I’m banging my head against the wall, despite a number of very good reasons articulated in here on why Women’s football is likely to flounder the only responses to the contrary are things like:
- We should have a women’s pro team because we have a men’s one.
- It would be good to have a pro team because I’d come and watch it [once].
- There are so many women playing professionally overseas that we should have a team here.
- If we had a team here, they would all come back and play for sixpence.
- We will be able to support it because sport NZ will fund it.
- It will automatically get a TV deal because it just will.
- Because you don’t think anyone will watch it, I’ll get together a group of radical lesbians and they will kick your old white [allegedly] ass.
For God’s sake, will somebody please tell me, how this will work when no other women’s sport in NZ [and I think Australia] has been able to go professional and sustain it? If the Nix are losing money running a men’s team/s, why on earth would they want to lose more money by having a women’s team that has no show of making money?
Anyone?
What has been missed though is that there is still a lack of recognisable female NZ football role-models in the kiwi/women's sporting conscious.
For us here on the forum, we know that only the women have had players make 100+ full international caps, I'm betting most people who follow NZ football, male or female, would not know that.
While many many kiwis will be familiar with the likes of Ryan Nelsen, Wynton Rufer, Winston Reid, Shane smeltz etc, how many would know Maia Jackman, Abby Erceg (Highest capped player male or female), Amber Hern (Highest goal scorer male or female), Ria Percival etc.
Women's football needs the same awareness and recognition that women's rugby and netball gets and if a FeNix team does it, so be it.