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The draft age should be lifted to 19, the AFL must hang onto Etihad Stadium as insurance, and the league will benefit hugely from the relocation of an established club such as North Melbourne to Tasmania, according to former AFL chief executive Wayne Jackson.The Jackson revelations came this week during an interview with ESPN, 20 years after the South Australian took charge of the AFL during one of its most volatile periods.The former supremo also criticised players for having too much power in the drawn-out pay dispute between the AFL and the AFL Players Association.I think the players are having far too much influence and are putting undue pressure on the game, Jackson told ESPN. I think the distribution of money within the game should be left to the [AFL] Commission. The players are wanting amounts that exceed what is acceptable to most in the community.Jackson became the leagues chief executive in 1996, a tumultuous year for the AFL in which Melbourne and Hawthorn went within a whisker of merging, and Fitzroy were disbanded with 10 of their players sent to Brisbane in what was effectively a sham marriage. It was also a year before the launch of South Australias second side, Port Adelaide, raising the number of teams in the competition to 16.The fragility of the AFL at the time was almost at breaking point, given the lingering financial insecurity of established Victorian clubs such as Hawthorn, Melbourne and Footscray.But by the end of his eight-year reign, Jackson would preside over a then-record $Aus500 million broadcast deal that saw coverage shift from the Seven Network to a partnership of the Nine Network, Network Ten, and Foxtel.??Jackson, 72, is now a part-time farmer in the rural South Australian town of Willalooka.ESPN spoke to Wayne Jackson about the state of the game and what challenges lay ahead for the league.Do you think the AFL is as healthy as its ever been?Yes I do. With the odd hiccup or two, theres more people playing the game, the roots are spread much wider throughout Australia and we now are making it really attractive to women with the national competition. Broadcast rights are also at an all-time high.?What are the challenges facing the AFL?In the shorter term and maybe the medium term, I think the players are having far too much influence and are putting undue pressure on the game. I think the distribution of money within the game should be left to the Commission. The players are wanting amounts that exceed what is acceptable to most in the community. If there is surplus money available, it should go back into the development of the game and not to the players, who are already attractively paid.If you were back in charge, what changes would you make to the game?I think its improved in the last year with the advent of the coaches making the game more attacking and therefore more attractive. I think the game tends to evolve. If there are problems, evolution gets on top of that. Ive got no strong thoughts on how to improve it.Is an 18-club league viable? Its viable while the AFL continues to support the under-performing clubs in a financial sense. I think as we move closer to the time at which Etihad Stadium will return to the ownership of the league -- which will be a tremendous boost to the league -- well that will support in a financial sense clubs that play there now. I would love to see a team or two move from Melbourne but I think we missed that opportunity when the Gold Coast Suns started.Should Tasmania be granted an AFL licence?No I dont think so, because there is plenty of AFL football played in Tasmania now with Hawthorn and, increasingly, the Kangaroos in Hobart. Tasmania itself is divided into north and south, so it doesnt present a united front in terms of a club being based down there. I would love to see a club like, for example North Melbourne, relocate from Melbourne and based in Tasmania. That would be a terrific boon for the game. But I certainly dont think there should be a 19th?team in the AFL.Are you troubled by the state of football in Queensland?I would have thought the state of football generally in Queensland is very strong. But if youre referring specifically to the Brisbane Lions, I would think anyone that is interested in football would want to see them do substantially better than they are. But the growth of the game is terrific up there. I think they have the fastest growth rate for women in football of any state in Australia. The Lions need urgent AFL attention to get them back on track.Do you think the current fixture format is fair?I think its as fair as it can be with a 22-game competition. Ive read with interest the thoughts of dividing the league into three sections of six, which may help in the shorter term, but I just draw your attention to the fact that this time last year if you thought you had to play GWS twice, you would be pretty pleased with it. Now theyre a team to be reckoned with. It changes quickly and next year youll see Essendon come right up the table. Im not sure how you make it even, particularly when you try to foresee the strength of teams a year out.Is the illicit drugs policy effective? I dont know enough about the policy to comment. Obviously the AFL is super sensitive to drugs and I would have though the AFL is doing a pretty good job in that regard in relation to whats available in the rest of society.Do you think Etihad Stadium should be sold to finance a new stadium?No. I believe Etihad Stadium should be in the hands of the AFL, which it will be in a couple of years, because I think that will be a huge insurance against whatever happens to the MCG over time. I think the AFL needs to own and control at least one Melbourne-based stadium and that should be Etihad.Would you support a push to lift the draft age to 19?Yes. I now believe the draft age is too young. Leagues outside the AFL would improve and nothing would be lost be the AFL clubs if they all have to wait another year to select the player. If all clubs are treated the same, none are disadvantaged. I think its very important that young lads be given time at home to study or to work in their formative years to late teens. Discount Air Max 90 . A statement from the worlds top-ranked player says all checks "were satisfactory and showed positive evolution" regarding the injury, which contributed to his loss to Stanislas Wawrinka in the final in Melbourne. Air Max 90 Cheap Wholesale . With his new coach and six-time Grand Slam singles champion Boris Becker watching him during an official match for the first time, Djokovic appeared tentative early against the Slovakian player, who often appeared content to keep the ball in play. http://www.airmax90cheap.us/ . The Brazilian goalkeeper signed a loan deal with the Major League Soccer club on Friday as he looks to get playing time ahead of this summers World Cup in his home country. Air Max 90 China .com) - The game was all punts and field goals before Kodi Whitfields catch. Air Max 90 Cheap Free Shipping . Malkin got tangled up with Detroits Luke Glendening early in the third period and his left skate took the brunt of collision with the boards behind Pittsburghs net. Match factsWednesday, 23 November Start time 0930 local (0730 GMT)Big PictureDespite West Indies big win in Harare, on paper, these are two well-matched teams with plenty to play for: the winner will be guaranteed their place in the tri-series final. The relative inexperience in both squads makes it hard to pick an out-and-out favourite, and conditions in Bulawayo should also be a leveller. West Indies tied game against Zimbabwe will at least have acclimatised them a little more to the pitch and conditions at Queens, as Sri Lankas first match was rained off.Sri Lanka also have some ground to make up against West Indies after their trouncing in Harare. Their middle order remains unproven, and if this series can be viewed as something of an audition for the upcoming tour of South Africa, there will be several young players hungry to state their case - particularly against the greater firepower of West Indies quicks.Youth and international inexperience are also in no short supply for West Indies at the moment. It is obviously very early days yet, but without a head coach, and with virtually all of West Indies established senior batsmen in the wilderness, young captain Jason Holder desperately needs his peers to gel into a new core for the side. Shai Hope and Kraigg Brathwaites promising form will give him something to build and bank on, while Carlos Brathwaites bowling has been fairly effective in Zimbabwe.Both for this team and for the immediate future of West Indies cricket, every win is an important one in these circumstances. Though still ninth in the ICC ODI rankings, they are just one point behind Pakistan, and a strong show in their remaining games will put them within touching distance of Bangladesh at No. 7. Between now and September 30, 2017, the cut-off date for direct qualification for the 2019 World Cup, West Indies currently have 11 ODIs scheduled (not including the final of this tri-series), but eight of those matches are against a resurgent England ODI side, and five of those are in England. Thats a tough assignment for what could still be a fairly inexperienced squad, and so West Indies have a lot more than a place in Sundays final to play for tomorrow.Form guide(Last five completed matches, most recent first)Sri Lanka: LWLLLWest Indies: TWLLLIn the spotlightShai Hopes good form will buoy West Indies, and make him a target for Sri Lanka, while Suranga Lakmal will have to be at his best behaviour after he was fined 50% of his match fee for aggressively throwing the ball towards Zimbabwe opener Chamu Chibhabha during Mondays wash-out. Yet, the spotlight might be focussed on what is happening above Queens, rather than on the ground.All three teams will have an eye on the weather on Wednesday. If there is another wash-out, Zimbabwe will effectively be out of the running, needing a massive bonus-point win to draw level and increase their net run-rate. The threat of rain also makes the toss important - inclement weather is more likely in the afternoon, meaning there could be Duckworth-Lewis permutations while chasing. Finally, the drainage issues at Queens mean that even relatively modest rain could rule a match out entirely.There are two main areas of concern on the outfield, should it rain again - on the northern side of the ground, and also near the sight screen at the Airport End.dddddddddddd Should there be any significant showers during this game, in the absence of a super sopper, drainage will be an issue, especially after the heavy rains of the last few days have saturated the soil.Teams newsSri Lankas XI barely got a look-in on Monday, and given that conditions are likely to be identical, there is no reason for Sri Lanka to fiddle with their line-up. The grip on this slow surface makes Dasun Shanaka a good pick.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Dhananjaya de Silva, 2 Kusal Perera, 3 Niroshan Dickwella (wk), 4 Kusal Mendis, 5 Upul Tharanga (capt), 6 Asela Gunaratne, 7 Dasun Shanaka, 8 Sachith Pathirana, 9 Nuwan Kulasekara, 10 Suranga Lakmal, 11 Jeffrey VandersayWith two wickets in his last five games, and none in this series, the form of Sulieman Benn will be a worry for West Indies. Aside from Ashley Nurse, the other spin option in their squad is Devendra Bishoo, and given his gritty performance in the Tests against Pakistan last month, this change makes sense. Another player they might want to give a game to is Jason Mohammed, the hard-hitting middle-order batsman, though West Indies may want to secure their place in the final before tinkering with their top-six.West Indies (possible): 1 Johnson Charles, 2 Kraigg Brathwaite, 3 Evin Lewis, 4 Shai Hope (wk), 5 Jonathan Carter, 6 Rovman Powell, 7 Jason Holder (c), 8 Carlos Brathwaite, 9 Ashley Nurse, 10 Devendra Bishoo, 11 Shannon Gabriel.Pitch and conditionsThe heavy downpours on Monday morning were followed by sunny and dry weather in the afternoon as well as the following day. Yet, the rainfall patterns at this time of the year are difficult to predict, and though the forecast suggests that Wednesday should be sunny and dry, some sort of precipitation is out of the question. Weather aside, there should be some early movement for the seamers who will be aided by cloud cover, as well as what appears to be a shade more green grass that has been left on the track for Wednesdays match. The track will probably still slow down to help the spinners later in the day.Stats and triviaWith 148 runs from two innings, Shai Hope is the leading run-scorer of the tri-series as well as the only century-maker.Shannon Gabriel, Carlos Brathwaite and Nuwan Kulasekara top the wickets table with five each, although Kulasekara has played one more (albeit truncated) game than the two West Indians.West Indies have played six ODIs at Queens Sports Club, winning three.In eight ODIs against West Indies, Kulasekara has taken 12 wickets at 22.08.QuotesWe know were playing good cricket. We had a good win against Sri Lanka [in Harare]. These lads work very hard on their fitness, and we do a lot of fielding drills in the days leading up to these matches, and the combination of those two things is starting to pay dividends. Were looking like a good fielding side, and at this level of the game, every run you stop is a run you dont have to score. West Indies batting coach Toby Radford has been most pleased with the young batsmen on this tour, but he has also noticed improvements in the field. Wholesale Hoodies NFL Shirts Outlet Jerseys NFL Wholesale Cheap NFL Jerseys Free Shipping Wholesale Jerseys Cheap Cheap NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '