Tuesday, September 04, 2007
Club v. Country, A-League Style
Finally there seems to be an undercurrent of (quite legitimate) concern about the scheduling of the A-League vis-à-vis the international calendar. Ron Smith has had a gentle grumble about the matter, and although it is the Olyroo qualifiers that have caused his particular problem, it will be the senior side's Asian qualifiers that could ultimately prove a bigger headache, come the 2008/09 season and beyond.
A-League scheduling, of course, is constricted by the requirements of the egg-ball codes to some extent. But disruption to team stability (and the removal of crowd-pulling players from the competition) due to international duties is not an issue to be scoffed at. Some clubs are inevitably affected more than others, for one thing.
But while the FFA needs to address that matter, they deserve credit for scrapping the like-for-like rule for short-term signings, which was always too subjective to be workable. I'm not so sure about the other change they have made recently, relaxing the minimum six-week absence period for injured players if a replacement is to be signed (see the postscript to this article). This could, I feel, lead to a flurry of short-term deals which would make a mockery of the whole idea of an A-League squad.
A-League scheduling, of course, is constricted by the requirements of the egg-ball codes to some extent. But disruption to team stability (and the removal of crowd-pulling players from the competition) due to international duties is not an issue to be scoffed at. Some clubs are inevitably affected more than others, for one thing.
But while the FFA needs to address that matter, they deserve credit for scrapping the like-for-like rule for short-term signings, which was always too subjective to be workable. I'm not so sure about the other change they have made recently, relaxing the minimum six-week absence period for injured players if a replacement is to be signed (see the postscript to this article). This could, I feel, lead to a flurry of short-term deals which would make a mockery of the whole idea of an A-League squad.
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Is it just me or do these rule changes seem to occur in direct response to the problems of one club in particular.
...Is it just me or do these rule changes seem to occur in direct response to the problems of one club in particular....
What, Melbourne Victory, you mean? ;-)
Sure, SFC had problems with short-term knocks thinning out their squad last year, but that's not to say some other club won't be the unlucky mugs this term.
As for the like-for-like situation, the Mariners not being able to hang on to Mori as cover for O'Grady was a manifest injustice IMO (derailed their season, basically), and probably did more to convince the FFA of the need to change that silly rule than the similar (but much less significant) Topor-Stanley situation at SFC.
What, Melbourne Victory, you mean? ;-)
Sure, SFC had problems with short-term knocks thinning out their squad last year, but that's not to say some other club won't be the unlucky mugs this term.
As for the like-for-like situation, the Mariners not being able to hang on to Mori as cover for O'Grady was a manifest injustice IMO (derailed their season, basically), and probably did more to convince the FFA of the need to change that silly rule than the similar (but much less significant) Topor-Stanley situation at SFC.
From my understanding, correct me if i'm wrong please, that each A-League team can register so many players, not like in Europe, where teams can sign on as many as they wish, so kind of makes a mockery if what i'm thinking is true, the rules are slghtly moved.
What happens, if someone playing poorly, gets pulled to the side and the coach says, hey, your crap, so your going on the injured list, were bringing in player X - your under contract so your not going t odo out about it?
What happens, if someone playing poorly, gets pulled to the side and the coach says, hey, your crap, so your going on the injured list, were bringing in player X - your under contract so your not going t odo out about it?
# posted by 
: September 4, 2007 at 8:56 PM
: September 4, 2007 at 8:56 PM
Mike, as an aside, I can't believe the number of injuries so far this season, perhaps a sign that things might be a little too physical...
Will be interesting to see the starting 11s this weekend with so many injuries, a couple of suspensions and national team duties...
So much for 14 defenders being out in round 2...
Re short-term signings, like you, cant say Im a massive fan, reckon it makes a bit of joke of the whole 23 man squad thing, wasnt that the idea of expanding it from 20? I particularly hate the idea of one player playing for a number of clubs in one season, as we saw last year with Frogger Mori. That does nothing for the game.
Will be interesting to see the starting 11s this weekend with so many injuries, a couple of suspensions and national team duties...
So much for 14 defenders being out in round 2...
Re short-term signings, like you, cant say Im a massive fan, reckon it makes a bit of joke of the whole 23 man squad thing, wasnt that the idea of expanding it from 20? I particularly hate the idea of one player playing for a number of clubs in one season, as we saw last year with Frogger Mori. That does nothing for the game.
", as an aside, I can't believe the number of injuries so far this season, perhaps a sign that things might be a little too physical..."
AGreed mate
its even more physical than last year and i thought last year at times was bad..
I honestly think some teams are playing like this to stop the flair players playing their game.. they know theres now alot of better players in the league and some teams are doing their best to stop it..
Infact i hate to say this but look at the foul counts, CCM players basically lead the list and they are top of the table.. to be honest i have not liked the way they have been playing one little bit..
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AGreed mate
its even more physical than last year and i thought last year at times was bad..
I honestly think some teams are playing like this to stop the flair players playing their game.. they know theres now alot of better players in the league and some teams are doing their best to stop it..
Infact i hate to say this but look at the foul counts, CCM players basically lead the list and they are top of the table.. to be honest i have not liked the way they have been playing one little bit..
# posted by : September 6, 2007 at 4:43 PM
: September 6, 2007 at 4:43 PM << Home
