A Canberra AFL club has had to make an unusual request to make sure its players can compete this weekend.
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Gungahlin Jets' second-grade men's team have been forced to ask other clubs - including the team they face on Saturday afternoon - for some extra players, with the side set to fall a few short.
It highlights the extraordinary lengths the Jets reserve team are going to in order to play after Gungahlin was hit by eight injuries across the top two grades in the opening rounds, as well as having the "first world problem" of star youngsters being needed for representative or GWS Academy duties.
The Jets have struggled in recent years to compete for a flag in the six-team first and second grade AFL Canberra competitions.
Historically there's emerged a gulf between the top-four sides - in no order - of Belconnen Magpies, Queanbeyan Tigers, Ainslie and Eastlake, and then Tuggeranong Valley and Gungahlin battling for the scraps in the bottom-two.
Gungahlin's top two men's grades are still eyeing their first victory of the year, but their player shortage struggles in the reserves comes in a year where the Jets remain hopeful of game-changing positive change.
A new chairman in W.G. Cooper and first grade men's coach Russell Stewart are two key appointments at the club as it tries to turn around its fortunes through better administration, improved community involvement, and enhanced junior development and player retention.
There's an agreement from the Jets and even other clubs that it's not that Gungahlin haven't been able to produce talented footballers, there's just been an inability to keep them in blue and white.
In the past it's been because of a club disconnect in converting juniors to seniors and in other instances because rival Canberra teams lure top-rated players elsewhere.
An example is St Kilda skipper Jack Steele, one of Canberra's biggest AFL products, who actually began his footy journey at the Jets before the club couldn't offer an age group for him to play in anymore and he was forced to move to Belconnen.
But the times are a-changing according to many at the Gungahlin club. It's just going to take time to reap those rewards, and club bosses have urged patience to see that work finally pay off in what is a rapidly growing region of Canberra.
"Course corrections don't happen overnight," Cooper told The Canberra Times.
"Getting the club governance right is fundamental. Financially we're fine.
"What I'm hoping to bring to the party is senior leadership continuity. I want to see things through for a number of years.
"There is a renewed energy and renewed purpose here.
"Nothing is broken, we're going in the right direction, there's just a lot of room to improvement, especially with our pathways.
"We've got amazing five-year-old AusKickers, but they need to see a path at this club all the way through to seniors, which means supporting them through those teenage years. The recipe to success is investing in our juniors."
Cooper and Stewart both understand that while borrowing players from other clubs to field a team is not ideal, it is not something they aim to be a regular occurance.
"AFL Canberra and other clubs have been excellent in supporting us on odd occasions like this if we need a player or two," Cooper said.
"It's great to get help, but as we progress we'll need less of that," Stewart added. "Injuries will always dictate what sort of support we need."
AT A GLANCE
AFL Canberra second grade: Gungahlin Jets v Ainslie Tri Colours, Saturday 12.30pm at Gungahlin Enclosed Oval.