The National Premier Leagues system is a grand, bold and long-awaited attempt at unifying the various state leagues in Australian football. Whilst the country has had various attempts at national cup competitions (the Ampol Cup, for instance) state associations have always been somewhat segregated; certainly outside the confines of the National Soccer League and the A-League. In a country that is also a continent in its own right, this should come as no surprise. How on earth was the WA league supposed to stay in sync and related to the New South Wales league, when essentially that's like asking Ligue 1 and Turkish Premier League to do the same thing? The geographical spread of Australia, especially in football's founding days in this country, is a major factor in our history of heterogenous leagues. In 2013 however, with a stronger professional body and a better mastery of the tyranny of distance, Australia seems to be in a position to adopt uniform systems across the country, and something resembling a 'second tier' to the national competition (even if that term is used simply to satisfy an AFC tickbox).

Personally, the idea of common rules and regulations across Australia using a unified brand with the potential to market the game seems a sound one. It should (in theory) provide a higher standard of state league football, see spectators experiencing a consistent level of hospitality at each ground, and enhance the development of both young players and coaches. Indeed, the development component of the NPL is something that I'm very much a fan of - and judging by the reaction of players and clubs at the recent FFA fan forum in Perth, nobody has a problem with better coaches, players, and development pathways. When the NPL kicks off in WA in 2014, the following accreditations will become mandatory for coaching positions at NPL clubs:

  • Technical Director, 1st Team Coach, Under 20s Coach - C License ($1320)

  • Under 18s Coach, Under 16s Coach - Senior License ($325)

  • Under 15s Coach to Under 12s Coach - Youth License ($325)

Assuming a sound accreditation and licensing system, forcing clubs to ensure their coaches know the curriculum can only be a good thing. To quote Alistair Edwards at the Perth fan forum; it would be his hope that the current "National Training Centre" excellence program would be irrelevant, because 12 or so NPL clubs now have exactly the same style of coaching happening from juniors all the way up to their senior team. For many young players who currently aren't in the elite "NTC club" that exists in WA football, this can only be a good thing.

Another encouraging aspect of the NPL proposal is the idea of more professionalism when it comes to listing squads for match day, and interacting more with the general public via facebook, twitter, and an NPL mobile app. Nothing is more frustrating for me when I go to a state league game, see a goal scored, and look at my programme to read that number 9 was Xi Ling - which of course matches up very well with the tall African lad that is wearing that number on the back of his shirt. Everyone loves a local cult hero - but if you've never seen Andy Todd or Gustavo Maralunda before in the flesh then it's a bit difficult to know which player is the subject of so much talk on game day if you don't have an accurate point of reference. As I've stated in this column before, I'm also a fan of the NPL points system that attempts to limit the large-scale signing of foreign players and encourages the production of local talent. I'm not saying that it is by any means perfect, but it does represent a step in the right direction and the recognition that football at this level is semi-professional, and should be about developing young players and maintaining club stability, as well as competitive games of football. I don't view everything in the NPL WA proposal with the same positive light, however.

Somewhat annoyingly, the people behind the NPL at FFA headquarters seem to think they know what I want out of my local elite state competition. There are many mentions of providing a "better experience for all spectators", which is certainly a noble thought - but one exposed as a marketing fallacy once you read the details. Here is an example of the material about the match day experience that an NPL spectator apparently desires:

The NPL-WA should offer an enhanced match-day experience for spectators with the intention of increasing attendance.

  • The blue and white NPL logo and other branding will be very prominent at each ground.

  • Improvements to the look and feel of match day could include; a length-of-ground “atmospheric” banner displaying NPL and sponsors logos and emblematic crowd, and portable tear drop banners displaying NPL logo on entry

  • Generic match program featuring content relating to each match.

  • NPL theme music to be played on player entry, at half-time and after goals.
  • The aim is to have a consistent sports presentation at all grounds throughout the season.

Now I'm sorry NPL marketing person, but I don't want any of that! The generic-ness of the early A-League and the lack of identity at each A-League club, combined with useless amounts of generic marketing fluff and the idea of a theme song playing all the time everywhere across the league is madness. That doesn't attract spectators to the state league - individuality and the independence of each of the clubs does. The fact that I can have some kebabs at a ground with Greek heritage, or the curry, chips and pint of a club with English roots, or the amusing sight of a couple of old blokes playing chess in a clubhouse rather than watching the football - that's the state league for me. Cheap beer, cevapi, and community. Not generic branding and a bloody common theme tune! If someone at Football West or the FFA is reading this; please, please, please do not kill of the individuality of these clubs and replace them with cookie-cutter FFA templates. It robs the game at this level of one of its greatest strengths, and replaces it with one of the A-League's greatest weaknesses in this, its formative years. I'd much rather read the hand-typed matchday programme from Swan United's president than some shiny FFA/NPL fluff piece any day of the week.

Then there is the discussion around whether or not the NPL - WA should adopt a 'zonal' nature. When Football West CEO Peter Hugg was asked this question at the FFA fan forum in Perth, his response was that if you looked at the WA Premier Division at present, there were definitely geographic gaps in the market where there was no club - and that some of these gaps represented the greatest growth potential for football. This is of concern for clubs like Stirling Lions and Balcatta SC, whose grounds are quite close together and thus coul draw from the same pool of potential players. If a purely geographical approach to the NPL was taken you may see a collection of twelve teams like so:

  • Quinns FC 

  • Sorrento FC 

  • Perth SC 

  • Bayswater City

  • Fremantle United

  • Stirling Lions 

  • Floreat Athena

  • Swan United

  • Armadale SC

  • Rockingham City

  • Mandurah City

  • Bunbury Forum Force

Now I haven't picked favourites here, and I apologise to anyone whose club is not on the list. I've picked this list simply as an example of a purely geographical selection that takes a spread of areas around Perth (and outside of it, such as Mandurah and Bunbury) to form a nicely 'regionalised' league. The problem with this list is that several of these teams are in Division One and Division Two, and have been there for some time - and there are reasons for this. Their youth programmes may not be as good as others; the type of player they attract is of a lower standard; perhaps their governance isn't as strong; and maybe, in short, they are in an area where football simply doesn't attract talented players (for example, an AFL-dominated district). Should NPL applications be filtered on a purely geographical basis, I would worry for the competitiveness of the league. Nobody wants to see a newly-declared 'top tier' Fremantle United stuffed 8-0 week in, week out by established opponents like Perth SC or Stirling, even if it does mean a day trip down to the port town. I dare not even go into the suggestion that NPL - WA be any more than an NPL - Perth anyway, seeing as some people (perhaps in the east and unawares of the size of WA) seem to think a league with Broome FC, Albany Rovers, and Geraldton United could be in any way workable.

I'm also not a fan of putting unnecessary governance on what aren't elite, professional clubs. I understand that we would like consistent levels of administration from each club, and I support that idea, but I worry that a lot of the governance, compliance, and application processes set out for state league clubs seem onerous for organisations that in reality are a collection of like-minded volunteers putting something on for their community. I don't see the NPL as a genuine candidate for promotion/relegation to the A-League; at least not without a ridiculously complex series of regulations that would make it impossible for a team like Glory to be relegated and replaced by Sydney Olympic - cutting off one national market and further crowding another. But my biggest gripe about the NPL is the fact that it has removed promotion and relegation from the state's top tier.

For me, this robs the competition of a lot of its attraction and romance when compared to the A-League (the cynic may say that this is just the point, but I feel it's more a byproduct than the desired aim). When you're ten rounds away from the end of the season, and you're clearly not a chance for the top five, what is there left to interest spectators at your games? There are no crunch relegation six-pointers, just boredom and meaningless fixtures that Perth Glory fans were all too familiar with at the start of the A-League (games that had attendances to match their level of relevance to the competition). While I'm not aware of the future status of the State League Cup, I would hope at least that NPL sides and Sunday League teams alike would still be able to participate in one big state-wide competition, as is presently possible.

I'll close with a notable experience from the recent fan forum in Perth - one that bears some relevance to the discussions presently at hand. An audience member, evidently a stakeholder of some local club, asked the question of how much discussion there was with clubs when the NPL was first being considered at the top levels of the game. He used the example of Germany's own reworking of their league system, and was part way through explaining how the German FA had been proactive in their relationship with lower league clubs when the MC of the evening, Kyle Patterson, interjected with "and we're in Australia. Next question". It was a remarkably unfriendly gesture from someone who is ironically the FFA's Head of Corporate Affairs and Communications - and whether it was deliberate or just came across as such, it was certainly viewed as offensive and condescending.

The angry murmurs and shouts that followed Patterson's rebuttal of what was a genuinely interesting and relevant example serves as a stark reminder about how the FFA are perceived by many at a grass roots level - agents of change who tell you what to do, rather than working with you to discuss what would be a better future. Now whether there is or isn't constructive collaboration between the NPL parties and the existing state league clubs isn't for me to know - I haven't attended any of the meetings between NPL reps, Football West, and the state league clubs. But when you're rolling out changes like this, the perception of the change is often as important as the change itself. Therefore I can understand why many clubs' members have concerns about the coming of this new model. 

In closing, I would say that yes - I do support the concept of the National Premier Leagues in WA. I accept the FFA and Football West's concessions that it won't be perfect to start with, and I think that it's been smart of the state body to delay taking it up until they've seen what has happened in other states. The key element to the NPL rollout is trust - and it has to come from both sides of the fence. Though Football West say that they don't want any club to fold because of these changes - and I agree that they don't - it doesn't of course mean that no club will be worse off after the introduction of the new tier. Existing Premier Division clubs may have to become 'community' clubs for one reason or another, and play in what is presently Division One or Division Two. This 'relegation' of sorts will definitely be painful - and I'd hate to see that happen to a lot of proud clubs. On the other hand, those clubs will be aware that this isn't the first time this has happened in WA, and nor will it be the last. The 90s saw many clubs drop several divisions - Kwinana United went from Premier Division to Amateur Second Division in 1991; Cracovia also dropped to amateur status in 1994; and prior to that decade there were years and years of clubs opening, folding, and changing divisions.

As a lover of the game in this state, all I can hope for is that there is cooperation and understanding on both sides of the NPL divide; and that even if clubs are disadvantaged by the creation of the new tier, they are somehow compensated for their drop in stature and rewarded for the production of talented young players. As someone who goes along to both Premier Division and lower league games in this state, I can say that there will still be people who want to support the game at both an 'elite' and 'community' level - but the important thing is for all parties to consider what's best for these fans, not just themselves. About now, clubs will be preparing their NPL applications (or like Melbourne Knights, deciding to continue as a community club only). Then it will be the turn of Football West to look at all applications in July, before an announcement of the new league and its teams in August. It will be an interesting few months for WA football indeed - and one that may determine the future of the game in this state.

If in 10 years time, if I can be enjoying quality football, cheap beer, and a nice plate of pasta or cup of cevapi, with a drink and a chat at the Italian club after, all while these clubs are developing the next generation of football stars in Australia, I'll be a happy man indeed.