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Nearly 10 years have passed since the A-League was formed, and few would argue that the competition hasn’t been a resounding success. Formed after the demise of the dying NSL in 2004, the A-League has been an integral part of the rapid growth of football in Australia.
Far more commercially backed than the NSL ever was, the A-League immediately took Australian football to new heights.
The A-League’s first season saw Manchester United legend Dwight Yorke join Sydney FC and guide them to the inaugural A-League crown. The A-League has also seen fellow football legends such as Romario, Mario Jardel, David Villa, Benito Carbone and Kazuyoshi Miura grace our shores.
However, many fans will agree that the league still has one problem that needs addressing – it needs more teams. Perth Glory, Newcastle Jets and Adelaide United were the only teams that made the transition from the NSL to the newly formed A-League.
Former NSL giants including Oceania Club of the Century South Melbourne Hellas joined their respective state leagues after the demise of the NSL. Gone are the days of rivalries such South Melbourne Hellas versus Adelaide City or Melbourne Knights versus Marconi Stallions.
The first football match I ever attended was Adelaide City versus Melbourne Knights in December 2000, a pulsating contest that finished 3-2 in favour of City. Only seven years old at the time, I immediately fell in love with Adelaide City’s fans, chanting and setting off flares.
One wonders what it would do for the A-League if some of the old NSL teams were to lock horns with their A-League counterparts on a regular basis. Adelaide derby anyone? Here are five teams that would be a great addition to the A-League.
Adelaide City
South Australia Premier League side and three-time NSL champions Adelaide City enjoyed a fairytale run in this year’s inaugural FFA Cup, eliminating Asian Champions League winners Western Sydney Wanderers and progressing to the quarter finals.
There has been talk of Adelaide City gaining an A-League license in the next few years and that would do an awful lot for the game in South Australia. An Adelaide derby would be great for the city, and could potentially light it up in the same way the Crows versus Power AFL games do.
The club are of Italian origins, and were founded as Adelaide City Juventus in 1946. The club are also known as The Zebras for their Juventus-inspired black and white striped kits. NSL winners in 1986, 1992 and 1994, the club’s former players include Damian Mori, Aurelio Vidmar and Milan Ivanovic.
South Melbourne Hellas
Arguably the biggest former NSL club not to be playing in the A-League currently is South Melbourne. NSL champions in 1984, 1991, 1998 and 1999, South Melbourne also won the OFC Champions League in 1999 and competed in the 2000 FIFA Club World Cup alongside Manchester United, Vasco Da Gama and Mexican side Necaxa.
The club are also known as South Melbourne Hellas due to their Greek origins, and were named Oceania Club of the Century. Had it not been for financial difficulties at the time the A-League was forming, South Melbourne would probably have been in the A-League.
The club also has a rich history, and were managed by Hungarian legend Ferenc Puskas in the early 1990s, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time.
Melbourne Knights
NSL champions in 1994 and 1995 when a young Mark Viduka was beginning to make a name for himself, Melbourne Knights were one of Australia’s strongest clubs during the 1990s.
The club of Croatian origins boast one of the best youth academies in Australian football, and along with South Melbourne currently play their football in the Victorian Premier League. Many current or former Socceroos have been part of the Melbourne Knights, such as Adrian Leijer, Damian Mori, Sasa Ognenovski, Matthew Spiranovic and Jason Culina, as well as Australian-born Croatian international Josip Simunic.
Were the Knights to join the A-League as well as South Melbourne, we could well see the sort of derby that the A-League has been missing – a rivalry between ethnicities.
Marconi Stallions
Sydney-based side Marconi Stallions were founded by Italians in 1958, and were NSL champions in 1979, 1988, 1989 and 1993. Marconi, who currently play their football in the New South Wales Premier League, were always one of the most popular clubs in the NSL, and had a fan-base that stretched way beyond Sydney’s Italian community.
Marconi versus Sydney Olympic was also one of the NSL’s biggest and most famous rivalries. Socceroos such as Harry Kewell, Archie Thompson, Mark Schwarzer and Paul Okon have all been part of the Marconi Stallions, as well as Italian legend and former Inter Milan striker Christian Vieri.
Marconi would surely be a popular addition to the A-League were they to join, and a Marconi Stallions-Western Sydney Wanderers rivalry would definitely be a cracker.
Brisbane Strikers
Founded as Hollandia-Inala in 1957 by Dutch immigrants, but not entering the NSL as the Brisbane Strikers until 1994, the Strikers won their only NSL title in 1997, but were always regarded as one of the strongest teams in the competition.
Now playing in the Queensland National Premier League, the Strikers, much like South Melbourne, nearly created an A-League franchise in 2005, but were eventually displaced by Queensland Roar (now known as Brisbane Roar).
Because of the demise of Gold Coast United and the North Queensland Fury, it would be great to see another team from the sunshine state in the A-League, and a Brisbane derby would be quite a spectacle.
There hasn’t been much talk of the Strikers getting an A-League license anytime soon, but they would certainly be a welcome addition back to the top tier of Australian football.
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