Parramatta, Sydney Olympic and South Melbourne did alright as well...

phew...that's what i figured from my observations. Damm internet, hard to gauge sarcasm et al. Thanks : )

Police/rent-a-cops cause more hostility than any opposition fans.

/quote]

Yep and these days you will have Sydney fans running around being smartasses near the BWB and everyone will just be having a laugh and some banter.[/quote]

Sorry, but is this meant to be sarcastic? Seriously, i am a Victory supporter....no ultra mind you, but i am interested in the tension down at the terraces. Is there any real hostility? (and no, i am no muck raking reporter)

Yep and these days you will have Sydney fans running around being smartasses near the BWB and everyone will just be having a laugh and some banter.

Dare I say it, but if Australia had in fact qualified for either the 1998 or 2002 (or both) World Cups, the NSL may well have survived. Soccer Australia would've been flush with cash (God help us! 8-[). The profile of our game would've been at an all-time high, probably even higher than after 2005. This would've most likely led to a sort of 'evolution' of the NSL, though not quite a 'revolution' as we've seen in the A-League.

How would it have evolved? Hard to say. Would any of the existing clubs have survived? Would Channel 7 have continued to shaft the game? Would my club, Melbourne Victory, have been admitted into the league? If so, would it have been as successful?

Having said all of that, I'm liking this A-League. Plenty of improvement left in her, but it's been great so far.

Got here at the end of the NSL so cant comment, but the A-League is something to be proud off. If it keeps growing, then the egg shape ball will become less prominent. It will no doubt take time, but the A-League will succeed

In the old NSL days I used to attend a number of Brisbane Strikers games with my dad and my brother. On holidaying in Sydney we noticed the Strikers where playing down there (sorry cant remember which particular club they where playing, it was many years ago). So along we went, my brother and I proudly wearing our Strikers jerseys. Within 10 minutes we had put our jackets on and zipped them up tight, not because it was particularly cold, but because we didnt want any of the opposition fans to know we where Strikers fans. We left before half time and never again did our Dad take us to an NSL game.

That was what was wrong with the NSL, plain and simple.

Incorrect. The A-League's main function is to include all football fans and provide a platform for such people to support a team that represents the whole community.

It allows Australian football fans to have a league of our own, where football teams are supported because of pride of city rather than ethnicity.

The two competitions are completely different from every perspective including the football field which is a result of there being only eight team competing as the talent isn't spread as sparsely.

Fans only needed a vehicle to support football and this is what the A-League provides.

That's what most of the NSL fans would like to believe, but it's a complete load of Bollocks.

The A-League's main function is to act as a gimmicky marketing tool for something called "new football". If you strip it bare, it looks like a condensed version of "old soccer" - i.e the NSL.

The 'spin' may be slicker, but the overall standard of football is not.

Well A-League is better. For alot of reasons, that I probably don't even need to mention.

But noone is doubting that NSL kicked off things for football in this country, A-League is just trying to perfect it (or get it as perfect as we can get it).

agree!!!

I believe your asking about the football on the park not off it so my answer would be the A league, I don't think the NSL ever had a Dwight Yorke, Fred, or a Rodriquez , the NSl did have qaulity Australian players who were up an coming stars like Viduka and Bresciano, but we are talking more about great young talent which the NSL produced more than the A league at this time. The NSL pretty much stayed at one level of football for most of it's 25 years, the A league has the potenial to become even stronger over the next 10 years and with greater interest from sponsors and tv, The A league will eventually double the standard set by the old NSL in my opinion.

The great thing about the A-League is that it lets everyone support the same teams, from all races and cultures. You could never have seen so many familys and kids at an NSL match as there has been in the new league, which is why we needed to start over.

Hopefully this will be the true litmus test of the intelligence of a few on this forum. There is no reason why people cannot have a reasoned debate on this topic.

Personally, although I am of ethnic decent, I really struggled to feel comfortable in the atmosphere of the NSL, and this isn't because I am racist, but I failed to understand why I must chant Hellas, within Australia, when the team I support is South Melbourne.

Even if it was unintentional, the NSL clubs did not provide an inclusive atmosphere. I loved the flares but was deterred by the fact that supporters would chant and sing in their own language.

I understand that there was no sign at the door stating if you weren't Greek or Croatian you were not invited, but you will find that this fact stopped many football fans from attending games and supporting the sport in Australia.

Hence, the close affection some still feel for their European club of choice.

Personally, the Victory is a magic club, as they have made it their intention from the outset to galvanise the state of Victoria under the one all-encompassing banner.

That is my opinion.

How soft are you?

Anyway it all depends on if the moderators are racists or not.

The NSL was dogged by poor management in all areas. It was not even a professional league (Perth Glory were the only pro team towards the end). It had no real marketing and no real TV deal. The last few years had CH7 showing highlights at midnight on a Tuesday.

The A-League started fresh and was determined to not make the mistakes of the NSL. You would never have seen an NSL round 2 match get 40,000 in attendance during the NRL and AFL playoffs series (if ever). So on that regard, you could say that so far the A-League is a success. The A-League has discarded this whole "ethnic" divide that could get ugly (and still does on occasion in the state leagues)

But without the NSL there would be no A-League, whether you take that as a good thing or a bad thing.

But it will be interesting to see how the A-League goes in V4. V2 had a WC hangover helping it along. V3 will hopefully have an Asian Cup hangover. V4 is the test in that it will most likely be expanded and the only international interest will be WC Qualifiers. We'll see if it can hold its own. Personally I think by then, it can.

In the interests of 'balance' I should remind you that football started in this country long before 1977 and before anyone could spell Croatia :)

The A-League shits all over NSL.

So we don't need "wogs" in our game anymore?

I think you should say now it's EVERYONE'S game...the top flight of the game here should never be a competition between ethnic based social clubs.

football transcends cultures its just certain type of crackpot that cant get the imaginary chip off their shoulder.

You and your mates Eagle... now it's OUR game...

what does that mean?

I like the A-league more because, as a Brisbane Strikers and QLD Roar fan, it's good to be back at suncorp stadium with 16000 people instead of ballymore with 4000.

NSL must have been pretty different for Sydney because of all the teams and whatever else.

No this is going to be a sensible topic to be duscussed by both fans of the A League and fans of the National Soccer League.

What in God's name is an NSL?

well it was the National Soccer League, football AS YOU KNOW IT started with the NZ Knights and Dwight Yorke

This post could get ugly. No disrespect to you buddy, but this post could get ugly.

May be an early test for the mods/admin on here to see how they stand on these matters.

Thanks, and interesting to see where this thread ends up

Diego's Son :) :) :)

NSL versus The A league

Which was better??

I tend to still think the NSL had a lot more football kulcha than the shiny new fangled franchise nonsense that we've got now but you may well disagree!!

As for 'strayan 442 anybody would have thought football started in this country when HAL v1 started!#-o #-o