Fair Play: How can a competent, educated grass roots coach rise up the coaching ladder and compete fairly for coaching positions when ex-players are fast tracked by the FFA?

For Australia to ultimately taste success in football on the world stage it needs more qualified coaches to fill the ranks and develop the future youth talent. Ex-players returning to coach alone are not the answer. Grass roots coaches who wish to pursue a professional coaching career currently lack the support needed to go all the way. Whilst ex-players are automatically slotted into the system and assumptions are made that because they have played the game at a high level then they can therefore coach.

Grass roots coaches juggle full time day jobs and still coach teams yet their successes and achievements are never featured in this magazine or any other medium.

Why?

Should we not embrace these enthusiastic individuals, encourage, support and showcase them as shining examples of how the game is for everyone and not just the elite few?

Why hasn't this magazine featured the top 10 or 20 non-ex-professional player coaches?

Anyone!](*,) #-o :idea: :-k