Latest news with #Saffioti
7NEWS
11 hours ago
- Sport
- 7NEWS
AFL and Western Australian government on verge of State of Origin announcement: ‘Very keen'
An AFL State of Origin game will be staged in Perth in February under a plan being hatched by Western Australia's government. WA's deputy premier and sports minister Rita Saffioti says the AFL is 'very keen' on the concept. 'It's not a done deal,' Saffioti told reporters on Friday. 'But I know the AFL was very keen, and we're very keen.' Fresh from Perth hosting game two in rugby league's State of Origin on Wednesday night, Saffioti has set her sights on an AFL equivalent. Origin games haven't been played in the AFL since 1999, but Victoria, Western Australia and South Australia have a strong tradition in representative matches. 'We're working on a proposal,' Saffioti said. 'Everyone is very excited about having a WA State of Origin game in the AFL, there's some good discussions happening at the moment. 'We think this would be an incredible drawcard for the state. 'I know many of the players are actually excited, particularly those based over east, are very keen to play for their state, so I think there's a huge push from the players.' The AFL has been contacted for comment. Saffioti pitched the proposal to AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon, who put State of Origin on the agenda during the success of the Indigenous All Stars game last February, also held in Perth. 'I can't rule it in and I can't rule it out, but it will certainly be a conversation I'd like to have with the players and the clubs,' Dillon said in February. 'There seems to be a bit of a groundswell for it.' The WA government believed staging a game during the AFL's pre-season in February was the perfect time. 'Pre-season is a good time to do it, as opposed to in-season ... the clubs are already playing pre-season games,' Saffioti said. 'And we saw the Indigenous All Stars, we had some incredible players out there ... it makes a bit of sense to do it during February.'
The Advertiser
11 hours ago
- Sport
- The Advertiser
Perth plots to host AFL State of Origin comeback
An AFL State of Origin game will be staged in Perth in February under a plan being hatched by Western Australia's government. WA's deputy premier and sports minister Rita Saffioti says the AFL is "very keen" on the concept. "It's not a done deal," Saffioti told reporters on Friday. "But I know the AFL was very keen, and we're very keen." Fresh from Perth hosting game two in rugby league's State of Origin on Wednesday night, Saffioti has set her sights on an AFL equivalent. Origin games haven't been played in the AFL since 1999, but Victoria, Western Australia and South Australia have a strong tradition in representative matches. "We're working on a proposal," Saffioti said. "Everyone is very excited about having a WA State of Origin game in the AFL, there's some good discussions happening at the moment. "We think this would be an incredible drawcard for the state. "I know many of the players are actually excited, particularly those based over east, are very keen to play for their state, so I think there's a huge push from the players." The AFL has been contacted for comment. Saffioti pitched the proposal to AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon, who put State of Origin on the agenda during the success of the Indigenous All Stars game last February, also held in Perth. "I can't rule it in and I can't rule it out, but it will certainly be a conversation I'd like to have with the players and the clubs," Dillon said in February. "There seems to be a bit of a groundswell for it." The WA government believed staging a game during the AFL's pre-season in February was the perfect time. "Pre-season is a good time to do it, as opposed to in-season ... the clubs are already playing pre-season games," Saffioti said. "And we saw the Indigenous All Stars, we had some incredible players out there ... it makes a bit of sense to do it during February." An AFL State of Origin game will be staged in Perth in February under a plan being hatched by Western Australia's government. WA's deputy premier and sports minister Rita Saffioti says the AFL is "very keen" on the concept. "It's not a done deal," Saffioti told reporters on Friday. "But I know the AFL was very keen, and we're very keen." Fresh from Perth hosting game two in rugby league's State of Origin on Wednesday night, Saffioti has set her sights on an AFL equivalent. Origin games haven't been played in the AFL since 1999, but Victoria, Western Australia and South Australia have a strong tradition in representative matches. "We're working on a proposal," Saffioti said. "Everyone is very excited about having a WA State of Origin game in the AFL, there's some good discussions happening at the moment. "We think this would be an incredible drawcard for the state. "I know many of the players are actually excited, particularly those based over east, are very keen to play for their state, so I think there's a huge push from the players." The AFL has been contacted for comment. Saffioti pitched the proposal to AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon, who put State of Origin on the agenda during the success of the Indigenous All Stars game last February, also held in Perth. "I can't rule it in and I can't rule it out, but it will certainly be a conversation I'd like to have with the players and the clubs," Dillon said in February. "There seems to be a bit of a groundswell for it." The WA government believed staging a game during the AFL's pre-season in February was the perfect time. "Pre-season is a good time to do it, as opposed to in-season ... the clubs are already playing pre-season games," Saffioti said. "And we saw the Indigenous All Stars, we had some incredible players out there ... it makes a bit of sense to do it during February." An AFL State of Origin game will be staged in Perth in February under a plan being hatched by Western Australia's government. WA's deputy premier and sports minister Rita Saffioti says the AFL is "very keen" on the concept. "It's not a done deal," Saffioti told reporters on Friday. "But I know the AFL was very keen, and we're very keen." Fresh from Perth hosting game two in rugby league's State of Origin on Wednesday night, Saffioti has set her sights on an AFL equivalent. Origin games haven't been played in the AFL since 1999, but Victoria, Western Australia and South Australia have a strong tradition in representative matches. "We're working on a proposal," Saffioti said. "Everyone is very excited about having a WA State of Origin game in the AFL, there's some good discussions happening at the moment. "We think this would be an incredible drawcard for the state. "I know many of the players are actually excited, particularly those based over east, are very keen to play for their state, so I think there's a huge push from the players." The AFL has been contacted for comment. Saffioti pitched the proposal to AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon, who put State of Origin on the agenda during the success of the Indigenous All Stars game last February, also held in Perth. "I can't rule it in and I can't rule it out, but it will certainly be a conversation I'd like to have with the players and the clubs," Dillon said in February. "There seems to be a bit of a groundswell for it." The WA government believed staging a game during the AFL's pre-season in February was the perfect time. "Pre-season is a good time to do it, as opposed to in-season ... the clubs are already playing pre-season games," Saffioti said. "And we saw the Indigenous All Stars, we had some incredible players out there ... it makes a bit of sense to do it during February."
Perth Now
12 hours ago
- Sport
- Perth Now
Perth plots to host AFL State of Origin comeback
An AFL State of Origin game will be staged in Perth in February under a plan being hatched by Western Australia's government. WA's deputy premier and sports minister Rita Saffioti says the AFL is "very keen" on the concept. "It's not a done deal," Saffioti told reporters on Friday. "But I know the AFL was very keen, and we're very keen." Fresh from Perth hosting game two in rugby league's State of Origin on Wednesday night, Saffioti has set her sights on an AFL equivalent. Origin games haven't been played in the AFL since 1999, but Victoria, Western Australia and South Australia have a strong tradition in representative matches. "We're working on a proposal," Saffioti said. "Everyone is very excited about having a WA State of Origin game in the AFL, there's some good discussions happening at the moment. "We think this would be an incredible drawcard for the state. "I know many of the players are actually excited, particularly those based over east, are very keen to play for their state, so I think there's a huge push from the players." The AFL has been contacted for comment. Saffioti pitched the proposal to AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon, who put State of Origin on the agenda during the success of the Indigenous All Stars game last February, also held in Perth. "I can't rule it in and I can't rule it out, but it will certainly be a conversation I'd like to have with the players and the clubs," Dillon said in February. "There seems to be a bit of a groundswell for it." The WA government believed staging a game during the AFL's pre-season in February was the perfect time. "Pre-season is a good time to do it, as opposed to in-season ... the clubs are already playing pre-season games," Saffioti said. "And we saw the Indigenous All Stars, we had some incredible players out there ... it makes a bit of sense to do it during February."
Sydney Morning Herald
13 hours ago
- Sport
- Sydney Morning Herald
WA treasurer, AFL boss hold quiet talks for February State of Origin
Western Australian Treasurer Rita Saffioti met with AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon on Saturday to discuss the prospect of a pre-season State of Origin-style match between Western Australia and Victoria next February. WAtoday and Nine News Perth can reveal Saffioti met with Dillon while he was in Perth for the Dockers' North Melbourne match, with the State of Origin game top of the agenda. Fresh after delivering the state budget on Thursday Saffioti on Friday morning confirmed that while the game was 'not a done deal', both parties were very keen. 'We're working on a proposal,' she said. 'I think everyone's very excited … about having a WA State of Origin game in AFL. 'There are some good discussions happening. 'This would be an incredible drawcard for the state. I think thousands would come, and I know many of the players are actually excited; in particular, those based over east are very keen to play for their state.' Saffioti said pre-season was the time to host such a match as in-season was less likely to work out. Injuries and fatigue would be less of an issue for clubs as they would already playing pre-season matches. Optus Stadium in Perth hosted a near-capacity game two of the NRL's State of Origin on Wednesday, which Saffioti said was a huge tourism drawcard, as would be an AFL State of Origin.
The Age
14 hours ago
- Sport
- The Age
WA treasurer, AFL boss hold quiet talks for February State of Origin
Western Australian Treasurer Rita Saffioti met with AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon on Saturday to discuss the prospect of a pre-season State of Origin-style match between Western Australia and Victoria next February. WAtoday and Nine News Perth can reveal Saffioti met with Dillon while he was in Perth for the Dockers' North Melbourne match, with the State of Origin game top of the agenda. Fresh after delivering the state budget on Thursday Saffioti on Friday morning confirmed that while the game was 'not a done deal', both parties were very keen. 'We're working on a proposal,' she said. 'I think everyone's very excited … about having a WA State of Origin game in AFL. 'There are some good discussions happening. 'This would be an incredible drawcard for the state. I think thousands would come, and I know many of the players are actually excited; in particular, those based over east are very keen to play for their state.' Saffioti said pre-season was the time to host such a match as in-season was less likely to work out. Injuries and fatigue would be less of an issue for clubs as they would already playing pre-season matches. Optus Stadium in Perth hosted a near-capacity game two of the NRL's State of Origin on Wednesday, which Saffioti said was a huge tourism drawcard, as would be an AFL State of Origin.
