Fitzpatrick speaks on North Ballarat's link to North Melbourne

NORTH BALLARAT'S partial AFL alignment with North Melbourne could be the solution to the uneasy relationship between many VFL and AFL clubs, AFL chairman Mike Fitzpatrick told a North Ballarat business lunch yesterday.The former Carlton ruckman and director said the North Melbourne model, where AFL-listed players are farmed out to two or more VFL affiliates, solved a lot of the problems that currently exist between the Melbourne-based AFL teams and the state league competition.Fitzpatrick said the AFL took a close interest in how the VFL was administered and admitted the VFL teams suffered when they were stripped of AFL-listed players whenever their AFL affiliate was hit by injury and suspension. He said the AFL was more comfortable with its relationship with the SANFL and WAFL, where South Australian and Western Australian AFL clubs distribute their surplus players to a number of state league clubs, thereby limiting the exposure of each state league club to being stripped."We would like to be as comfortable with the VFL as we are with the SANFL and WAFL competitions," Fitzpatrick said."If we had our way the model in Victoria would be more like what is happening at North Ballarat where each AFL club fielded players at a number of (VFL) clubs. We like the current (North Ballarat) model because, if there are a number of injuries at one AFL club, it doesn't all fall on the one VFL club to give up players."It is the same when those players come back. North Ballarat only has to fit in five or six AFL players each week so it can maintain its core of senior players."Fitzpatrick said the verdict was still out on how successful AFL reserves teams in the VFL, such as Geelong and Collingwood, would prove in the longer term, despite Geelong's success in both leagues last season.Fitzpatrick was the guest speaker of the Business Advantage 2008 lunch at the North Ballarat Sports Club.The Carlton premiership player described his experiences in business after finishing his AFL career, and said he was thankful he did not play during the era of full-time professional players.He also said the AFL was sensitive to its responsibility to country football."It is popular for people to think the AFL only cares for the game at the elite level, and that we leave country football to look after itself," Fitzpatrick said. "As a member of the AFL commission I don't think that's right. "Country football is very much in our thinking."With the recent announcement to resurface the Northern Oval, the AFL contributed $100,000 and AFL Victoria a further $100,000 to add to the money invested by government, the Ballarat City Council and the club itself."The Herald Sun ran a very negative article about the health of country football but country football player registrations are up. The main issue with some of those clubs is population decline in some regional areas and not necessarily AFL issues as such."