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Expansion Thread 🪜

biggiemic said:
In what ways would the new league with old teams been different?

Reminds me of NPL in WA when it rebranded from state league to NPL a few years back, same teams, same rubbish to be fair.
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I am chasing this up, I think I have found a way to interview players from the time to get their perspective
 
Monoethnic Social Club said:
Players voted for a new league NOT new teams... The Devil is ALWAYS in the details.
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I don't know if it's ever that simple in our game. The more I find out the more it seems EVERYONE had a hand in both improving and screwing the next generation of the league. No "one" bad guy or good guy.

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Clubs, players, organisations, sponsors, benefactors, governments, other codes etc., they've all helped in some way and all bent us over in other ways. That'll probably never change, too 😕

We just have to try to learn from the past and put our best foot forward. Namaste, grasshoppers 🧘🏻😅
 
HappyGuus said:
I don't know if it's ever that simple in our game. The more I find out the more it seems EVERYONE had a hand in both improving and screwing the next generation of the league. No "one" bad guy or good guy.

View attachment 6617
View attachment 6618

Clubs, players, organisations, sponsors, benefactors, governments, other codes etc., they've all helped in some way and all bent us over in other ways. That'll probably never change, too 😕

We just have to try to learn from the past and put our best foot forward. Namaste, grasshoppers 🧘🏻😅
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im curious how fair it is to blame lowy as much as he is. It seems the pfa were the hardline organization forbidding anything sensible and lowy did talk about second tiers and p and r a lot. That couldve been all talk. But the pfa were openly opposed, so why would lowy hide any different views
 
grazorblade said:
I am chasing this up, I think I have found a way to interview players from the time to get their perspective
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Look forward to hearing what they have to say.

biggiemic said:
In what ways would the new league with old teams been different?

Reminds me of NPL in WA when it rebranded from state league to NPL a few years back, same teams, same rubbish to be fair.
Click to expand...
From the recesses of my memory the prevailing sentiment before the final few seasons of the NSL was one of optimism for the "professional" league that was coming. The "refresh" was, at least how we understood, more clubs to be added to cities around Australia that were like Adelaide United and Perth Glory - New football clubs, set up from thebeginnng to be appealing the blossoming "mainstream" football crowd in Australia that was starting to take notice of the Premier league and the Socceroos various attempts ate WC qualifiation which seemed to be getting closer and closer to being achieved... WE all thought our clubs would form the backbone of what was coming.
 
HappyGuus said:
I don't know if it's ever that simple in our game. The more I find out the more it seems EVERYONE had a hand in both improving and screwing the next generation of the league. No "one" bad guy or good guy.

View attachment 6617
View attachment 6618

Clubs, players, organisations, sponsors, benefactors, governments, other codes etc., they've all helped in some way and all bent us over in other ways. That'll probably never change, too 😕

We just have to try to learn from the past and put our best foot forward. Namaste, grasshoppers 🧘🏻😅
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100%. My only addition is to say, as can be read in Melbourne Croatia's statement above, the big bad bogeyman "effnikz" WANTED the formation of Melbourne Victory, and Sydney FC and Mariners - what they didnt expect is to NOT be wanted in return.
 
grazorblade said:
im curious how fair it is to blame lowy as much as he is. It seems the pfa were the hardline organization forbidding anything sensible and lowy did talk about second tiers and p and r a lot. That couldve been all talk. But the pfa were openly opposed, so why would lowy hide any different views
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Lowy just wanted to punish the NSL clubs, I believe he did/does love football in this country. He just wanted to get his revenge on an organisation that sent him packing so many times. Fair play that he convinced a new audience to eat the old one because of his business connections... "Football but NOT as you know it" Never a truer word spoken indeed.
 
Monoethnic Social Club said:
100%. My only addition is to say, as can be read in Melbourne Croatia's statement above, the big bad bogeyman "effnikz" WANTED the formation of Melbourne Victory, and Sydney FC and Mariners - what they didnt expect is to NOT be wanted in return.
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You got that wrong with the Mariners.

The "one-city, one-team" decision was the go at the time - but Canberra's bid had already found problems getting money so the pivot for the last team was for a 'regional' team. Canberra were still a live bid at the end but financially didn't stack up.

The regional squad was always a spot for Wollongong Wolves. True that the Wolves were not considered "effnikz".

The Spirit Sports and Leisure Group was essentially dead on arrival until Wolves decided to not bid in the last few days. The spot was made for Wollongong. When the Wolves pulled their bid and with 48 hours to go Keiran famously rang Gorman 48 hours before the announcement to 'professionalise the bid'. He did and put the financial muscle behind it.

Gorman later described the situation as taking a "blank sheet of paper" and turning it into a professional club in a matter of days.

Then Les Murray and Craig Foster complained it was the Mariners for years often calling for dumping for the more 'football' area of Wollongong.

Simple answer - Canberra folded (or couldn't get the government support they needed), Wollongong folded their bid and Keiran took the initiative.
 
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grazorblade said:
Some of us want u back
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Yeah its amazing how the narrative around the NSL clubs has changed over the past 3-4 years... I reckon that's the one outstanding legacy of the Australia Cup (and the Championship in the years to come)... Maybe the old and the new can be bridged... if only the APL and the PFA would get out of everyone way.
 
grazorblade said:
im curious how fair it is to blame lowy as much as he is. It seems the pfa were the hardline organization forbidding anything sensible and lowy did talk about second tiers and p and r a lot. That couldve been all talk. But the pfa were openly opposed, so why would lowy hide any different views
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The PFA has always been the worm in the apple of Australian football.
 
erogenouszone said:
The PFA has always been the worm in the apple of Australian football.
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Every group is a worm in the apple in some way or another. I wouldn't say any group is worse than any other either. They all have agendas and no group cares about the needs of the other groups. The APL sucks. The PFA sucks. All state feds suck (although QLD seems to suck more than the others). FA are spineless and also suck. Australian football administration at all levels is just one big suckfest and not in the good way.
 
someguyjc said:
Every group is a worm in the apple in some way or another. I wouldn't say any group is worse than any other either. They all have agendas and no group cares about the needs of the other groups. The APL sucks. The PFA sucks. All state feds suck (although QLD seems to suck more than the others). FA are spineless and also suck. Australian football administration at all levels is just one big suckfest and not in the good way.
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I think the pfas problem is they need to be q union that represents all players not just the pro ones.

It is like having a union in company only for a managers, it becomes a cartel rather than a social justice organization
 
grazorblade said:
Some of us want u back
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Hahaha, those lyrics are actually perfect...

Got a fist of pure emotion, got a head of shattered dreams
I've got to leave it, I've got to leave it all behind now
Whatever I said
Whatever I did, I didn't mean it
I just want you back for good
(Want you back, I want you back, I want you back for good)
 
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