Asia sweetener for national knockout cup
Socceroo/ Mariner / Whangarei
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http://www.smh.com.au/news/sport/football/a-league/asia-sweetener-for-national-knockout-cup/2009/01/15/1231608888640.html
From the SMH today.
FOOTBALL Federation Australia chief Ben Buckley admits a national knockout cup competition that may offer a passage to the lucrative Asian Champions League could be introduced later this year.
"It's a possibility, it's definitely on the agenda and we're very serious about making it happen," Buckley said. "Whether we can get it up and running this year, or whether we wait until next year, is the question.
"There have been lots of papers done, lots of research done, but there are so many issues to get through. We're looking at a range of ways to introduce it and it's probably a bit premature to say it will be up and running this year, although we aren't ruling that out."
An FFA Cup pitting A-League clubs against semi-professional clubs from state leagues around the country - many of them participants in the old NSL - has moved up the list of priorities for the governing body now that both the national youth league and women's national league have been introduced.
The knockout competition can deliver two significant benefits for the FFA - help embrace the disaffected state bodies and provide another spot in the ACL. The winners of cup competitions in both South Korea and Japan already earn a place in the ACL and the FFA hopes it can receive similar privileges as it searches for ways to increase Australia's allocation in the continent's showpiece tournament.
The timing of an FFA Cup is perhaps the thorniest issue for the federation given it needs to overlap both the winter state leagues and the summer-based A-League. At this stage, the most likely scenario is that A-League clubs would enter the later rounds of the competition around July - although long-term the FFA is working towards having all the state leagues around the country played at the same time as the A-League. Whether the FFA Cup would replace the A-League's pre-season tournament, which serves an important role in taking the clubs to regional areas, remains to be seen.
What's not in doubt is the opportunity the competition offers for state league clubs, who have felt increasingly disenfranchised since the establishment of the A-League in 2005. Buckley is happy to bring them back into the fold, although not without conditions.
"There's a lot of consultation with the state bodies to get through. There's also the question of how many state league clubs have either the finances or the facilities to participate - especially if it involves Asia," he said. "It's all about getting the format right, but what's definite is that we have to make this a meaningful competition, and the chance to play in Asia would clearly be a massive incentive."
From the SMH today.
FOOTBALL Federation Australia chief Ben Buckley admits a national knockout cup competition that may offer a passage to the lucrative Asian Champions League could be introduced later this year.
"It's a possibility, it's definitely on the agenda and we're very serious about making it happen," Buckley said. "Whether we can get it up and running this year, or whether we wait until next year, is the question.
"There have been lots of papers done, lots of research done, but there are so many issues to get through. We're looking at a range of ways to introduce it and it's probably a bit premature to say it will be up and running this year, although we aren't ruling that out."
An FFA Cup pitting A-League clubs against semi-professional clubs from state leagues around the country - many of them participants in the old NSL - has moved up the list of priorities for the governing body now that both the national youth league and women's national league have been introduced.
The knockout competition can deliver two significant benefits for the FFA - help embrace the disaffected state bodies and provide another spot in the ACL. The winners of cup competitions in both South Korea and Japan already earn a place in the ACL and the FFA hopes it can receive similar privileges as it searches for ways to increase Australia's allocation in the continent's showpiece tournament.
The timing of an FFA Cup is perhaps the thorniest issue for the federation given it needs to overlap both the winter state leagues and the summer-based A-League. At this stage, the most likely scenario is that A-League clubs would enter the later rounds of the competition around July - although long-term the FFA is working towards having all the state leagues around the country played at the same time as the A-League. Whether the FFA Cup would replace the A-League's pre-season tournament, which serves an important role in taking the clubs to regional areas, remains to be seen.
What's not in doubt is the opportunity the competition offers for state league clubs, who have felt increasingly disenfranchised since the establishment of the A-League in 2005. Buckley is happy to bring them back into the fold, although not without conditions.
"There's a lot of consultation with the state bodies to get through. There's also the question of how many state league clubs have either the finances or the facilities to participate - especially if it involves Asia," he said. "It's all about getting the format right, but what's definite is that we have to make this a meaningful competition, and the chance to play in Asia would clearly be a massive incentive."
Socceroo/ Mariner / Whangarei
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