Come Play, FFA!

The last week of embattled survival talk has probably been the hardest week of the North Queensland Fury's short history. Yes, we went through this all before the start of this season, but I didn't legitimately think that we'd lose our spot in the A-League.

Not while the FFA had a bid in for the World Cup, success in which would drive the game forward in this country like never before.

Not while the ‘Save the Fury' campaign showed an incredible amount of support for the club in the region.

Not while the local business community, despite a number being burned by the Don Matheson exit debacle, still supported the club.

So, what has changed between May and October? Not a lot in essence. Support for the club in this region is still strong, although crowd numbers haven't been as high as we'd like. The World Cup bid is still going, and we're only a matter of weeks away from FIFA handing down their decision. And the local business community have excelled themselves, as Fury are near the top of the league when it comes to sponsorship dollars and corporate interest; just look at the corporate boxes at Dairy Farmers Stadium for any given home game to see how much interest there is.

And yet there is an overwhelming feeling of doom and gloom around the club's supporter base at the moment. The question must be, "Why?" Why does it feel like we're on the brink of our own oblivion? Why does it feel like we're being left to hang out to dry by our current owners? And, at the end of the day, is the FFA going to "Come Play" for the good of our club, region, and supporters? Allow me to explore some of the questions fans are currently asking of the FFA - and no, I do not apologise for this being very Fury-oriented. I'm an NQ Fury fan and blogger; if you want something completely subjective, then you're looking in the wrong place.

Was the Fury only ever a World Cup pawn?

Highly cynical as this might sound, it's a legitimate question. The NQ Fury come along after FFA decided to bid for the World Cup, out of the ashes of a failed Northern Thunder bid that was also encouraged by the FFA. Is it possible that the club, and its region's supporters, were used simply as a pawn in a giant game of bidding chess?

Townsville is a host city for the 2022 World Cup bid and, as such, it stands to the reason that the region should have an A-League team; otherwise, the FIFA Executive Committee might ask some uncomfortable questions about just how national the A-League is.

When Don Matheson picked up his ball and went home last season, the FFA came in to save us - a move that is genuinely appreciated by Fury fans (whether or not it currently seems like it). However the evidence overwhelmingly shows that the FFA are now waiting for the December bid decision before they back the club for the future. It's generally felt that if we miss out on the World Cup then the Fury's future is bleak, even if Ben Buckley and Lyall Gorman and Co. haven't come out and said as much. The ‘most-eggs-in-one-basket' approach the FFA has adopted, to the detriment of the A-League this season, could be disastrous to us.

If there is even a kernel of truth to this then the FFA should be ashamed of themselves. If the club doesn't survive, the chances of basing a future A-League team here (and getting support for it) are close to zero.

Why aren't the Fury afforded the same rights as other FFA-owned clubs?

Last week we lost to Isaka Cernak to Melbourne Victory. This week rumours are swirling around a number of our other players: Mark Hughes (Sydney FC), Justin Pasfield, Chris Payne (both Central Coast Mariners), and Gareth Edds (Perth Glory) to name a few. There are no doubts that more players will leave before the December deadline decision, and some may want to do so for the sake of their careers.

Okay, so the club is currently owned by FFA. So is Adelaide United, who have been run by the FFA since early 2009, yet last season Adelaide were able to go on a lavish spending spree to recruit the likes of Sergio van Dijk and Marcos Flores. They are also allowed to sign players on longer-term contracts and renew contracts for those players whose contracts are approaching. Where is the fairness in allowing one FFA-owned club spend as it sees fit, yet tying another club's hands behind its back? If we do survive, there's a very good chance that a lot of the team might be on the move anyway; can we really blame the players for wanting to assure their future when the FFA won't do the same for us?

To me it seems that it would be completely unpalatable for an A-League club to fail in Adelaide - it's a capital city and an important part of the Australian football landscape. Yet the same feeling doesn't extend to the Fury. How do you expect supporters to engage with a team that just has to rebuild itself every single season?

We're all equal parts of the A-League - aren't we?

How could you contemplate axing a club with our amount of community engagement, interest, and corporate sponsorship?

Fact: the Fury are one of the highest-sponsored clubs in the A-League.

Fact: the Townsville Bulletin and ZINC FM provide some of the best local coverage of any A-League club.

Fact: the ‘Save the Fury' campaign attracted record amounts of interest in the club, the likes of which must be envied by clubs with much larger catchment areas.

Fact: local fans are prepared to show the cash to save the club, and southern fans are doing the same - several supporters from rival clubs have pledged their hard-earned cash to keep the club afloat.

Some critics of the club and its supporters suggest that we need to get more bums on seats to show our support for the club. Granted, we do need more fans to come to games, but there are a few things not in our favour. For starters, the draw: the Cowboys have traditionally played on Saturday evenings, the best (read: only) time fans from regional centres like Ingham, Charters Towers, Burdekin, and even as far afield as Cairns, Rockhampton, and Mount Isa can travel to Townsville to watch the game. Our next three games are scheduled for Sunday, Friday, and Wednesday evenings. This season, just four out of our first ten fixtures have been at home, with around 3-4 weeks between each fixture. How is it that people (or the FFA) expect a constant improvement in attendances under these conditions?

Against Perth Glory we had 4,011 fans withstand torrential rain to watch the team: pre-game ticket sales were over 7,000, and a few people within the club were tipping us to break our attendance record - for a Friday night match!

Although I'm not really a numbers guy, a bit of quick calculator work suggests that if we attracted a regular home crowd of 7,000, it would equate to approximately 3.9% of our regional population attending the match. If other clubs were to attract similar support (notwithstanding stadium seating restrictions) we'd see over 155,000 at Melbourne matches, or 78,000 in Brisbane, or 50,000 in Adelaide, or 15,000 in Gold Coast (ha!). Say what you like about comparisons, but we're stacking up okay in the bums-on-seats count. A new stadium deal that doesn't kill us would help, but for the time being there's not a lot we can do about that.

Why have you shifted the goalposts in terms of your backing of us next season? You're asking for an exit strategy, why aren't you supporting us in reaching the stage where we can actually exit?

This is a ‘he-said, she-said' thing: Fury admin say the FFA promised to underwrite our losses for next season, FFA say we're lying (or exaggerating - whatever). The FFA has insisted upon us falling under a community-ownership model which, besides sounding somewhat communist, is a good idea. The only problem is that we need time to get the backing in place to make this utopian ideal happen.

The FFA see this model as the future, but are we being used as a test case? Adelaide are about to be bought out, if you believe the reports; Newcastle Jets just got their own sugar-daddy. The Fury was denied this very same opportunity when the FFA turned back the potential Singaporean investors.

Rabieh Krayem and Co. have been doing a sensational job preparing the club for the future of community-ownership. We've said we need a bit of time to make it viable. The question marks seem to hover over whether we'll get the corporate backing to make it happen, but as has been revealed recently, the Fury are performing very strongly in this regard. So why are the FFA dragging their feet on ensuring our short-term future, when the gains are there for all to see in the long-term? I trust that our FFA-mandated ‘exit strategy' is solid and is going to work for the club and this region, but do the FFA think the same? Do they even want it to work?

Are we vying with a virtually non-existent club for entry next season?

Rather disturbingly, there have been some reports that suggest we're vying with the illusion of Sydney Rovers to compete in the A-League next season. While I can see the appeal in having a club in western Sydney, I can't understand how it has anything to do with us.

Are the FFA planning on diverting funds that could be used to temporarily support the Fury, a well-established and well-supported club, to prop up a bid that hasn't reached any heights whatsoever?

What would you achieve by cutting the club from the A-League? We're nearly everyone's second-favourite team!

As a regular on the FFT forums, I have to tell you how touched I am with the amount of support we've received from rival fans. We are ranked as many people's second-favourite team almost across the board. We play fun, exciting football, and always have an eye on the win. We have one of the most charismatic personalities in A-League history on the bench in Franz Straka. The F-Troop is widely recognised as one of the best supporter's groups in the country.

So, what would the FFA achieve by cutting us? Well, not much in the positives column besides dollars (which have been freely dispensed for the World Cup bid, and to consultants, etc. etc.). I could write an entire blog on the negatives, but will limit myself to just a few: (1) they may lose most Fury supporters to the A-League, and perhaps the Socceroos and football in this country in general, forever; (2) they will lose what has become a vital component of the ‘national' A-League; (3) they will alienate fans around the country for letting such a popular and well-received club fall by the wayside.

What can we do to help the Fury?

For our southern fans out there, on behalf of NQ Fury fans, I genuinely thank you for your sentiments. The supporters are currently investigating our options with regard to raising money and safeguarding our future, if you want to be involved then please leave a comment on this blog or PM or e-mail me. Alternatively check out the official NQFC forums and voice your support there: http://forums.northqldfc.com.au/.

If you're a local then I urge you to get involved. The Townsville Bulletin are doing great things in supporting the club and putting pressure on the FFA to be fair with us. ZINC FM is broadcasting live from Molly Malone's on Sunday, where the F-Troop and supporters will be enjoying the pre-game from lunchtime. Send texts to the editor, send e-mails to Ben Buckley and the FFA and other media outlets, get your voice out there. Put pressure on the FFA to do the right thing and give us a little more support to keep us in the A-League.

Together, we can ensure that the FFA knows that support for the club is strong.

Together, we can ensure that the FFA will "Come Play" with us.

Together, we can make it happen.

FORZA FURY!