IT'S THAT time of the year, when a lot of A-League fans don’t know what to do with themselves.
It's too early to start trawling the internet for transfer rumours and pre-season friendlies are still a while away. The fortnightly dose of ACL action also isn't doing it for you and if you're not a Central Coast or Newcastle fan that's doubly so.
So why not take the slightly less glamorous route and take a look at what's happening in your State Leagues?
Last year with Melbourne Victory's season having ended early and with a need to see some more live football action, I decided to check out the Victorian Premier League. I'm not the kind of person who can go along to game and dispassionately watch a game - I needed a team to support.
So after a long and arduous selection process (ie. the team whose ground was easiest to get to and wasn't South Melbourne - never really liked them in the NSL) I started attending the games of the Richmond Eagles in the Victorian Premier League.
Watching the VPL (try doing a google search on that and see what you come up with) is truly an experience in itself. Whilst you don't have the plush seating of an Etihad Stadium or a Sydney Football Stadium or the beautiful sight lines of Suncorp Stadium there certainly are some benefits.
First up, you can drink full strength beer at the price of what you pay for the half strength stuff at the stadium of choice of your A-League team. Also there are usually a variety of beers on offer. For example, at Richmond with its German heritage you can sample a fine selection of German beers (and no that doesn't mean Becks). Although you do have to pay attention to who is actually serving them otherwise you may get more froth than beer.
Secondly, there is the food. Whilst as a vegetarian I can't vouch for most of the food at most grounds but with kranskys, souvlakis, kebabs and cevapcis available at differing grounds, the variety alone puts what is on offer at all A-League stadiums to shame. However the idea of a fish burger, which is available at Green Gully Reserve, just doesn't seem quite right.
Thirdly, there are the away matches. One advantage of following a local team is that in most cases it's not too difficult to travel to an away match, unless you have to travel to Epping Stadium or to Frankston that is. Last year, in my first year of supporting Richmond I went to places that I had never really been to before.
Suburbs such as Fawkner, West Sunshine, Keilor, Heidelberg and Altona were all relatively virgin territory for me before last year. There is also an opportunity to visit some of the stadiums of NSL days past, such as the Knights Stadium and Bob Jane Stadium.
If the idea of following a Victorian Premier League team doesn't quite grab your fancy, there are always plenty of State and Provisional League teams to follow and unlike the A-League there is always the chance of promotion or relegation, something that always brings a bit of excitement to any league. So just get out there an support your local team.
