Wollongong seems like an obvious place.

I agree that Greater Melbourne and Sydney should have 3 teams each (probably 4 in Sydney as its more geographically spread out to Melbourne). In terms of attendance, NRL and AFL teams derive a massive boost from the sheer amount of intra-city matches they have.

But 16 teams like in the NRL or 18 in the AFL is something I wouldn't like to see. I tend to think that 14 is a sweet spot. 26 rounds + an 8 team 3-4 weeks final series and you've got a winner.

Edited by InFosterWeTrust: 28/4/2014 03:11:05 PM

Give it another four years before talking about another Sydney team. I do believe we should have at least 3 or 4 teams in sydney and the same in Victoria.

In the meantime, Wollongong and Canberra next.

[size=6]Time is right for a third Sydney A-League team[/size]

Is there now room for a third team in Sydney? Yes.

To understand, and appreciate, what you've got, you need to know where you've come from. Western Sydney Wanderers are living, breathing proof that we've come a long way.

For those with long enough memories, Parramatta Stadium was once a mausoleum for football's hopes and ambitions in the west. First Sydney United were forced to move there from Edensor Park, then along came Parramatta Power. The common denominators were empty seats and a funereal atmosphere. Believe it or not, as the lights were going out on the Power, the entire eastern grandstand was closed to the public. The only occupants used to be two cameramen and a couple of commentators.
I was one of those callers. We had to shoot into the western grandstand, because that's where the ‘‘crowds’’ were forced to go. A classic case of right place, wrong time. Sums up the NSL era, really. Well, haven't times changed?

Sitting amongst the throng which jam-packed Parramatta for the elimination final, marvelling in the passion, excitement and tribalism of the big occasion, you couldn't help but make the comparison. The football community in this country has had to learn the hard way to take nothing for granted, but it's difficult, if not impossible, to imagine the Wanderers failing from here. The west has finally been won.

So what's next? Standing still in professional sport is not an option. It's even less of an option in Sydney, where there are now 20 professional teams across a broad spectrum of sports. Football has a strategic advantage – its enormous participation base. What Sydney FC (partly through the acquisition of Alessandro del Piero) and the Wanderers have shown is that the A-League is now getting it right at the pointy end.

That both Sunday newspapers led their sections with Saturday night's match at Parramatta suggests a fundamental shift has occurred. The business of football, in Sydney, has never been in better shape. Which makes this the right time to be bold.

Expansion of the A-League is an absolute necessity. It's simply a question of when and where. The push is on from head office to explore the potential of a second Brisbane team based in the Ipswich-Logan corridor. Fair enough. Elsewhere, the usual culprits – North Queensland, Canberra, Auckland and Wollongong – are being canvassed without the FFA imprimatur.
What doesn't get much airplay is a third Sydney team, even though this was always an option if the Australian Premier League model had been used to set up the A-League, rather than John O'Neill's ‘‘one city, one team’’ approach. It's time to reopen the discussion.

Some time before the next broadcast deal is due in 2017, the A-League needs to be a 12-team competition rather than a 10-team one. In principle at the very least. It's a prospect which has already dawned on potential investors in a third Sydney team, some of whom have a history in the game.

Behind the scenes, moves are already being made. The critical question, of course, is where. If you accept that the Wanderers own the west and Sydney FC own the north and east, that leaves the south, and perhaps south-west. For me, the corridor from Sutherland to Macarthur is ripe for the picking. The stadiums already exist at Campbelltown and Woolooware. There are almost 30,000 registered players in the region. Far enough away from both Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers, this is where a third Sydney team has the most potential.

In grand final week, all the attention will be on Sydney's dominant team, and rightly so. What Lyall Gorman and his management have achieved in just two years has been phenomenal. What the Wanderers have also done is show the way. Football doesn't need to reinvent itself to succeed, it simply needs to tap in to what is already there.

There is room for a third Sydney team, no doubt. There are people determined to make it happen, no doubt. If the stars align, the Wanderers won't be Sydney's newest team within three or four years. Things are going to get interesting, which is exactly what we need. Stay tuned.


Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/soccer/time-is-right-for-a-third-sydney-aleague-team-20140427-zr0a6.html#ixzz308Ws0iMr

Does the A-League need more teams?

Leading into the final round of competition for the 2013-14 A-League regular season, Adelaide United’s Spanish-born manager Josep Gombau has come out with an interesting argument, suggesting that the Australian domestic league is need of a greater number of teams.

In this, his first season in the A-League, Gombau believes that while the competition’s quality is at or above the level of many European leagues, the low number of teams and high frequency of repetitive fixtures are holding back further advancement in Australian and New Zealand domestic football.

He is proposing that the league need expand to 14 teams from its current number of 10.

While consciously trying to avoid the mistake of taking anything and everything a European says about football as gospel, this is still a man that has had significant experience coaching youth squads in Spain and had a head coaching role in Hong Kong. He certainly has experience to speak on the issue.

So then, would the A-League benefit from a greater number of teams?

If we were to base our answer purely on the practices of the most successful leagues in the world, then yes. The top ten leagues from this list, typically considered some of the best-supported in the world, each have a minimum of 15 teams in the competition. Six of them are at the 20 team mark.

Typically this means that every team plays each other twice only, once at home and once away, leaving any further showdowns to be played out in domestic or international cup competitions.

However, in the current format of the A-League, teams play each other a total of three times, with chance deciding which club gets the advantage of two home games.

It is a system that cops a significant amount of criticism, with complaints that it erodes the intensity of fixtures in the minds of fans and players when they know they will meet a certain team once or twice more.

The repetitive nature of the competition can also lead to ‘fan-fatigue’ in attendance and support early and late in the season.

An A-League competition with 12-14 teams would likely revert to the standard two matches against each opponent, with a slight reduction in the total number of rounds (currently 27).

Under this arrangement, one would expect notable fixtures to be more greatly anticipated by fans given their relative infrequency on the calendar, and result in greater interest and attendance.

One only has to imagine the added atmosphere of a Big Blue or F3 derby if fans considering attending know it may be one of the few opportunities to see these two teams play.

However, in comparing the A-League to that of the premier competitions of Europe and Latin-America, I may be getting ahead of myself.

After all, we are also talking about leagues with a significantly higher population base from which to draw fans, with only the Dutch Eredivisie coming from a country with a lower headcount than that of Australia or New Zealand.

If we look at leagues from countries with similar demographics to our own, leagues like those Gombau was comparing the A-League to, the message remains that more teams are required.

For example, Belgium, a population of around 11 million people has an First Division football competition with 16 teams and an average match attendance of close to 12,000 in 2013-14. Portugal, with a population of 10 million also has a 16-team competition with 10,000 average attendance.

But even then, we are talking about leagues with over 100 years of competition and Europa Cup and Champions League places to play for.

They are also countries and leagues with an ingrained football identity and strong supporter foundations, not a country only just coming to terms with a new and exciting past time and currently locked in a battle for the hearts and souls of sport-saturated Australians.

Closer to home, countries from Asia with comparable demographics, like Malaysia, or Saudi Arabia or even Singapore, all tend to hover around the 12-team mark, meaning that by the standards of our neighbourly competitors, the A-League is still perhaps two teams short of a party.

However, at the end of the day, every country is different and the question of whether the A-League can or should have more teams is a question of domestic sustainability. Are there areas within the country that could have a strong enough following of football to sustain a domestic-competition football team?

As we have witnessed in the past with failed experiments like the North Queensland Fury, the New Zealand Knights or, more recently Gold Coast United, the issue is not just one of finding a suitable city to deposit a stadium and a football team.

There needs to be a strong grassroots potential, and beyond the eastern coastal states of Australia, I do not see anywhere in Australia or New Zealand which has this sort of areas with potential to compete against the traditional sports of Aussie rules, league and union.

The only other option then would be the further separating stronghold footballing cities Sydney and Melbourne. This could be a return to the days of the National Soccer League with its often ethnically-divided loyalties through franchises like Parramatta Power, Marconi Stallions or Sydney Olympic.

In its defence, the arrangement has been successful for NRL in its competition, with a total of eight teams operating within Sydney alone. Such a move would allow the A-League to draw upon existing club loyalties and rivalries in an effort to drive support and development of the game.

All the same, I would think this would be a a short-sighted move. While the introduction of Melbourne Heart and Western Sydney Wanderers have been extremely positive moves by the FFA and have yielded great results for the growth of the competition, I do not think the A-League ready for any further division.

I believe it would have the effect of weakening existing clubs and diluting the current competition, rather than developing unrealised fan-bases.

The reality is, that in its current format, the A-League is most likely at its optimal size.

Crowd support this season has been incredibly strong (a league average of 13,000 per game) and as Gombau points out, the play is of high quality.

I think the FFA should take the long-term view of this situation, allowing teams to continue to build memberships and support bases, rivalries to grow, and by targeting international success at competitions like the AFC Champions League, Asian Cup and FIFA World Cup.

This is what will continue to draw Australians an New Zealanders to football and the A-League.

The change is coming, but it will take time and I do not think that pop-up clubs with a short shelf life are going to help with building that momentum, despite the Australian competition being at odds with international standards.
Do you think the A-League should add one or more teams?

I wonder if an existing NPL club was promoted to the HAL and given cash to cover the salary of players,would it be more profitable than most other HAL clubs because of the lean way they were already operated and most probably because they would have home grounds where they actually could make a profit.

Is the "ck" silent after the "co", to say it as "Coburn City"?

Problem with that suggestion is it encourages teams who know promotion would be ruinous for them to perform some AFL-style "tanking" to make sure they don't wind up in a league they can't afford to compete in.

I have to disagree somewhat with this last part. (Actually with most of the top part as well.) The beauty of a promotion chase is that it is unfettered.

So even if some Datsun wins promotion and is not capable of spending the money, promote them anyway.

Its a more meritorious model....imagine how gut wrenching it would be for a team to earn promotion on the pitch, only to be told they haven't met some "requirements" for promotion.

It would undermine the whole principle of earning promotion on the field that would attract new areas to begin with.

Pro and rel has to be purely competitive....no ridiculous point requirement systems....if u earn it via your football, u get promoted. Simple as....

Is the "ck" silent after the "co", to say it as "Coburn City"?

Josep Gombau thinks the A-League is up there with European leagues, but needs more teams

THE A-League is better than some European competitions but needs more teams, Adelaide United coach Josep Gombau says.

The Spaniard says a 14-team league would be ideal in Australia, arguing the 10 teams in the current competition play each other too frequently.

“In the future of the league, because Australia is a big country, if we can get maybe 14 teams (it) would be a very good league,” Gombau told reporters in Adelaide on Thursday.

“This league is equal in a lot of things or even better than a lot of leagues in Europe.

“We just need to increase the number of the teams - 10 teams in a country like Australia is not enough.” Gombau said he was impressed by the standard in his first year as an A-League coach.

“It's a very good competition, I am enjoying it a lot,” he said. “The standard of the A-League and the quality of the players and the intensity is very high.

“We are a very good league. But what I like, if it's possible, is to increase the number of the teams because 10 teams is not a lot and we play a lot of games between us.”

Auckland City eye A-league spot

Auckland City are talking to a handful of potential investors with the aim of getting a second New Zealand team in the A-League, with Wellington Phoenix owner Gareth Morgan at the top of the list.

Morgan is keen to see another New Zealand team in the Australian competition, and has held preliminary discussions with Auckland City chairman Ivan Vuksich, but doesn't want to drive the project.

The Football Federation Australia have outlined plans to expand the 10-team competition, with sides from Wollongong, Canberra, Tasmania and even Asia touted as possibilities. New Zealand represents an attractive market commercially, with opportunities around sponsorship and broadcasting.

Auckland City offers some potential because they already have a fanbase of about 2000 and have achieved good success, having won four national titles and played at five Club World Cups. They also go into Sunday's ASB Premiership final against Team Wellington at Kiwitea St as firm favourites.

But Auckland has an inglorious history with Australia's top professional competition, with both the Football Kingz and New Zealand Knights dismal failures. What has given rise to some hope is the fact decent crowds have attended Phoenix games at Eden Park - 18,056 watched last month's 2-1 win over Adelaide United and more than 20,000 attended 12 months previously - although it's more difficult to sustain that over time.

"I think it would be great to have a second team from New Zealand in the A-League and the obvious place for it is Auckland,'' Morgan said. ``If Auckland, and probably Auckland City, were to get on the way to achieving that I would be more than willing to participate. But Auckland has to have its heart in because I don't want to drive it.

"If Auckland got off its butt, I would be there. I just think it would be good for the game.

"The conversations I have had with the FFA in Australia is that they are supportive of the idea.''

Morgan views his ownership of the Phoenix as ``social work'' because individuals don't go into football to make money. The 10 clubs in the league have annual turnovers between $6-$14 million.

Morgan will talk to new New Zealand Football chief executive Andy Martin about the proposal this month and Vuksich has already met with a number of potential investors.

"It's very early days but if there's a possibility of another A-League team in Auckland we would definitely be keen to be involved,'' Vuksich said. "I have people working for me trying to find investors and the signs are reasonably encouraging. There are plenty of people in Auckland who could do it, perhaps half a dozen, but it's whether we can get them interested.

"If it's promoted the right way, I think it's possible to get 10,000-12,000 fans at games. But Auckland is a difficult market and even the Blues [Super Rugby side] are struggling to get 15,000 fans to games.''

Morgan and Vuksich have also had very preliminary discussions about establishing a more formal relationship between the two clubs. A number of Auckland City players have gone on to the Phoenix, including Ben Sigmund, Jason Hicks, Matthew Ridenton and Albert Riera, and Wellington coach Ernie Merrick has his eye on a couple of promising youngsters.

Morgan would like to take it further and have formal relationships with all the ASB Premiership franchises but there are difficulties around players crossing over from amateur and professional leagues, not to mention the A-League is recognised as an Asian competition.

Fury's Fergie on A-League return

Northern Fury director of football and coaching Ian Ferguson believes the ambitious club are ahead of a handful of A-League teams with their innovative grassroots structure.
The Townsville-based club wants to re-join the A-League in five years time, with the initial aim of fielding sides in the National Youth League and W-League.

As part of their bold vision, Fury have put in place an innovative development model, operating almost a dozen male and female youth teams from Under-12 to Under-20 level, with a clear pathway for local talent to the senior side it hopes will one day compete in the A-League again.

Thirteen players in the current amateur Fury squad, which commenced the new NPL Queensland season earlier this month and trains three times a week, are under 22 with a view to the future and A-League inclusion.

Ferguson, who was the inaugural North Queensland Fury coach in the 2009-10 season, said the club had learnt many lessons from its A-League days, which it applied to its current model with a view to sustainability.

“The great thing here is we put this structure in place and we’re probably ahead of a few teams in the A-League,” Ferguson said.

“When I first went to North Queensland Fury (in 2009), there was nothing underpinning the club itself.

“Fury was just set up and everything else had to be organised in time. This time the club’s doing it right, going for the grassroots.

“To be honest, if we were offered an A-League position tomorrow, we wouldn’t be able to do it.

“We’re doing it right this time and putting the steps in place to make sure when it does come we can sustain it.

“We’ve got to make sure when it does come, it’s done right. It wasn’t done right last time.”

While Fury were hastily admitted to the A-League in 2009 by the FFA as an integral part of their World Cup bid, there’s no such rush this time.

Ferguson along with Northern Fury chairman Rabieh Krayem met with FFA boss David Gallop and A-League head Damien de Bohun in Sydney in January to outline their vision.

The former Perth Glory coach said the meeting was very positive and the club had since put forward a formal proposal.

However, at this stage no decisions have been made on their NYL or W-League proposal with the direction of both competitions being reviewed by the FFA due to financial concerns.

“They know we’re doing the right things this time, we’re following the National Curriculum, we’re getting elite coaches, so everything’s very positive,” Ferguson said.

“The meeting was great with David Gallop and Damien de Bohun. They gave us a fair hearing. They were very complimentary to the club.”

Ferguson may have admitted the club were not close to being ready to be part of the A-League, but felt they had the structure in place now for the NYL.

“I do know, if we got the opportunity at this moment we’d be ready to take the step-up,” Ferguson said.

“But if we can get the NYL and W-League teams in two or three years down the line then so be it, as it’ll put us in a better position then trying to rush into it.”

The North Queensland region has provided plenty of top-line footballers including Frank Farina, Steve Corica, Michael Thwaite and Shane Stefanutto. Ferguson felt it was important that talent in the region was given a chance to thrive.

“We can’t ignore this part of the world, it’s such a massive part,” he said. “It takes in a huge area from Mackay up to Cairns and also Rockhampton. These kids need to aspire, have somewhere to play and have a pathway.

“We’ve got that now from Under-12s up, and the bigger picture is the NYL and W-League teams.”

On a personal level, Ferguson admitted it was great being back in Townsville, but said it had been a busy six months since taking the job, getting coaches and players in, venues organised and the programme set up.

He added: “It’s been all systems go. I’ve hardly any time to settle down and enjoy the sunshine!”

Read more at http://www.fourfourtwo.com/au/news/furys-fergie-league-return#Fu9glPRA0vgPjJVX.99

Dont Ruin my fun

Known as Cockburn City these days. :)

Agreed. It wouldn't need to.

If travel costs and other costs incurred for travel could be adsorbed by the league then all that's left is to pay for what they currently pay for. To stop clubs going stupid a point system could be introduced similar to the NBL.

There may need to be a basic funding model requirement similar to the AL clubs, but not as pricey.

To be able to make the step up into the AL the A2 clubs would still need to meet all the requirements set down by the AL.

That way clubs that really aspire to the AL can spend the money and get promoted. Other clubs will just bide their time in A2 until they can do the same.

Would be interesting when they play Cockburn United.

Would be interesting when they play Cockburn United.