Football Federation Victoria is once again leading the way for innovation and engagement within the football community. Following the success of the Mirabella Cup, the FFV along with Pelada have combined to form a statewide knockout-style tournament for the women’s game.
The subsequent cup competition will commence in 2012 and will be known as the Pelada Cup.
The Pelada Cup will follow in the footsteps of the Mirabella Cup and will be run in a similar vein, with an obvious knockout format, whilst clubs from around Victoria will be seeded according to their respective league ranking.
In contrast to the male’s version, the Pelada Cup will accordingly be more precise with fewer teams in the female game. Therefore, each game will have an exuberance of importance, with fewer rounds to reach the pinnacle stages of the competition.
To be eligible for participation, clubs must enroll a women’s senior team. The dates and format of the cup have not been officially revealed thus far, however the FFV have stated that the cup will be of a ‘similar format’ in correspondence to the Mirabella Cup.
The Pelada Cup will be the inaugural cup competition for women’s football within Victoria.
In an exciting twist, clubs will be dealt with the task of participating in two competitions simultaneously, league and cup respectively, a duty more widespread in men’s football.
The women’s game has grown in leaps and bounds over the last few years, as witnessed with growing participation rates and evidently a new division for the women’s seniors, amid upward trends in team registrations.
With the Pelada Cup coming into the Victorian football landscape from 2012, it gives further evidence into how the FFV hold the desire to grow, nurture and develop women’s football throughout the state.
The potential publicised by the women’s game was recently illustrated at the women’s World Cup in Germany. For the second consecutive World Cup the Matildas exemplified their worthy talent by making the quarter finals, this following their triumph at the 2010 Asian Cup.
The Pelada Cup will undoubtedly assist in the promotion of the women’s game and additionally help expand the code into different regions throughout the state.
FFV CEO Mark Rendell is an avid supporter of women’s football and believes the progression of the female version has gone from strength to strength over the last few years, with a wealth of prospective talent waiting at our doorstep.
“With the keen interest shown in the Mirabella Cup, it was a natural progression to extend it to our thriving women’s competition,” Rendell told the FFV website.
“The addition of the Pelada Cup to the women’s schedule reinforces FFV’s stance on the continued development and promotion of women’s football in Victoria.”
With all due respect, female sport has often played second fiddle to their male counter-part in many avenues.
However, the FFV has demonstrated their ability to promote women’s football and not let it cast in the shadows of their male equivalents.
The Pelada Cup is a wonderful initiative for women’s football and will further enhance the growing reputation of community football within Victoria.
An exciting chapter for women’s football is upon us, with an exuberance of optimism surrounding the women’s game.
Let’s hope the Pelada Cup can mirror the growing sensation of the Mirabella Cup and reinforce its threshold within the community.
Follow Robert on Twitter @RobertDiFabio. Courtesy of Goal Weekly.
Boman
Guest
Maybe we could get the FFV to replace the FFA? Melbcro,you sound awfully bitter,miss out on a spot on the FFV board perhaps? -- Comment left via The Roar's iPhone app. Download The Roar's iPhone App in the App Store here.
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
@ Ian Syson You are very knowledgeable in relation to the history of Football in Australia so, perhaps, you can tell us: was the Dockerty Cup open to all Football Clubs right across Victoria, as the Mirabella Cup? In relation to coverage of Victorian football in the newspapers - surely, the FFV has ZERO control over what is printed in the News Ltd or Fairfax print media? I continue to be amazed if I hear of anyone buying a general newspaper in Australia in the 21st century. Why would people waste their money (must be around $800 per annum for a daily paper?) when the same news is available - for FREE - on the internet/mobile phone 24x7x365 as it occurs?
Ian Syson
Guest
1909, not 1904. But I agree with your point that getting rid of something and then bringing it back while being an example of doing something is not really doing much. An example of doing something would be making sure that soccer results made it to the newspapers in Melbourne. The coverage of Victorian club soccer in this period (under the Age sports editorship of Dan Silkstone and before him David Dick) is the worst it has ever been. Even in the 1880s club soccer got more of a run in the main papers.
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
@ MelbCro Was the Dockerty Cup open to all football clubs across the whole of Victoria? I played for Provisional League & Amateur league clubs in the 1980 & 90s. I don't recall ANY of the clubs where I played being invited to participate the Dockerty Cup.
MelbCro
Guest
pretty sure I didn't say that at all, Fussball you are the one suggessting that the Mirabella Cup constitutes something meaningful and a move forward. Don't see how a cup competition that existed back in 1904 is in anyway doing something for the game in Victoria. The fact there is another government enquiry coming which will specifically target the state federation proves that your beloved FFA agrees that the FFV is sick to the core
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
Ok, so now you're changing your tune from "FFV is doing nothing" to "FFV is doing stuff, but I'm not excited by, or interested in, the stuff they're doing". In life I've found there are broadly 2 types of people: a) those, who want things done better and will roll up their sleeves and do something; and b) those, who want things done better but simply sit on the couch and complain. Seems to me, football has a lot of the Type (b) personalities.
Nathan of Perth
Guest
Just thought I'd mention this coming weekend is the Quarter-Finals of the FootballWest Women's Cup :)
MelbCro
Guest
The whole organisation needs to be overhauled. The structure of the FFV does not work and the people in place at the moment need to go. Nothing can be done until this happens
Stevo
Guest
MelbCro, your anger is evident and leaps off the page. Anything in particular you reckon should be done to fix FFV or is it a lost cause? When did football in Victoria lose its way?
MelbCro
Guest
Pretty sure a state-wide cup competition is not new to Victoria or other states in Australia. The FFV disbanded the state competition the 'dockerty Cup' in 1996 after it had been run annually since 1904 (except for the WW1 years). The FFV bringing back a competition that they themselves got rid of 15 years ago is hardly something to be proud of The Mirabella Cup itself was only announced a week before the start of the VPL (which is pathetic), a hastily put together competition that has been run very poorly. The fixturing has been truly horrible due to the FFV announcing it so late. And seriously how does a cup competition prove anything about the FFV actually doing anything meaningful? Its window dressing at best.
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
"The FFV does nothing for the game except revenue raising, that has become its sole purpose." ... but, Robbie has just reported that "the FFV along with Pelada have combined to form a statewide knockout-style tournament for the women’s game"! And, less than 12 months' ago, the FFV & Joe Mirabella combined to form a statewide knockout-style tournament for the men's game. I respect your knowledge of the local football landscape in Victoria - it's far greater than mine and it's great for me to learn from people, who are intimately involved with the local game in Victoria - but, from the outsider, it sounds like the FFV IS doing something. Maybe, the FFV can do more but let's applaud this initiative - or, are you also against this initiative?
MelbCro
Guest
You assume that the FFV is capable of addressing issues that face the game in Victoria. The FFV does nothing for the game except revenue raising, that has become its sole purpose. The organisation is worse than the old Soccer Australia, incompetent and dare I say corrupt. As such the FFV should not implement anything, its time is up. The whole organistaion needs to be overhauled, even dismantled and replaced. Hopefully the new government enquiry will actually make that happen
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
@ MelbCro Have you got specific issues you would like addressed and would you care to share those issues with us? In order to make you happy, what are the 5 things you would like the FFV to implement: a) in the next 12 months; and b) in the next 5 years?
MelbCro
Guest
"Football Federation Victoria is once again leading the way for innovation and engagement within the football community." You've got to be kidding me, the FFV are a joke
Fussball ist unser leben
Roar Guru
Wow ... what an excellent initiative from FFV! Hopefully, this should quieten (if that's possible) all the whingers, who constantly complain about the way football is being administered in Australia. The evolution of the women's game in Australia is going to be breath-taking. Whilst other sports only concentrate on getting women to watch their sport, in football we understand that active participation is much more important than passive observing. Active participation not only produces a healthier individual, but it also builds the foundation for a knowledgeable and loyal future stakeholder in the Game. Another tangible piece of evidence to suggest ... the Football landscape in Australia has NEVER looked rosier.