Something about fish and ponds?
Auckland has a much bigger player base, both number of players and clubs. In my experience better players play up grades week to week during winter then play "down" for annual age restricted tournament football, eg Nike Cup and Napier U19's. So they have experience playing against better quality and bigger/quicker players (physically) and then the club has no problem taking the full number of squad players to tournament.
Yeah you could say that about ponds and fish. You've only got conjecture to back it up though. If you look at head to head contests between Auckland and Wellington teams it doesn't work out. Check out the last ten years of the Chatham Cup for example.
Nike Cup tends to buck the trend, with Auckland teams being significantly ahead of the rest of the country. Perhaps that reflects the fact that Auckland teams have always taken it much more seriously. Planned for it etc. Perhaps it shows that Auckland is much stronger at kids' footy and that strength whittles away as players get older. Who knows.
Taking all of that into account though. The Wests team was so far ahead of the rest of the competition in Wellington that I thought they would be in the mix against the Auckland teams.
Hi Smithy, given this is the Nike Cup thread I was talking about teenage play. I do have facts to back my statement up about Auckland being in the fortunate situation, when playing National tournaments, that we have players that either consistently play up or are consistently playing keenly contested matches week in week out, again due to large player and club numbers. That's reflected in the results of Nike cup, National Schools and U19 tournaments that are consistently won by Auckland teams, and often with the majority of top 8 teams being Auckland based - although Napier last year was a bit of exception, albeit that the final was won by Three Kings from Auckland.
While Auckland has strength - particularly up to the Nike cup age grade - Auckland clubs are not so good at retaining players into their late teens/early 20's. I believe I witnessed one of the reasons for this drop off today, it was:
- Iwata (although he was on gardening duty today)
- Bilen
- Berlanga
- Irving
- Moreira
- Tade
- Lowdon
- Cardozo
It's no wonder some of our younger players get disheartened and give it away, when pathways are filled by overseas sourced players. It's my personal belief that we have to get better at giving options to. NZ players rather than filling our top. National League teams with foreign players who are only really here for the money and the opportunity to secure a contract elsewhere via the world stage of the CWC.
Explain what you mean by "overseas-sourced". As far as I know Tade, Berlanga, Irving and Bilen came to this country of their own accord. Like Chris Bale, Danny Robinson, Brian Shelley and Sam Burfoot - why have you not included them? Once here, are they then to be refused allowance to play to the highest level they can achieve so that NZ-born players can fill their place? Also, Cardozo played for Waitakerie years ago. As an Australian should he be told to get back across the ditch and stay there if he wants a game? You're on shaky ground mate.