Last night’s AFC Champions League draw could have been much worse for A-League representatives Newcastle Jets and the Central Coast Mariners.
Both clubs managed to avoid some of the genuine big guns of East Asian football, with Newcastle the only domestic champion drawn in either of the two groups.
The likes of Korean super-club Suwon Bluewings, Chinese giants Shandong Luneng and reigning Asian champions Gamba Osaka have all been avoided, as have back-to-back J. League winners Kashima Antlers.
Newcastle will instead face off against Ulsan Hyundai of the K-League, Japanese outfit Nagoya Grampus and Chinese side Beijing Guoan – who all finished third in their respective domestic leagues.
It’s a relatively weak looking group, but that’s not to say that Newcastle will go into it as favourites.
The Jets’ recent fall from grace is well documented, but they should have little to fear from an Ulsan Hyundai side that could potentially draw crowds of less than 5,000 for their midweek ACL fixtures.
A bigger concern should be Beijing Guoan, who are one of the more passionately supported clubs in Chinese football.
Much will be made of the deep pockets of Nagoya Grampus – bankrolled as they are by Toyota – but the Aichi-based side have a reputation for choking under pressure.
Their last trophy came as far back as 1999 when they lifted the Emperor’s Cup, and despite playing some effective football under Serbian coach Dragan Stojković – who is often regarded as Nagoya’s greatest ever player – Grampus stumbled badly in the race for the 2008 J. League title.
They’ve just signed livewire Brazilian striker Davi from relegated Consadole Sapporo, but the undoubted jewel in the crown is compatriot Magnum.
The tricky playmaker featured for Kawasaki Frontale in the 2007 Champions League, and along with youngster Yoshizumi Ogawa – who recently picked up the J. League’s Rookie Of The Year award – Nagoya possess a potent midfield.
Should Nagoya opt to play Champions League games out of their downtown Mizuho Athletics Stadium – instead of the high-tech Toyota Stadium – then Newcastle fans will be treated to the sight of one of Asia’s most dilapidated football venues.
I’ve been to Mizuho several times, but if there’s an even more mediocre venue in Japanese football, it’s surely Kawasaki Frontale’s antiquated Todoroki Stadium.
Last time I ventured out to Todoroki for a midweek fixture I missed the kick-off due the traffic gridlock outside the ground.
It’s so unloved that the citizens of Kawasaki recently started a petition to have it knocked down and rebuilt, but on the pitch Frontale have no such concerns.
In my opinion they should be one of the favourites to lift the Asian crown.
Last year Kawasaki scored a whopping 65 goals in the J-League – one goal less than the season before!
They possess an astonishing array of attacking talent, with rampaging North Korean striker Chong Tese about as formidable an opponent as you can get.
Lead by talismanic midfielder Kengo Nakamura, Kawasaki could have won the J. League at a canter last season were it not for a dreadful start that saw troublesome striker Hulk shipped off to Tokyo Verdy after just three games (he’s now at FC Porto), before coach Takashi Sekizuka stepped down due to health problems.
Sekizuka is back in charge for the 2009 campaign, and having qualified for the quarter-finals of the Champions League two seasons ago, the Kanagawa side are certainly one to watch.
The Mariners will at least be pleased to have drawn Korean FA Cup winners Pohang Steelers in their group, after Pohang finished fifth in the K-League last season.
Chinese outfit Tianjin Teda round out the group, and they are familiar with Australian opposition, having played Melbourne Victory in a friendly in 2007.
Nevertheless the Mariners have every right to feel confident of booking a place in the Round of 16, with the group winners and runners-up both progressing to the knock-out stage.
It won’t be easy, but the draw has been kind to both Newcastle and the Central Coast.
They’ll be determined to make the most of it, as they look to follow in the footsteps of Adelaide United in a quest for continental glory.
Kazama
Roar Guru
Another contradiction from Bin Hammam is the fact that the ACL winners don't automatically qualify for the next edition. It would have been a travesty if Gamba missed out.
Mike Tuckerman
Expert
If Cardiff City had beaten Portsmouth in last season's FA Cup final, the Welsh outfit would have received special dispensation to play in the UEFA Cup the following season. Mohammed Bin Hammam is obviously a powerful man, but it's difficult to argue that it's okay to have one rule for one confederation and a totally contradictary rule for another.
Kazama
Roar Guru
aussie_sly, Wellington are seen by MbH as an OFC team in an AFC league, so he won't admit them to the ACL. Why are they bothering with the A-League then? Because NZ doesn't have a professional league. The Phoenix are NZ's, and Oceania's, only professional outfit, so I guess they'd rather have a professional team that can't qualify for continental competition than none at all. aussie_sly: "...what would happen if clive palmer decided to set up in singapore instead of hold coast but took all aussie players and staff, would they get entry to acl? Or even same story but going to new zealand???" If that happened, then judging from MbH's comments to SBS, I'm guessing but I'd say they'd be allowed to compete in the ACL because they'd officially be Australian team simply playing their home games off-shore. Actually, they'd be allowed to have four locals playing for them as the visa players - this probably will be increased to five (the maximum # of visa players for a starting XI under FIFA's 6+5 rule) in the near future of the A-League, so then you could have teams fielding 6 Aussies and 5 Kiwis in their starting XI and be considered Australian by MbH and thus be eligible for the ACL. The Phoenix have the option of giving in to MbH's demands and becoming an Aussie club playing in NZ, and thus making all of their local players into visa players; this would allow them access to the ACL and CWC. I see that as being counter-productive though. I think the goal for the Phoenix should be to have a starting XI made up almost entirely of Kiwis, even at the expense of playing in the ACL. NZ football would benefit more in the long run.
aussie_sly
Guest
so what incentive do they have to win other than the glory it brings, i thought they were an australian club based in wellington, so why aren't they treated as such with a place in asia, also what would happen if clive palmer decided to set up in singapore instead of hold coast but took all aussie players and staff, would they get entry to acl? Or even same story but going to new zealand???
Kazama
Roar Guru
aussie_sly: " Just a question, what happens if wellington win the a-league or runners up, what do they get?" They get nada. Their spot is given to the next highest ranked team. aussie_sly: "...chelsea (after they win the UCL)..." Yes, KB, let's hope so.
Koala Bear
Guest
Towser and Sam, I am please you agree with my post .. Let's hope the Jets and CCM don't drop the ball in the promotion stakes .. The region may have to wait a long time again to see all the stars and planets align in the cosmos.. :lol: aussie_sly, "Chelsea (after they win the UCL)" ;) Yes let's hope.. ~~~~~~~~ KB
aussie_sly
Guest
go you beautiful mariners, cant wait for those late midweek nights to watch the boys slug it out for asias premier prize and hopefully a dream date with chelsea (after they win the UCL) at the CWC. Also i think the FFA should really be pushing to host the CWC and the ACL final aswell as the asian cup. Just a question, what happens if wellington win the a-league or runners up, what do they get?
Sam
Guest
KB I agree with your sentiments. That kind of thing would also work in the community oriented areas of Newcastle and Central Coast. It would also want to make young kids from the area put on a Mariners or a Jets jersey. Saying that I think that kind of thing should be being done in the a-league in general.
Towser
Guest
KB Good thoughts. The ACL is a real opportunity for areas in Australia to promote themselves overseas.
Koala Bear
Guest
What a magnificent opportunity to promote the ACL tournament in the Hunter Valley ... What is needed now, is some creative thinking to take full advantage of this ACL tournament and probably never again scenario for two clubs playing in the ACL from the Hunter Valley in the same year.. Fantastic bit of luck, if one could call it that.. Now let's hope both administrations from both clubs put their heads together to create some real incentives for both sets of supporters to travel to each others home ground .. One suggestion if I may, is that members of the clubs be given a buy one ticket get one free applied to each opposite home fixture to create greater awareness in the Hunter/Northern districts of the importance of the ACL .. A lot of promotion in shopping areas of each opposing district to attract each other's set of supporters to their home games.. Combine advertising packages to promote the coming games as a duo.. I hope this is not a wasted opportunity... And maybe little mini tournaments in the area to keep both teams match fit with local associations between the end of the HAL and start of the ACL .. Whatever it takes .... Good luck to both clubs... ;) ~~~~~~~ KB
Mike Tuckerman
Expert
Excellent points Mattay, but going into any match with the mentality that you can afford to "slip up" is a dangerous thing. Let's not forget the lesson of Sydney FC in 2007, who regarded Persik Kediri as the weakest link in their group... and then subsequently lost that crucial fixture in Indonesia. Like you say, the fact that two teams progress beyond the group stage now affords that little bit of extra leeway, but nevertheless I think that both Newcastle and Central Coast would be wary of losing any ACL group stage - irrespective of whether they can afford to or not.
Mattay
Guest
A very good draw for both Australian teams and I think we should be hopeful of at least one progressing. I disagree with others' who believe the task is tougher for Newcastle and Central Coast, than it was for Adelaide and Melbourne. The key is in the runners up spot. Take Adelaide for instance, it had Korean champions and a Chinese team, as well as a Vietnamese team. Yes, the Vietnamese could be considered 'easy beats', but they were easy beats for the Koreans and Chinese as well. One slip up and your ACL conquest was virtually over. The Runners Up spot virtually allows for a bad day. Adelaide progressed because in each tie, they got the result they required. NJ & CCM can afford to slip up, as long as they slip up to the right team (i.e. the team which will finish top). Adelaide had to fight 2 other top class teams for one spot, as opposed to NJ and CCM fighting 3 other top class teams for 2 spots. 3 into 1, or 4 into 2? I know what I'd prefer.
Midfielder
Guest
The Mariners (and Newcastle if they can turn their fans around) will add to the ACL and when finally a Sydney / Brisbans / Melbourne get into the ACL the status of the ACLwill have grown. I feel the Mariners will draw heaps of media especially from Sydney as there is closeness in distance that will allow traveling jurnos to hope in the car and drive up to Bluetounge .
Mike Tuckerman
Expert
Just a brief adjunct; late last night the fixture list dropped into my inbox via an AFC Media Release, and Nagoya Grampus will indeed be running out at Mizuho Athletics Stadium for their Champions League encounters. So don't forget to pack your umbrellas and your binoculars Jets (and Mariners) fans, because Mizuho (and Todoroki) are both surrounded by athletics tracks and are pretty much open-air.
Kazama
Roar Guru
Thanks for this article Mike, much appreciated. Before the draw I had my doubts that either the Mariners or Newcastle would get out of their groups, and though their draws could have been much worse I still think they will have a much tougher task than Adelaide, Sydney or Melbourne did of advancing to the next stage. Ok, the top two go through now, but the trade-off is that there are no weaker teams like Binh Duong that you can expect points from. I'll wait until I see who the two teams recruit before I make a final judgement. Either way, I wish them all the best and hopefully we can have two Aussie teams playing off for the ACL later on in the year.
Pippinu
Roar Guru
Each of the Australian clubs face both a South Korean and Japanese club, and neither have an ASEAN freebie in their group. As such, I would conclude that both clubs have far tougher groups than Adelaide faced and will be doing extremely well to survive their groups first time around.
The Bear
Guest
I expect Nagoya to top Newc's group and for the other group, Kawasaki. I expect that for the two Aussie teams it will be as much as a success for either of them to get out of the group...given the disarray the Jets are currently in.
NUFCMVFC
Guest
Good for Central Coast that they can look at AUFC's games against Pohand and also ask them directly what to expect From what I recall MVFC beat Teda comprehensively, but that was just after they had been promoted to the CSL I think and now they would have a different squad you would think and be a bit trickier, MVFC can still give some info Kawasaki played the 2007 edition and made it out of groups stages just before Urawa, so there should still be some DVD's lying around on how they play in continental competition, look forward to seeing some of their attacking talent Beijing Guoan only narrowly missed out progressing at Kashima Antlers expense, so despite 3rd place finish they do come across as formidable, apparently they are moving back to their revamped Workers Stadium home ground after 2 year hiatus due to the Beijing Olympics and got somethign like 30k attendances, will be interesting to see what they get midweek