Bulldogs drop local AFL hopefuls

[BulldogBelle]

Looks like we are abandoning our search for international recruits for a variety of reasons as bolded below...

Bulldogs drop local AFL hopefuls (http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=159096)
Fiji Times | Ifereimi Nadore |Tuesday, November 02, 2010

TWO local players who were given a two-year international scholarship each with Australia's Western Bulldogs have been forced to withdraw from the program because of "financial constraints" faced by the AFL club.

Inoke Ratu, 20, and Solo Loki, 17, were recruited in 2008 after successfully undergoing trials for the club in Labasa and Suva. Times Sport was told yesterday that they would no longer part of the program and could look for offers from other AFL clubs. The players' contract for the Bulldogs ended this week. Upon enquiring the club this week. They were informed that their services would be no longer be required.

Times Sport was able to acquire a copy of a letter from Western Bulldogs recruitment manager Simon Dalrymple to the two.

"I am following up with our accounts department re payment details. Will get let you know asap of where it is at," it read.

"After the completion of the contracts we will not be continuing in Fiji or other international markets due to a number of reasons (financial, resources, development levels and compliance to the program)."

Click HERE (http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=159096) to read the remainder of the article...

[GVGjr]

It was always going to be a long shot to make this work and I don't think many of us expected much from it.

[chef]

Makes sense with the 'Bulldoze the debt' going on.

[Bulldog4life]

It was always going to be a long shot to make this work and I don't think many of us expected much from it.

I agree. At least the Club tried something different but I was never confident.

[The Coon Dog]

I agree. At least the Club tried something different but I was never confident.

Didn't cost the club much at all, from memory it was paid for by Shaun Bassett.

[Bulldog4life]

Didn't cost the club much at all, from memory it was paid for by Shaun Bassett.

Yes I remember that. A true passionate supporter.

[GVGjr]

Makes sense with the 'Bulldoze the debt' going on.

It does make sense to shut it down but did it really make sense to start it?
For a club that lacks resources it was always going to be a long shot. I gather this effort might have been funded by a couple of the more prominent supporters and I don't mind the club exploring new grounds but surely the focus should be getting the basics right to start with before looking overseas.

[LostDoggy]

It does make sense to shut it down but did it really make sense to start it?
For a club that lacks resources it was always going to be a long shot. I gather this effort might have been funded by a couple of the more prominent supporters and I don't mind the club exploring new grounds but surely the focus should be getting the basics right to start with before looking overseas.

This.

And once we've started it, to shut down a program that was basically bankrolled by a supporter and costs $1000 per year per 'prospect' (not including running costs) due to 'financial reasons' is not a great look in terms of our professionalism, forward planning, and bank balance.

[BulldogBelle]

This.

And once we've started it, to shut down a program that was basically bankrolled by a supporter and costs $1000 per year per 'prospect' (not including running costs) due to 'financial reasons' is not a great look in terms of our professionalism, forward planning, and bank balance.

Yes, a supporter bankrolled it and the outlay wasn't much - agree with you though, it's not a good look clubwise.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

It does make sense to shut it down but did it really make sense to start it?
For a club that lacks resources it was always going to be a long shot. I gather this effort might have been funded by a couple of the more prominent supporters and I don't mind the club exploring new grounds but surely the focus should be getting the basics right to start with before looking overseas.

I said this at the time and got questioned for being harsh and overlooking the fact that we didn't effectively finance it.

As GVG said, it should have been spent elsewhere. The experiment was always throwing money up against the wall.

[GVGjr]

I said this at the time and got questioned for being harsh and overlooking the fact that we didn't effectively finance it.

As GVG said, it should have been spent elsewhere. The experiment was always throwing money up against the wall.

We would all like to think the club would see things like this through but in the end the decision to cut it was the right one.

[LostDoggy]

One wonders how much may get cut at the club as well????

[Ghost Dog]

I agree. At least the Club tried something different but I was never confident.

Good to try something new but still goes to show how far we have to go in order to be on a level playing field with other clubs.

I think someone told me recently that Essendon has three full time staff out promoting their club and hunting recruits in the immigrant community and abroad.
Not sure if it's true, but demonstrates how keen teams are to try anything to get an edge. Also shows how deep their pockets are.