- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
A double header at the SFS last weekend and only 10,000 punters turn up, and I ask myself why – why only 10,000?
Last year a great friend of mine and former Marconi player Richie Williams invited my partner and I to watch Sydney FC play Robbie Fowler and the Fury. At the time FC’s crowds were bad (not as bad as they are now but still bad) with an average of 11,000 per game and no real marquee player.
We arrived at the game just before kick-off and out the front was a Beatles cover-band playing, an old English double decker bus and one Liverpool FC legend Fowler – and what about that goal he scored… what a cracker!
That night Sydney had a crowd of over 16,000 for the first time that season, and that in my opinion is just one reason for the existence of a marquee player – atmosphere and that in turn it equals bums on seats.
This season Robbie might not be starting every match but he has played in close to all of Glory’s fixtures so far, scoring two goals as well, however it’s the impact from players like Robbie and Dwight Yorke off the field that can mean more to a club, its fans and its sponsors.
I’m a firm believer in the marquee player idea and I also believe that football as a product for the masses can profit immensely if this idea was used to its full potential. Can clubs afford not to have a “true” marquee player? I say no, and Sydney FC are a perfect example.
I know that coaches and managers look at players for their ability and skill sets in the same way administrators look at the bottom-line, however, in my opinion, the A-League is not about bring older Australian players home and putting them on marquee salary for their skills. A marquee by definition is a player that makes his or her sport sexy, puts bums on seats and sells shirts with their name splashed all over the back – and that is the difference between God (Fowler) and Nicky Carle.
Perth’s 25 per cent increase in attendances this season is the very reason all clubs should take note and use this option to their full advantage, especially in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.
On one occasion I bumped into Harry Kewell in Sydney while he was doing his photoshoot for a well known clothing brand, and he had 30-40 people crowded around yelling Harry this and Harry that, and he even managed to stop traffic on Pitt Street. Cars were pulling up and yelling “go the Socceroos” and honking their horns, even my missus got in on the act and she isn’t even from Australia – but she knew who he is (she doesn’t know the Socceroos that well, but if I got her to point out Harry or Tim she could… and that’s my point).
About four years ago the two of us and some friends from Sweden went to Craven Cottage just to see Henrik Larsson play for Manchester United against Fulham. We got to watch Ronaldo, Rooney, Giggs and Scholes, but to her and her friends the marquee on that day was Larsson – and why wouldn’t he be.
He’s one of the most recognisable football players on the globe playing for some the world’s largest clubs and that’s the key to a true marquee player.
So I ask you this; who else is a possible A-League marquee coming off contract in January or at the end of this season?
I can list a few that I think could make a very big contribution on and off the field in the A-League: Jimmy Floyd Hasselbank, Paul Scholes, Andy Carr, Lee Bowyer, Keiran Dyer, Michael Owen, Louis Saha, Sylvan Distan Erik Nevland, Danny Murphy, Daniel Cousin, George Boateng, Kevin Kilbane, Nwankwo Kanu, Kevin Phillips, James Beatie, Luis Boa Morte, Emile Heskey, Marcus Bent, Lee Carsley, Jason Roberts, Benni McCarthy, Ryan Nelson, Kevin Davis, Gavin McCann, Barry Robson, Martin Jorgensen, Cristiano Zanetti, and the list could go on and on.
Now if the FFA was serious about the marquee player system, then they would be on the phone to these players now and planning to get at least one per club for next season.
How good would it be if you had Fowler and Murphy back playing together like in old days at Liverpool, or Sydney FC’s Kofi Danning on the right wing and Luis Boa Morte on the left?
The possibilities are endless.
I personally feel that there is no “out of the box” thinking when it comes to the FFA and ideas like this just get brushed aside.
Having players like Murphy, Fowler and York in your side don’t just have effect on the fans, sponsors and the wider community, they have positive influences on their teammates.
For example, Kofi would learn things from Boa Morte that the Sydney FC staff couldn’t teach him because they don’t have that level of experience of playing 13 years in the EPL – and these are the key factors that make true marquee players priceless.
We can’t just sit and wait for the cows to come home to have an influence on the general public, we must start to look at ways we can get true marquee players to our shores as early as next year.
If we have the capability to land Fowler then we can land anyone. We have a fantastic country, lifestyle and football league, and we need to promote these points to the players to get them as excited about Australian football as we all are.
So I ask the FFA in regards to this issue: where the bloody hell are ya?
Are you the ultimate team manager? Pick your own superstar team and go head to head with other football fans for glory and cash prizes on Draftstars. Imagine what you could be buying instead. Set a deposit limit.