Especially when other clubs fought so hard to be apart of it.

Exactly, when you in you can always opt out later, but if your out the chances of getting in are slim for at least 6 years.

It's not that simple guys. The Licencing Agreement is a 44 page legal document that once signed binds you to the conditions set out to be part of the NPLV. It's basically signing up for a model that cannot be deviated from greatly. Read it. Search for it on the FFV website and see for yourself. Reading Eastern Lions statement last night tells me that their local council were not fully supportive and the club had second thoughts about being able to meet all of the requirements of the Licencing Agreement. Very prudent in my view. Don't forget each club must have a 12/13/14/15/16/18/20 and Senior Men's team. If not they are not complying and will be in breach of their Liscencing Agreement and will be sanctioned. Realistically how many of the 30 clubs have covered all of their team entries according to NPLV requirements? 2015 when the audit process takes place across the whole club's functions you will see clubs falling by the wayside. From where I sit, Eastern Lions let the dust settle and made their decision to reject the NPLV for what they felt was in the best interest of their stakeholders as it sits currently.

" Damned if you ...Damned if you don't" .... They will not be the only club.

Eastern Lions has all the team requirements , some clubs still don't! This council also looks after Oakleigh Cannons, and they are in. If other clubs haven't for filled all the requirements by yesterday, how can they be given the opportunity? FFV haven't helped here regardless, their lack of communication with local councils is partially to blame for the councils dim view on the word 'elite'. How the other teams persuaded their councils is beyond me, maybe its really who you know in the end.

So who will take up the vacant spot?

you expected their help? They're too busy now trying to figure out a way to still get the 40k out of Eastern FC even though they didn't sign up.

Feel for clubs like Eastern Lions to a degree. Hamstrung by councils....What makes me laugh was that some councils were prepared to bank roll the licence fee on behalf of their municipalities NPLV club and others have a NPLV presence on club boards. Then there is the complete opposite where councils only want their grounds used strictly for community clubs. Luck of the draw!!
Like the previous poster said if you rely on help from the FFV you are absolutely kidding yourself. Couldn't organise a chook raffle let alone administer the game like they should for all their stakeholders. Invoices and fines come out quickly and readily enough to clubs but to actually get something done is near on impossible.

No replacement clubs in my view just a rejig. There may be more clubs pulling out. Wouldn't be surprised. IMO 24 clubs would have been the right number in 2014.

should have been the only number if everything was right. If we are going to be honest, 22. Ten team top divi with second tier of 12. Considering its first past the post, having a Top 5 would have been a waste of time.

Surf Coast in or out?

Apparently OUT, dont blame em, imagine travelling that far every second week?

Well this is a disgrace.

travelling an excuse? Come on? If the club is honest it would organise with Benders a bus for the team when they are travelling to away games to help parents out, considering for the first half of the season the entire club junior would be playing at the same place, clubs should be taking this as an opportunity for the visiting club to come in one hit and make it a "carnival day" of sorts. Help build good relationships between clubs in the leagues.

In which sense?

Clubs pulling out, or the competition set up as a whole?

Both.

I understand the FFV wanting a state wide comp but if it isn't going to happen, forcing it isn't going to help.

I dont think the juniors are playing the same team as the seniors, they run on a different geographic schedule/fixture?

At the end of the day, its only semi professional and to take out an entire day when 80% is travelling is a hard thing for young players who are studying and working as well. Not a lot of thought has gone into this obviously, although Im sure the other clubs would be happy not to travel to Torquay.

This is only for the juniors that this set up is being used. Say for example Melbourne Knights are playing Bendigo. Therefore all relevant age groups for Knights juniors would be playing at Bendigo on the same day in the first half of the season.

A major part of the problem with implementation of the NPLV is the confilct of "Vision" that the three major participants have of the NPL, the FFA, the FFV and the Participant Clubs.

This issue will continue as facts on the ground start to play a role, hence the withdrawal of Eastern Lions and Surf Coast FC. Issues such as Council Support, Finances, Participant Costs, Club Cultural Issues, Administrative Abilities, Geographic Regional Capabilities and future issues such as Club Ownership which willbe a real Tsunami.

The FFA's vision of the NPL is a Sydney Centric one and forced on the rest of the country without variation for the facts on the ground.
On top of that the FFV has had its own Vision of the future for the game with its "Summer league" proposals of 2008 marrying those with the FFA Vision of the NCR and NPL.

Of Course the Clubs have their own Vision of what the NPL is about and certainly not in a unified view, with a disconnect of VPL and aspiring VPL Clubs, Mid ranked Clubs and Lower ranked Clubs.

These competeing Visions are creating "conflict" that has yet to be resolved.



Edited by Arthur: 21/2/2014 11:34:52 AM

You mean like the North Queensland teams do to Brisbane?

Im not defending them, dont get me wrong, lots of teams have to travel.

On a seperate note how many of these NPL and NPL1 teams have set up seperate Community Teams to cater for the displaced teams? All I know of is Oakleigh setting up Chisolm United?

Dandy Thunder has set up South Dandy as their community team. I know of another club thats in the process of doing it

I heard Dandy City will keep all their juniors for this year and start of a community club in 2015, Box Hill claim to keep an extra 150 juniors because of the NPLV rules changes and FFV say neither can be done if your an NPL club, bloody confusing???

Wtf

wasnt this part of the reason that Box Hill signed on in the end in regards to maintaining of junior numbers

Well if this is true its one of the reasons the Eastern Lions pulled out because of the displacement and need to get a community team up and running in a short space of time!!

also whittlesea ranges have set up thomastown raiders they will play out of partridge st

Partridge Street is not fit for State league 3 let alone NPL. Mind you a lot of other clubs have similar sub-standard grounds.

ranges are playing out of epping stadium.. i meant raiders will be playing out of partridge st but i agree it aint the best facility going around..

The circus continues with the NPLV model, right from the first model till now it is a joke. How can a NPL club like Avendale Heights who's ground has a cricket pitch in the middle during winter they put sand on it, their ground is opened and not fenced off. Brunswick City is another mob, facilities are a shambles. 70% of clubs don't meet the criteria and yet they find themselves in the NPL. Then you have some of these clubs re-registering new clubs to to keep their b team juniors etc. what's the point of having a criteria?

then I checked the state league structure and guess what? These so called community clubs the are paying the same affiliate league fees and player registration as last season. I did the numbers and the costs, it will cost more to run a community club then and NPL club.

How can this be? The reality is clubs need to start looking at the vicsoccer structure as it is more affordable.

It raised more questions than answers. This whole NPL thing has cause me untold grief and has drained me the last few weeks.

As a parent and a coach, I am torn between missing out and stay or moving on? Lucky my son still has a couple years to go before juniors, but so many clubs are given the license but don't have everything in place?

Then you have all these new clubs like Surf Coast run by mums and dads that are not club people they put the bait in and pull out. How can you have faith in 3 year old clubs vs established clubs. The councils have built new grounds in high growth areas only to limit newly formed clubs to use the facility through an allocation policy. Most of these facilities are shared with cricket. How can these clubs be serious about NPL vs established clubs.

I still think the transition should have been rebranding VPL and SL1 to NPL and then giving them 3 year period to meet the criteria whilst other clubs in the lower leagues that aspire for NPL should have gone via promotion process and meeting the criteria with juniors etc.

The FFV handed many clubs promotion on a platter to many clubs that don't deserve to be part of it.

What a mockery the FFV have made this it was so easy to follow the other state model.

Since looking at the NPL structure I will now refuse to go to any games at any level and will resort to watching epl on foxtel.

The FFV stick it up your cracker and Cherio to football run by the FFV.

It could have been so simple.