Hawke's Bay United

Agree Buffon that they broke the rules and were punished accordingly and I have no complaint with this.

My only despair is that the admin is now done by an allegedly professional outfit (Central Football) and they are the ones who have let the team down.   All that effort on the park, and then .....!!

How good would it have been, although the fundraising task would be a bit scarey - I know what Napier went through when they qualified.

i hear what your saying but let's be fair you benefit greatly in terms of exposure and recruitment for being in the O League - and while W.U. have failed at the last hurdle a couple of times it's a bit harsh to imply that no other ASBP team could qualify to the club world cup and bring home the bacon.

Also with your other point - what money does the Nix take off NZF - i'm not aware of this.  and one last question - when a player signs from ASBP to the A-League isn't the developing clubs of the player owed a player development fee from FIFA or does that only go to winter clubs like the case of Tyler Boyd and Melville?  anyone know?  Ridenton for example - did ACFC or Central benefit financially? 

Last line of this article clearly says "Funds are collected from New Zealand Football"

The business of playing ball in the A-League

Last updated 05:00 01/02/2014

DAVE BURGESS

KENT BLECHYNDEN/ Fairfax NZ

Owning an A-League football club is historically not for the faint-hearted. Quite the opposite really. It's for people with plenty of dollars and, some may argue, no sense.

Since the A-League's inception in 2005, two teams - Gold Coast United which reportedly lost A$18 million (NZ$19.4m), and North Queensland Fury - have closed down.

The Auckland-based New Zealand Knights also went belly up, threatening to mark the end of the professional football era in New Zealand. But in stepped property developer Terry Serepisos, who in 2007 established Wellington Phoenix. While the team eventually made it to three consecutive A-League finals series, off the field it was a financial battle. Serepisos said he had to inject personal funds of up to $1.5m a season to keep the club afloat.

But as the global financial crisis took hold, the Serepisos empire crumbled. In 2011, he lost control of the Phoenix and was declared bankrupt.

Former Wellington city councillor John Morrison had seen the writing on the wall and worked hard geeing up wealthy local businessmen to rescue the club. It was taken over in 2011 by Welnix, a consortium led by former investment banker Rob Morrison - now club chairman - and economist Gareth Morgan, who says there was one main reason why some of the capital's best and most successful business brains signed up to save the Phoenix.

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"Just because the council asked us to. John Morrison came and said you have to save this thing otherwise we are going to lose it. I saw it as social work."

The consortium took over the club even though it hadn't seen financial accounts from the Serepisos era.

"I've never seen a set of books to say if the club ever ran at a profit. I suspect it hasn't. It was a voyage of discovery," Morgan says.

Governing body Football Federation Australia (FFA) forecasts the owners of A-League clubs will this season lose a combined A$8m to A$12m (NZ$8.6 to NZ$12.9m). That is an improvement on the 2011/12 season when the 10 A-League clubs incurred combined losses of almost A$27m (NZ$29.1). That fell to about A$20m (NZ$21.5m) last season.

A-League boss Damien de Bohun says the mission is to have a "commercially sustainable, world class competition.

"We think this year there could be as many as four clubs . . . and maybe up to six which, if they don't actually make a profit or break even, it will only be by a few hundred thousand dollars.

"Another thing to point out is the Hyundai A-League is now the 15th most attended football competition on the globe."

Welnix was issued a five-year A-League licence by Football Federation Australia. It expires after the 2015/16 season. In its first year of ownership (2011/12 season) the eight-strong Welnix consortium had to collectively pump about $2m into the club's coffers.

Morgan says the figure fell to about $1m last season. He expects it to be below that for this season.

"Our mission was to build the club to stop the bleeding. You've got to say we're on course to achieve that.

"But it is a bit of a freaky experience being involved in something where the aim seems to be to break even. It is quite hard to orientate myself to that."

The Phoenix has several revenue streams. For a start it receives central funding of A$2.5m a year (NZ$2.7m), up from A$1.9m (NZ$2.05m), from the FFA.

Phoenix general manager David Dome says the FFA funding is used for a specific purpose. "Our position is that . . . it pays for the player salary cap and that's what we stick to."

A-League head de Bohun says the new four-year, A$160m (NZ$172m) broadcast deal was key to the increased level of funding. "We have matched the salary cap for the first time . . . So in effect the FFA pays for the cost of the players. The rest is up to the clubs."

A-League clubs may also pay marquee players outside the salary cap. The most notable example is the A$4m (NZ$4.3m) a year, two-year deal between Italian superstar Alessandro Del Piero and Sydney FC.

Club owners make their own decisions on whether to fork out big bucks for marquee players, which obviously has an influence on the bottom line, de Bohun says.

However, Dome says there is no evidence in the A-League that this sort of model is successful and the Phoenix would not go down that path. The number of players on the Phoenix's books can be fluid, with temporary injury replacements and loan players, but there is generally a roster of 22 to 24.

The Phoenix has moved to performance-based contracts for players which take into account how many appearances they make and how well the team is performing.

Office staff at Phoenix HQ in Vivian St numbers eight, including Dome, while head coach Ernie Merrick can call on a team of seven to assist in preparing the team. They all have to be paid from revenue outside FFA funding.

The club's most lucrative sponsorship is with Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei but just how lucrative it is remains a closely guarded secret.

Funds from Football New Zealand are also collected to recognise the club's role producing players good enough to earn international selection.

I think it's good that TW is in the O League next year. However it's going to be a big wakeup call for the rest of the ASBP just how much it costs to compete properly in the O League. ACFC puts a lot of resources into performing credibly in the O League and Fifa CWC and consistently bringing home the bacon for the rest of the ASBP franchises to share (not to mention NZF grabbing some of it). Something the City knockers like to conveniently overlook.

god seriously did you read any of what Aces and I were talking about?

you said almost what he was saying - just in a far more aggressive and aggravating manner.

DONT whinge about the costs of the CWC/O-League because you bloody well know the advantages of playing in those comps outside of the prize money are pretty big...

Calm down chopah, you'll blow a gasket. I'm pointing out that there's a big extra cost in competing in the O League that the clubs who haven't don't quite appreciate. Now TW are going to find out the reality and that's a good thing for the ASBP overall.

Chris greatholder sacked.

Surely not true? Chris Greatholder the best coach HB have ever had. Should be on the national coaching radar.

Not sure he has been sacked, his contract ran out. Maybe he was too ambitious and too successful for a Franchise that wasn't ready for success? Apparently none of the coaching staff from last year are wanted. Shameful behaviour.

Anyone confirm if this is true? If so, why!?! Greatholder takes HBU to their best ever season and would be playing O-League football next year if it wasn't for their dumb as f*ck board who screwed them over losing the 3 points. And from what I've heard off their playing staff who I know over the last few years he's been the best thing to happen to HBU. If this turns out to be true....... well done to the decision makers on the HBU board for taking your franchise backwards. Idiots.

Maybe another management error? 

+1

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/hawkes-bay-today/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503460&objectid=11261899

I know you can't believe everything that you read, but......smoke and fire

I think that the way Chris has been treated is a bloody disgrace

Surely if they can't afford a full time coach, fair enough. But based on that article Greatholder hasn't been told that they couldn't. no communication at all.

I don't think he wanted a full-time role, he was waiting for the board to come back to him with the structure before he could commit or not. Which they obviously never did.

its baffling to be honest, but i guess it is what it is. I do love football drama though. hope he picks up a gig somewhere else perhaps.

this situation is one huge bundle of weirdness - sounds loike no one's sure what the other one was saying, so the board just decided to do what it obviously wanted to do in the first place and sack the best coach they are likely to have for some time

Time for some truths about what is happening at Hawkes Bay United. The new Chairman Bob Patterson is making decisions that are ruining football in this region. This is not abuse this is the truth. The decision to not give Chris Greatholder a new contract is a disgrace because he is the reason the club has been so successful in the last two years. 

Chris Greatholder had assembled a squad that with a few more players could have knocked auckland and  waitakere off their perch next year. Without Chris as Manager very few of the players  recruited will come back, and they'll potentially lose out on two of the best young players to come through the region In Tom Biss and Fergus Neil. It is vital that the board appoint a manager if it's not Chris with a good reputation.

The board's decision to not give Chris a contract is no surprise with the way they treated him and his staff during the season. During Chris' leave of absence, there was a player revolt against some of The new chairmans decisions in that period, it was obvious that The new chairman was trying  to out Chris at this point and appoint the Coach he wanted. The decision to appoint a new coach for the time being wasn't taking very well at the time by the players , leading to the players practically telling the chairman that either he gives the players what they want which was Perry cotton to take over while Chris was away or they leave. 

So far what I have heard from the fallout so far is that someone was offered the job thinking Chris had not wanted it, only to find out that The chairman hadn't told him Chris still wanted the job. This led to the candidate telling the Chairman where to go. 

Capital 1 thread V2

Truths or FAX 

Day of Our Lives NZ

I understand a lot of things went down when Chris stepped away for a month last season. 

Brett Angel was announced to coach the team for that month, but only lasted one night because the players had no respect for him. It will be interesting to see who he signs because there isn't enough talent in the bay. 

What local talent is In the bay?

I feel that the club is heading in the direction of manawatu, waikato and southern.

Feel sorry for Chris with the way he has been shafted, but would hope that he is involved with the coaching staff. My thinking is that they were wanting him to put more hours in and he was unwilling to do so for family/work reasons, hence the decision to maybe get someone in that could do so.  

I find it amazing the players did not respect Angel given his professional playing career, as well his qualifications as a coach, the clubs (Bolton, Portsmouth) and countries (wales) he has been involved with. My experience of him is that he tells it like it is may be that didn't go down so well. not blowing enough smoke up bum's.

Was the transfer of coach explained to the players by out going coach or was  it dictated by the board? 

For CG month off or was it a protest move to prove a point

If the rumours are true and this is personalities and politics influencing key decisions within a national sporting franchise...

Then it's a fine example of why domestic football continues to go nowhere in NZ.

It all comes down to finances in my opinion. There should be something in place by NZF to help these smaller regions (and all franchises, really) be sustainable and improve. Now HBU look like they will be losing a very young high calibre coach due to not being able to support him, it's a shame, but all blame can't be pointed at the decision makers of HBU.....the question I'd like to ask is what are NZF doing to HELP franchises like HBU etc???....Apart from whacking them with 2k fines for feilding an ineligble player for 8 minutes...as if the 3 point deduction didn't hurt them enough!

O

More on the Chris G saga

http://www.sportsground.co.nz/Article.asp?SiteID=5432&ArticleID=36268