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It’s three months since the end of the A-League season, and a typical reply from an AFL fanatic in Melbourne is, “who gives a damn”. For rugby league, they are united in the wake of the scandal.
Union fans are eagerly anticipating the arrival of the Rebels, and enjoying the recent Tests.
The majority of football fans, however, often give a response of “oh, I don’t watch the A-League.”
Strange, especially considering we’re home to the best team in the league. In the back of my head, I wonder if the A-League knows this, with the Melbourne Heart and Sydney Rovers joining the competition over the next two seasons, and more predicted expansion.
Going down to Geelong with friends for matches at Skilled, and to Canberra on a school trip, the opposite seems to be true. Many Geelong fans wish the Heart were coming to them, and Canberra wishes they were getting the Rovers.
Official interest has also come from the Illawarra region in NSW. This is also the case for Tasmania – both Hobart and Launceston have expressed interest.
New Zealand relatives in Auckland tell me that both they, and Canterbury on the South Island, want a team.
If the FFA were to award six new licenses between all interested parties, the number of teams would go up to eighteen. But, honestly, is it really a case of populate or perish? A situation of I want what you’ve got, rather than this city/region needs or wants a team for the purpose of its fans and region?
The A-League will probably not collapse, there are too many fans – especially in hubs such as Sydney and Melbourne. But is the policy of expansion really the right choice for a league which is only five years old?
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