Let the shots at the Socceroos begin

+1. (Adding to Ben's comment)A piece trying to incite a reaction from non-zealots. Also not sure which school you went to, but your idea of a simile is way off. As the name implies, it's a phrase intended to accentuate similarities. 'Thick as a brick' is one that comes to mind. Not sure why.

"I have nothing against soccer, just dont get in my way while league is on, hehe." Interesting you mentioned this statement Oikee, because I have a feeling that the FFA is going to test the waters a bit here. Right now as it stands the A-league season is too short. Ideally it should kick off the first week straight after the NRL GF and run until late May/early June. Well thats what I would like to see anyway. This season they will kick off the start of the comp a few weeks later only to make sure our season ends closer to the World Cup but believe me when I say the FFA will start to encroach more into the NRL season and their might be a bit more conflict and scheduling issues to contend with. Let see what happens.

I find 'Eurosnobs' hold similar attitudes also. "So we made it to the World Cup, we'll get smashed though, now excuse while I go back to watching Chelsea press conferences".

Enjoy the game tonight mate! I shall enjoy Rio if I get there.

You are 100% right Ben and I agree with you, it's time to move past it. I am just pointing out to Nick that there is a reason and a history and it is real. I have felt the hurt, insecurity and bitterness in the past but for the game to prosper we need to get past it to confidence, pleasure and acceptance, as many such as yourself have already done..

Are we all supposed to comment or just lay under our beds frightened. I have nothing against soccer, just dont get in my way while league is on, hehe. League and soccer can sit nicely together, lets pick on rugby for ripping up the playing surfaces with there tubby boy worldclass athletes scrums, hehe. They need a ex league player (Falou) to score their tries. I could go on for hours,. I dont watch soccer, but i do enjoy people loving it, let them live, let them go to Rio, leave me alone here with just my rugby league and a few stubbies, in beautiful queensland., hehe. . Quick fact, Rio and Brisbane sit on the same lattitude, so we have similar weather. Cheers lads.

Yes probably Titus. Even from 2000 onwards I have witnessed a lot of backwardness here so I can only imagine how it was before in some part of the country for people who loved football or anything which wasn't seen as 'Aussie' (as Kane describes ). . Tbh I don't spend much time with bogans who see anything coming from outside Australia as threatening or 'wrong' that's why I don't feel the negativity you and others here feel or have felt. My little advice would be to change your circle of friends (well acquaintances really) if possible. I think there are enough tolerant Aussies these days (like Ben or others) or new Aussies like me who do not judge Aussies who like football negatively. You might even be invited to try some good cheese, real bread and good sausages so it's a win win situation for you really!

I was there in the 80's & 90's. But then I moved to various developing nations for work and saw football in many different shapes and sizes. I realised that actually football administration in Australia isn't that bad, despite what we may believe. Then with the advent of the A-League and World Cup appearances I felt a sense of confidence in the local product. I just don't feel the insecurity and angst many others do. I have confidence in the game and could not give a rats about those who denigrate it. In the end the insecurity isn't justified anymore.

Indeed Titus. The 'what are we all reacting to' argument is an naive one in my opinion and motivated by either anti-football sentiment and/or ignorance of where the game has come from. Bottom line is that we have got the egg-ball foot off our throat, we have got off the mat, onto our knees and are now upright and learning to stand tall (thank you David Gallop). I completely understand and accept this as a natural response to the issues outlined by Jonny Warren and that there is still much to be done. Our next step is to walk and then run. Only then will I stop caring about, responding to and/or questioning the motives of those who have so long sought to deny our game its inherent right to exist, survive and thrive. I could not care less what the rest of you think. I am playing a long game because football deserves no less.

Evan - I do remember Sydney City well & there is a story behind their withdrawal that has very little, if anything, to do with their attendances which were perhaps the worst in the NSL during those 10 years.The behind the scenes story is of a political nature & was the reason we lost the "architect" of our present HAL,one Frank Lowy,out of the game for nearly 20 years. so you see City were still by far the best performers in the NSL & who knows what they would have achieved if the political infighting hadn't occurred.We'll never know. Your second offering into an analysis of the " two conference" system was just another example of to where the management of football in Australia had sunk, for all they were listening to was the pleading wails from individual clubs who were demanding entry into the league.Some wise guy (who will probably be in football's hall of fame) came up with this cockeyed idea of how the game could be made more popular all around the country. Let everyone who wanted a place come in & all their fans will follow. No thought was given to the standard the game had reached in the NSL by the 10 year mark but another 160 players were allowed in overnight to dilute that standard & I honestly believe that was the beginning of the end for the NSL. despite the fact it lasted another 20 years in a slowly dying format. Who did we get back to save the code???? The same Mr Frank Lowy who had left 20 years before!!!!. Is the HAL a better concept than the NSL?, you'd better believe it. I think you will find Mr Lowy will ensure it stays that way. Cheers mate jb

Amen brother!!!

Re the northern championship during the conferece system. To my mind that was barely more than a glorified NSWPL as all the teams were from Sydney barring Canbera City, Inter Monaro, Woolongong Wolves and Newcastle Rosebud. If winning the conference can be counted an achievement then surely the southern conference which had teams from Melbourne Adelaide and Brisbane can be couned as a higer achievment? No plane travel for the likes of Sydney City, St George and Sydney Olympic but plenty of travel for Melbourne Croatia, Heidelberg, South Melbourne, Adelaide City and Brisbane Lions and City in particular.

Yep was aware of Sydney City's achievments inn the nsl but considered South Melbourne to take precedence over them because they still exist and were able to maintain a position in the NSL much longer than Sydney City and because of the support as well. I am too young to really remember Sydney City but my understanding was that they barely got crowds in the 4 figure mark?

"I thought you would understand such a concept having played for a team called the Wallabies or did you think you were going to be playing with a group of small Australian marsupials when you were first called up?" gold!

Agree yep we have to wait our turn behind our friends/rivals from the north :) Would be fab to see them do well in 2014, top four for them?

Careful Evan, in the first 7 years of NSL Sydney City (under it's various names) won the title 4 times, finished 2nd twice,& 3rd once. The league was then split into two "conferences" & in the next 2 years they won the "Northern" championship twice. So in 9 years they won 6 championships,got two 2nds & one 3rd.As you probably remember the club was withdrawn from the NSL in their 10th season so it is a record that would be hard to beat. I know you were talking Grand Finals but as you are also aware many football fans rate winning a championship a far harder thing to achieve than winning a GF. Cheers. jb