Where Did It Go So Horribly Wrong

I was genuinely excited when the FFA announced that one of the new clubs to join the A-league this year was to be Gold Coast United. Here was a team to be based in the fastest growing area of Australia, was backed by one of Australia’s richest men and would have one of the more interesting (if slightly insane) characters of the game here in Australia guiding them in Miron Beilberg.

Follow that up with some great recruiting and excellent performances in preseason, every indication was that this was a club that was going to hit the ground running. And they did, well they did on the field anyway.

Fast forward to today and the question must be asked however where did it all go horribly wrong. Somehow Gold Coast have managed to destroy any goodwill towards themselves within 12 rounds and now even have their most loyal of supporters questioning their direction.

Jason Culina last week wrote in his blog that he did not understand why the club and team weren’t receiving more respect for what they had achieved. Its funny how demands for respect can come back to haunt you and Jason should look no further than the insipid display he and his team mates trotted on the weekend and then cast a critical eye over the measures the club have imposed over the last couple of days and he will have his answer.

Positioning themselves as the club that everyone loves to hate is one thing but this ridiculous 5000 crowd cap and forced movement of fans to one stand is a monumental mistake and in my opinion will result in the death of the club within two seasons. Fans will abandon the club in their hundreds and already I would expect a significant drop off at their next home game.

What fan would want to go along and a support a club that actually wants to reduce the atmosphere at the ground. What fan would really hand over their hard earned to support a side that has such little ambition that they give up growing membership and support within 12 rounds of their first season.

The club needs to act now and act quickly to turn some of this around. There has been some talk that the 5000 cap has been touted to enable Clive some leverage in renegotiating the stadium deal with the Queensland government. If true then he needs to wrap those talks up quickly or there will be nothing left of this club. The team needs to reconnect with their community. They need to flood the market with free tickets, get as many people along as possible to the games. Especially the kids aged 10-18, these are the fans that will turn to members in the longer term.

Finally both Clive and Miron need to pull their heads in. Its time for Gold Coast to eat humble pie and do it without the arrogance that has been so obvious to date. It’s time to turn this circus into a real club before it is too late.

,

A New Start

One of the points in Frank Lowry’s speech I failed to touch on in my last blog was the idea of moving the start time of the A-League Season to the first week in October.

After a honeymoon that was the first three seasons it has become blindingly obvious in the last two that the A-League struggles to make any impact in the mass media in the August/September period. With the AFL and NRL ramping up to finals mode it seems every spare inch of newspaper space and every second of TV coverage is devoted to the two sports.

Crowds have been disappointing nearly across the board in this period and something has to be done to either raise the profile of the A-League start or to avoid the issue altogether and move the kickoff of the season. It seems the FFA has waved the white flag and chosen the latter.

But is this really going to solve all the issues or are we just moving problem to the other end of the season. If the FFA had of started the League on Thursday 08th of October rather than the 06th of August, we would have to add a total of 9 rounds to the end of the current season. This means that the regular season would have finished on the 24th of April and we would be looking forward to a final been played on 22nd May.

Up to now the FFA has taken the approach that it was better to schedule the backend of the season in the best time slot (ie no AFL and NRL) to promote the finals series as much as possible. This new approach however will see the last five rounds of the regular season and the finals going head to head with the two codes.

I agree with the FFA that this is worth trying for a few reasons.

There is a argument that the A-league will have a much better chance of securing media time/space in the business end of the season and that crowds will “stick” better during the run to and through the finals. It will also allow our players a competition that keeps them playing right up to world competitions that are generally held in June. It even works better in regards to current timing of the Asian Champions League where our teams would be fully match fit heading into the initial group stage matches. Though the early knockout rounds could see us very underdone.

The October start also fits nicely with the January transfer window, which currently falls at a crazy time (ie The lead into our finals) and causes so many problems in terms of players joining for practically just the finals. Finally by moving the start to October it may allow some room for a cup style competition to slot nicely into the August/September period. The FFA need a cup of some sort and I am in total agreement with Adrian Musolino that the cup competition should be the focus of the FFA rather than a second division.

There is a significant risk though in changing the timing of the season. Teams that are not playing well and have little to no chance of making finals may see their crowds suddenly evaporate come the start of the AFL/NRL seasons. If the FFA cannot convince media to come on board or afford to saturate the airways with the promotion it hands the competing codes an opportunity to smother the A-League at its most critical time.

The October start also limits the A-League to 26-27 game season. Anything longer than that and the FFA would be again forced to bring the start date forward defeating the purpose. Personally I don’t see this as a bad thing. A 14 team league, 26 game season is in my opinion the right size for Australia. There is also of course the question how to fit a Cup Style competition fits into this timing (midweek vs preseason).

The move to October to the right decision. Whether it will be a successful one however will remain to be seen.

,

The Future According To Frank

I have a huge amount of respect for Frank Lowry. Five years ago Frank was the driving force behind the rebirth of football in this country. The creation of the A-league, the move to Asia and the recruitment of Guus Hiddink all contributed to a resurgence of the game here in Australia.

However I do wonder if Frank understands that all of this new found love for the game may evaporate if a few missteps are made. Poor performances during the qualification for the World Cup, crazy ticket prices and poor quality football are all contributing to a slow down in the growth of the game.

At the Victory In Business luncheon yesterday Frank was invited to speak and a very enlightening speech it was. He basically outlined his vision for the future of football in this country and to call that vision high risk may be a understatement.

Lets go through some of the points made in that vision.

Australia needs a second level division to allow for Promotion/Relegation
This is probably the most outlandish statement from the speech. Interesting Frank used the term in the medium-distinct future. I would have loved someone to question him on whether that meant within 10 years, 20 years or 30. Personally I cannot see a second division within 10 years for the A-League, 20 years is possible but the football culture here in Australia would need significant growth in that time to support a second tier.

Several of the clubs are struggling for sponsors and members now, do people really think clubs like Newcastle, North Queensland, Gold Coast could survive the impact of relegation to a second division with its loss of media exposure and sponsorship dollars. I highly doubt it.

I would like to see a successful 16 team single division before we even contemplate a move to a two division system.

A-League will grow to 14 teams in near future
Currently in the league format of 10 teams it is generally accepted only two are in the black (Melbourne and Central Coast). Several are close to, or are currently, being supported by the FFA. Yet Frank is confident that four new teams can be added without a serious impact.

I can understand why the FFA is keen to expand to 14 Teams as quickly as possible. It is a number that allows them to drop the 3 rounds per year format and switch to a 26 game Home/Away League. It allows for 7 games per week which gives the broadcasting rights a significant boost. And it gives us much more creditability when asking for Asian Champions League Spots.

But with Melbourne2 (they really need to sort out a name for themselves) joining next year and then Rovers the year after the League really should be given a period of consolidation. I know that Canberra is chaffing at the bit for a team and Wollongong and Tasmania are both waiting in the wings for that 14th place but expansion so quickly could do more harm than good.

Next TV rights deal needs to include an aspect of Free To Air
From memory this is the first time a FFA representative has spoken openly about the need to get both the Socceroos and the A-league on free to air broadcasting. Up to this point anytime broadcast rights were mentioned the party line was always what a great partner Foxtel are.

I think this is a no brainer. For the game to grow in this country mass media exposure needs to become more prevalent and that means TV Rights need to go to one of the big three broadcasters. It is however interesting that Frank has highlighted that it may be a mixed deal with Foxtel retaining some of the rights.

Money is still going to be a major factor when assigning rights. The fact is the League is struggling to maintain growth on the low salary cap it is lumbered with. We need this cap to be raised substantially to not only retain quality Australian players but also to attract quality foreign players. A good rights deal will go a long way to allow that to happen.

Whatever the final outcome I hope that written in the rights deal is a clause that FTA broadcasters must show game live or near live (ie Within 1 hour of the start time). The last thing we need is a repeat of the Channel 7 fiasco.

AFC Champions League Final
Interestingly Frank has come out declaring that the FFA is extremely interested in hosting the AFC Champions League Final. I am not sure we as a country are ready to support a final between two teams that the vast majority of fans would have little interest in.

Overnight the last Japanese team in this year’s comp has suffered a crushing defeat that has all but assured that there will be no Japanese team in the Champions league final to be hosted in Tokyo next month. With only 5 thousand ticket sold to date, AFC officials will be starting to get very concerned. I cannot imagine a game between Al Ittihad and Umm Salal generating much interest here in Australia, so it will be interesting to see how the crowd numbers pan out.

AFC Champions League Slots
Currently Australia has only been allocated 2 AFC CL spots. Although in the review we were rated highly enough to receive more, the size of our league was deemed too small to allow more spots. With the increase to 10 teams the FFA is pushing for a third spot.I think this is a good thing, the more teams the A-League has in the Champions League the more interest that will be generated here for the competition.

It makes sense to adopt a format that grants the two top teams in the major leagues a direct spot while allowing 1-2 others a place within the qualification rounds with the less professional leagues. The AFC is on the right path with the Champions League and it will be fascinating to see what changes are adopted with this latest round of review.


I think that about covers the points from Franks chat, some positive, some extremely optimistic but one thing is for sure it is never boring with Frank steering the ship.
,

A Lot Can Happen In A Month

Its been just over a month since I last put fingers to keyboard and tapped out a paragraph or two for this blog and a lot has happened in that time. Crowds continue to be a major talking point and I was very pleased to see Gold Coast and Brisbane take steps to reduce their ticket prices and make them more affordable for the general fan.

On a more disappointing note, yesterday morning saw confirmation that Brisbane have sacked Frank Farina as a result of his second drink driving charge while in charge of the team. Unlike Clive Palmer I wouldn’t presume to give advice to Frank regarding his drinking habits but I do believe Brisbane have acted correctly.

But the biggest talking point by far has been the Socceroos and their matches against the Dutch on the weekend and the win against Oman last night. I watched the Dutch match on TV and have read a few of the reviews, the best being Tony Tannous's assessment.

The thing I find the most interesting is the change in the media’s expectations from 4 years ago. Back than a draw against a quality team like the Netherlands would have been acclaimed as a major achievement with only scant focus accorded to the way we played. However times have changed and it seems we now seeing a much greater emphasis on how we play not just the result.

Similarly with the match last Oman, which I attended (one of the few it seems) the media seem more interested in how we played than the result. Overall this can only be a good thing for the development of the game in this country. As the spotlight is continually focussed on poor performances and lack of technique by our top players is exposed we should see more and more coaches looking to develop players rather than grind out results.

In this regard the FFA must stay true to the path they have adopted. Not only continuing the focus on SSG games and the 4-3-3 tactical structure, that encourages technical player development, but also widening the program to include grassroots coaching (a area that I still feel hasn’t seen the overhaul that is desperately needed) and the elite programs (which still seem to tied to the state associations).

It is going to take at least a decade of reform to see results. Right now across the country 6-10 year olds are receiving a football education like none before them. I suspect looking at the ages of the current first team Socceroos we are heading for a period of lean times, so hopefully that period can be shorten by the changes that are occurring now.

Goodbye Danny Allsopp

With confirmation that Danny Allsopp has left for Qatar club Al-Rayyan Sports, Melbourne Victory has lost not only one of its two primary scoring targets but a long time servant of the club.

Of course the writing has been on the wall (or in this case within the forums) for a week now after Allsopp failed to not only take the field against Newcastle but wasn’t even present at the game. Rumours were flying almost instantaneously about a Qatar club that had come knocking. Of course Victory denied it (as is their policy) but everybody knew a transfer was on the cards.

Danny Allsopp leaves as the Leagues second highest goal scorer, second only to his strike partner Archie Thompson. He is also the holder of the most game appearances with the Victory and was one of only two remaining original Victory players who have been there continuously from the start (the other is Kevin Muscat). Although not exactly a crowd favourite (he was regularly jeered because of a perception that he wasted a lot of opportunities), he did have his fans however and nobody could question his work rate and stamina.

Farewell Danny you will be missed.

On the positive side Melbourne does have a decent amount of depth in the striker stakes. Ney Fabiano will now get his chance to show if he is good enough for a regular starting spot and Ernie does have young Nathan Elasi there to throw in if and when needed.

The biggest challenge that Melbourne will face however is the need to change the game plan. Fabiano and Allsopp are very different strikers. Danny preferred to attack defenders with his pace and hard work, never really comfortable with his back to goal or with the ball in the air, it was his ability to use his strength and pace to arrive late into the box and pounce on a cross. This suited Melbourne’s counter attacking game style. I am not sure though the same can be said about Fabiano.

Ney Fabiano doesn’t have Allsopp’s stamina but is very good with his back to goals and is excellent in the air. He is also deceptively quick over 2 –5 paces and uses his body well to hold up the ball. Victory need to adapt to this. If they can I think that Fabiano may surprise a few of his critics.

More emphasis needs top be placed on width though and good crossing. Carlos Hernandez and Tom Pondeljak now need to get closer to the strikers to ensure an outlet for Fabiano. But most of all Victory needs to get more desperate in the box.

With Muscat returning over the next couple of weeks, Ernie Merrick must be considering his options and a back three looks to be a possibility. This would release Kemp and Surat to push forward more and hopefully give Victory the width they will need. The loss of Celeski however will hurt and although the club deny it they don’t have the depth in this position as they would like.

The next few games will tell if Melbourne can adapt to Allsopp’s loss.
,

Ticket Shocker

Last year Brisbane Roar played Central Coast Mariners in a Round 3 match that attracted 12,185 people along. This year their round 4 fixture against Central Coast could only manage 6,433. The low crowds in Brisbane have been focus of media attention over the last two weeks and much conjecture about the reasons behind this. For me the overwhelming reason has to be the ticket pricing.

Such a significant rise in the pricing of memberships and general admission was always going to see a lot of people stay away. Small increases over a period of time can usually be absorbed by the fans but a 40% increase is going to cause many fans to think twice at purchasing a season ticket let alone part with their hard earned as a walk up fan. As a comparison compare the pricing across the league. Prices below are full prices for a General Admission entry.

Wellington $34
Gold Coast $29
Brisbane $27
Melbourne $25
Adelaide $23
Perth $22
Sydney $20
Newcastle $19
Central Coast $17
Nth Queensland $14.50

No wonder Gold Coast and Brisbane crowds have been disappointing. I don’t think I would pay $27/29 to see a A-league match week in week out. When you use the membership prices it is even more telling

Perth $260 $20.00 per game
Brisbane $275 $19.64 per game
Wellington $245 $18.84 per game
Sydney $242 $17.29 per game
Gold Coast $230 $16.43 per game
Newcastle $209 $16.08 per game
Adelaide $209 $14.93 per game
Central Coast $190 $14.62 per game
Melbourne $195 $13.93 per game
Nth Queensland $131 $10.08 per game

What is going on in Perth where the difference between buying a membership and general admission is a paltry $2 saving per game?

The table also explains why just about everyone attending Melbourne matches is a member when the cost per game is nearly half that of a general admission ticket.

The FFA need to step in here and take the lead with clubs to ensure ticket prices remain at a reasonable level. As a guide a target of no more than $20 for General Admission and $15 per game average for season tickets should be set as a goal.

Of course though these prices are not driven by the clubs but rather some very poor stadium deals. I am not sure why clubs would agree to poor deals that force them to charge over $25 per game. Brisbane need to rethink their relationship with Suncorp because at these prices they will soon be out of business if something isn’t done.

,

Th Free To Air Question

Interesting article on The Roar today regarding the viability of having the A-League on Free To Air (FTA) TV. It has generated a substantial amount of discussion amongst the readers and got me thinking about where I stand on the topic.

Although author Adrian Musolino makes some good points I cannot help but think he has missed a critical one. There is an old saying in the media, “There is no such thing as bad publicity”. With a FTA deal comes a much greater exposure to the general public and although this raises other concerns the good outweighs the bad.

Growing up my heroes were AFL stars. As kids running around the playground we pretended to Geoff Raines, Greg Williams, Leigh Matthews and a range of other stars of the egg ball game. We did this because we all knew who they were. They were in the paper, on the radio, on TV. They were in fact an indelible part of life within the country. This saturation is what the A-League is missing and only a FTA deal can begin the process of making it happen.

Although I loved watching Football I rarely got to see it, there wasn’t much of a league back then in my home town and the only time I got to see the best in world was when they were playing in the FA Cup final, most likely where my support for Tottenham came from.

Don’t get me wrong I am not against FOXTEL, they stood up and stumped up the cash when the sport needed it. The only ones willing to take a $120 Million punt on Frank Lowy’s dream. But the A-league needs more exposure to grow. Kids need to be able to walk into school on a Monday morning and be able to say, “Did you see that cracker of a free kick Carlos slotted home on the weekend” and have all of their mates nod along. At the moment the young boy would more likely get blank looks or maybe even a question of Carlos who?

Junior Football in this country is huge but who are these young kids heros? You are more likely to see a Manchester shirt than a Victory on the backs of young boys and girls throughout the training pitches of Melbourne. Some would argue there is nothing wrong with this as the EPL would arguably be considered the pinnacle of our sport but how many of these youngsters have seen a Manchester game on TV let along live.

We need all this kids to have the opportunity to watch their teams on TV not just the 25% who can afford the Foxtel subscriptions, it is only then that they start to build a connection to the game. Sure it can be achieved in other ways via the internet, newspapers and radio? Yes it can but the TV is still the driver of mass media.

The fact is it doesn’t matter if the quality isn’t world standard, as Melbourne and Brisbane showed two weeks ago the League does produce some cracking games and as a whole human nature means we tend to remember the positives rather than the negatives. We all have a tendency to create our own highlights package in our mind.

So in answer to Adrian’s question, “Is the A-League product good enough for free to air?” is yes it is and the sooner the better.
,