The A-League desperately needs a great club
Columnist By Davidde Corran, 26 Nov 2009 Davidde Corran is a Roar Expert
123 Have your say
Sydney FC's team coach, Branko Culina faces the media after their match against Persik Kediri during the AFC Champions League game in Manahan Stadium Solo, Indonesia, Thursday, April 12, 2007. Persik Kediri beat Sydney FC 2-1 AAP Image/Ardiles Rante
Oh, Branko Culina, how I love thee. The Newcastle Jets coach might regularly suffer from a case of foot in mouth disease, but he’s often not wrong.
The man knows football even better then he does coffee (before moving to Newcastle he used to drive from one side of Sydney to the other every morning just for “the best brew in Sydney”).
He also has a real passion for the game.
So when he makes comments about Australian football, it comes from a good place.
While a couple months back Culina was wrong to take a pot shot at Viteslav Lavicka, this week, when critiquing the A-League, he was right on the money.
“We’re only a finals team because all the teams around us are pretty shit as well,” Culina was quoted as saying. I’m still laughing at that comment as I write it.
The old adage of “it’s funny because it’s true” is appropriate here.
The tightness of this season’s competition has been hailed by many, but not me. I think there’s an element of charm that things aren’t always predictable in the A-League, but I also think it is one of the key problems with the competition.
Amongst all the celebration from Football Federation Australia over the A-League’s openness, I wonder whether it has occurred to the governing body that maybe there is a link between the low crowds and the unpredictability of the competition.
Sounds farcical? Well, hear me out.
The English Premier League has never been more predictable then over the last few years, but it is also as popular as ever before. The English top flight is so successful that it has diluted the ‘magic’ of the FA Cup, once an English institution, to a passing interest.
Furthermore, fans turn out when their side is winning and if they don’t expect their team to win when playing at home, then many will, and do, stay away.
I am certain in my belief that the league is worse off for not having any great sides.
In fact, there has never been one in the A-League’s five seasons (don’t even mention Melbourne Victory in season two. Any team with Steve Pantelidis in it isn’t ‘great’).
I’ve spent most of the last week hopping between AC Milan’s Milanello training centre and the San Siro, and trust me when I say grandness inspires others. As I write this, I’m in Florence at Fiorentina’s Stadio Artemio Franchi.
The city was a buzz ahead of French giant Lyon’s visit. Just as it was before Liverpool arrived and is when any of the Serie A’s big names visit (especially Juve).
Clubs and cities ‘get up’ for these sort of games.
While the A-League can’t just create teams with that kind of history (though arguably Lyon’s ‘history’ is only a recent one), we can see quality A-League sides be assembled.
The presence of such a club would draw in fans both at home and away.
Whether it’s those who like to indulge in a bit of tall poppy syndrome, or neutrals that will turn out to see the country’s best club side in the flesh, it will help draw crowds across the country.
I don’t believe allowing a club like Melbourne Victory to flourish will see them dominate every single season, but really I don’t care too much either way.
A bit of competitiveness is good, but football is still the ‘world game’ despite it being dominated by a select few in nearly every domestic league and at international level.
Still, I’m not proposing we scrap the salary cap, but those who have the means to go beyond its limitations should be permitted to do so. At least, to an extent.
I’ve been speaking to a lot of players across Europe and the sounds about the new Melbourne Heart side are promising.
The biggest problem will be fitting all the interested players under the salary cap. You could have one very special club next year, but it probably won’t happen thanks to these limitations.
All of this without mentioning the continued risk that Asia is providing to the quality of our competition.
So FFA should drop their campaign of political correctness, which they are continuing by pulling up Culina for expressing his opinion (do they want players and coaches to say nothing at all? That’ll be great for headlines).
Instead, Ben Buckley and company should spend that time focusing on how to improve the football in the league.
We don’t need another debate on whether we should ‘speak no evil’ when it comes to frank opinions of the A-League. However, we do need a debate about whether this concept of ‘evenness’ is actually one of ‘blandness’.
Recommend this story.
November 26th 2009 @ 9:25am
LT80 said | November 26th 2009 @ 9:25am | Report comment
Pip, there are important similarities between the NFL and AFL. Both have some kind of monopoly power as the dominant professional league in their respective sports.
Soccer is a completely different situation. There are professional leagues all over the world. None of big European leagues could ever hope to impose a salary cap – this would simply lead to a decline in the quality of that league as players left for other competitions. I don’t know how the A-league can imagine they can prosper and develop a quality competition with such a low salary cap in this environment.
As for evidence in Australia? I disagree with you. I don’t think there is much either way, but people at the moment generally have a pre-conceived notion that a controlled/equalised competition is better. If anything, perhaps the evidence is accumulating for the other side – witness the low crowds and poor quality.
November 26th 2009 @ 9:39am
Football said | November 26th 2009 @ 9:39am | Report comment
You build a great club by winning competitions, the first A League team to win a number of ACL competitions & then compete stronly in the WCC will be seen as a great club.
Winning these competitions will also ensure the financial footings of the competition by providing, sponsorship, prizemoney & developing players for the transfer market.
Unlike the AFL & NRL the A League has alternate revenue streams
November 27th 2009 @ 6:31am
Mr cheese said | November 27th 2009 @ 6:31am | Report comment
The only way to build a great club is to support something over decades.
Sorry to tell you, but that’s the way it is.
Most of the people reading these articles will be dead long before the prison colony has any “great” clubs.
November 27th 2009 @ 7:35am
Norm said | November 27th 2009 @ 7:35am | Report comment
-’prison colony’…original thought is not your strength!
November 26th 2009 @ 9:40am
Darwin hammer said | November 26th 2009 @ 9:40am | Report comment
This can’t be serious surely – the talk of how popular the EPL is despite the monopoly on the top spots is a red herring – every season is the same the talk really is which team might sneak into the top 4 .. the real competition is at the other end of the table …. what’s the point in having a Melbourne / Sydney domination – it’ll kill the league … and really to achieve it and be a “proper” team they’ll need to be mired in debt … ask the men in the streets in the UK what the think of the PL … and they’ll tell you if they had a choice they’d return to the days when more than just 2 sides had a chance of winning the league – the Man U / Chelsea monopoly of the PL has made it one of the most boring leagues in Europe
November 26th 2009 @ 9:51am
Killer_Tomatoes said | November 26th 2009 @ 9:51am | Report comment
True, a lot of the PL’s financial clout is based on good international marketing, as much as it is on local interest. The massive amounts of money that come into the league as a result of world wide infatuation with the big 4 is huge.
November 26th 2009 @ 9:53am
AndyRoo said | November 26th 2009 @ 9:53am | Report comment
Just this week Boltons crowd was poo pooed and that spot as perenial no hopers is what a fair amount of the aleague teams would end up as if the cap was removed.
For most of the teams the cap is more than they can afford so it forces them to spend mroe than is comfortable. I doubt much more money would be spent on players if the cap was removed.
November 27th 2009 @ 6:41am
Davidde Corran said | November 27th 2009 @ 6:41am | Report comment
“They’ll tell you if they had a choice they’d return to the days when more than just 2 sides had a chance of winning the league”
Yet the EPL is the most popular league in the world and utterly dominates the English sporting landscape. Funny that.
Earlier this year I was sitting down at a restaurant in the Jewish section of Melbourne with my father who is a practicing Jew. The restaurant was also Jewish and when our meals were served they were massive. Biggest I have ever seen. We’re talking one plate was enough for four people.
My father turned to me and explained that every time someone is served their meal they all complain about how big it is yet this restaurant was one of the most popular in the area. All the Jewish run restaurants serve similar sized dishes as well.
According to my old man “Jewish people expect to be given servings that are too big so they can complain about them.”
Now this is no doubt a case of a Jewish man preaching a stereotype about his own people but like most stereotypes based on some amount of fact. Everyone in England bemoans the dominance of the ‘top 4′ but they keep going back for more…
November 26th 2009 @ 9:44am
keeper11 said | November 26th 2009 @ 9:44am | Report comment
Also depends how you ‘spin it’….
why is a close ‘A-league’ comp syptomatic of drop in standards…??
whenever the NRL has a closeness in its competition….Gallop and the usual NRL spruikers and cheersquad ‘spin ‘ it as:
‘Maaate..this is the closest comp in years…every team can win and the fans are flocking to watch their team …lada lada lda ‘
..ofcourse the NRL has only 1 other comp to compare so defacto promotes itself as ..’ the ‘ best competition in the worllld’
sycophantic uncritical Sydney media is more than happy to comply with this farcical notion…
i got scant interest in league but living in sydney have to endure its relentless PR. .so wouldn’t know or care if standards are up or down..
but doubt the closed shop that is the NRL/ sydney media would EVER admit to a drop in standrds of the NRL..
there’s tabloid papers and footy card packs to sell you see….
maybe if ther A-league just hands over control/ ownership to news-limited we wouldn’t need these debates…
November 26th 2009 @ 10:09am
AndyRoo said | November 26th 2009 @ 10:09am | Report comment
The standard on the field is better than it ever has been in the A league and I would argue better than anything the NSL has ever produced either.
Not every team in the old NSL was the 95/96 Sydney United Team or the 98/99 South Melbourne Team. Rose coloured glasses mean a lot of people only remember the teams that finished at the top of the table.
Sure their are a few dud games, until recently I would suggest not watching the CCM’s but their have been plenty of great ones too.
November 26th 2009 @ 10:02am
Darwin hammer said | November 26th 2009 @ 10:02am | Report comment
Of course the no relegation and the play offs also impact on the HAL – and therefore make it non comparable with the European leagues … there’s nothing wrong with level playing field and ever team having a chance to be in to win … nearly ever season so far we’ve had a smokey that has surprised – this year I think the Pheonix could be the team that surprises
November 26th 2009 @ 10:06am
Football said | November 26th 2009 @ 10:06am | Report comment
The A league has an external measurement for the level of football, ACL & WCC, both the NRL & AFL lack this.
The EPL top four also have an external standard which they need to play to, which keeps the overal competition to a high standard, to artificially change this & add a salary cap will leave the EPL behind the rest of Europe & initiate its demise.
The top four are currently lifting the likes of Everton & Tottenham to a higher quality of footbal as they try to compete & bring these clubs exposure & opportunity in the second tier European competitions.
Lets not compare Ozzy or American competitions which lack a measurement for their quality against European footbal.
November 26th 2009 @ 10:16am
Michael C said | November 26th 2009 @ 10:16am | Report comment
in a sense yes,
however, the HAL stand alone is a ‘league’, a competition. And external measures shouldn’t impact the HAL.
The ACL wins and losses don’t come into play in the HAL season. Entirely separate ‘competitions’.
If the top 2 HAL teams are considered ‘world class’, or ‘regional class’ doesn’t matter all that much……in Australia, a fair competition is prefered to a ‘walk over’, unless of course England is on the other end of a hiding……
November 26th 2009 @ 10:15am
Towser said | November 26th 2009 @ 10:15am | Report comment
In view of something I read the other day I decided to contribute on this subject. Seems Australians still think the chicken yard is the centre of the universe & its still full of Chicken Littles in Australia & that will include the FFA if they dont get rid of the salary cap in due course or drastically increase it. The AFC yesterday signed a US$1 billion deal with the World Sports group. This gives them rights to AFC events for the next 8 years(ie Asian Cup ACL etc). Whats pertinent is that it emphasises the continuing growth of football in Asia. The rights from 1992 to 2008 were $150million. Expectations are that such payments will continue to grow:-
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=702965&sec=global&cc=3436
At the same AFC meeting in Malaysia I presume,the EPL CEO Richard Scudamore warned Asian clubs that a salary cap would have a detrimental effect on their game.
To quote-
“The popular method of controlling spending in clubs is used in American sports and in Australia’s domestic A-League but Scudamore, a decade in his role with the Premier League, was against the idea.
“Ultimately, your best talent will be picked off because you are uncompetitive if you have a cap,” Scudamore told an Asian Football Confederation (AFC) meeting in the Malaysian capital to help raise professionalism of club soccer in the region.
“The threat is in the middle ranking clubs scouting for everybody’s talent. I can’t think of a practical way for a worldwide salary cap.”
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=702972&sec=global&cc=3436
Those middle ranking clubs are starting to mean clubs competing against us for players in the Asian region. The chicken yard was for the Days of Oceania & the NSL. Were competing on the world ranch & if were to get our share of the increasing AFC riches we’d better have a few clubs capable of competing against other clubs in the ACL. I guarantee neither the AFC or Clubs in the JKC leagues & the rich Oil nations will be restricting wages under a salary cap.ever.
Indonesia is also starting to get their act together & Malaysia is restructuring their league to be more competitive in Asia. Whats more it may not only be A-League players who defect for Northern riches ,but players from the State Leagues. A continuing source of A-League players.
November 26th 2009 @ 10:41am
AndyRoo said | November 26th 2009 @ 10:41am | Report comment
The possible riches of having a really strong MV and SFC team in Asia might never be realized though. I believe this December they decide on how many ACL places Australia get. With all that has gone under the bridge if Australia can’t get a third spot now when China has done everything in it’s power to show it’s undeserving of 4 spots then we never will get them.
This is the window of opportunity to get extra ACL spots. We are bidding for a world cup, we are on track for Asian Cup qualification, we will be in the running as hosts for the Asian Cup…we even were prepared to bid for the ACL final. Meanwhile Thailand and Indonesia are only just starting to rise. If this window passes by and we still only have two spots then that is likely our lot for a long time.
November 26th 2009 @ 11:00am
KB said | November 26th 2009 @ 11:00am | Report comment
Towser,
What a grand overdue entrance from a long spell out—thanks for the link quite a remarkable deal, with a lot of good news now coming in from all quarters with the “WC 2010–Sydney to host Fan Fest…”
November 27th 2009 @ 6:47am
Davidde Corran said | November 27th 2009 @ 6:47am | Report comment
Towser great points about the global market place of football. Essentially the only leagues where a salary cap work are those which are the only ones of their kind (AFL) or completely dominant in their sport (MLB).
November 26th 2009 @ 10:30am
Aardvark said | November 26th 2009 @ 10:30am | Report comment
No what the A-League needs is for commentators to stop bleating on about what the A-League needs. Watch and enjoy the game for what it is. Debate the pro and cons of the tactics being used. Accept the fact that it’s not the standard of a top European league yet and ignore the Euro-snobs who can’t get over that fact. It’s a FIVE YEAR OLD LEAGUE FFS!!
I think that one of the reasons the crowds are low is because if anyone mildly interested goes online to read about the A-League they are confronted with column after column and comment after comment explaining how crap the A-League is because it doesn’t have this or that. If your mildly interested in something and all you read is how shit it is are you going to bother to have a further look?
November 26th 2009 @ 10:48am
Football said | November 26th 2009 @ 10:48am | Report comment
RL people still talk of the great Parra side of the early 80′s, the Canberra team of the late 80′s & the Bronco’s team of the mid nineties.
During this period great rivalries were built which last to today & we have an annual retro week to remember them. To suggest Australians dont want to see great footbal teams raising the standard, being innovative & produceing great performances is absurd.
November 26th 2009 @ 11:23am
LT80 said | November 26th 2009 @ 11:23am | Report comment
Good point. And rugby league provides one of the greatest examples of a club dominating a competition for a long period of time, in St George’s record of 11 premierships from 1956 to 1966.
According to conventional wisdom, during this time the league must have gone to wrack and ruin as supporters left in droves, turned off by this predictable and boring domination.
Was this the case? No, actually both aggregate and average attendance both showed steady growth over this time.
November 27th 2009 @ 6:33am
Mr cheese said | November 27th 2009 @ 6:33am | Report comment
But the Canberra team of the late 80s was the best RL team in the world ( I suppose…).
Australia will never have an AC Milan or an Inter.
It’s a bit like The Tour Down Under.
They’re spending zillions on getting Lance to take part, but the TDU will never be a great event because it ain’t in Europe. The big bike races all happen in Europe, whether you like it or not.
November 26th 2009 @ 10:59am
Midfielder said | November 26th 2009 @ 10:59am | Report comment
Tow
Welcome back… and as always well wreitten and yours points have made me think…
My only concern in the free market approach is right now all the clubs are so small and just starting out….Plus we are internally in a very difficult position as other codes have well entrenched fans, media and income…could some go broke in attempting to win a competition…
November 26th 2009 @ 11:18am
Pippinu said | November 26th 2009 @ 11:18am | Report comment
This is one thing we know for sure (from over a century of other domestic leagues here in Australia, and even watching leagues overseas) – clubs will go abslutely broke trying to win silverware.
All this talk actually reminds me of an article I put up before the start of the current A-League season in which I argued replacing the financial salary cap with age restrictions (on top of 5 foreign players, being allowed to have only 10 players aged over 21):
http://www.theroar.com.au/2009/06/04/the-future-of-the-salary-cap-in-the-a-league/