A SECOND push is on for Maiden Gully to join the Bendigo Football Netball League under-18 competition this year.
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The BFNL board has approved the application of the Maiden Gully Junior Football Club entering an under-18 team this year.
The application from the Maiden Gully junior club to join the BFNL under-18s comes after the Maiden Gully YCW senior club had its bid to enter an under-18 team in the BFNL rejected by the AFL Central Victoria commission in November.
The Maiden Gully YCW senior club, which plays in the Loddon Valley league, and Maiden Gully junior club, which fields teams in the Bendigo Junior Football League, operate as two independent entities.
The BFNL board had previously agreed for the Maiden Gully YCW senior club to enter an under-18 team this year, which would have kept the under-18 competition at 10 teams and eliminated the bye following the departure of Kyneton to the Riddell District league.
However, the BFNL's acceptance of the Eagles for 2024 was appealed by the LVFNL, with that appeal subsequently upheld by the AFLCV commission.
The same process, including potential appeals from impacted affiliates such as the BJFL or LVFNL "should the establishment of a new team have direct impact on their league or member clubs" will now be played out for the Maiden Gully junior club's application.
The Maiden Gully Junior Football Club presently fields teams from under-9s to under-16s, with its proposed under-18 side an additional age division.
OPTIMISM FROM THE BFNL
BFNL chair Carol McKinstry confirmed to the Bendigo Advertiser on Thursday the application from the Maiden Gully Junior Football Club to enter an under-18 team this year had been accepted by the board.
"We've indicated we want to approve the application to the AFLCV commission," McKinstry said.
"The optimism we have this time is as a league we still believe this is in the best interest in terms of the future of Maiden Gully and allowing the club to retain under-18 players."
The optimism we have this time is as a league we still believe this is in the best interest in terms of the future of Maiden Gully and allowing the club to retain under-18 players
- Carol McKinstry - BFNL chair
Maiden Gully YCW hasn't fielded an under-18 team since 2021.
The Eagles withdrew their under-18 team from the LVFNL in 2022 on the basis it wasn't serving the development of their players and had unsuccessfully applied to enter into both the BFNL and HDFNL under-18s that year.
Since then top-age under-16 players coming out of the Maiden Gully Junior Football Club have had to move to alternate clubs across the region to play under-18 football.
MAIDEN GULLY'S UNDER-18 BFNL FOCUS
"We fluctuate between 250 to 300 kids each year, so we have plenty of junior numbers at the club and they are continuing to grow," Maiden Gully Junior Football Club president Mick Sheahan said.
"If you look at our under-12s, 14s and 16s teams we compete every year with the likes of Golden Square, South Bendigo, Sandhurst and so on.
"With the senior club having its application to enter an under-18 team in the BFNL knocked back we have a situation where we've got kids coming out of the under-16s who have been playing against Bendigo league clubs since they were in the under-9s that have to go out and play in the Loddon Valley league.
"I still think there's a path forward where we could look at an under-18 team in both the Bendigo and Loddon Valley league and that's something we've spoken about with AFL Central Vic and Loddon Valley.
"We've also heard from AFL Central Victoria about are we going to have enough volunteers to field an under-18 team?
"Our difference is unlike other Loddon Valley clubs like a Mitiamo or a Serpentine for example is they don't have 300 junior families to provide volunteers whereas we do.
Our difference is unlike other Loddon Valley clubs like a Mitiamo or a Serpentine for example is they don't have 300 junior families to provide volunteers whereas we do
- Mick Sheahan - Maiden Gully Junior Football Club president
"We want to be able to align our junior players as close to the Maiden Gully YCW senior club as possible and if at this stage it means we have to put in a bid for our own under-18s team this time then that's what we've done because another year without under-18s would be disastrous.
"We just can't keep losing all of our homegrown talent year in, year out because we can't get an under-18 team up where we feel it's best suited."
The BFNL has been open in recent months about Maiden Gully YCW being the league's No.1 option to return to a 10-club league as early as 2025 following the defection of Kyneton after last season.
"We are behind this 100 per cent (Maiden Gully joining the BFNL under-18s this year) and want to see football flourish," McKinstry said.
"We've got to have as many as kids playing footy as possible at under-18 level, which then filters through to senior football and we see this as a step towards Maiden Gully transitioning to our league. It will take time, but all the indications are that they can do it."
