Quote Originally Posted by plague View Post
Actually an interesting thing to come out of this whole junior SAP program was that ONLY kids in the SAP program were available for selection for state championships.

Lightly worded reason was to steer kids to NNSW clubs rather than these satellite camps etc.

Now ONLY clubs with a NewFM or NPL side can do the SAP program, and only then they still need to apply for the right to do so.

A couple of people have told me that their clubs probably won't be applying for the SAP licence.

So now we have a massive chunk of the talent pool already told they are illeligable for their first crack at rep football.

It was also hinted at that the emerging Jets will only take kids from the same program. Is that true?

Unless I heard wrong, but if it's true does anyone think it's a good thing for the long term trying to get kids interested?

Or are the alternate pathways good enough that by the time kids are old enough it won't matter where they came from?
I question how elite these elite programs are with the sheer volume of kids involved. Surely thats diluted the talent pool in these programs and the good kids wont be pushed as hard while other kids who aren't so good are there because they are happy to pay the fees and make up the numbers.

There are some good kids in the lower grades of junior football who have decided to play with their mates, to ignore these kids is kind of crazy.