The A-League finally revealed its full fixture list for season 2021-22 and with it the murmurs on social media got louder about the big teams being heavily favoured. Let’s have a closer look.
Adelaide’s season will be defined by two months – January and March – when they will play four and three matches away respectively.
If United can pick up points during these two critical months, finals football will become a real possibility.
If they fail, then the last month of the season does offer some respite with four home matches.
It’s statistically proven, though, to have a higher chance of playing finals you need to pick up points earlier rather than later in the season.
Brisbane Roar will have a difficult start in November, before December gives them a chance to build up the points tally with three home matches.
The draw should see Brisbane accumulate more than enough points, before they end the season in April with three out of four matches away from home.
Perth Glory will experience one of the most brutal schedules in A-League history, playing only one of their first nine games at home and it looks likely they will be bottom entering Round 10 due to their horrendous schedule.
If Perth can somehow remain in touching distance, there are six games in a row at home in February and March, which will define the Glory’s season.
The three Victorian-based sides – Melbourne Victory, Melbourne City and Western United – face reasonably kind schedules, but with a couple of tricky months sandwiched in between.
(Photo by Jonathan DiMaggio/Getty Images)
The Victory should be the early competition pace setter with only one match out of their opening several interstate.
If they don’t pick up points early, they could be in trouble in the last month of the season with four interstate games.
City are favourites for the title and like the Victory, they should get off to a flyer with only one away trip during the opening two months. January and March look tough with multiple interstate trips.
Western United will know their life will be much easier with wins earlier rather than later. Their run in from January onwards is filled with lots of travelling.
All the teams playing in NSW this season – Sydney, Western Sydney, Macarthur, Newcastle, Central Coast and Wellington – will have favourable draws due to the sheer number of matches being played locally.
They will face some testing times, if they don’t take points off each other though.
Sydney FC is a team that always seems to gets a favourable draw. Their season is packed with eight Saturday night matches, which is the most out of any team in the competition this season.
(Photo by Mark Evans/Getty Images)
The draw, funnily enough, is incredibly kind to them. January has two trips in a row to Melbourne and the season finishes with two away trips. Sydney should comfortably qualify for the finals with this easy draw.
The Wanderers have been dealt a good hand with the fixtures as well, only travelling late in the season. The club’s off-field dramas might negate their easy schedule though.
Macarthur has those same off-field issues as the Wanderers, but their draw looks to be the easiest in the league.
The team that has outspent every other team in the off-season does not play two interstate games in a row at all this season and even with their dramas, a finals place should be assured.
The Newcastle Jets will know it’s better to get the points early, because if they leave it too late, February and March could be quite daunting with multiple interstate matches.
The Central Coast Mariners also have an easy draw, with February the only month that looks tough.
The Wellington Phoenix, who will be stuck playing in NSW for another season, will have the benefit of the majority of the schedule being played at ‘home’. January and March look like tough months though.
The season is only a few weeks away now and the so-called big teams will be happy with the schedule. The smaller clubs in the league might not feel the same way though.
TheSecretScout
Roar Guru
you know the reason why the draw is as it is lol, its the same bias towards NSW that the league has had from day 1. the whole FA board of directors are from NSW the APL is similar with the head also being the CEO of sydney, who coincidentally is the only CEO to constantly do media interviews. the biggest and richest state federation is NSW thats not a conspiracy theory, thats simple facts - imagine if all those people in power were from say wellington, adelaide or brisbane or perth? they'd be saying exactly the same thing non NSW fans have always said in regards to bias sydney fans use the covid excuse to justify the scheduling as well as the WA border closure. It's "big club syndrome" all they can see is the club they support, they cant see anything else - They legitimately believe this draw is ok, its not - i dont follow AFL, but after your comment i quickly skimmed the fixtures and they were playing all over the country, then you have all the leagues in europe still going ahead through covid with teams travelling sometimes twice a week. and people still have this blind faith in the APL and FA? both arent friends of anyone outside of NSW
Rodger King
Roar Rookie
@ AGO74 - You are 100% wrong. There is something that could be done, but won't be. Just as we are asking, no sorry, TELLING Wellington to relocate, lets tell the NSW teams to relocate to Perth. Problem solved. End of Nov SA opens up so the Vic teams could relocate to Adelaide. 2 hubs. Just explain to me in a rational way, why this wouldn't work. If they all relocate now, do their 14 days in Isolation and bingo, we can have a reasonable normal season. So What if the Sydney games are on a 10pm on a Saturday night on the East Coast. What is their problem?
Rodger King
Roar Rookie
No theory about it, just look at the draw, and I guarantee that even you could come up with something a lot fairer for all concerned.
Rodger King
Roar Rookie
I agree with you Mark. A simple Home and Away season isn't that hard to organise, even in the current state of COVID border closures. Both WA and Tas have come out and told the rest of Australia that they aren't ready to open up until they get their population at 90% vaccinated. Now that might be January or it may be December next year, who knows. Definitely not their governments. What is disturbing is that the AFL managed their draw and games in those two states, reasonably well. For some reason our code are unable to. With OS travelers now allowed back into the country, and SA opening up as of the 23rd November, I can't for the life of me work out why this draw is so heavily biased towards the NSW clubs. I know AA hasn't said it yet but you don't have to Einstein to work it out.
Midfielder
Roar Guru
Whats that old saying... people in glass houses...
TheSecretScout
Roar Guru
off topic i enjoy lots of things im especially enjoying all the SJW's that jumped on me being wrong (because they didnt know the truth) when i said lisa de vanna's character needs to be looked at when taking into context her claims - in particular her on and off field behaviour whilst at melbourne city and south melbourne. low and behold look at the news in the past 24 hours, there's plenty more skeletons in her closet to come out as well
jamesb
Roar Guru
Unfair on Wollongong though...
jamesb
Roar Guru
Yep, Sydney and Melbourne had to keep the country moving along during lockdown. If both cities didn't, then Australia would be in a far worst state.
Midfielder
Roar Guru
sorry https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1csaXyiv24&ab_channel=HitlerRantsParodies
Midfielder
Roar Guru
AA Through you might enjoy this…
Blood Dragon
Roar Rookie
We are hoping to have our 1st NZ game in Late January most Aussies are predicting us to get the spoon but we tend to do well when we are underestimated
Mark
Guest
There won't be a fair draw until all teams play Home and Away twice. Otherwise it's just like the AFL draw, uneven and therefore not a true reflection of a team's position on the ladder at the end of the season. In regard to travel; WA, SA, Brisbane just have to accept that until/if a second team is put in those cities. I really don't understand why they cannot make the season longer with playing each team twice. Surely the broadcaster 10 paramount would be in on that?
Dibbs
Roar Rookie
Initially i wasn't too happy with Perth's draw, 8 away games in a row is pretty extreme, but I'm understanding that it's more than just east-coast bias. The AFL made the season work better for the Perth teams, but they had more options: 2 teams in Perth so travelling teams could stay on and play them both, and with AFL's popularity, Melbourne teams could play each other in Perth to a packed statdium (MacArthur v. Melborne City in Perth would probably not even make triple figures). Those options aren't available to the A-league so i don't think this draw is unfair, and they seem to have a lot of Saturday night games which make sense with the Sturridge signing. Anything like this does seem like bias to a Perth fan though, which is understandable considering the neglect and misfortune Perth as a city and a club have had in the past (almost 20 years without a Socceroos game, no Asian Cup games, no home ACL games, no FFA Cup finals). This isn't an example of bias though, and hopefully we can get a few wins on the road in December and January, it'll set a up a good run at home later on.
TheSecretScout
Roar Guru
nice of you to sign up yesterday just to comment Joel lol so i take it, you believe this draw is even for all 12 sides that compete in the league then? and it doesn't favor multiple teams?
Grem
Roar Rookie
If you check the fixtures, Sydney are playing away, home on alternate weekends. The rubbish that Sydney cops comes from the facts that: 6 teams are based in NSW and another 3 from Victoria are only an hour away by plane. Even Brisbane and Adelaide are only about an hour away as well. For Perth, even in a non pandemic season you have 5 hour flights to get to the east coast on a regular basis. The pandemic has just exacerbated this geographic fact.
Grem
Roar Rookie
So that means Perth would play their games 4 weeks apart and the season could take 2 years to finish! Perth v Sydney at home after Sydney's 2 weeks of quarantine. Perth v WSW in NSW, then they'd come back to 2 weeks of quarantine, and so on. And at any time they get a few cases they'd be in a snap lockdown and the game would be off. I'd love to see Daniel Sturridge alongside Fornaroli, Keogh and O'Neill and I'm looking forward to seeing how Brad Jones goes and their supporters deserve to see them at home and Tony Sage should be recouping some dollars, but how can they play at home?
Grem
Roar Rookie
At this Point in time, I trust the leaders of FA and the APL. I will always have doubts about political leaders of our states, territories and nationally.
Punter
Roar Rookie
It's so difficult being a SFC fan to know that our success is based on biased, I really struggle to go to bed to think that all our premiership & championship are tared.
Joel Slinger
Roar Rookie
Conspiracy? It's a fact that the Sydney & Melbourne teams are favoured, the fact that you can't see what's literally written in the fixtures isn't biased, shows how biased & tinfoil hat worthy you are
Joel Slinger
Roar Rookie
@Grem Many thousands of the cases in Vic/NSW were community spread, through breaking rules, & lack of covid19 rules from the leaders you trust..