Delisted Pair, Familiar Home: WAFL Door Swings Back Open

Footy can be a brutal business, cant it? One minute you’re on an AFL list living the dream, next minute you’re getting the dreaded phone call and your locker’s being cleared out by some kid half your age.

So when I saw a WAFL club is open to welcoming back a couple of delisted AFL blokes who used to run around for them, I had a bit of a soft spot moment. Carn the Pies aside, this is the kind of story that reminds you footy’s still got a heart underneath all the business suits and list management spreadsheets.

Delisted Doesn’t Mean Done

Every November it’s the same brutal ritual. Clubs trim the fat, kids get drafted in, and a bunch of blokes who gave everything get shown the door. Harsh? Absolutely. Necessary? Probably. But does it mean their footy’s finished? Not even close.

These two were plucked out of the WAFL system in the first place, which tells you everything about the quality of footy over there. The WAFL isn’t some backwater competition — its produced genuine AFL quality for decades. So it makes total sense that when the AFL chapter ends, the home state competition is ready to open its arms back up.

Honestly, why wouldn’t a WAFL club want them back? You’re getting blokes who’ve trained like professionals for years, who understand elite preparation, who know what it takes inside and out. That’s not a downgrade for a WAFL outfit, thats a gift.

The Pathway Works Both Ways

We talk so much about pathways in this game — under-18s to state leagues to AFL lists. But what about the pathway back? It’s just as important if you ask me.

Think about it from the player’s side. You’re 24, 25, maybe even younger, and suddenly your dream job’s gone. What do you do? Do you hang up the boots forever because the elite level didn’t work out? Or do you go back to where it all started, play footy you love, maybe earn a crust doing something you’re actually good at while you figure out the next chapter?

For me it’s a no-brainer. Going back to a WAFL club that clearly rates you, that wants you walking through the door, that’s not a step backwards. Thats just footy continuing to do what footy does — give blokes a game and a community when they need one.

What’s In It For The Club?

Lets flip it around and look at it from the WAFL club’s perspective too, because this isn’t charity. These clubs are run by smart footy people who know exactly what they’re doing.

You bring back a couple of delisted AFL players and instantly your on-field standard lifts. Your younger blokes get to train alongside someone who’s literally played at the top level. Your membership base gets excited because there’s a name they recognise walking back through the race. Ticket sales, sponsorship interest, good vibes around the club — it all follows.

And let’s not pretend the WAFL doesn’t love a bit of AFL pedigree in the side. Every state league competition around the country does. It’s good for the comp, good for the crowds, good for the next kid coming through who gets to train next to someone who’s been there and done it.

The Bigger Picture For State Leagues

This kind of story also highlights something I reckon doesn’t get talked about enough — how important the WAFL, SANFL and VFL are to the overall health of our game.

These competitions aren’t just feeder systems for AFL clubs, even though that’s how a lot of people in the eastern states think about them. They’re proper footy leagues with their own history, their own rivalries, their own passionate supporter bases who couldn’t care less about what happens at Marvel Stadium on a Friday night.

When a delisted AFL player goes back to a WAFL club, it’s not a sad story about missing out. It’s actually a really nice full-circle moment. The kid who left home to chase the AFL dream comes back wiser, fitter, more experienced, and gives something back to the community that helped make him in the first place.

Should every delisted player get this option? Definately not every club’s going to have room, and not every player’s going to want it. But when it works, it works beautifully.

A Lesson For The Big End Of Town

If I’m being honest, I reckon some AFL clubs could learn a bit from this attitude. How many times have we seen a delisted player basically vanish from the footy landscape altogether? No club wants to know them, no pathway back, nothing.

Compare that to a WAFL club that’s actively saying, come on back, we want you here. That’s class. That’s a club understanding that loyalty cuts both ways. These players gave years of their lives to the WAFL system before they ever got drafted. Welcoming them home when the AFL door closes is just the right thing to do.

It also sends a message to every kid coming through the WAFL right now — this club looks after its own, win lose or draw, AFL contract or not. That’s the kind of culture that builds a club for the long haul, not just for one good season.

Final Word

Look, I’m a Collingwood tragic through and through, and most of my footy brain is occupied thinking about our midfield brigade and whether the umpires are gonna give us a fair run in September (don’t get me started). But stories like this one remind you there’s more to footy than just the top flight.

Two delisted blokes, a WAFL club with its arms open, and a chance for everyone involved to win. That’s footy at its best if you ask me.

Carn the Pies — and good luck to whoever ends up pulling the boots back on in the WAFL this summer.