAFL games in my time as President of the Swan Districts Football Club so maybe Mark should take the time to understand the challenges football in WA faces and I am not talking about our two WA based AFL (VFL) teams, although the AFL is trying to skin them as well with 'equalisation' measures.

In Mark's article he has made comment on $100 million 'compensation offer' over ten years. Sorry Mark this is not for the upkeep of Domain Stadium, it is to ensure ALL football in WA continues to provide the opportunities it currently does which in turn provide the elite players he enjoys watching from his gifted viewing position. I am talking about Auskick, Amateurs, Country, WAFL, Female, Veteran's, 9's etc. Football in WA is not just AFL, Fremantle and West Coast Eagles.

Mark has also asked about what the AFL contribution is, well maybe Mark should do what a real investigative journalist does and 'ask the question' instead of waiting to be spoon fed from the AFL in a crafted press release. The AFL directly provides less than $3 million per annum (pittance) to football in WA whilst at the same time pumps 10's if not 100's of millions into 'non football' states NSW and QLD. Their argument that the AFL game contributes through WCE and Fremantle is completely flawed as this funding is specifically related to the profits of both WCE and Fremantle and the income from Stadium revenue.

Current funding to the WAFC is derived from operating Domain Stadium, Royalties from WCE and Fremantle and the AFL. WCE and Fremantle contribute the most in the form of licence agreements. Let's make this clear, licence agreements, not donations, not out of the goodness of their hearts but the agreement between the WAFC and the AFL to compensate grassroots football for the loss of revenue to Football in WA due to the introduction of the AFL. Football in WA agreed, for the good of the national game's advancement, to allow a WA based team to join the then VFL; this has since morphed into the AFL. This funding will now be significantly reduced as the WAFC loses the income generated by the use of Domain Stadium and potential loss of profits of both Fremantle and WCE due to the AFL's proposed 'equalisation' measures. Where is the $11 million shortfall to run football in WA to come from? Again, not talking about WCE and Fremantle but WA football.

Then Mark refers to some $29 million in grants to WAFL clubs Swan Districts, West Perth and Claremont. Well I would like Mark to show me where on the Swan Districts balance sheets or P&L's one red cent we have received from the WA government?  Not one red cent has the Swan Districts Football Club received so I suggest Mark go back to journalism school to learn about clarifying facts before shooting his mouth off. Instead of criticizing the grass root WA football clubs maybe he should be congratulating them on what they can and have achieved with the meagre funding they receive through their commitment to a national competition. These achievements include many significant community programs across a vast array of non football areas and partnered by many significant organizations throughout WA to simply make our communities better. Female football has been growing steadily over a number of years which would not have been possible without the commitment of grass root clubs.

Currently Female Football is all the rage with the AFL and Media basking in the glory of its initial success the last week or so. The Swan Districts Football Club has had a Women's football team for 10 years and has embraced this as part of our football club. In its first year we entered both League and Reserves teams due to the great response to this initiative. A youth girls team was introduced in 2012 so the Swan Districts Football Club had already developed a female pathway to enable our great game to be enjoyed by all. This is evidenced with nine of our 2016 players recruited into the inaugural AFLW competition including three marquee players at Adelaide and Fremantle. What funding assistance has the Swan Districts Football Club received from the AFL or the WAFC over this period of developing the game? $0.00. Our club has provided facilities, access to our AFL experienced coaches and training staff, mentoring, and inclusiveness which has helped build the desire amongst women to play leading to the AFLW creation. Congratulations to all the girls playing football at club and AFL level and you would think the Swan Districts Football Club would at least get a letter, certificate, acknowledgement or even maybe a bag of footballs from the AFL in appreciation for the efforts in making the AFLW a reality. No, not even a magnetic board.....

Grassroots football is the lifeblood that puts bread on Mark's table. The AFL supplies the butter, and probably cream donuts in his corporate media box so if he really wants to solve this impasse he should focus his attention on the inequality of funding the AFL applies throughout Australia, put his media pressure where it is best suited to ensure football in WA can continue to nurture the game itself and not just the elite he enjoys watching so much. But it is clear Mark knows which side of his bread the butter is on.

Regards

Peter Hodyl

(President, Swan Districts Football Club)

This article was originally published at the following link: https://swandistrictsfc.site-ym.com/page/News [accessed 10 February 2017].

Original article by Mark Duffield:

Time to put brakes on footy gravy train, by Mark Duffield

Tuesday 7 February 2017

The next State government, Liberal or Labor, has to stop the football gravy train.

Football continues to turn its nose up at a move from Subiaco Oval to a new stadium with 50 per cent more seats, 50 per cent more corporate seats and three times as many toilets, despite a $100 million “compensation” offer.

We are not here because any government has treated football poorly. We are here because governments of both political persuasions at both State and Federal level have been too kind, for too long to a code that continues to reinforce its reputation as the spoilt brat of WA sport.

If insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result, then both political parties should be warned ahead of this election: football is never satisfied. Gift them a stadium in 1989, then two significant upgrades to that stadium, more than $40 million in State and Federal funds to make league-leading training facilities possible, then pole position at what will be the best stadium in Australia. The more you give, the more football feels entitled to take.

Football continues to tell us that it must be “no worse off” at the new stadium. Let me put “no worse off” in real terms.

The three-tiered stand at Subiaco Oval, which holds 7500 seats, will be 50 years old in two years. The 10,000 seat two-tiered stand alongside it will be 40 years old in three years. Replacing those alone would conservatively cost between $150 million and $200 million and would not even budge the stadium’s capacity from its underwhelming 42,500.

If there had been no new stadium built just how was football expecting to replace those grandstands? Unfortunately we know the answer. They expected taxpayers to pay for them and then hand them back “their” stadium.

Just how much money has the AFL committed to make sure the WAFC is “no worse off” when the shift to the new stadium comes?

We are still waiting for that press release.

The new government must make taxpayers their priority, not a wealthy sporting code that that has been given too much and shows precious little gratitude for it.

A $1.3 billion stadium, $40 million in AFL/community training facility grants, $29 million in grants to WAFL clubs Swan Districts, West Perth and Claremont.

Now $10 million a year for 10 years is not enough to convince football it will be no worse off?

Time to stop the gravy train.

Time to stop the madness.

This article was originally published at the following link: https://thewest.com.au/news/wa/time-to-put-brakes-on-footy-gravy-train-ng-b88379161z [accessed 10 February 2017].

Swans' director Peter Snow, West Perth ex-president Brett Raponi (2008-2016), and Swans' president Peter Hodyl.

R.A. McDonald Stand Bassendean Oval.

The southern-end goals viewed from the McDonald Stand.

The R.A. McDonald Stand viewed from the southern-end goals. All Bassendean Oval pictures except the Peter Hodyl picture were taken by Kieran James (founder WAFL GOLDEN ERA) in July 2011. 

Round 1, 1986 - Swan Districts FC 21.20 (146) d East Perth FC 22.12 (144), Perth Oval

Laurie James with Ted "Square" Kilmurray picture, EPFC office, Leederville Oval, 12/7/2011

Round 1, 1986 – East Perth v Swan Districts, Perth Oval

EPFC modern-day office, Leederville Oval, 6/7/2011

This thrilling game was played on the Monday of the split round on the opening weekend of the 1986 WAFL season. On the Saturday Subiaco had defeated reigning premiers East Fremantle (pointing to Subiaco’s dominance over Old Easts which continued throughout the season) and Perth drew West Perth at Lathlain Park (see posting on this website “Round 1, 1986 – Perth 13.15 (93) drew West Perth 13.15 (93)”). I was not at either one of the Monday games. If anyone was at this Swans versus East Perth match please add a comment to this post. Nonetheless, if you were a dedicated WAFL supporter in this era if you were told the two teams, the venue, and the weather, you could pretty much imagine what it would have been like there at the ground. Round 1 of the new football season is always full of hope and excitement as everybody starts the season on equal footing and it is always possible that your team might have a fantastic year. Richmond fans have been happy and optimistic every April since the club’s last premiership year of 1980!

The 10,405 fans that were there at Perth Oval for Round 1 of the 1986 season in beautiful fine autumn weather (maximum 23.0 degrees) were treated to one of the truly great games of WAFL football, a golden game from the golden era. As Gary Stocks retold the story in the Tuesday edition of The West Australian, SDFC trailed by 58 points late in the second quarter. Clearly a wipe-out was on the cards. However, the always gallant Bassendean crew staged a miraculous comeback with a ten-goal third quarter and by kicking 18 of the last 28 goals. SDFC took the lead at the ten-minute mark of the last quarter. However, the excitement had not yet finished. EPFC then regained control of the game and kicked five of the last seven goals. The home team’s late rush fell agonizingly short as the Bassendean crew held on to win by the meagre margin of two points.

The miraculous Kevin Taylor continued on his fine form from the 1985 first-semi final defeat of West Perth to dominate the match with his courage and aerial brilliance. As Gary Stocks reported, Taylor ended the game with 13 marks, 25 kicks, and five goals. One of Taylor's greatest achievements was his Simpson Medal win in the 1979 Fremantle derby grand final, when playing for East Fremantle. He kicked seven goals in that grand final and finished the season with 102 goals (including goals kicked during the final round). However, Taylor’s inconsistency and his susceptibility to injury sadly have denied him a place among the legends of the game. Nonetheless, those who have seen him in top form, myself included, will consider themselves fortunate to have been there at the ground.

EPFC merchandise for sale, Leederville Oval

The Best Players’ lists are interesting and they show the incredible depth and strength of the WAFL in 1986 even after a decade of plundering by VFL and SANFL clubs. Ultimately neither of these two clubs played in the 1986 final series which reveals again how deep the talent pool of the WAFL was in this era. I will cite the Best Players’ lists here to illustrate my point about depth of talent. Top players for SDFC were: K Taylor, P Vasoli, J Cormack, P Sartori, P Ware, and I Williams. Top players for EPFC were: C Starcevich, D Bain, G Hawkins, A Ishchenko, L Kelly, and P Peos. Of the SDFC group, Joe Cormack and Peter Sartori had VFL / AFL careers while Peter Ware and Ian Williams were sturdy, reliable, and consistent remnants of the club’s premiership era of 1982-84. Vasoli was the type of guy that you often saw in the WAFL in that era: a journeyman then with his third club and while he was not a superstar he was a truly capable footballer nonetheless. Vasoli had played in a premiership with South Fremantle, had not played well for SFFC in the 1985 season, and now recreated himself afresh leading the young talent at Swan Districts. (In his 1997 autobiography From the Hart the West Perth, South Fremantle, and West Coast rover David Hart states on page 8 that he did not gel well with the 1985 SFFC coach Don Haddow and this affected his on-field performance. Perhaps Vasoli had been similarly affected in 1985.) Of the EPFC Best Players’ list cited above we can see the zoning system was producing some talented young players with Craig Starcevich, David Bain, Alex Ishchenko, and Paul Peos of course eventually going on to fine VFL / AFL careers. 

PO, SE corner gates were here in 1986

Sadly the as then unnamed VFL expansion club was casting a spectral shadow over the WAFL throughout 1986. (The “West Coast Ghosts” – now that would have been a fine name!) People were aware that the old way of life was on its last legs and a football revolution was approaching. By today’s standards the official crowd of 10,405 seems wonderful but had this game been played ten years earlier (i.e. 1976) you might have got a crowd of 14-16,000 given that these two clubs have strong followings, it was the Monday of the split round, and the early Autumn weather was magnificent. WAFL crowds fell significantly in 1986 and in fact they had been falling since the high water mark of the 1979 Fremantle derby grand final year.

SW corner gates, Celtic V Perth Glory, 9/7/11

The League Table is unrevealing as you might expect after Round 1. It does show Perth and West Perth both with won nil, lost nil, drawn one. I don’t know exactly how Perth managed to be placed above West Perth as both teams had scored 13.15 in their Round 1 contest. Perhaps it was the home ground venue for the drawn game? A true home ground advantage if that was the case. The strong Claremont and Subiaco teams had opened up a percentage and two premiership point lead at the top of the table. Claremont thrashed South Fremantle in Round 1. However, by the end of the year, South Fremantle (won seven, lost fourteen, seventh place) had regained some respectability by producing a plucky and fearless side featuring such classy young players as Mark Bairstow, Wally Matera, Peter Sumich, Neil "Nicky" Winmar, and John Worsfold. Subiaco went on to win the 1986 WAFL premiership, East Perth missed the finals (won seven, lost fourteen, sixth place), and Swan Districts slumped to last (won five, lost sixteen) during this rebuilding phase two years on from the last flag of Swans' premiership era. However, the Bassendean-based club was rarely disgraced (as its respectable 1986 final percentage of 83.02% suggests) and it did not hit the woefully uncompetitive lows of 1977-78. Peter Sartori polled well in the 1986 Sandover Medal Count with 25 votes and Kevin Taylor polled 15 votes. [Sartori left SDFC at the end of the 1986 season. He played 54 games for Carlton from 1987-91 and 23 games for Fitzroy from 1992-94.] Returning to Bassendean Oval after his two years at West Coast, John Todd performed yet another coaching miracle by taking SDFC to the 1990 WAFL premiership in a by then vastly different competition [by Jack Frost, 5 September 2012].

Match results – Monday 31 March, 1984, Perth Oval

Swan Districts FC 1.5 4.10 14.14 21.20 (146) d East Perth FC 3.4 13.8 17.9 22.12 (144)

Scorers: SD: Taylor 5.4, Hutton 4.2, Ahmat 2.3, Williams 2.3, Cormack 2.1, Richardson 2.1,

Vasoli 2.0, Johns 1.2, Holmes 1.0, Langsford 0.1, Renfrey 0.1, Forced 0.2.

EP: Dunn 3.1, Dennis 3.0, Kelly 3.0, Del Borrello 2.2, Ishchenko 2.1, Bain 2.1, Wynne 2.0,

Starcevich 1.2, Otway 1.1, Hawkins 1.1, Stephens 1.1, Blakely 1.1, Campbell 0.1.

Weather: Fine, light westerly breeze, minimum 17.8 at 4.50am, maximum 23.0 at 2.05pm.

(Source: The West Australian, Tuesday, 1 April, 1986, pp. 74, 107)

Attendance: 10,405 (from WAFL Online).

Free kicks: SD: 12, 1, 7, 2 – 22.

EP: 6, 4, 7, 2 – 19.

(Source: The West Australian, Tuesday, 1 April, 1986, p. 107)

Best players:

WA Footballer of the Year Award:

5 votes (Best on Ground) Kevin Taylor (SD) – A scintillating performance in the centre and in attack. Finished off his work with five goals.

4 votes Craig Starcevich (EP) – Showed great maturity in a four-quarter effort in the ruck and when resting in attack.

3 votes David Bain (EP) – Characteristically dogged display on a wing. Had 23 kicks and made five effective handpasses.

2 votes Paul Vasoli (SD) – Started on the interchange bench but wielded a tremendous influence on the match when given an opportunity.

1 vote Gavin Hawkins (EP) – Was noticeable from the outset and gave an encouraging display.

Team rankings: SD: K Taylor 1, P Vasoli 2, J Cormack 3, P Sartori 4, P Ware 5, I Williams 6.

EP: C Starcevich 1, D Bain 2, G Hawkins 3, A Ishchenko 4, L Kelly 5, P Peos 6.

(Source: The West Australian, Tuesday, 1 April, 1986, p. 107)

	Round 1	Table	WAFL	1986
	Played	Won	Lost	Drawn	%	Points
CLAREMONT	1	1	-	-	313.04	4
SUBIACO*	1	1	-	-	141.96	4
SWAN DIST	1	1	-	-	101.39	4
PERTH	1	-	-	1	100.00	2
West Perth	1	-	-	1	100.00	2
East Perth	1	-	1	-	98.63	-
East Frem**	1	-	1	-	71.94	-
South Frem	1	-	1	-	31.94	-

(Source: The West Australian, Tuesday, 1 April, 1986, p. 107)

*eventual 1986 WAFL premiers

**eventual 1986 WAFL runners-up

David Bain, great talent (EP / BB)

Match analysis:

Quotes from GARY STOCKS:

“The brilliant skills of Swan Districts centreman Kevin Taylor helped his side stage a remarkable second-half fightback to beat East Perth by two points in a thrilling football match at Perth Oval yesterday.

“Sean Districts trailed by 58 points late in the second quarter, but the performance of Taylor and veteran ruck-rover Paul Vasoli saw Swans take the points in a major form reversal.

“In the first half, East Perth dominated play, kicking 10 goals in the second quarter.

“At that stage of the game the Royals dominated in almost every position on the ground, but things changed dramatically after the halftime break.

“Swan Districts, mainly because of Taylor, Vasoli, newcomer Joe Cormack and ruckman Peter Sartori, changed the course of the match.

“Swans fought their way back with a 10-goal third quarter and won the match by kicking 18 of the last 28 goals.

“Taylor stood out as Swan Districts’ best player even when his side was struggling early in the match.

“In a superb display, he took 13 marks, had 25 kicks and finished with five goals.

“East Perth also showed tremendous grit by scoring five of the last seven goals after being headed by Swans at the 10-minute mark of the last quarter.

“But that was not enough for them to win.

Craig Starcevich (EP), Collingwood 1990 flag

“Vasoli, who struggled to find form with South Fremantle last year, seems to have been rejuvenated at his third league club.

“Young ruckmen Craig Starcevich and Alex Ishchenko, wingman David Bain and ruck-rover Gavin Hawkins were all solid [East Perth] contributors.

“Starcevich, yet another Teal Cup product, showed he is ready to enjoy his best season in league football when he dominated in the ruck and while resting in attack”.

(Source: Gary Stocks (1986), “Taylor-made victory for Swan Districts”, The West Australian, Tuesday, 1 April, 1986, p. 107) [archival research by Jack Frost].