The Talent League (also known as the
Coates Talent League under
naming rights
Naming rights are a financial transaction and form of advertising or memorialization where a corporation, person, or other entity purchases the right to name a facility, object, location, program, or event (most often sports venues), typical ...
and previously as the
NAB League and
TAC Cup) is an under-19
Australian rules football
Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an Australian rules football playing field, oval field, often a modified ...
representative competition based in
Melbourne
Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
and run by the
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League (AFL) is the pre-eminent professional sports, professional competition of Australian rules football. It was originally named the Victorian Football League (VFL) and was founded in 1896 as a breakaway competition ...
(AFL). It is based on geographic regions throughout country
Victoria and metropolitan
Melbourne
Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
with each team representing one of twelve Victorian regions, while a thirteenth team from
Tasmania
Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...
was reintroduced in 2019.
The competition is the primary sources of recruitment for the clubs of the AFL with around three quarters of all players selected from its ranks in each
AFL draft
The Australian Football League draft is the annual draft (sports), draft of unsigned players, especially new nominations, by Australian rules football teams that participate in the main competition of that sport, the Australian Football League ( ...
. It provides an opportunity for talented young regional players to participate in a high standard competition without having to relocate too far from their place of origin. The competition has a very successful pathway with players missing AFL selection often being recruited by semi-professional state, country and regional leagues throughout Australia. An equivalent competition for female footballers, known as the
Talent League Girls, is also contested on an annual basis.
The league was known as the TAC Cup until 2018, the NAB League in 2019 to 2022, and since 2023 it has been known as the Coates Talent League.
History
With the focus of the
VFL/AFL moving rapidly toward a national competition, the former metropolitan and country
zoning
In urban planning, zoning is a method in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into land-use "zones", each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for ...
recruitment system for the Victorian VFL/AFL clubs was abolished, and the league's under-19 competition was shut down at the end of 1991.
A new competition, administered by the
Victorian State Football League and sponsored by the
Transport Accident Commission, was formed as an avenue for young Victorian under-18 players to make the transition to becoming senior
League players. It commenced play on 10 April 1992, the competition consisted of five metropolitan teams and one country team: the
Northern Knights,
Eastern Ranges,
Southern Stingrays (renamed the Dandenong Stingrays in 1995),
Western Jets,
Central Dragons (renamed the Prahran Dragons in 1995, then the Sandringham Dragons in 2000) and
Geelong Falcons
The Geelong Falcons is a youth Australian rules football representative club in the Talent League, the Victorian statewide under-18s competition in Victoria, Australia.
The club takes in talented junior players from the Geelong, Colac and Warr ...
.
In 1993 an additional four country teams were included – the
Murray Bushrangers
The Murray Bushrangers is an Australian rules football team playing in Victorian statewide under-18s competition, presently known as the Talent League, since 1993 based in Wangaratta. The team trains on Norm Minns Oval, Wangaratta.
The Under 1 ...
,
Bendigo Pioneers,
Gippsland Power and
Ballarat Rebels (renamed the North Ballarat Rebels in 1996, then the Greater Western Victoria Rebels in 2017). In 1995 two additional metropolitan regions were established, with the
Oakleigh Chargers
The Oakleigh Chargers is an Australian rules football club playing in the Talent League, the top statewide under-18 competition in Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. They are based at Warrawee Park in Oakleigh, Victoria, representing the ...
and
Calder Cannons
The Calder Cannons is an Australian rules football club from Melbourne, Australia. The club competes in the Talent League, the Victorian Statewide Under-18s competition, and fields squads in the Under-15s, Under-16s and Under-18s. The club was f ...
teams included in the competition.
In 1995, a Tasmanian-based team, the
Tassie Mariners, commenced in the competition, becoming the league's first non-Victorian side. The following year, the
NSW/ACT Rams were admitted. The Mariners and Rams both exited the competition as full-time members at the end of the 2002, returning the competition to twelve teams.
The
Gold Coast Football Club recruited several under-18s players in the 2008/09 summer, and participated in the TAC Cup in 2009 (before playing in the
VFL in 2010 and the AFL from 2011). Similarly, the
Greater Western Sydney Giants fielded a TAC Cup team in 2010, two seasons prior to its introduction to the AFL in 2012.
Four interstate teams — the Tassie Mariners, NSW/ACT Rams, Queensland Scorpions and the Northern Territory Thunder — each play a handful of games each year against TAC Cup teams, particularly in the lead-up to the annual
AFL Under 18 Championships; these games are counted as part of the TAC Cup premiership season, but the interstate clubs are not eligible for the premiership.
Between 1995 and 2008, the finals system was in a knock-out format. This reverted to a traditional finals system in 2009 with the introduction of the Gold Coast team. In 2010, this was extended to include 12 of the 13 clubs participating that season, with the extra matches forming an extended knockout format. In 2011 the finals system was reverted to the traditional eight-team AFL finals series. Prior to the 2014 season, the
NSW/ACT Rams was reestablished as a TAC Cup team, with players from the
Sydney Swans
The Sydney Swans are a professional Australian rules football club based in Sydney, New South Wales. The men's team competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), and the women's team in the AFL Women's (AFLW). The Swans also field a Austral ...
and
Greater Western Sydney Giants young academy sides being picked for the NSW/ACT team.
From 2019, the newly named NAB League introduced six new teams: the AFL Academy sides of
Gold Coast,
GWS Giants,
Sydney Swans
The Sydney Swans are a professional Australian rules football club based in Sydney, New South Wales. The men's team competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), and the women's team in the AFL Women's (AFLW). The Swans also field a Austral ...
,
Brisbane Lions
The Brisbane Lions are a professional Australian rules football in Australia, Australian rules football club based in Brisbane, Queensland, that compete in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. Brisbane are the ...
; the
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...
; and the returning Tassie Mariners, who were later renamed the
Tasmania Devils. Additionally, teams were able to include more 19-year-olds – previously only three could be selected. The 2020 season was cancelled due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, and in 2021 the competition fully transitioned from under-18s to under-19s – although the draft age to senior football remained at 18. Since 2023 the league has been primarily by under-18 players, with a selection of under-19 players also listed.
Age eligibility
For many years the league was primarily a competition for 18-year-olds, though exceptions were made for bottom-aged players—16- or 17-year-olds—and since 2007, over-age players—19-year-olds—to participate in the competition. In 2021 the league shifted to an under-19 level, though the entry age for the
AFL Draft
The Australian Football League draft is the annual draft (sports), draft of unsigned players, especially new nominations, by Australian rules football teams that participate in the main competition of that sport, the Australian Football League ( ...
remains 18.
Since the beginning of the 2007 TAC Cup season, clubs have been granted permission to select up to five over-age players permitted on their lists.
Nonetheless, age eligibility requirements remain for the
AFL Draft
The Australian Football League draft is the annual draft (sports), draft of unsigned players, especially new nominations, by Australian rules football teams that participate in the main competition of that sport, the Australian Football League ( ...
, where players must have turned seventeen years of age by 30 April of that draft year to be eligible for selection by an AFL club.
Awards
Morrish Medal
The
Morrish Medal is awarded to the best player in the competition each year. The same medal was previously awarded to the best player in the
Victorian Football League
The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football competition in Australia operated by the Australian Football League (AFL) as a second-tier, regional, semi-professional competition. It includes teams from clubs based in east ...
Thirds/Under-19s competition, which the TAC Cup superseded.
TAC Cup Coaches Award
The TAC Cup Coaches Award is voted on by both coaches in a 5–4–3–2–1 format at the end of each game.
TAC Cup Coaches Award details
/ref> At the end of the 2015 season, the award was discontinued.
Coverage
All matches are live streamed on the AFL app.
Former coverage included:
* The Match of the Round being broadcast live on Rumble 103, an internet radio station based in Melbourne.
* A TAC Cup show screening on Channel 9 in Melbourne and across Victoria and Inland NSW border regions on WIN TV from 1 p.m. every Sunday from late March until the end of September.
* TAC Cup news and results being seen on C31's Local Footy Show and heard on the ABC's Triple J
Triple J is an Australian government-funded national radio station founded in 1975 as a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). It aims to appeal to young listeners of alternative music, and plays far more Australian conten ...
radio station.
* TAC Cup matches were broadcast live on C31 in Melbourne, Geelong & regional Victoria in 2010.
* Radio stations SYN FM & RRR FM broadcast coverage of TAC Cup football matches every weekend during the season.
Clubs
Current clubs
* (A) Denotes that the club is the academy team of a senior club of the Australian Football League
The Australian Football League (AFL) is the pre-eminent professional sports, professional competition of Australian rules football. It was originally named the Victorian Football League (VFL) and was founded in 1896 as a breakaway competition ...
Former clubs
*(S) − Senior side of a club that later joined the AFL
Timeline
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bar:GW text:GW Victoria Rebels
bar:MB text:Murray Bushrangers
bar:GP text:Gippsland Power
bar:BP text:Bendigo Pioneers
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VFL affiliations
Nine of the 12 Victorian-based Talent League clubs are affiliated with a Victorian Football League
The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football competition in Australia operated by the Australian Football League (AFL) as a second-tier, regional, semi-professional competition. It includes teams from clubs based in east ...
(VFL) club. This allows for a development pathway between under-18s football and state-level senior football, with top-age players permitted to play senior VFL games under the 23rd man rule:
* Calder Cannons - Coburg
Coburg ( , ) is a Town#Germany, town located on the Itz (river), Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Ernestine duchies, Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only ...
* Dandenong Stingrays - Frankston
* Eastern Ranges - Box Hill
* Geelong Falcons - Werribee
* Gippsland Power - Casey Demons
The Casey Football Club, nicknamed the Demons, is an Australian rules football club based in the Melbourne suburb of Cranbourne East, Victoria, Cranbourne East.
The club, which was previously known as the Springvale Football Club (1903–2005) ...
* Northern Knights - Northern Bullants
* Oakleigh Chargers - Port Melbourne
Port Melbourne is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-west of the Melbourne central business district, located within the Cities of City of Melbourne, Melbourne and City of Port Phillip, Port Phillip Local government ...
* Sandringham Dragons - Sandringham
* Western Jets - Williamstown
Premiers
Total premierships by club
*6 – Calder Cannons, Sandringham Dragons
*5 – Oakleigh Chargers
*4 – Northern Knights
*3 – Geelong Falcons
*2 – Eastern Ranges, Murray Bushrangers
*1 – Dandenong Stingrays, Gippsland Power, Greater Western Victoria Rebels
*0 – Bendigo Pioneers, Western Jets
NSW/ACT Rams, as of 2015, do not play a full season, and therefore cannot compete for the premiership.
Total runner-up placements by club
*6 – Dandenong Stingrays, Eastern Ranges
*5 -
*4 -
*3 – Murray Bushrangers, Calder Cannons, Gippsland Power
*2 – Oakleigh Chargers, Geelong Falcons, Western Jets
*1 – Greater Western Victoria Rebels, Sandringham Dragons, Bendigo Pioneers, NSW/ACT Rams
*0 – Northern Knights
Talent League Girls
A female youth competition, the Talent League Girls, equivalent to the Talent League, was inaugurated in 2017.
External links
Official website
TAC Cup history
References
{{Aussie Rules in Victoria
Australian rules football competitions in Victoria (state)
Recurring sporting events established in 1992
1992 establishments in Australia
Sports leagues established in 1992
Articles which contain graphical timelines
Youth sport in Australia