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Melbourne City hadn’t even knocked the top off their celebratory drinks when the news came through that the FFA Cup final on November 30 would be played in Melbourne, rather than Sydney.
Better knock back a few more, then.
Sydney FC fans, players and administrators have every right to be downright pissed off – and they are.
They’ve played every game of this season’s FFA Cup away from the home.
Sydney have played in Wollongong, Perth and Canberra – the closest they came to a home game was in the quarter final against Blacktown City which ended up being played in Edensor Park, which is Western Sydney Wanderers heartland.
Melbourne City have played in away in Perth and Brisbane, before a quarter and semi final, and now the final, at AAMI Park.
FFA chief executive David Gallop explained yesterday:
“There were a number of criteria that were committed to all clubs some time ago and it included one on commercial returns from the ground, the participants ability to create atmosphere at a midweek fixture and draw a crowd.”
One can only assume that the governing body is trying to give Melbourne City a leg-up, a chance to cash in on the Tim Cahill cash-cow and breathe new life into the franchise.
Given that around 15,000 showed up the Melbourne derby on Tuesday night, when 45,000 showed up to the round two version, it’s fair to say that the “ability to create an atmosphere at a mid-week fixture and draw a crowd” wasn’t looked at too closely.
Fairfax Media is reporting that ground hire for AAMI Park was less than half the asking price of Allianz Stadium, and that the two Melbourne clubs saw this stoush coming and went ahead to negotiate a competitive rate.
Once again, the FFA has placed the dollar before the fan – it wasn’t even down to “luck of the draw”.
Sydney FC chief executive Tony Pignata said earlier in the week that he had made Sydney’s pitch to the FFA, while chairman Scott Barlow said the decision was pre-determined and a “slap in the face” to Sydney fans.
He is right.
Melbourne hosted the final last year too, when Victory beat Perth.
That time it was the Glory fans who were slapped in the face, after travelling to Adelaide for the inaugural cup final their only reward for a second consecutive appearance at the big dance was a trip to Melbourne.
Football is for the fans. And that means the fans of each and every club.
If Sydney FC win their first FFA Cup on November 30, it will be an absolutely travesty that only a small percentage of their fans got to see any of it at all.
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