SATURDAY PROVISONAL LEAGUE STRUCTURE

[pecker]

Saturday Premier A & B
Adel Red Blue Eagles
St Peters
BOSA
Sturt Marion
Modbury Jets FC
USC Lion
Old Ignatians (1)
Adelaide Wanderers
Adelaide Titans
Adelaide Cobras

Saturday Div 2 A & B
Adelaide Uni (1)
Salisbury Villa
M A Hawks
Flinders Uni (1)
Stirling Districts
Elizabeth Grove
FIZI
Murray Bridge
Adelaide Pumas
Croydon Cougars

Saturday Div 3 A & B
M United Stars
Northern Wolves
One Tree Hill
Gleeson
Prince Alfred
Pitbulls
Monarchs
Salisbury Sharks
Adelaide Uni (2)
Bye

Saturday Div 4 A & B
McLaren Districts
Elizabeth Downs
Flinders Uni (2)
Adelaide Blue Eagles
Aldinga Sharks
Southern Breakers
Strathablyn
East Adelaide
Old Ignatians (2)
Bye

[English]

Provided no one else drops out, surely another team will move up from Sat Div 4?

[Sean's]

The information below is from the league regarding the Saturday Division Structure, including their reasoning for having 2 x 9 team divisions instead of having 8 in one and 10 in the other.

Dear Clubs

Early in Season 2018, we notified all Clubs in Saturday Division 2 & 3 that it was our aim to return these divisions back to a 10 team structure as soon as possible.

At this stage we have sufficient Club affiliations to create a Saturday Division 4 (A & B) in season 2019 which is fantastic for the growth of our Saturday Competition.
While we may be short 2 clubs at the moment for two complete 10 team structures in Division 3 and 4, we are still fielding enquiries and are confident at least one may eventuate.

Therefore the re-structure at this stage will be:
Saturday Division 2 (A & B) – 10 team structure being 10 teams
Saturday Division 3 (A & B) – 10 team structure being 9 teams with a bye
Saturday Division 4 (A & B) - 10 team structure being 9 teams with a bye

While some may query the 9 teams with a bye, having this structure will assist with the fixture requirements as many of these Clubs are planning C teams.
An 8 team/21 round competition is difficult to align A, B, C teams fixtures and will cause ground and fixturing difficulties.

Note that single teams as Hahndorf, Greenacres Chiefs and Angle Vale are not listed and will be playing in the C team divisions, Div 6 or 7.

The Saturday Divisional structure (including C teams) will be confirmed on Monday 18th February.

C teams to be confirmed by Friday 22nd February 2019
Clubs that have indicated that they will be fielding a C team(s) in 2019, will be contacted by the League Office for confirmation of their C team requirements.
Any Club that withdraws a team after 22nd February 2019, will be subject to a fine of $300 for withdrawal of a team from the competition.

Below is the Provisional Saturday Division Structure (excluding C team divisions) as at 6th February 2019.

[LUFC_MOT]

Dare I cause a stir and say...... the reasoning makes sense.

In saying that, it's pretty harsh on Gleeson and One Tree Hill who finished last season 17 &18 points clear of the relegation spots in division 2.

[WAWAW]

Dare I cause a stir and say...... the reasoning makes sense.

In saying that, it's pretty harsh on Gleeson and One Tree Hill who finished last season 17 &18 points clear of the relegation spots in division 2.

Harsh indeed, but remember it’s a draft and not totally finalised.
Grove stay div 2 on goal difference? And OTH beat them twice lol
#saaslpolitics #pendingfinalisation

[WAWAW]

Dare I cause a stir and say...... the reasoning makes sense.

In saying that, it's pretty harsh on Gleeson and One Tree Hill who finished last season 17 &18 points clear of the relegation spots in division 2.

Harsh indeed, but remember it’s a draft and not totally finalised.
Grove stay div 2 on goal difference? And OTH beat them twice lol
#saaslpolitics #pendingfinalisation

[LUFC_MOT]

Dare I cause a stir and say...... the reasoning makes sense.

In saying that, it's pretty harsh on Gleeson and One Tree Hill who finished last season 17 &18 points clear of the relegation spots in division 2.

Harsh indeed, but remember it’s a draft and not totally finalised.
Grove stay div 2 on goal difference? And OTH beat them twice lol
#saaslpolitics #pendingfinalisation

So harsh you said it twice

[English]

At the end of the day from my understanding it was communicated. Whilst it might be harsh, this is for the better of the league and hopefully we can eventually move to 3 x 10.

[WAWAW]

At the end of the day from my understanding it was communicated. Whilst it might be harsh, this is for the better of the league and hopefully we can eventually move to 3 x 10.

By comnunication do you mean email sent out stating what division teams are in?
Because there was no communication prior to this about that.

#saasldowhattheywant

[English]

At the end of the day from my understanding it was communicated. Whilst it might be harsh, this is for the better of the league and hopefully we can eventually move to 3 x 10.

By comnunication do you mean email sent out stating what division teams are in?
Because there was no communication prior to this about that.

#saasldowhattheywant

I thought this was mentioned to clubs last season in the run home? I'm sure someone from Gleeson might of mentioned it? I could be very wrong, but I just vaguely remember the conversation?

[Northern Lad]

At the end of the day from my understanding it was communicated. Whilst it might be harsh, this is for the better of the league and hopefully we can eventually move to 3 x 10.

By comnunication do you mean email sent out stating what division teams are in?
Because there was no communication prior to this about that.

#saasldowhattheywant

I think he means that clubs were notified at the start of last year that if you finish in the bottom 4 in either Sat div 2 or 3 you ran the risk of relegation. Seems they are holding their word in regards to that if that's the case.

I can understand that the teams that have been relegated would be annoyed but I think the SAASL is doing the right thing here. They need to be 10 team leagues and that looks like what they are going to do.

[Paleon Patros Germanos]

Clubs were told from the start of 2018 that bottom 4 were to be relegated.

[redfred]

At the end of the day from my understanding it was communicated. Whilst it might be harsh, this is for the better of the league and hopefully we can eventually move to 3 x 10.

By comnunication do you mean email sent out stating what division teams are in?
Because there was no communication prior to this about that.

#saasldowhattheywant

I think he means that clubs were notified at the start of last year that if you finish in the bottom 4 in either Sat div 2 or 3 you ran the risk of relegation. Seems they are holding their word in regards to that if that's the case.

I can understand that the teams that have been relegated would be annoyed but I think the SAASL is doing the right thing here. They need to be 10 team leagues and that looks like what they are going to do.

Should be 12 team leagues in all divisions. Not enough real games

[WAWAW]

Clubs were told from the start of 2018 that bottom 4 were to be relegated.

Really???

Don’t think we had that correspondence.

[Rexie]

How are those clubs in Div 4 looking for numbers at the moment- enough to fill the 2 teams
I see Aldinga are seeking more numbers, and I know we at The Downs are as well
Also East ADELAIDE I cant find anything on them. Only the post on the SAASL face book page called Eastrn United SAints. But it says in the comments that they are playing Div 4 SUNDAY. Is that 2 different clubs.

Only reason I ask is that with the 22nd Feb only just under 2 weeks away if a few other clubs pull out won’t that have the same effect as last year.
With Strath and Breakers both pulling out at the last minute leaving a 6 team league with 4 only filling As and Bs?

Not sure what other options there are for the clubs but things could change drastically still.

[fowler_23]

East adelaide will be lucky to field one team, let alone two!

[Northern Lad]

How are those clubs in Div 4 looking for numbers at the moment- enough to fill the 2 teams
I see Aldinga are seeking more numbers, and I know we at The Downs are as well
Also East ADELAIDE I cant find anything on them. Only the post on the SAASL face book page called Eastrn United SAints. But it says in the comments that they are playing Div 4 SUNDAY. Is that 2 different clubs.

Only reason I ask is that with the 22nd Feb only just under 2 weeks away if a few other clubs pull out won’t that have the same effect as last year.
With Strath and Breakers both pulling out at the last minute leaving a 6 team league with 4 only filling As and Bs?

Not sure what other options there are for the clubs but things could change drastically still.

Looks like its East Adelaide FC. They have a facebook page but not a lot said about a men's team.

[LUFC_MOT]

How are those clubs in Div 4 looking for numbers at the moment- enough to fill the 2 teams
I see Aldinga are seeking more numbers, and I know we at The Downs are as well
Also East ADELAIDE I cant find anything on them. Only the post on the SAASL face book page called Eastrn United SAints. But it says in the comments that they are playing Div 4 SUNDAY. Is that 2 different clubs.

Only reason I ask is that with the 22nd Feb only just under 2 weeks away if a few other clubs pull out won’t that have the same effect as last year.
With Strath and Breakers both pulling out at the last minute leaving a 6 team league with 4 only filling As and Bs?

Not sure what other options there are for the clubs but things could change drastically still.

Strathalbyn played As and Bs games against Adelaide Pumas last Saturday but didn't have 2 full teams... there was a handful of guys that played both games.
Talking to one of their guys and he said they have good interest but guys just don't show up...

[Sean's]

Strath will have two full teams this year just have a lot of guys who play cricket and tennis so cant play all the pre season games. Always have a few who don't turn up pre season as well. Last season we pulled out of Division 4 and entered just one team at the time of club nominations (not at the last minute as was suggested) due to low numbers. Club has worked very hard over the break to build up the club to two teams again. We play Breakers in a week or so and they look to have reasonable numbers as well.

[LUFC_MOT]

Strath will have two full teams this year just have a lot of guys who play cricket and tennis so cant play all the pre season games. Always have a few who don't turn up pre season as well. Last season we pulled out of Division 4 and entered just one team at the time of club nominations (not at the last minute as was suggested) due to low numbers. Club has worked very hard over the break to build up the club to two teams again. We play Breakers in a week or so and they look to have reasonable numbers as well.

Early preseason games are always tough to get numbers. We were missing plenty as well.. nature of the beast unfortunately, with preseason crossing over with summer sports.. good to hear you guys have 2 sides again. Seemed like a good bunch of lads.

[Northern Lad]

Strath will have two full teams this year just have a lot of guys who play cricket and tennis so cant play all the pre season games. Always have a few who don't turn up pre season as well. Last season we pulled out of Division 4 and entered just one team at the time of club nominations (not at the last minute as was suggested) due to low numbers. Club has worked very hard over the break to build up the club to two teams again. We play Breakers in a week or so and they look to have reasonable numbers as well.

Has it got harder for you to attract players Sean with the set ups the likes of Mt Barker and the Hills have now. It seems like a lot of the clubs in that area (Stirling, Hahndorf and you guys) have had struggles attracting players. It looks like Hahndorf are just filling a C grade this year according to the email sent out above which is a massive shame for a old club. Great to see you have 2 teams again.

[Sean's]

Yep its very difficult to attract players from the Mt Barker and eastern hills area due to the success of the Hills Hawks and now Mt barker united. I think Hahndorf and Stirling cope better due to their facilities being a lotter higher standard than ours (we basically play on a paddock), although we do have a good bonfire!
Cause we have been in Division 4 so long as well we have struggled to get more than 16 games a season due to odd division structures and a few years ago our B grade only got 12 games due to forfeits and byes. Cant keep players at the club if they cant get enough games to make it worth their while.
Enjoyed the hit out against Pumas at the weekend though! Good atmosphere and the bar which is always a bonus.

[Goolwa5214]

Well said Sean, we have same troubles at Breakers, despite having a strong junior comp we lose a lot of young players that move up to town for work & or uni. Also the the travelling is a huge issue keeping players away as country teams have to travel longer distances every 2nd week & the town teams often whinge about their 1 trip away to Port Elliot!!!
Can I also add like strath we only entered 1 team last year, not pulled out at last minute. This was a decision not taken lightly by the club as we have been playing for 20 years from div 2 to div 4 so to drop to a 1 team league last year was something we didn't want to have yo do. We have been working at encouraging players out & hopefully we will be good for the season.

[Northern Lad]

Well said Sean, we have same troubles at Breakers, despite having a strong junior comp we lose a lot of young players that move up to town for work & or uni. Also the the travelling is a huge issue keeping players away as country teams have to travel longer distances every 2nd week & the town teams often whinge about their 1 trip away to Port Elliot!!!
Can I also add like strath we only entered 1 team last year, not pulled out at last minute. This was a decision not taken lightly by the club as we have been playing for 20 years from div 2 to div 4 so to drop to a 1 team league last year was something we didn't want to have yo do. We have been working at encouraging players out & hopefully we will be good for the season.

At least looking at the leagues as they stand its pretty good to you with Aldinga, McLaren and Strath in the same league. I reckon looking at Div 2 there would be a few clubs loving the trip up to Murray Bridge. Tipping a few of those clubs haven't been there for a while.

Good luck and hope to see both Strath and Breakers with 2 teams and Div 4 get of the ground.

[English]

How are those clubs in Div 4 looking for numbers at the moment- enough to fill the 2 teams
I see Aldinga are seeking more numbers, and I know we at The Downs are as well
Also East ADELAIDE I cant find anything on them. Only the post on the SAASL face book page called Eastrn United SAints. But it says in the comments that they are playing Div 4 SUNDAY. Is that 2 different clubs.

Only reason I ask is that with the 22nd Feb only just under 2 weeks away if a few other clubs pull out won’t that have the same effect as last year.
With Strath and Breakers both pulling out at the last minute leaving a 6 team league with 4 only filling As and Bs?

Not sure what other options there are for the clubs but things could change drastically still.

Looks like its East Adelaide FC. They have a facebook page but not a lot said about a men's team.

They were formed because a former committee member at Prince Alfred didn't like how things were run/a few accusations thrown around, so towards the end of the season they started secretly enticing players and coaching staff away and then announced it just before Xmas I think. I believe you'll find that the four teams of PAC will be almost split down the middle and hopefully they both get enough for two teams otherwise we just end up with another ridiculous situation where they can't field enough players to make two teams and we end up with a 6 team comp or teams getting battered because they've had to play 1.5 games a weekend.

Would rather see all new clubs have to start in a single team division to prove they can draw the numbers in, and then move into division four in their second season once they've established things like a committee, playing group, grounds etc. In this case here we could of had 3 x 12 and then rest who are struggling/have struggled in the past playing in a single team competition.

[nathanburns15]

They were formed because a former committee member at Prince Alfred didn't like how things were run/a few accusations thrown around, so towards the end of the season they started secretly enticing players and coaching staff away and then announced it just before Xmas I think. I believe you'll find that the four teams of PAC will be almost split down the middle and hopefully they both get enough for two teams otherwise we just end up with another ridiculous situation where they can't field enough players to make two teams and we end up with a 6 team comp or teams getting battered because they've had to play 1.5 games a weekend.

Would rather see all new clubs have to start in a single team division to prove they can draw the numbers in, and then move into division four in their second season once they've established things like a committee, playing group, grounds etc. In this case here we could of had 3 x 12 and then rest who are struggling/have struggled in the past playing in a single team competition.

Can't wait til the PAC / East Adelaide derby!

[The Eagle]

Isnt East Adelaide a break away Athelstone side?

[English]

Isnt East Adelaide a break away Athelstone side?

Eastern United I think

[English]

They were formed because a former committee member at Prince Alfred didn't like how things were run/a few accusations thrown around, so towards the end of the season they started secretly enticing players and coaching staff away and then announced it just before Xmas I think. I believe you'll find that the four teams of PAC will be almost split down the middle and hopefully they both get enough for two teams otherwise we just end up with another ridiculous situation where they can't field enough players to make two teams and we end up with a 6 team comp or teams getting battered because they've had to play 1.5 games a weekend.

Would rather see all new clubs have to start in a single team division to prove they can draw the numbers in, and then move into division four in their second season once they've established things like a committee, playing group, grounds etc. In this case here we could of had 3 x 12 and then rest who are struggling/have struggled in the past playing in a single team competition.

Can't wait til the PAC / East Adelaide derby!

Two sets of players who have had to play two games each?

[Paleon Patros Germanos]

I think you will find East Adelaide was also the precursor to Prince Alfred Old Collegians.

Charming chaps at PAOC, I doff my hat!