Brent opened this week's edition of The Devil's Advocate by discussing the importance of Tasmania's AFL High Performance Centre.
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The importance of Tasmania's AFL High Performance Centre (15/07/24)
[Music] The words administration and training facility or high performance center have been used a lot in recent times and while you might have some sort of understanding about what they're used for others might not realize just how much they have to offer aside from football. On Friday, the Tasmania Devils released a short video detailing exactly what these facilities can do for a community. Here's Alistair Nicholson to guide you through it. [Music] In elite sporting environments right around the world, the AFL included. State-of-the-art training and administration facilities form a key pillar in any club's success on and off the field. But these often cutting-edge facilities are far more than just the private domain of a small group of elite athletes, coaches and administrators. The doors are open to everyone as a key community connector, a conduit between the sporting club and the people it represents. Just as the clubs strive to get better they also strive to lift the community's horizons, creating an environment of aspiration, achievement and a sense of belonging. Examples of the varied and profound community benefits these facilities bring are visible right across the AFL. The huddle run by North Melbourne at its Arden Street base has done amazing things to improve education and employment outcomes for young people through the power of sport. Since 2010 more than 120,000 young people from more than 160 cultures have directly benefited from the highly inclusive program, which empowers them to build on their strengths, increase their ability to participate in society and contribute to more socially inclusive communities. Richmond's Coron Gammerjee Institute has been in operation since 2011 and is a centre of cultural strength and learning for Indigenous youth. Thousands of young leaders have emerged from their programs. While at St Kilda's RSCA Park, mental health is a focus at the all new Danny Frawley Centre, with psychologists and workshops a key offering, while they also provide community access to the gym, swimming pools and other fitness and recovery facilities. More broadly, these venues open their doors to school and community groups playing a key role in health and well-being education, providing a chance for young people to connect with their heroes. As the Tasmania Devils look to establish their own training and administration facility, the opportunities for community participation and positive outcomes are limitless. We might borrow ideas, but we'll enhance them and in a uniquely Tasmanian way, our way, as we strive to become the greatest community sporting club in the world. So there you have it, a really good explainer on just what an administration and training facility could do for Tasmania. The football club's preferred side is on the golf course side of Rosney Parklands, right behind Eastland Shopping Centre. Clerancy Council residents are currently undertaking an elected poll on the issue. It was triggered in accordance with the Local Government Act after a petition included more than a thousand signatures was submitted following a public meeting voting for the elected poll closes on August 8. Meanwhile, the municipality of Kingborough waits in the wings offering a very good alternate site if the Rosney plans can't proceed. Here's AFL CEO Andrew Dillon and Tasmania Football Club Chair Grant O'Brien speaking on both on their visit to the state a few weeks ago. Rosney is the preferred, but there is another great site as well and the work's been done on both of them. We said from the beginning that there'd be an option B because, you know, there's a lot that needs to inform the ultimate decision, not the least of which is cost and time. With any building and any planning process, that's why you have those processes and people can put their positions forward and they get dealt with. We'll dedicate a lot of today's show to discussing the proposed administration and training facility here on the devil's advocate. Hawthorne footy club CEO Ash Klahn will be my feature guest today. The Hawks are currently building a new home base of their own at Dingley on the outskirts of Melbourne. It'll also be great to ask Ash if he feels they're still a place for the Hawks to play in the state once the devil's enter the competition. In the second half hour of the show, former Brisbane line and Essen and bomber Josh Green will join me here in the studio to discuss his career at the highest level and if you'd like a role with the football club moving forward. And as we do each week at the end of the show, we'll whip around the country to see how our Tasmanian players fed in their respective competitions. Thanks to Battery World, it's all coming up on another huge edition of the devil's advocate. We'll get stuck into it right after