problem in my eyes is that the players know this and rather go to clubs that give them the higher chance of winning titles.

the salary cap wont save the league competition

"Newcastle Jets’ Cinderella story this season was all the more compelling because it bucked this trend.

"But even so, their rise up the ladder was fuelled in part by significantly increased investment in their playing squad from the previous season.

Well no shit.

Scrappadacappa

-PB

Pro - rel will fix this?

In the last four years, the big teams from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane have dominated the A-League finals with only cameo appearances from their rivals.




And what a cameo

Problem is that cameo destroyed the team. They weren't able to hang onto (or replace) the core squad resulting in the following season finishing 9th.

also, WSW had plenty of chances to win a title too and still come short

Before kicking a ball you know wellington and ccm are going to occupy the bottom spots. So 8 teams are playing for 6 spots and we wonder why interest is dead by Christmas with no penalty for being crap.

Meanwhile in npl vic the premiers plate, playoff spots and relegation positions are all likely to go down to the final day.

Sure, it was just a sentence that amused me because I could feel them straining to make their point.

1/3rd of the last 6 GF contestants were from outside of the teams they were trying to make their point about. The league is so small it's hard to make sweeping statements and I just found their attempt to do so amusing regardless of the validity of the point.

Outside of WP and CCM I don't feel there IS really a sense of inevitability as to who will win the league but obviously there is as to who will make up the finalists. However, as that's 8//10 teams playing for 6 spots that's kind of inevitable anyway.

The AFL historically was never a balanced competition, yet interest has grown with each decade before it become a professional competition. There is no evidence whatsoever to support the notion that fans will only watch a balanced competition. The need for balance turns a competitive league into an entertainment product

Balance is never achieved across an individual season. It is using methods to punish the top teams (either a drafting system or a global market) and the statistical inevitability that somebody has to win the league

And what does it achieve? A small boost in one market counter balanced by a small decrease in the other. Its like squeezing a balloon one edge at a time in order to fully inflate it

Despite the "balance" ratings are down, attendances are down, interest is at a low. And I have never heard of masses of people getting excited over that CCM vs Perth game that either team can win on the day

The FFA are a clueless organisation that operates on telling people what they want in a league. More derbies, more marquees, more finals. Watch this season fall flat on its ass and people find excuses as to why this shit didnt work

No membership for me this season. I'm not going to pay good money for a smoke and mirrors entertainment product

yes

Its not a hard cap and it never was.

Removing it completely would accelerate the haves and have nots 

David & Goliaths every week ......................

No issue

If Ballarat wanted to join the league does that mean the teams have to compete downwards for their sake?

Any team that has registered to be part of a national and professional league needs to be at a certain standard. The simple solution would be to either remove the have nots, or accept that they wont be competitive. Not drag the competition down to their level

If you are ever REALLY bored one day, I would love to see a compilation of all your analogies.
I honestly think some of them are cracking.
You'd make a good teacher

its like if you are that desperate to even out the competition, you'll have to decrease the salary cap of winning teams so they are encouraged to play for weaker clubs

rather it not let it go that far

NSWPL similar all season.
One of the closest I can recall down to mid table and lower.
Top 3 has just been sorted and the rest still to play for - been a great season and so much yet to unfold but relegation pretty much set.

Could be taken as a positive and seen as the league growing beyond the risks of earlier years and that is now time for some gradual progressive moves toward removing the props that have maintained the league successfully until the last couple of seasons.

Ffa have already said scrapping the cap is on the table for next cba negotiation.