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It would seem that what I believe to be the biggest move from Football Federation Australia, in terms of club football, since the launch of the A-League has been missed by all and sundry. Over the weekend Michael Cockerill reported that Football Federation Australia had “set up a task force to investigate the viability of establishing a national second-tier competition within two years.”
Cockerill goes on to explain that, among other key points, the task force will look into promotion and relegation.
Personally I think it’s is a wonderful concept. In fact I think it’s absolutely necessary for the long-term success of the A-League.
The regularly mentioned ‘Battle of the Codes’ is something FFA and the A-League will always be faced with.
In my opinion the best way for the A-League to set itself apart and gain traction with the general public is by using every positive point of difference to it’s advantage.
An example of this is the recently scrapped pre-season cup. While FFA only dropped the tournament because A-League clubs weren’t keen on it, this decision has proven to be a massive boon in terms of media coverage and for fans.
The hole the pre-season tournament has left has been filled with tours from Fulham, Wolverhampton, Celtic and Shanghai Shenhua. I also understand that two other international clubs are still in negotiations to come to Australia with confirmation due in the next fortnight.
FFA didn’t realise it at the time but, by not towing the line with the NRL and AFL with a pre-season competition, it had used a point of difference with it’s rival competitions to gain valuable media exposure and breed excitement among fans.
Promotion and relegation would do a similar thing.
While the AFL media and fans would still be discussing whether a bottom four team should throw it’s last few games in hope of getting better draft picks, those who follow the A-League would be able to enjoy a run into the season where every game counts.
Imagine Sydney FC travelling to Melbourne Victory on the last match day of the season with one club vying for the title and the other for survival.
I’d rather watch that than the meaningless Carlton and Melbourne game at the end of the 2007 AFL Home and Away season.
On top of that, promotion and relegation will fend off the staleness which we saw infect season four of the A-League.
With one or two new clubs promoted to the A-League, each season squads and fixtures would get a shake up.
It would also enable FFA to bring the A-League in line with the rest of the world and drop the finals series.
The AFL and NRL need a finals series to keep excitement running because relegation and promotion aren’t possible. Nor do those competitions have the incentive of qualification for continental competitions (don’t even bother mentioning League’s world club challenge).
Meanwhile the FFA Cup, which is also under consideration by the national governing body, will fill the desire for knockout football.
Certainly there are many elements that need to be considered here and any roll out needs to be done gradually (bearing in mind the 2012 review of the Asian Champions League).
However, the thirst for these changes from the football public, and their benefits, can’t be ignored.
Lets hope FFA and this task force decide to stop expansion at 12 clubs and instead look to create a second division with relegation and promotion. One without the other is meaningless.
While this morning many are waking up for work (or calling in sick) tired from staying up to watch the end of the English Premier League, I’m hoping we can soon enjoy a similar experience at home in the A-League.
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