Take Two

Soccer in Australia has had a not so warm welcoming throughout it's history as one of the four football codes. To be rather blunt and succinct, to many the game was for the:

"Sheilas, wogs and poofters."

The three words aptly describe perceptions of soccer within the Australian sporting market. The game that is played by the other. But it is not always all doom and gloom.

The first light in the tunnel came on the 16th of November 2005. After it's routine dispatching of the Oceania qualifiers, Australia had to defeat the 5th placed team of the South American qualifiers. A task that can't exactly be described as a walk in the park. Trailing 1-0 from the first leg in Montevideo, supported by 83,000 attendees and millions across the nation, Australia ended its 31 year absence from the FIFA World Cup, earning the right to participate in the 2006 World Cup in Germany.

Not only did this help capture the interest of the mainstream Australian public, but help bring credibility to the code amongst the other three. The success of the national team (nicknamed, the Socceroos) helped generate interest into the newly formed domestic competition, the A-League.

Arising the ashes of the National Soccer League, the A-League commenced in August 2005, striving hard to tackle many of the problems that historically hindered the progression of soccer in Australia. One of the most obvious issues that was addressed was the issue of ethnic-based clubs. Some of the most historic and famed clubs within Australian soccer have been those of ethnic-based foundations. It can be said that these clubs act as proxy embassies for newly-arrived immigrants, many being established as social clubs for those longing the old country. However, many of the old troubles were revisited in Australia, in particular clashes between Balkan based groups such as the Croats and Serbs. For the Football Federation of Australia, it was an utmost priority to eliminate any ethnic tension, in order to appeal to the masses.

Effectively, two main guidelines directed the format of the competition. No ethnic-based links, so clubs such as Marconi Fairfield, Sydney Olympic and Melbourne Knights (each respectively represented by the Italian, Greek and Croatian communities) were barred from entry. And lastly, 1 city, 1 club. The A-League wanted clubs to consolidate support from the entire demographic of their city, emphasizing inter-city rivalries.

This was a successful tactic which saw record crowds of 50,000 for grand finals, 35,000 for regular season matches and an average of 27,000 for the Melbourne Victory in Season II of the competition.

So why the second uprising?

The common consensus within the Australian soccer community is that the FFA's prioritizing Australia hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup saw a neglect towards the A-league. Average crowds since the 2007-08 season, which saw a record average of 14,610, plummet consistently to an all time low of 8,429 in the 2010-11 season. Two expansion clubs, the North Queensland Fury and Gold Coast United were folded within two to three seasons. Both of these aforementioned clubs were established to further 'nationalize' the game. However the markets for soccer that these clubs were situated at were barely or not at all interested towards the game. The A-league was facing the unwanted prospect of having to field a 9-team league for the 2012-13 season. Hastily, a Western Sydney team was created to fill the void of the demise of Gold Coast United. The events that happened next were truly unprecedented or unexpected.

The current 2012-13 season has widely been acclaimed as the greatest A-League season, surpassing the pandemonium of the inaugural season in 2005-06. The success of the season can be attributed to two main factors.

1. The introduction of quality marquee players. The signing of Alessandro Del Piero, Emile Heskey and Shinji Ono was a masterstroke, that not only gave attention to the game domestically but worldwide, such is the stature of the three marquee players.
2. The fairytale season of the Western Sydney Wanderers. A team build hastily, expected to finish bottom has exceeded every single expectation. About to contest for the Grand Final in 2 days time and finishing the regular season 1st.

The success of this season has truly been welcomed for many soccer enthusiasts within the country, such as myself. It is truly something when the game which has been dismissed by so many for so long has captured the attention of every single Free-to-Air broadcaster and newspaper publication. But this is where the challenge begins. It is a true test of administrative capabilities if the FFA can sustain this interest of the domestic game. It is a test to see whether the spectator-seers of Del Piero, Heskey and Ono will remain after they leave. 

It is a test to let the game grow and to never see a regular season crowd average of 8000 ever again.

- Aaron Wong

Australian Rugby - Where Do We Stand?

The likes of Stephen Larkham, George Gregan and Phil Waugh no longer grace the green grasses of the hallowed rugby grounds across Australia. With it, long gone are the days when Australian Rugby and the Wallabies dominated both Super Rugby and the Tri-Nations.

How about this current generation of Australian Rugby players then? Are they too heavily criticised? Is Robbie Deans the right man to coach the Wallabies? Do they have the potential to win a World Cup or become the number one side in the world? Or are we simply stagnating as a Rugby nation on the world stage?

The fact that the Wallabies have not won a Bledisloe Cup since 2002 clearly demonstrates that New Zealand has well and truly taken over Australia in the landscape of international rugby. The only reason why Robbie Deans is still the coach of the Wallabies is thanks to the large turnover of players that South Africa have faced in the last few years leading to mediocre results and meaning that they and not the Wallabies are currently ranked as the number 3 team in the world.

Taking a step backwards, Australian franchises in Super Rugby have also struggled. Lets face it, Australia does not have the depth to field 5 teams in a 15 team competition! The Western Force in particular have been disappointing in not only their failure to improve on results but in the notion that they have been consistently losing their best players year in, year out with the likes of David Pocock, Drew Mitchell, James O'Connor and Matt Giteau all leaving the Perth based outfit. The Melbourne Rebels on the other hand have not fared much better either. Although the Rebels must be given somewhat a benefit of the doubt as they only started playing Super Rugby in 2011, 2013 looms as a big year where expectations at the Rebels will be higher than merely not finishing last. Their performances thus far however have not suggested that the Rebels could improve on their 13th placed finish last season and with disruptions involving key playmaker Kurtley Beale, it looks like it is going to be another grim season. Just by looking at the Super Rugby ladder, the fact that 2 out of the 4 bottom placed teams are Australian says it all! The underperformance of the Waratahs, where the majority of Wallabies are picked from, for several seasons now is also cause for concern for Australian Rugby in general whilst the Reds have shown that although they can make the finals they are no threat to take out the competition, which leaves Australia with only one side which we can hope to bring home the Super Rugby trophy this season - The Brumbies (who are coached by a South African all be it).

What are the positives then?

To sum it up in one word - potential.

Although the Wallabies have a handful of world class players such as Will Genia, Wycliff Palu and David Pocock they simply don't have the resources to put out a team of 15 that will match the All Blacks stride for stride. Where we do have the upper hand on our neighbours across the ditch is that the Wallabies are a much younger side than the current All Blacks and a more experienced side than the Springboks. It is without a doubt that players such as James O'Connor, Kutrley Beale and Quade Cooper have been under performing and need to get their act together both on and off the field because if they do then the Wallabies may once again become the best side in world rugby! Although the 2015 World Cup in England does seem a long way away the upcoming Lions tour of Australia together with another edition of the Rugby Championship may once again put Australia up there as the favourites to take out the title. If it dosen't well then at least it will clarify the future of Robbie Deans who's conservative and defensive style of rugby has been criticised within Australian time and time again.


- Vladimir Aleksov