Croydon

[brushmancity]

Absolute mismatch in Croydon’s last 2 games in the State league. They lost to South Adelaide 22-0 then 25-0 to Elizabeth grove. Versus the grove they only started with 10 players and to start the second half they had 9 players. If the Football federation had a heart they would or could put them in div4 or 5 and not lose these players through disheartenment. They have no reserve grade so I don’t know how they can be in the State league?

[Marinos]

Absolute mismatch in Croydon’s last 2 games in the State league. They lost to South Adelaide 22-0 then 25-0 to Elizabeth grove. Versus the grove they only started with 10 players and to start the second half they had 9 players. If the Football federation had a heart they would or could put them in div4 or 5 and not lose these players through disheartenment. They have no reserve grade so I don’t know how they can be in the State league?

I've heard after having a competitive team the last couple years, the players moved on and couldn't replace them through many ads and even a pre-season coach change. The reality is by creating a Reserves comp in the second tier the FSA have spread the "quality" so thin that there was bound to be 1 or 2 dud teams. Same as last year really - Elizabeth Grove was granted entry from Division 5 and were getting spanked most weeks and only look "decent" now because they've recruited something like 7-8 players from Metro.

[romarios shin]

the creation of the reserves league was a good idea in principle but i think the federation assumed that there would be a massive surge of female players interested in playing, this hasn't happened and the talent pool is very thin, this is why we are now seeing clubs using 13/14yr olds for senior football, most of them way before they are ready.
You can see clubs are already using players to play both reserve and 1st team games on the same day, that tells you where the numbers are at.
Some clubs are also trying to push a women's program without investing in the infrastructure required, they are doomed to fail.
Hopefully Croydon can turn things around but you do have concerns for them moving forward.

[Marinos]

the creation of the reserves league was a good idea in principle but i think the federation assumed that there would be a massive surge of female players interested in playing, this hasn't happened and the talent pool is very thin, this is why we are now seeing clubs using 13/14yr olds for senior football, most of them way before they are ready.
You can see clubs are already using players to play both reserve and 1st team games on the same day, that tells you where the numbers are at.
Some clubs are also trying to push a women's program without investing in the infrastructure required, they are doomed to fail.
Hopefully Croydon can turn things around but you do have concerns for them moving forward.

I'm surprised the FSA believed a surge of interest would contain the standard of players required to play in a reserves comp in the state league. OK sure maybe D3, 4 or 5, U13s and 15s, but that was a bit stupid of them.

[nathanburns15]

I believe Croydon's request to withdraw from the WSL was rejected by FSA.
Perhaps Croydon should resort to under the table payments to players like the rest of the comp?

[Olimpico]

Would a third division have been better than a second division reserves?

[brushmancity]

I believe Croydon's request to withdraw from the WSL was rejected by FSA.
Perhaps Croydon should resort to under the table payments to players like the rest of the comp?

Then I reckon Croydon will probably fold sometime early in the season. The FSA are crap for rejecting the request.

[themagnet]

Would a third division have been better than a second division reserves?

Adding the reserves was supposed to make the jump to WNPL easier for the club that gets promoted, rather than having to come up with a new team when they get promoted. Good in theory but it will probably be a glorified U17s league for the first couple of years (it might actually be interesting to see if the standard at u17 level does drop off because of this)
FSA should never have allowed a club without any junior girls program into SL, if only to ensure the clubs commitment to womens football. Without that infrastructure beneath it, a push at senior level is doomed to fail.

[Marinos]

Would a third division have been better than a second division reserves?

Adding the reserves was supposed to make the jump to WNPL easier for the club that gets promoted, rather than having to come up with a new team when they get promoted. Good in theory but it will probably be a glorified U17s league for the first couple of years (it might actually be interesting to see if the standard at u17 level does drop off because of this)
FSA should never have allowed a club without any junior girls program into SL, if only to ensure the clubs commitment to womens football. Without that infrastructure beneath it, a push at senior level is doomed to fail.

No kid is going from a WNPL U17 side to a WSL Reserves side. The outcomes and pathways are vastly different. Besides, other WNPL sides are poaching from the U17 comp for their Reserves. Everyone is swimming in the same pool so kids will go to the more established clubs.

[romarios shin]

i see that tonight's WSL Pre-season cup game vs Campbelltown has been cancelled, not a good sign for the season ahead.

[themagnet]

Would a third division have been better than a second division reserves?

Adding the reserves was supposed to make the jump to WNPL easier for the club that gets promoted, rather than having to come up with a new team when they get promoted. Good in theory but it will probably be a glorified U17s league for the first couple of years (it might actually be interesting to see if the standard at u17 level does drop off because of this)
FSA should never have allowed a club without any junior girls program into SL, if only to ensure the clubs commitment to womens football. Without that infrastructure beneath it, a push at senior level is doomed to fail.

No kid is going from a WNPL U17 side to a WSL Reserves side. The outcomes and pathways are vastly different. Besides, other WNPL sides are poaching from the U17 comp for their Reserves. Everyone is swimming in the same pool so kids will go to the more established clubs.

True. But they will go from an U17 WSL side to a WSL reserves side, even when staying at the same club, so the remaining U17 team could either be a weaker side or a younger u15s group that have been promoted earlier than they would've been otherwise.

[BeNatural]

17-0 in Round 1

[SwandelPark]

not to mention Modbury Vista - 12 v Fulham - 0

[romarios shin]

Capture1111.PNG (20.94 KiB) Viewed 4133 times

not getting any better......

[BeNatural]

Elizbeath Grove 32
Croydon 0

[Rightside]

Kudos to the girls rocking up week after week.

[Olimpico]

Kudos to the girls rocking up week after week.

Here, here. They just have to get through it. Do the women's leagues have mid season transfer window? Or is it more relaxed and they can they bring in players whenever they like?

[brushmancity]

Like I’ve wrote before FFSA should have put them down 2 or 3 divisions just to help the girls. I was there last Sunday it was 13 nil at half time and some of the Croydon girls had some spark but after letting in another 19 goals in the second half and with the indignity of having their keeper sent off for deliberate hand ball outside area their heads completely dropped. Maybe the ref could have been a little lenient and just give a yellow card but rubbing more salt in the wound was bad. To me FFSA definitely stuffed this up. Question for anyone out there; Would you persevere and play on this and future seasons???

[BeNatural]

Croydon FC have informed Football South Australia that they will forfeit their Round 2 WNPL/WSL Cup match against Football SA NTC.

As per Rule 43(2) of Football SA Competition Operating Regulations, specific to all Senior Women and Junior Competitions, If a WNPL Senior Team or WSL Senior Team forfeit a Cup match, the Club will forfeit the game by three (3) goals to nil (0) and three (3) competition points will be deducted from the Clubs Senior Team league table.

As a result, Football SA NTC have been awarded the result three (3) goals to nil (0) and Croydon FC will be deducted three (3) competition points from the Go Sunny Solar Women’s State League (WSL) table.

[Riggles64]

Interesting question.

Personally, the big scores against Croydon are a farce. I can tell you that from one team's perspective, they se no glory in playing and winning by a large margin. The team know they have a job to do and play against an opponent however, from a player's perspective, there is camaraderie amongst many of the players from most of the teams and they do not have glory or satisfaction at watching the big losses.

Let croydon go. Regroup and focus on 2025. Have a bye in SL and maybe let croydon play in the league below. This is not condescending rather supporting a club to keep with its women/girl program.

Like I’ve wrote before FFSA should have put them down 2 or 3 divisions just to help the girls. I was there last Sunday it was 13 nil at half time and some of the Croydon girls had some spark but after letting in another 19 goals in the second half and with the indignity of having their keeper sent off for deliberate hand ball outside area their heads completely dropped. Maybe the ref could have been a little lenient and just give a yellow card but rubbing more salt in the wound was bad. To me FFSA definitely stuffed this up. Question for anyone out there; Would you persevere and play on this and future seasons???

[Marinos]

Interesting question.

Personally, the big scores against Croydon are a farce. I can tell you that from one team's perspective, they se no glory in playing and winning by a large margin. The team know they have a job to do and play against an opponent however, from a player's perspective, there is camaraderie amongst many of the players from most of the teams and they do not have glory or satisfaction at watching the big losses.

Let croydon go. Regroup and focus on 2025. Have a bye in SL and maybe let croydon play in the league below. This is not condescending rather supporting a club to keep with its women/girl program.

Like I’ve wrote before FFSA should have put them down 2 or 3 divisions just to help the girls. I was there last Sunday it was 13 nil at half time and some of the Croydon girls had some spark but after letting in another 19 goals in the second half and with the indignity of having their keeper sent off for deliberate hand ball outside area their heads completely dropped. Maybe the ref could have been a little lenient and just give a yellow card but rubbing more salt in the wound was bad. To me FFSA definitely stuffed this up. Question for anyone out there; Would you persevere and play on this and future seasons???

All you need to do, like juniors, is cap each result to 8-0 maximum. It stops teams from going flat out to match or ebat each others goal diff

[SwandelPark]

Croydon forfeited their last match after losing 29-1 the round before.

[Riggles64]

Not good to read however, this was inevitable.

[nathanburns15]

Croydon forfeited their last match after losing 29-1 the round before.

They are on the up, scored their first goal of the season

[Olimpico]

We need a third tier in the women's. There's too much of a gap between the top and bottom half in div2. Three divisions of 8 would be better for a few years until levels and clubs settle. They'll also play an extra three matches per season. Just have to pluck four new clubs from somewhere

[Marinos]

We need a third tier in the women's. There's too much of a gap between the top and bottom half in div2. Three divisions of 8 would be better for a few years until levels and clubs settle. They'll also play an extra three matches per season. Just have to pluck four new clubs from somewhere

They don't need a 3rd division - they already have 5 community divisions. They need to stop allowing teams who have been in the women's game for 2 mins with no juniors to come into elite tiers...which they've only done to even up the numbers. To be fair to Croydon, they came in with a solid team, but because of their lack of investment in the women's game over the long term it took 2 mins for a club like Adelaide City to poach them all to Div 1.

[Olimpico]

They don't need a 3rd division - they already have 5 community divisions. They need to stop allowing teams who have been in the women's game for 2 mins with no juniors to come into elite tiers...which they've only done to even up the numbers. To be fair to Croydon, they came in with a solid team, but because of their lack of investment in the women's game over the long term it took 2 mins for a club like Adelaide City to poach them all to Div 1.

OK. So stick to two divisions but cut two to four clubs? Or have the first div reserves play in div 2? Need a solution yesterday. Can't have this next season. It's not just Croydon, the bottom five or six are getting pumped by 5 or more goals just about every week, that's why I suggested another division.

[romarios shin]

This is a left field idea but.....
They need to expand the WNPL to 12 or 14 teams
Push 4 of these 5 teams up from the WSL
Campbelltown
Grove
Vista
Jets or Jags

These 5 teams are quite clearly streets ahead of the rest of the competition in WSL

Then merge WSL with DIv 1 to create another 12 team division.

Scrap the WSL reserves and allow the U17 Junior girls comp to be stronger

just an idea

[philweb]

As a club delegate I put this to the (then FFSA) about 6 years ago and was ignored.

[Marinos]

This is a left field idea but.....
They need to expand the WNPL to 12 or 14 teams
Push 4 of these 5 teams up from the WSL
Campbelltown
Grove
Vista
Jets or Jags

These 5 teams are quite clearly streets ahead of the rest of the competition in WSL

Then merge WSL with DIv 1 to create another 12 team division.

Scrap the WSL reserves and allow the U17 Junior girls comp to be stronger

just an idea

6 of the 8 teams in D1 are WNPL sides. The women's competitions are structured very different to the men's amateur competitions.