Echuca is considering a move to the Bendigo Football Netball League, possibly for the 2027 season, the club unhappy with several aspects of life in the GVL.
Among the issues are opportunities for juniors and opposition forfeits in the lower grades, but a key sticking point is the current player points system.
“Bendigo actually do have a minimum floor in their points, no team is on less than 39, whereas in the GVL, there's no floor,” Echuca FNC president Justin Hatfield said.
“Going forward, if it continues to happen it’ll affect all clubs.
“If there’s not a number whereby you can start to regain points or a timeline, which there isn't (currently), over a 10-year period you could be down to 32-34 points.
“It’s a crazy rule that nobody’s really given much thought to, and I’ve been asking for 18 months for it to be reviewed, and it’s still yet to be reviewed.”
After winning each of the 2022, ’23, and ’24 senior premierships, Echuca’s player points limit has been reduced from 42 in 2022, to 37 in the 2025 season.
Echuca has approached the GVL with its list of concerns, Hatfield saying the club is exploring its options with both its current league and the Bendigo League.
“We’re just going through the exploratory process at the moment,” he said.
“We’ve met with the GV, we’ve met with the Bendigo League, and we’re going soon to meet as a committee to chat about the pros and cons and probably have an information night for our members and see what everyone wants to do.”
It is expected those meetings will take place before the GVL season kicks off on April 4.
Echuca has twice been a part of the Bendigo League in its history, first from 1924-39, and more recently from 1949-73 before it made the move to the GVL in 1974, where it has remained to this day.
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