Soccer’s magical Cup stories highlight the big gap between the AFL and other Australian football competitions
AUSTRALIAN soccer this week saw the beauty of a Cup competition as APIA-Liechardt upset A-League champions Melbourne Victory. Is this the magic the AFL needs rather than AFLX?
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IF only Australian football had an APIA-Liechardt, that “tiger” that once again roared in Australian soccer this week.
It would be the end of AFLX. Tasmania might finally have its rightful place in Australian football again.
The APIA Tigers’ 3-2 win against A-League champion Melbourne Victory in the round of 16 stage of the FFA Cup this week — just months short of the 40th anniversary of the Sydney club rising to original National Soccer League — lived to the slogan (borrowed from England) about the “magic of the cup”.
The magic of a game not being decided by the size of the team payroll, the number of luxury cars in the club parking lot or the egos in the locker room.
The world game, even while losing its stereotypes as managers and players move from nation to nation, always has had this beauty. There are top-flight leagues, there are super series (such as the European Champions League) … and there are Cups, with David repeatedly leaving Goliath with brutal headaches — as APIA did on Tuesday night.
But could it happen in Australian football?
Could the AFL redefine its pre-season — now reduced to two “trial” games to find space in a crowded calendar for the short-form AFLX on rectangular fields — with a national Australian football Cup series?
The “no argument” is always based on the competitive gap having become too grand between full-time AFL players in training from mid-November and part-time State league players.
This theme stopped 1993 SANFL premiers, Woodville-West Torrens, gaining a place in the 1994 AFL Foster’s Cup when the big league was juggling 15 teams in the draw for its pre-season competition. The AFL opted to reward 1993 national league premier Essendon with the bye in the Cup’s first round rather than call up the Eagles from Oval Avenue, Woodville.
More than 50 years have passed since Australian football — that has long struggled with setting up a “national competition” against a “national league” — first tried to establish a Cup series from coast to coast.
In 1976 the National Football League set up the first Australian football version of the FA Cup — the Wills Cup with the top-four teams from the SANFL’s 1975 season (Norwood, Glenelg, Port Adelaide and Sturt) in a 12-club series with five VFL teams and three from the WAFL. Glenelg and Norwood reached the semi-finals losing to North Melbourne and eventual champions Hawthorn, who played the final at Norwood Oval in mid-August.
In 1977, the Victorians broke away to re-establish their own VFL night series while the NFL pushed on with the Ardath Cup with 22 teams from the SANFL, WAFL, VFA and State teams from Tasmania, NSW, Queensland and the ACT. Norwood beat East Perth in the NFL Championship final at The Parade in late July.
In 1978, it was the Escort Cup — with 16 teams from the SANFL, WAFL, VFA and the four State teams from Tasmania, NSW, Queensland and the ACT. South Adelaide beat Glenelg in the final at Norwood Oval in mid-July.
In 1979, the VFL showed its national hand by starting the Australian Football Championships with VFL teams and representatives from WAFL, Tasmania, NSW and ACT playing for the Foster’s Cup. The SANFL stood by the NFL with the Cup made up of the 10 SA teams, Prahan and Preston from the VFA and Western Districts and Windsor-Zillmere from the QAFL. Norwood beat South Adelaide in the final while Collingwood beat Hawthorn in the other Cup.
From 1980 until 1986, when the VFL expanded to WA and Queensland and North Adelaide made SA proud by reaching the semi-finals, there was just one Cup again … but no lasting magic. And now there is AFLX.
REALITY BITES
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“We had desire, passion, commitment, a game plan and the football gods were on our side.”
APIA-Leichhardt coach BILLY McCOLL on the Tigers’ 3-2 triumph against A-League champions Melbourne Victory in the FFA Cup.
SHARP ARROW — OR LONG BOW
FOOTBALL’s so-called First Lady CAROLINE WILSON made an interesting conclusion as the Crows’ pre-season camp at the Gold Coast — and hiring of Collective Mind — became the basis of her weekly arrow on Channel 9’s panel show, Footy Classified, on Monday.
To quote Wilson’s final words: “How is it that one of the most-professional, so-called professional football club in the land, shipped their precious cargo … into uncharted territory under the guidance of men with no medical or psychological qualifications after everything we learned in 2012.”
Wilson is referring to how Essendon became embroiled in Australian football’s darkest saga with the supplements program that still brings question on how the Bombers put their faith in “sports scientist” Stephen Dank.
It is an interesting link. One man gave Essendon a nightmare in the search of a new edge in physical performance. One crew gave Adelaide a headache with coach Don Pyke’s search for the answer in the mental space in elite sport.
And while the Crows have tried to pack away this saga with the thought there is no “lingering issue” from the Gold Coast camp, there is a significant postscript to come from the AFL Players’ Association. There will be guidelines — call it certification — that will be needed the next time anyone wants to work in the mental space with an AFL team. As they say, stay tuned.
NUMBERS GAME
AS the lights come down at Football Park, those who felt the move to Adelaide Oval at the end of 2013 would have a three-year novelty factor would have to concede the city venue has indeed captured the football fans’ approval.
The Crows left West Lakes with 2013 marking the poorest attendances for Adelaide home games — 369,740 at 11 games at an average of 33,613.
The Crows closed their Adelaide Oval stand last weekend with 499,589 — average 45,417 — at the sporting cathedral this AFL season. This follows 513,151 (average 46,650) last season; 517,612 (47,056) in 2016; 464,870 (46,487) in 2015; and 528,508 (33,613) on entry in 2014.
AND IN PERTH
PERTH Stadium, with its 60,000 seats, will host this year’s WAFL State league grand final on Sunday, September 23. The match will also allow the fans to have their first kick-to-kick session at the new home of WA football.
The last three WAFL grand finals at Subiaco Oval drew crowds of 18,180 last year; 15,031 in 2017 and 13,094 in 2016.
MEDICAL ROOM
On Tuesday night, the Adelaide Football Club injury “update” had key defender DANIEL TALIA as a 50-50 chance of playing in Saturday’s AFL season closer against Carlton at Etihad Stadium. On Thursday, the Crows revealed Talia had thumb surgery.
To quote Crows football boss BRETT BURTON when Adelaide was accused of being misleading with its injury reports: “The reality is that these guys are human, things change.”
BIG STATEMENT OF THE WEEK
“WE are on the precipice of being a fantastic team.”
PORT ADELAIDE Football Club chief executive KEITH THOMAS on Saturday.
TWEET OF THE WEEK
“Things we don’t need updates on anymore:
• Ben Cousins’ decline
• Anything Sam Newman says.”
TITUS O’REILY @TitusOReily