3AW's Tim Lane has taken exception to comments from outgoing AFL chairman Mike Fitzpatrick, who said he "tried" to make a team work in Tasmania.
Football's No.1 radio caller told Sportsday the state was continually taken for granted.
"To put it bluntly, they didn't care enough about Tasmania to try and find a way of keeping the door open," Lane, a long-time advocate for Tasmanian football said on 3AW.
The 3AW Football commentator warned the AFL that complacency could eventually catch up with it.
There's reports the A-League is looking at putting a franchise in Tasmania.
"If that happened, a bit more interest and care might be taken," Lane said.
"Up until now, Tasmania's love for Australian football has just been taken for granted.
"We've seen the drop off in the numbers of being drafted and there's a problem with the numbers playing juniors – there'd be no such problem if Tasmania had a team."
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