The sheer vastness of our country, let’s face it, is going to make any national second division in football a complex beast.
In order to build the A-League from 12 teams to 16 teams, the existing NPL finals series should be used as the mechanism by which to promote four worthy teams into the top division.
Once we have 16 teams, a relegation playoff between the bottom four A-League teams should be contested, with the loser playing the winner of the NPL finals series in a winner-takes-all game for a spot in the A-League.
NPL state leagues
Currently there are 94 clubs competing in the eight NPL state leagues. Once you trim off the A-League youth squads, that comes down to 90 clubs across the country potentially fighting it out for a spot in the A-League. The first bit of housekeeping to be done would be to standardise the leagues somewhat, perhaps trimming it down to ten-12 clubs per league, or 80 in total.
Additionally, all competitions should be standardised so that the winner of each respective state league finals series is granted entry to the NPL national finals series, with each first-past-the-post winner receiving automatic entry to the FFA Cup round of 64.
(Photo by Albert Perez/Getty Images)
To determine each local champion, a one-versus-four, two-versus-three semi, and then a final should be played in each league, for a total of 24 games. Each winner should also be granted automatic entry to the FFA Cup round of 64, with the runner up granted entry if the first-past-the-point winner and the local finals series winner are the same team (there would therefore be 16 FFA Cup round of 64 spots awarded across the eight leagues).
NPL national finals series
Once you have crowned eight local champions, the next phase would be to contest an NPL national finals series. This competition already exists, and all that I would change with it would be a two-leg fixture for the semi-finals. I think there would be a significance to this extra game, as it is just a way of stress-testing travel demands for the NPL clubs at least a little bit. If a team is unable to play a midweek fixture at home, and then travel away (to wherever in the country) that weekend for the second leg, then a fully national second division has no hope.
The winner of the NPL national finals series for the first four iterations would be granted promotion to the A-League, provided they met any off-field metrics set by the FFA. Looking at the last few winners (and runner-ups) of the NPL national finals series, teams like Sydney United, Heidelberg United, Wollongong Wolves (or Lions FC as a runner-up example) would not look out of place in the A-League and create some cracking derbies.
This means that to get in, the successful team would have had to go on a bit of a cup run, first winning two finals in their local league, and then three legs in the national finals. Very compelling stuff and totally stream-worthy.
A-League
The A-League would then start to have new teams promoted to it, without any relegation. The finals model at the top end of the table should be a one-versus four, two-versus-three two-leg semi, and then a final. Let’s keep the finals, but reserve it for the top teams only.
Once you have 16 teams in the league via promotion from the NPL national finals series, you would then implement a relegation playoff involving the bottom four teams, 13-versus-16, 14-versus-15 with the losers playing off in a grand final. That team would then meet the winner of the NPL national finals series in a winner-takes-all promotion/relegation playoff.
(Photo by Ashley Feder/Getty Images)
This would mean that for any team to stay up, all they would need to do is finish 12th or higher, or win one of three promotion/relegation playoff games. Any existing A-League team that cannot achieve that deserves to drop to their local NPL league.
However, being that the bottom four teams will in all probability be filled with freshly promoted NPL teams, it is kind of unlikely that an existing A-League club would ever actually go down (although how exciting would it be if they did). It also means that some actual promotion and relegation is likely to occur, as it would be two potentially evenly matched NPL teams facing off in this final playoff match.
A team relegated would simply drop back to their local state league and that league might then play with one extra team for the following season. To get back up, they would need to win their state league finals series, and then the national final series, then the promotion/relegation playoff game against an A-League team.
FFA Cup
The FFA Cup should be a totally open draw, but with the 16 A-League teams and the 16 NPL state league winners/runner-ups all joining at the round of 64, with 32 qualifiers from around the country.
The FFA Cup final should be contested on the weekend prior to the A-League grand final, with the semi-finals played over two legs (one mid-week, one the following weekend) a couple of weeks before the A-League regular season concludes, with no A-League matches scheduled on the semi-final weekend.
The winner of the FFA Cup should also be granted a qualifier place in the Asian Champions League.
The culmination of each season
All of this would then set up a pretty exciting final two months to each season.
Week 1: NPL local league semis (16 games), A-League four rounds to go (eight games)
Week 2: NPL local league finals (eight games), A-League three rounds to go (eight games)
Midweek 2.5: FFA Cup semi-final first leg (two games)
Week 3: FFA Cup semi-final second leg (two games)
Week 4: NPL national quarter-final (four games), A-League two rounds to go (eight games)
Week 5: NPL national semi-final first leg (two games), A-League final round (eight games)
Midweek 5.5: NPL national semi-final second leg (two games), A-League semi-final first leg (two games), A-League relegation semi-final (two games)
Week 6: NPL national final (one game), A-League semi-final second leg (two games), A-League relegation final (one game)
Week 7: FFA Cup final (one game)
Midweek 7.5: A-League/NPL promotion/relegation playoff (one game)
Week 8: A-League grand final (one game)
(Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
That’s 79 pulsating games over eight weeks to finish each season. The final three weekends involve an NPL national final, FFA Cup final and A-League grand final (with a promotion-relegation playoff game in the mix for good measure). This would be a melting point of A-League and NPL teams, with some featuring in two competitions at once.
For ambitious NPL clubs, the path is clear. Finish top four in your state league, then win a state league finals series, then win a national league finals series, then win a promotion-relegation playoff against an A-League team, and then fight like mad forevermore to stay up. They will, through all these mechanisms, including automatic entry into the latter stages of the FFA Cup, start to gain exposure on the national stage.
This conference model is a decidedly Australian approach. Let’s embrace the vastness of our country and implement what is a 90-team second division. When the time comes that a fully national second division is viable, it would slot straight in between the NPL national finals series (used to promote teams to the new second division) and the A-League. But in the meantime, we can start to build an integrated football pyramid that rewards performance.
Taking out NPL regular season matches, the proposed FFA OTT platform would then have some 400 games a season to potentially show (although perhaps say 300 are televised only) across the A-League regular season, A-League finals series, NPL state and national finals and promotion/relegation playoffs, as well as a cup competition and Asian Champions League tournament.
That’s roughly ten-12 games a week over a nine-month season, which does not even include Socceroos and Matildas matches!
Bez
Guest
North and Central Queensland really should have their own NPL competition. The ACT competition should probably be renamed something like 'NPL Riverina/Sapphire Coast' and include all the clubs in that region.
At work
Roar Rookie
Or preferably the winner of the league goes up, and then the 2nd promoted spot is played out in a 'final' between the 2nd and 3rd ranked teams, similar to how the Championship is structured.
At work
Roar Rookie
Thanks for taking the time out and putting forward a well thought out system. Although, I don't support what would effectively be a 2nd division which is broken up into all the state based NPL's. It would spread the talent way too thin (between as you say ~90 teams). The 2nd division needs to be 14-18 teams which would contain much stronger squads in terms of playing talent, and hence when a club is promoted they would have a much higher chance of surviving in the A League. With the conference system I feel the promoted team would make the current Mariners team look good. I also think the system for promotion should be much more straight forward, once again going against a conference system.
lesterlike
Roar Rookie
Yeah and if there was relegation, the salary cap would not exist and MV wouldn't have to spend the same amount as the spud teams meaning it would be rare for them to be in this position.
Box
Roar Rookie
Who cares what a Melb Victory fan would think. Football is and always should be bigger than 1 club or group of clubs. Do what’s right for football, not what is good for the current A-league franchises. P/R has to be bought in to this country before anyone will take the competition seriously and align it with Asia and grassroots football and we will finally be headed in the right direction. Giving into vested interest has killed football in this country forever from NSL days until now. When will football finally do what is right for football and not for the people making the decisions. I don’t hold out much hope that the people in charge of the A-league today will get this decision right, and we will face another 10-15 years of mediocrity and declining standards of football in this country whilst the rest of Asian football takes off.
Rellum
Roar Guru
They are not 12th-16th
MarkfromCroydon
Roar Pro
Of course if the A league has finals any league below that promotes up to the A League must also have finals and decide the promoted team(s) through the finals system. It would be ridiculous to have finals for the top tier and not the tier below. The winner of the Grand Final goes up, or if 2 teams are to be promoted, both teams that make the Grand Final are promoted.
Coastyboi
Guest
Melbourne Victory are currently second-last. That’s the relegation zone.
lesterlike
Roar Rookie
"Would a Melbourne Victory fan support P&R? Probably not." Uhh I'm a victory fan and I'm 100% for it. The chances of MV being relegated in an open system are rare but if it did happen, sure it would hurt, but the prospect of some real serious derbies like South Melbourne or Knights away would be hugely exciting for fans. Actual Football fans understand how P/R works, it's part of our culture. They are hardly going to walk away due to not relating to the concept.
Nick Symonds
Guest
NEWS: Mariners threaten legal fight with Football NSW over alleged promotion snub Central Coast Mariners owner Mike Charlesworth has accused Football NSW of flouting FIFA edicts and “natural justice” in opting to hand an NPL1 spot to Western Sydney Wanderers at the expense of the likes of the Mariners Academy side. - It’s understood Football NSW were urged by national team coach Graham Arnold to promote all the state’s A-League academy teams to the top tier to provide budding Olyroos and Young Socceroos with regular game time at an elevated level. However, when the Sharks pulled out for financial reasons in midweek, it was the Wanderers who were allegedly handed an invite - even though they trailed second placed Mariners on last season’s ladder, losing to them 5-0 and 1-0 along the way. “For me it’s not just the damage to our academy and the prospect of losing our best young players to the Wanderers, it’s what it says about the governance structures which can allow something like this to happen,” said Charlesworth. - https://theworldgame.sbs.com.au/mariners-threaten-legal-fight-with-football-nsw-over-alleged-promotion-snub
Waz
Roar Rookie
It can’t work, that’s the problem. FIFA would block it at the professional clubs request.
Waz
Roar Rookie
The FFA Cup though is a rotten competition. Typically with the FFA they couldn’t just set up a Cup competition they had to fix the draw and artificially generate “drama”. The best thing about COVID is it killed off the FFA Cup. Long may it rot in the halls of football stuff ups.
Waz
Roar Rookie
Sorry, ** Capital League below NPL/QPL then it’s the City Leagues ... brain fried in the sun watching Miniroos this morning .... and each zone in QLD has an equivalent to the Capital League
Jack Russell
Roar Guru
That was exactly how the FFA Cup was sold, but the reality was completely different. An occasional success story of a local club getting a couple of thousand to a game is more than balanced by the wide ranging apathy of most fans who aren't particularly interested in seeing their team play a minnow. Although there isn't much to lose at this point, I grant you. Except quite a bit of money of course.
Beni Iniesta
Guest
Well done. This is easily the most realistic and workable solution to an A-League Second Division I've ever seen on The Roar. In contrast to every other single model I've ever seen - this could actually work as a stepping stone. Well done. You should have already sent this to the FFA, all A-League and NPL clubs - you don't want someone stealing your idea, tweaking it a little bit, and claiming it as their own!
Waz
Roar Rookie
Pro/Rel will: - boost crowds - boost viewing - boost sponsorship - boost revenues - boost interest generally There is an upside. But everything you said is true. Given the way we have sold expansion it will take time to get P/R things over the line - maybe 10 to 15 years which is more than enough time to get an NSD working (the model proposed here could then be used for pro.rel to NSD)
Jack Russell
Roar Guru
I can't see Western United and Macarthur being annoyed at all with 4 teams getting free entry to the A-League after they paid millions for the same privilege. Nor the other owners who now see the very real prospect of their multi million dollar annual investment going completely down the drain. With the massive drop in TV rights cash and an extra 4 teams to split that with, I can't see a downside at all.
Coastyboi
Guest
“Promotion” can be exciting, but, “relegation” is the elephant in the room. Would a Melbourne Victory fan support P&R? Probably not. They’ve spent years crafting their club into a powerhouse, & being relegated to an amateur league would destroy their famous brand. Imagine Macarthur or WU being dropped down a notch. The owners might as well get a refund on their licence.
Waz
Roar Rookie
North Queensland already has its own “NPL League” - below the NPL/QPL is a layer of divisions (Called “The City League” in Football Brisbane) but they are still two levels below NPL in all aspects of football.
Nick Symonds
Guest
ACT and NNSW could be rolled into NSW. Tasmania could be rolled into Victoria, or a new Tasmania United team could be created to enter into Victoria the same way that new teams from Shepparton and Wodonga were. Brisbane is closer to Melbourne than it is to Cairns, so North Queensland could have it's own NPL league rather than being rolled into NPL Queensland. A new team from Darwin could compete in either North Queensland or South Australia.