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A fresh new perspective for Australian football

Roar Guru
30th July, 2014
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It is now time for the FFA to look to the future for our national squad. (Image: Paul Barkley/LookPro)
Roar Guru
30th July, 2014
38

Football on a Tuesday night? At a decent hour, featuring attractive and attacking football? It’s fairytale stuff, is this real life?

Tuesday night’s opening flurry of fixtures and goals provided such a fresh take on Australian football.

I’ve always been a fan of the FA Cup tournament in the UK, it was one of my first experiences of football, and my first ever live experience, so it’s a tournament I hold close to my heart.

To see it on a local stage was a brilliant experience.

I headed out to Cromer Park on Tuesday, and really enjoyed the atmosphere. I must confess I haven’t been to an NSW Premier League match in forever, so it was a great atmospheric change.

I was genuinely surprised at the quality of football on display, the fixture between Sydney Olympic and Manly United was one of the better matches I have seen locally in a long time. Those 22 lads on that field really gave it their physical and emotional all, and it was a great match to witness.

Over the time the FFA Cup will do wonders for the Australian football landscape, it has the possibility to extend several branches to connect Australian football to more marquee international fix ups. It would be great if the winners could play against the FA Cup holders or the Copa del Rey winners sometime in the near future.

It also gives Australian youth a platform to excel themselves, which is something that was so lacking in the past. It gives local clubs exposure, funds and new supporters, and it also re-ignites the good old NSL days, with some enticing fixtures between old rivals to come.

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It always gives a footballing competition a helluva lot more credibility, and an upper-hand on rival codes, if the first season goes without a hinge. But if Tuesday night was anything to go by, then we may be in for one hell of a ride, mainly because these underdogs have what it takes to possibly match it up against our A-League clubs.

David Gallop would be sitting with a big wide grin after a more than perfect start. Every single match that took place gave us everything we craved – goals, intensity, drama, a little controversy, healthy crowds and an overall positive reaction from the press.

I think every Aussie loves a good underdog story, and I feel we will get that from the FFA Cup this season. Well, I want to believe we will. This tournament may not have any history, but the magic was there and it has a long way to go, I can’t help but feel all giddy about it all, and it can only get bigger from here.

The only downside, would be the FFA banning ethnic banners, slogans and logos, because in they all entail back to the history of these clubs. If they aren’t racially offensive, than what’s the harm in showcasing the ethnic ties, that have made these clubs who they are?

That’s just a suggestion, but overall two thumbs up to Gallop and company, you definitely have me hooked.

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