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The last round of the regular A-League season is a scriptwriter’s dream; five teams are separated by three points and all still have a chance of claiming second place behind runaway minor premiers the Brisbane Roar.
Every game in the final round has the potential to influence the final make-up of the top six – or they would have if the FFA had scheduled all games to kick off at the same time.
Surely, it’s time to grow up? I realise there are TV rights implications involved but, as it stands, the Sunday afternoon game between Sydney FC and Perth Glory risks being a non-event if results of the preceding games go a certain way.
Wins to the Western Sydney Wanderers (versus Melbourne Heart), the Central Coast Mariners (versus Brisbane), Adelaide United (versus Newcastle) and Melbourne Victory (versus Wellington) will mean Sydney FC cannot move up or down from sixth spot on the ladder.
If he wishes, Sydney FC coach Frank Farina could play the youth team against the Glory and rest his players ahead of the following week’s semi-final if results pan out that way.
Sydney FC could be handed a massive advantage by the time the other games have been decided, an advantage they would not have if the games all kicked off at the same time. Conversely, the Sky Blues might find themselves playing for second place if those results are all reversed.
In fact, if Newcastle beat Adelaide by four goals, Sydney could find themselves in the situation of claiming second spot with a win, or missing out on the finals altogether with a loss.
Surely Fox Sports and SBS could combine their various channels and Viewer’s Choice options to have all five games broadcast simultaneously. Let’s say a 5.00pm Sunday kick-off for all games (3.00pm in Wellington), with the main two games on the two main channels.
The other three could be offered via the Viewer’s Choice platform or, if we were really lucky, spread them over the other Fox channels (hell, there was an A-League game on the Speed Channel last week – maybe the away team arrived in NASCARS rather than a team bus!)
The main channels could have score updates in the corner of the screen as they happened, with a “live” ladder for every score change. Fans would go through an emotional rollercoaster at the grounds as scores from other games filtered through, having a direct affect on the game they are attending.
Of course, none of this is a new concept to fans who have seen this very scenario play out in the major leagues of Europe. No one will forget the finish to the English Premier League two seasons ago when Manchester City won the title on the last day in injury time. They were unaware as to whether rivals Manchester United had won their game at Sunderland or not.
The final A-League round could become a major event and this season would have been the perfect platform for it to happen. Even though I suggested Sunday 5.00pm as the ideal time, it doesn’t matter when the A-League decided to have the final round kick off. I realise there may be logistics around clashes with other TV sporting commitments (AFL, NRL and Super Rugby are all in full swing) but there are enough channel options so everyone’s tastes are catered to.
A simultaneous final-round kick off also ensures a level playing field for every club, something stadium ground staff are struggling to provide currently. Let’s hope the 2015 season corrects this glaring fault.
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