Australian National Premier League

Victorian NPL club criteria

NPL - birth of an elephant in NZ's backyard

As the semi pro NPL starts to take shape - Victoria is now on board - what impact will it have on the game in NZ? What opportunities does it present? Views from both sides of the ditch welcome.

Here's another good article detailing how the Victorian NPL impasse was resolved:

The slow and painful birth of NPL in Victoria

A few thoughts on the impact of the NPL on players (from a Kiwi perspective):

At first sight I thought the new NPL system would have a negative impact on Kiwis seeking opportunities over there. There is no doubt it's primary focus is player development and to streamline the pathway from State Leagues to the A-League for both players and coaches. The presence of a Player Points System, restricting squads to two Visa players and recruiting only from within regional boundaries (a Victorian proposal) would, at face value, make it much more difficult for Kiwis to get a contract over there.

However, in the Victorian criteria finally agreed the requirement to recruit from within regional boundaries has been dropped. The other criteria remain but I wonder if they could actually work in favour of Kiwis looking to get over there. Relative to imports from other parts of the world Kiwis probably represent pretty good value for money if you only have two visa spots to fill, and two spots per team per league still equates to approx. 100+ spots across Australia in total. Could Kiwis become the import of choice in the NPL?

The other impact of the PPS, in particular, on NZ is that potentially a lot of older, experienced Aussies are now facing a drop down to below the NPL altogether, where the PPS does not apply. Some of these guys could start looking at the ASB Prem as a viable option, especially when our import rules are a joke.This isn't necessarily a good thing for NZ though, depending on what you believe the ASB Prem should be for. It would definitely send us in the opposite direction to where Aussie are going.

Yeah agree, all good points Term. From where i sit it looks to me like FFA are addressing big, long term issues - not only on PPS, but also a step towards eventual HAL promo/relegation/expansion (subject to various criteria, a la Japan system) - which has Asia Champions League implications. I don't see this sort of long term big picture thinking from NZF at the senior end of our game. Maybe it's there hidden away in whiteboard notes from an off-site planning day somewhere, or maybe I'm dreaming! It won't be long before we see progressive NZ clubs start to form 'alliances' with NPL clubs I reckon.

Went to Heidelberg v South Melbourne last night. Both teams look wry rust. SMFC up 2 nil after 25' and got 1 more late 2nd half. Ground was a ring of dirt with large curvature on playing surface. Guess 2-3k crowd. Mike Eager Captain and centre back for SM. 

Sotirios Kyrgiakos (former Liverpool player) has signed on for a 2 game stint with Sydney Olympic

http://theworldgame.sbs.com.au/video/197557315923/Kyrgiakos-Down-Under

The 'phantom-limb syndrone'. Love it! Any phantom-limb Dutchies hanging around Wngtn Utd these days?

Mike Eager Make Vic NPL  team of the round after last weekend. Caps off Player of day for SMFC from Thursday 13th 1st round game.

James Mussa's signing with South Melbourne FC just officially confirmed.

1 nil win last night takes SMFC to the next stage of the NPL. Will have to check how this comp works.