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Football Australia might be steaming into the great unknown of western Sydney, but it appears as though they’ll be claiming their territory with two old mates at the helm.
Former Central Coast Mariners coach Lawrie McKinna is on his way back to Australia, after leaving his post in China, and told the Sportsline program on Sky News last night that he’d be extremely interested in being involved with the latest expansion venture.
What still isn’t certain is exactly what role McKinna would play if hired. His name has been thrown around as a potential coach, but it seems like a director of football position appears more likely.
The odds are shortening that he’ll be joined at the club by the current head of the A-League Lyall Gorman.
Gorman and McKinna joined forces in season one of the competition with great success.
The two had six months to build a squad, coaching and back room staff. The end result was a narrow loss to Sydney FC in the A-League grand final.
McKinna has family ties to the region and also spent most of his time in Australia in Sydney’s west as a player and manager.
After spending time furthering his football education in Asia, he’s also known to be keen to return to the game in Australia.
It’s believed Gorman is contemplating standing down from his role at head office to take control of the club with FFA desperate to get this expansion move right.
They’re all too aware about the need to build a foundation that can stand even the toughest tests.
Past experience has told them that early mistakes in any area of initial operations can be fatal.
Gorman will continue the listening tour with the second of the fan forums to be held in Parramatta tonight with another at the Rooty Hill RSL on Thursday.
McKinna has also been keeping a close eye on proceedings from Asia.
The regular twitter user has been urging fans in recent weeks to get along to the forums and become a part of the building process.
FFA has been heavily criticised for rushing into its latest and most important expansion attempt.
At least Gorman and McKinna can draw on past experience.
Both are under no illusion as to how big the task ahead really is.
The passion for football in the region is immense, but that doesn’t guarantee success.
Harnessing that passion and converting into committed crowds will be the key.
It’s far from a sure fire way to ensure an A-League club in western Sydney will be a success, but it seems to be a step in the right direction.
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