Think about the Werribee Tigers ramping up their alignment with AFL club North Melbourne and what immediately springs to mind is the depth of talent the club will have when it takes to the field in the VFL this season.
Instead of splitting their overflow players between Werribee and North Ballarat, as they have done in seasons past, the Kangaroos have opted for a more streamlined approach, entering into a full alignment with the Tigers for this year and beyond.
It will provide Tigers coach John Lamont with a depth of talent not seen at Chirnside Park since Werribee’s seven-year alignment with the Western Bulldogs ended in 2007.
While the Tigers will undoubtedly have a stronger list, one that gives them a red-hot crack at adding to their one and only senior flag, other benefits will arise from the alliance.
There will be a pathway for Tigers players and staff members between Werribee and the fully professional set-up at North Melbourne.
Tigers operations manager Stuart Balloch is excited by the opportunities presenting for Tigers staff, most of them volunteers, to move into an AFL environment after excelling at VFL level.
“We’ve got some good integration there with North Melbourne,” he said.
“We’ve been able to get another two members of our staff into North Melbourne in an internship capacity.
“That, for their professional development, is going to be huge.”
A sign of how the on-field relationship can work can be seen in the number of players who have seemingly ended their careers with North Melbourne in the AFL then returned to play with the Tigers in the VFL.
Ben Ross is a great example. He played four seasons at North Melbourne before being delisted.
At Werribee, he won a Liston Trophy before getting picked up by Hawthorn in the rookie draft.
“The proof is in the history, really,” Balloch said. “I’m not too sure that many VFL clubs have that two-way street.”
Lamont has been impressed with the attitudes of the North Melbourne players at Werribee.
Of course, every one of them would prefer to be running out at Etihad Stadium in a Kangaroos guernsey against the best players in the land – but only 22 each week have that privilege.
Balloch has found a willingness among players of both the Tiger and Kangaroo squads to embrace each other.
Lamont describes Chirnside Park as an extension of Arden Street.
“It was that way when I was working at North, too,” he said.
North Melbourne’s commitment is not just to the Werribee Tigers but also to the broader Wyndham community.
The Kangaroos have been allocated Wyndham as the location for their next- generation player academy and they will hold their community camp in the area, starting with tomorrow’s civic reception at Chirnside Park.
Kangaroos chief executive Carl Dilena said North Melbourne was looking forward to getting out into the community again. “The players and coaches really enjoy spending time at the grassroots level and giving something back,” he said. “The Werribee Football Club has been a big part of our Wyndham program and its players and coaches will work with us to deliver some great activities over the two days.”
