Essendon Chief Executive Xavier Campbell says the AFL Commission’s decision to delay the announcement on new licenses for the 2019 women’s competition demonstrates the importance of the next stage of growth in the women’s game.
The Bombers are among eight clubs vying for an unknown number of licenses in the AFLW competition for the 2019 season.
The Commission met on Tuesday before requesting more information from the AFL Executive.
It means a final decision on the expansion of the competition won’t be known until late next month.
“For me it says how important and serious this next phase of growth is going to be for AFLW,” Campbell told Bomber Radio.
“Everyone would have loved a decision yesterday but it seems prudent, appropriate and responsible to do that.
“The Commission is obviously challenging the AFL Executive to do some more modelling around what growth looks like.
“Hopefully it means more teams, than less.”
The Bombers bid is underpinned by an ongoing commitment to grow and develop pathways in both the rapidly developing north-west corridor in Melbourne and remote communities in the Northern Territory.
Campbell expects around one third of Essendon’s AFLW list to come from Tiwi Islands and Maningrida.
Once at the Club, the players would enjoy the benefits of an $18 million expansion that would provide the best female facilities in the competition.
“I feel really confident in our position … I would like to think we would get a license because our application is a compelling one,” Campbell said.
“We’ve always invested in this space – right back to the Essendon Women’s Network 20 years ago, so the role of women in football has always been profound to us.
“The evolution to get a women’s team was always going to be a natural fit for us so we feel we’ve put together a bid that is compelling, but is (also) genuine and authentic.”
Several unsuccessful bidders for the inaugural AFLW season were awarded provisional licenses at the time but Campbell said Essendon shouldn’t be discounted on that basis given the issues the Club was dealing with throughout that period.
Regardless of the outcome of the Commission’s decision next month, Essendon is set to field a VFLW team in 2018 and will continue to invest in the development of female talent pathways locally and in the Northern Territory.
“I’d love to think that the Commission make a decision not just on 2019, but the years beyond that for the clubs to give them greater certainty about entering the AFLW League,” Campbell said.
“We’ve built the girls academy, we’re already heavily invested in the north-west through coaching.
“We will continue to invest very heavily in that and there is the opportunity for a VFLW team which we’re seriously considering we’ll likely take up.”
