Not sure how you are pulling out downsides to this normo. Or at least saying it's hardly a good thing but not stating the actual downsides.
No of course not, but it's just another distraction from the real problem which is that the club have not signed enough good players for the first team! The downside is that our limited off field resources, money and energy are being spent on something that isn't actually going to improve the team.
I'm also interested as to how this will work in practice. Week to week assume Phoenix provide up to 6 first teamers - means they need to find between 12-15 others to make up a side. Some of those will be youngsters but some would need to be potential first teamers for this to have any benefit (i.e. to bring into the squad if there are injuries etc). Are we actually going to be able to convince the top players (guys like Riera, Krishna) to come and play for the Phoenix Ressies rather than Auckland or TW so they're available for us to pick up? Are we going to pay them what they would get at ACFC or Waitak? And if those players stay at those clubs will we still pick them up rather than guys from the reserves if we get injuries? Maybe there is something I have missed, but I just don't see how this works in practice...unless it is going to be a bunch of "Justin Gulley" types in which case I don't actually see what this is all in aid of.
But much easier to just say "JD, you're so negative" instead of actually thinking about the proposal...
So you are concerned at the re-allocation of perceived finite resources like 'energy' and that we might still sign the odd Spanish backpacker who turns out for ACFC?