Looking to the Future

Fred Goldstone · Post by **Fred Goldstone** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 2:51 pm

I've been pondering the state of local FFSA football (Super, Premier & State Leagues) as we near the end of their first season in full control and prepare to embark upon the 2nd season of the A League.

For comparison I have been looking at the structure of football leagues in England .

The first thing that struck me was the number of games played in a season.

The general consensus seems to be that our A League competition is of comparable standard to English League Division Two (the old Division Four).

The A-League comprises a mere 8 teams who play each other three times for a total of 21 games, plus the Top Five Series and pre-season cup.

Our Super, Premier & State Leagues, which are commonly compared to the UniBond Premier League in standard, each comprise 10 teams who play each other twice for a total of 18 games, plus Federation Cup games.

Compare these figures to those of their English equivalents:

In order of hierarchy:
Coca-Cola Football League Two - 24 teams = 46 games
Nationwide Conference - 24 teams = 46 games
Nationwide Conference North - 22 teams = 42 games
Nationwide Conference South - 22 teams = 42 games
UniBond Premier League - 22 teams = 42 games

Add to these the various cup competitions and play-offs.

It would seem that our players' greatest developmental problem would be the number of games they play compared to their English counterparts.

Even Junior players in England play far more competitive matches than their Australian counterparts.

Another thing I noticed was that the number Home of games played by English clubs enabled them access to a regular income stream over a greater period of time than those in Australia; spectator facilities are better and players are paid more.

Perhaps we need to start looking at increasing the size of our leagues and playing more games to not only enable our players to develop their fitness and endurance but our clubs to increase their income.

In SA I suggest an initial change to two 14 team leagues in place of the current 3 x 10 set-up which will give each team 26 games - 13 home games.

In the longer term I would like to see one 20 team league giving each team 38 games - 19 home games.

A second division of 10 teams with cross-over matches with Saturday and Sunday Division 1 Amateurs - the top five in each Amateur Division 1 play against the top five in the State 2nd Division in a Round Robin competition at the end of the normal season and the bottom five in each do the same.

More income leads to the development of better facilities for supporters and more money for players.

In a few years we would be in the position to have Promotion and Relegation between the A League and State Leagues with an A League of around 16 clubs.

I welcome your opinion on my comments.

Yours in sport,

Fred Goldstone

rooboy1986 · Post by **rooboy1986** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 10:19 pm

Need to crawl before you can walk... nuff said!!!

Fred Goldstone · Post by **Fred Goldstone** » Wed Aug 30, 2006 12:46 pm

We've been crawling for the last twenty years.

We now need to get up on our own two feet and get walking.

What do all the coaches out there think?

Fred Goldstone · Post by **Fred Goldstone** » Fri Sep 08, 2006 2:17 pm

Come on guys, let's have your ideas and comments.

We can't expect things to improve if we don't put constructive ideas forward.

povman_2009 · Post by **povman_2009** » Fri Sep 08, 2006 3:43 pm

Fred this has been discussed extensively in other forum threads before, I think people are just worn out about the subject...

Fred Goldstone · Post by **Fred Goldstone** » Wed Sep 13, 2006 1:23 pm

That's the problem Povman, no one is prepared to do the hard work anymore.

If our code is to ever become a major player it is going to have to be because the state leagues got their acts together.

It's no good just sitting back and letting the FFA do all the work.

Karicako · Post by **Karicako** » Fri Oct 13, 2006 12:20 am

I know this is an old topic but I'm with you Fred.

As a Junior coach, I'd love to play more games in a season. And I'm sure the clubs coffers would benefit because of it.

Where and how to start though? Perhaps this is a bigger question!

Wild Eagle · Post by **Wild Eagle** » Sat Oct 14, 2006 11:34 am

If there was a pre-season cup for the Juniors with groups, it would be a a very good start.
Also, teams could play each other 3 times rather than 2, bringing the fixture tally closer to 30 rather than 20.

I agree with the fact federations need to make a solid structure, at this stage too many quality players are lost to Amateur and Collegiate league and this doesn't increase the overall quality.

If there was promotion from Amateur Div.1 to State League then things would really start to get interesting; it would also give more meaning to a competition that, though of high quality,is stagnating.
Maybe the Amateur comp could be split into regional divisions and the winners could play off for a position in the State League.

Conversely, the bottom 4 of the State, Premier and Super League could battle it out for one relegation spot.

At this stage 2 relegation and 2 promotion spots would be too demanding on clubs and their financial structure so i think just 1 spot would do.

That is my 2 cents worth.

BillShankly · Post by **BillShankly** » Sat Oct 14, 2006 11:46 am

Im happy with the juniors only playing twice, coaching under 17s this yr i was spent when the season finished, it was a draining year, if we had to play teams a third time i think a lot more of the boys would have gotten injured.

sparts · Post by **sparts** » Sat Oct 14, 2006 3:26 pm

where did you coach this year bill?

Football Freak · Post by **Football Freak** » Tue Oct 17, 2006 10:07 pm

Wow Fred you must be retired to have so much time on your hands for that summary

Jokes aside i feel that you are correct about raising revenue by more games however pitches do need time to recover too as do players, increasing squad size is an option to cover this but how about the U17's ?

If they play on Sundays i believe they should still have an interchange on and off the bench.

Are they classed as juniors still ?

If so play the interchange, if not drop the interchange and play them as seniors. Would help with selection time giving clubs the opportunity to base a squad and not get the players fill gaps at higher levels (possibly too early) or pushed down if the first team buy new players . . . . .

Been there, seen that

Fred Goldstone · Post by **Fred Goldstone** » Mon Oct 23, 2006 2:29 pm

I think the Under 17's and U/15's should be classed as an Intermediate level and play on Sunday kicking off at mid-day.

As for ground recovery, if the season is extended to kick-off first week-end in March and finish the last week-end in September there is October, November and December for them to recover. Plenty of time.

I think Juniors should start training in 1st week February, start playing in 1st week March and finish at the end of October.

Not much longer but more matches.

PunkFarker · Post by **PunkFarker** » Wed Nov 22, 2006 11:11 pm

ever wonder why good players leave in late teens?
nowhere to go, no money in local game, need to work, get money for food, fun, future and girls, love of game is for amateurs, need bigger carrot to make self better player, sacrifices to be rewarded with money not beer, look at bigger picture, state leagues are like dead end jobs for footballers, must expand national league to have another level below it, there is no continuity from teens, best players have to leave oz if serious about future, good players develop further in better competitions, need to look at National level in oz and also international level comps to make it attractive sacrifice for 10 years or more, money and more exposure

$$$ until then cannot compare with European leagues $$$

Jeda · Post by **Jeda** » Thu Nov 23, 2006 12:55 pm

PunkFarker wrote:ever wonder why good players leave in late teens?
nowhere to go, no money in local game, need to work, get money for food, fun, future and girls, love of game is for amateurs, need bigger carrot to make self better player, sacrifices to be rewarded with money not beer, look at bigger picture, state leagues are like dead end jobs for footballers, must expand national league to have another level below it, there is no continuity from teens, best players have to leave oz if serious about future, good players develop further in better competitions, need to look at National level in oz and also international level comps to make it attractive sacrifice for 10 years or more, money and more exposure $$$ until then cannot compare with European leagues $$$

If the FFA play the their cards right there'll be more money to go around. It's all about getting the numbers through the gates, the games on tv and sponsors & advertisers on board.

The A-League is bringing some of this on, some great sponsors, Fox Sport, the papers are giving good coverage.

Were in for some exciting times

Fred Goldstone · Post by **Fred Goldstone** » Wed Nov 29, 2006 1:43 pm

One of the other things I've been saying for the last twenty years is that all FFSA clubs should have an Amateur club attached to them so that players who are unable to commit to the demands of 'top-flight' football can still play and develop.

Those who may lack the 'physical prescence' required can develop under the guidnace of experienced players.

Amateur Reserves can be a great learning experience for 'soft' young players and 'toughen them up' whilst being 'protected' at the same time.