From NZF statues "All football Players under the jurisdiction of NZF and its Regional Associations are amateur, apart from limited exceptions set out in the relevant Statutes and Regulations."
Therefore clubs/players playing it in, must abide by the expense incurred requirement.
It feels like I've gone round in circles, then. This is precisely what I mean by shamateurism - we all "know" that many players in the NL (and some elite players at regional league level) are being paid "more than expenses", but that it's hidden under "coaching fees" or whatever.
We seem to accept that we can't have a decent NL which provides a stepping stone to pro football unless it's at least "semi-pro" by my definition (i.e. "pro" by FIFA definition, but not making-a-living-for-all-players levels of money). But if the NL were pro then the logic for the Phoenix would disappear and so would the pokies money. It's the institutionalised hypocrisy which gets me.
If people are getting paid for coaching - and are actually coaching - is that still pay for play neng hidden? Or is that just getting paid for coaching? The national league, the clubs, the players in it, are not professionals. There is this perception that it's all a rort, but it's really not.
The only issue I can think of is that the market rate could well be inflated by player payments being hidden, making it a bit of a vicious cycle.
Just playing devil's advocate though, I think the clubs/franchises are doing about as well as they can at the moment, by and large, and the only way we improve it is by talking about it.