Football Queensland trumpeted the level of interest in the new state-wide, FFA-endorsed Australian Premier League last weekend.
 
But some of Brisbane’s largest and most successful clubs remain unconvinced of the proposed competition’s merits.
 
The new league is a key part of the FFA's National Competitions Review and aims to redefine the second tier in Australia, replacing the existing Queensland State League with a larger, rebranded competition, tentatively titled the Australian Premier League Queensland Division.
 
The deadline for expressions of interest passed last Friday, but Brisbane clubs have questioned its financial viability and insisted they want to remain part of the Football Brisbane pyramid.
 
The snub is set to prolong the long-running rivalry between Brisbane Premier League run by Football Brisbane, and the state-wide league controlled by Football Queensland.
 
Football Queensland’s Chief Operations Officer Ben Mannion, overseeing the  new competition, dismissed the rebel faction and said the reaction from Queensland clubs had been “fantastic”.
 
“The response to date has been overwhelming,” Mannion said, “Thirty-six submissions of interest have been submitted from all areas in Queensland with the majority coming from the state’s south-east corner.”
 
Multiple submissions had been received from the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast, while clubs and federations from regional areas of Queensland had also expressed interest, he said.
 
“People are starting to understand the concept of having a geographical region as their representative hub where the best players can come together and play against the best from other regions,” Mannion said.
 
“We will encourage clubs and entities to think outside the square and open up the possibilities to partner with other clubs and entities within their geographical areas.”
 
But Football Brisbane's president Michael Bailey was more sceptical about the competition's state-wide format.
 
"I was disappointed by the outcome of FFA's Competition Review,” Bailey said.
 
"Its ‘one size fits all' approach seemed to me to lack understanding of the football reality in this state, not to mention its geography.
 
"I am not convinced that any structure that allocates the bulk of scarce resources to travel and hotel costs is the best use of those resources."
 
But Bailey insisted the two divisions don't have to rivals.

"The APL and Brisbane Premier Football should complement one another in promoting football in Queensland,” he said.

"I believe that Queensland needs a dualistic second tier concept, one that recognises the strength and capacity of Brisbane football allied with one that meets the needs of Regional Queensland.”
 
He was also optimistic about the future of the Brisbane Premier League competition.
 
"Irrespective of the outcome of the APL, Brisbane Premier Football, due to its current strength and player numbers, will remain a top league," he said.
 
"There are more than 70 clubs in Brisbane - plenty left for us."
 
Brisbane Lions chairman Henk Mollee added that financial concerns would mean his club - which helped establish Queensland Roar - would remain with Football Brisbane.
 
"The club is still paying off debts incurred by our involvement in the setup of Queensland Roar in the A-League." he said.
 
"Our current board does not wish to place the club in further financial jeopardy."
 
Rochedale Rovers President Michael MacArthur was also concerned by the costs of the new league.
 
"It is our belief that in its current proposed format that the APL is unlikely to be a viable competition, certainly not for clubs in south-east Queensland," MacArthur said.
 
"It appears to be a revamped, re-named QSL which has not been the success Football Queensland would have clubs believe. The cost of travel alone, particularly if juniors are to be involved, would be prohibitive to most if not all clubs.
 
"The other states do not run a state-wide competition as Football Queensland have attempted, even though the distances involved, particularly in Victoria, are nowhere near the travel distances required in Queensland.
 
"It would be easier and closer for our club to play a Sydney team than a team in Cairns for example."
 
Brisbane City's Tino Pezzimenti said they were also cautious about financing the new competition, but revealed his club had lodged an expression of interest.
 
"We believe the structure of the new competition is a workable one," Pezzimenti said.
 
"We do have concerns however with the possible costs involved. We have been told there will only be one zone for the whole of Queensland. This will add enormous costs in the way of travel and accommodation.
 
"Many people don't realise the distance between Brisbane and Cairns is similar to that of Brisbane and Melbourne. Add to that the fact that players will still be amateurs and would most likely miss a day from work when playing away.
 
"This issue needs closer attention. A lot of money would be outlaid with an unlikely chance of a return even if the club wins the cup."
 
But Brisbane Strikers - in the Queensland State League since its inception - said costs weren’t as prohibitive as some believe.
 
"It’s a misnomer that we’re richer (than other clubs)," said director Bruce Atterton-Evans. "I think clubs would be surprised at our football budget.
 
"There would be clubs out there probably spending more on their football budget than we are, and we’re travelling around the whole state."
 
Atterton-Evans was optimistic about the APL and said Strikers had lodged an expression of interest, although they would wait for more details before making a formal submission to join it.
 
He added: "In some of the reactions I’ve heard, and I’m not being critical of the other clubs, I don’t think they have taken the time to try to understand the concept of the APL.
 
"The purpose of the APL is to form a link in the development pathway. Done properly it should give every kid an opportunity, no matter what club he is playing for.
 
"If the APL clubs do their job properly, if a kid has got potential and is good enough, he should be found and given the opportunity to progress all the way through to the A-League.
 
"Some clubs don’t see that. They’re out to win their own league."
 
Football Queensland acknowledged the concerns of Brisbane clubs but said the FFA will soon reveal commercial strategies behind the new competition to make it a success.
 
Mannion added: "At the end of the day, the Australian Premier League, is going to happen."