Community and town-based football competitions will go ahead this season at Traeger Park, ending a months-long stoush between the football peak body and the Alice Springs Town Council.
AFLNT said the community competition would begin on May 20, with four rounds of a shortened eight-round fixture to be played at Traeger Park.
It comes after the council banned this year's community competition from its sports ovals, citing concerns that holding the competition in town led to an uptick in crime and social issues.
The council later banned all Aussie Rules football being played at Traeger Park, the town's premier sports oval, due to an alleged licence breach by AFLNT.
In a statement this afternoon, AFLNT also said the AFL Round 16 match between Melbourne and GWS Giants also would be played at Traeger Park, ending speculation it may be pulled from the town.
"This is a fantastic outcome for more than 1,300 participants who have the opportunity to participate in these competitions and programs each season and will now get access to Traeger Park in 2023," the statement read.
"AFLNT thanks the [Alice Springs Town Council] for their support and consideration through these discussions.
"Without their preparedness to work to find a solution, we would not be able to announce this significant development."
AFLNT said the council still needed to complete "processes and requirements" to formalise the agreement before it could consider the matter "fully resolved".
'Something we can work with'
Mayor Matt Paterson welcomed the new agreement, saying it was a positive outcome both for residents in Alice Springs and remote communities across Central Australia.
"The four weeks in town and the four weeks in remote communities is certainly something we can work with," he said.
"This gives communities an opportunity to build an economy and will also provide better infrastructure to those people living in a remote community."
Cr Paterson said the compromise reached with AFLNT ensured the town would be able to better manage the influx of visitors from remote communities.
"The four rounds in town will be alternate weeks, which sends an important message," he said.
"It provides stakeholders an opportunity to upscale for resources, and to make sure people who come into town can go back home.
"You can't come into Alice Springs and commit anti-social behaviour because we need a breather – this model is a workable solution."
AFLNT said it would invest $50,000 towards developing a "facilities and infrastructure plan" for Alice Springs and Central Australia, and that it was having ongoing discussions with the NT and federal governments over the infrastructure needs of the region.
New agreement a 'relief'
Rob Clarke, coach and president of local Redtails and Pinktails football clubs, said the outcome was a relief for the thousands of footballers, volunteers and spectators across Central Australia.
"It's great news to see there is still some common sense kicking around," he said.
"Football competitions are such an important thing to have running when there's not that much to do here in Alice Springs."
Mr Clarke commended the football clubs and their stakeholders for managing in the interim.
"They're the ones who have had to pick up all the pieces," he said.
"They've just soldiered on and got this done, which is quite amazing. Hats off to them because they've all done the best that they could with what they had.
"I really hope lessons are learnt in a positive manner … and that the people in power start trying to make this what it has the potential to be."
