It’s a story that just won’t go away. South Melbourne want to buy, Melbourne Heart and the Central Coast aren’t interested in selling, and fans around the country remain divided over the limits of inclusion for certain football clubs in the A-League.
Whether there is merit to South Melbourne joining the A-League is not really the issue here. The owners of Melbourne Heart, to the best of our knowledge, have refused the $3.5 million offer, as well as other offers from overseas consortiums.
That should have been the end of it. But the fact that discussion continues to rage says much about the culture of the game here in Australia.
It’s an issue that clearly transcends the finer details of whether or not South Melbourne are actually granted an A-League license.
Indeed, South Melbourne’s overtures to Melbourne Heart poses a delicate question that must be addressed eventually by both fans and administrators. That is, what is the role of these historic clubs going forward?
Whether you followed the NSL or not, it must be said that these clubs carried the game throughout the last century. Without the effort, ingenuity and passion of these so-called ‘ethnic’ clubs, football is this country would be in a far poorer state.
There is an argument that suggests the strident involvement of migrants ghettoised football, and turned mainstream Australia away from the sport. To some extent, that might be true.
But here’s the kicker – that ghettoisation says more about Australia’s attitude to perceived ‘foreign elements’ than it does about the Italians, Hungarians, Greeks and other European migrants who became involved in the game.
Our insularity is nothing to be proud of, and our collective memory shouldn’t perpetuate outdated stereotypes.
All over the world, football wedges people over issues of class, race, ethnicity or geography. Here, class-based rivalries have developed in rugby league and Australian Rules. But while Australians can handle the Silvertails against the Fibros, nothing strikes fear into our hearts more than ‘ethnic’ tensions.
While there were a few sporadic moments of violence over the course of the competition’s history, we too often remember the NSL for its perceived ‘ethnic’ problems. But this is looking at the issue backwards.
That mainstream Australia so readily cast the game aside as ‘wogball’ is sadly telling.
It won’t be a popular argument. We Australians hate being told about our own history of racism and xenophobia.
Nothing riles the Australian character more than being forced to remember the difficult bits of our own past. It’s far easier to just blame the victim.
And so we do. Ethnics forced us to ignore the football, ethnics didn’t want us to be involved in their clubs, ethnics were too busy chanting fascist slogans at each other, or fighting over the sovereignty of a piece of land thousands of miles away, then to get on with the job of trying to be like us.
Attitudes and culture, it seems, take far longer to change than public policy. The sceptre of assimilation has continued long after the introduction of multiculturalism during the late 1960s and early 1970s.
These days, it’s often said that football truly represents Australia. It’s put forward by the round-ball evangelists, but like all slogans, it’s light on detail.
The truth is that football can be particularly illustrative of Australia – but not always for the most positive reasons.
Which brings us to the present day. After several years of licking their wounds, many of the old NSL clubs are getting on with the task of making sure that their clubs remain conveyor belts of talent.
As we speak, the final touches are being put on a new artificial pitch at Edensor Park, while work will soon begin on a new artificial pitch and stadium upgrade at Lambert Park in Leichhardt.
The launch of the National Premier Leagues has energised the lower tiers of football in Australia, and hopes are high at many State League clubs.
There was plenty of excited chatter about the prospects of promotion and relegation earlier this year, and now the Trojan horse claims it’s packed and ready to enter the A-League.
But are they wanted? Currently, there isn’t a way in, with no licenses available and expansion put on the back-burner by the FFA.
More importantly, there are very few, if any, State League clubs that could actually make the step up to A-League, considering the huge costs involved in operating a successful franchise.
Indeed, it was just as much cost as it was ethnicity which ostracised NSL clubs in the early days of the A-League.
Apart from the privately owned Perth Glory and Adelaide United, few could quickly and easily raise the necessary funds. As Michael Lynch commented in 2009,
“Most of them lacked the sufficient capital to take the sport to the next level. Their contribution was vital – but to move on, the game had to move beyond these boundaries.”
But what happens if South Melbourne, or Marconi, or any other club can afford to compete? What limits are we going to set on their aspirations, and why?
Consensus is unlikely to be reached any time soon. The squabbles will continue. Watch them closely. Terms like ‘multiculturalism’, ‘integration’, ‘racism’, ‘community’ and ‘nationalism’ will continue to be raised, both to promote and denigrate South Melbourne’s cause.
Few other sports in Australia are this fragmented over such emotive issues. It might not always be pretty, but it’s one of the reasons why football is such a fascinating game.
Floyd Calhoun
Guest
Nearly all the Aussies of Greek heritage I've known over the years from my time in Mildura & Melbourne go for Collingwood or Richmond. Yeah, I know, SM Hellas in some cases too. What about Heidelberg in the old NSL as well? Or was that Macedonian?
Dominic
Guest
South Melbourne had earned its position at the top of Australian football prior to the launch of the A League. They were the most successful team in the national football landscape. What have current teams such as Victory and Heart, franchises bereft of any history, done to earn their place? Are a few businessmen coming together to buy a licence earning anything? I have refused to follow the A League because it is a contrived and soulless competition. The teams of the NSL had their faults. The league needed reinvention. This I agree with. But the manner in which teams such as South were dumped unceremoniously broke my heart. If South could hold onto the diverse, if small, membership Heart has established I see no reason why they could not at least double it with many people in Melbourne, Greeks and otherwise, who have become disengaged with the league as it stands. With Lakeside stadium redeveloped and ready to host 15,000+ each week a return to a ground, with history and atmosphere will be a welcome addition to the league, adding heart and soul to a competition in desperate need of it.
Mice
Guest
No I did not have a team called Victory and dumped them. I had an opportunity to go to A League games and Melbourne Victory were the closest team for me to follow. When Melbourne Heart came along I had a choice. I chose Melbourne Heart.
Savvas Tzionis
Guest
You are not very loyal!! You had a team called Victory. And then you dumped on them!
Mice
Guest
I'm not sure what the point is that you are trying to make. I followed the Victory for a few years until Heart come along. I had no engagement with the NSL and was keen to support the A League concept and prepared to support it by paying the money and going to the games. I feel more passion for Heart and will continue to be a member but if South Melbourne has anything to do with them that will be the end of my support of the A League, bar whatching the games on Friday nights TV coverage.
Myles Stedman
Roar Guru
You know, it's very easy to blame Ethnics for all this racism inside football, but it's equally as easy to blame Anglos. A "politically correct" person will generally blame themselves for the problems football faces, while a politically "incorrect" person will generally blame other cultures. But a reasonable and fair-thinking individual will most likely blame both parties for their parts in it. The fact is, these immigrants, in simple search for a better life, came to this brilliant country, and brought over their customs, notably football. Probably, they didn't particularly want us Skips involved in it, and there was no way we wanted to be involved either. As a result, 50 or so years later, we have this big stupid debate over who's fault it is that football is in the state it is in: growing, but unable to grow in some areas.
dazman
Guest
I kind of de facto supported victory just because they were from melbourne, but I only ever went to a handful of games and don't even rememer their second grand final win, and I only remember the 6-0 win against adelaide because the score was so massive. This is unrelated, but on south melbourne's membership portal, they're selling a "Hellas 100" membership for $399. Pfft, so much for being a broad-based club...
Steve
Guest
Peter, everything you said there is fine by me and I can basically agree that that's probably how things stand at the moment. I'm just very sensitive to all the racial stuff. I don't know you so I don't know if you are or are not racist in your thinking. From your reaction if guess you're not. But please don't think racism is just vicious and uninformed. It can be very subtle, institutional and even unintended. Cheers
Savvas Tzionis
Guest
I am still waiting to hear an answer from all these HEART supporters. Who did you support between the incepction the A League in 2005 and the inclusion of Melbourne Heart in 2008?
Socrates
Guest
What do Melbourne Victory stand for? What do "South Melbourne Hellas" (SMHFC) stand for? Organic push from the football fraternity? Dont you mean a push by a handful of Greek people in Melbourne trying to relive their youth . Trojan Horse, beware of greeks bearing gifts.
Kasey
Guest
How on earth could a new matchup be ‘more’ authentic than the current Melbourne derby matchup which has 9 games of history? With the upstart new boys leading the tally until MBV drew level in February this year? And didn't the Navy Blue fans enjoy finally leveling the ledger! (9 obviously pales into comparison with the 146 times Everton and Liverpool have played in the Merseyside derby) but my question stands.
MV Dave
Guest
Rubbish...anyone who has attended the Melbourne Derbies this year would call you out on that one. Apart from a GF l have never seen the Victory supporters so noisy and animated as they were after the last minute win over Heart at AAMI Park last season. They were in the ground singing for 15-20 minutes afterwards.
NUFCMVFC
Roar Guru
Agree, the MVFC vs SMFC derby will be much more authentic than the current derby,
NUFCMVFC
Roar Guru
They did have a bid Fletcher http://www.theage.com.au/news/soccer/ffa-snub-angers-south-melbourne/2008/06/06/1212259117424.html Obviously there is a lot of politics going on, the FFA in the Lowy/Buckley era didn't want a bar of it, but there alternative isn't exactly capturing the imagination of Melburnians either
Peter Wilson
Roar Guru
Gazza, I'm not saying the FFA are not aware of what's going on, I'm saying they won't approve changing the licence over to SM the way they currently run the A-League.
Peter Wilson
Roar Guru
Exactly Gazza the FFA needs to clean up some of the fans in the clubs already in the A-League, as I said in a post above.
Peter Wilson
Roar Guru
Steve, please don't label me a racist, i am seriously probably the most racially tolerant person in the room and have had first hand experience with ethnic clubs in the NSL. I appreciate that the people we are talking about including yourself are Australian, no matter their heritage, just like me and I didn't intend to say anyone involved with an NSL club is not an Australian. I don't make the rules, I'm just saying that South Melbourne won't get into the A-League at this point in time because of the FFA and the way it operates. Didn't matter what club you are the FFA have said that they are not accepting any more licence applications till 2015 at the earliest. CCM and MH have also said they are not selling their licences, so SM won't get into the A-League that way and because of the way the FFA thinks (not me) they probably wouldn't approve the deal anyway. I hope that clears it up a little, but the way this debate is going I've probably dug myself into an even bigger hole. :) Cheers
Gazza
Guest
Peter, You confuse unbecoming behaviour with ethnics and football. Individuals ruined it in the past and individuals are ruining things for the heart and victory. You cannot blame the clubs for what individuals or small groups do in the terraces. How can a club control someone if they are hellbent in ripping out seats or lighting flares.
Gazza
Guest
Not bad for a VPL club.
Gazza
Guest
Do you seriously think that the FFA was not aware of the offer to be made. Potential franchisee always needs to have the consent of the Franchisor (FFA in this case).