As an avid football enthusiast, I was eagerly awaiting the release of the AAFC Report on the National Second Division: https://www.australianfootballclubs.org.au/uploads/9/8/8/1/9881717/aafc_nsd_final_report__22.02.22_.pdf
However although the report is for a 2nd tier competition, the lack of detail in the report itself is something that needs to be looked at again to avoid being branded as 2nd tier report that is little more than an updated version of the original NPL Documents.
10 suggestions on what to improve for the partner group:
- Pay the $10 for an SSL Certificate on your website, so it doesn't say "site is not secure"
- Engage a copywriter who can word the document into a story, as well as checking for spelling errors.
- Clearly identify what is the value proposition of the league?
- Survey the partner clubs fans, coaches & players to gain valuable insights into what the league should look like from its actual stakeholders. A minimum number would be several thousand surveys, followed by interviewing several hundred of these stakeholders. From this you will be able to create customer personas and user profiles that will make it easier to specifically market to these stakeholders as well as disengaged current & former fans of A-League clubs.
- As a startup league with a lean approach, consider using lean startup methodology in developing the league. We have an opportunity to be innovative and create real lasting change in the Australian football ecosystem, so don't just create something via groupthink that will only be slightly better than the existing NPL. An innovative league will be able to anticipate, react and change quickly to emerging situations, and not being the slow moving monolith that is Football Australia.
- Increase diversity in thought, opinion, experience. Currently only 1 of the signees if female (Victoria Morton from South Hobart)
- Managing a business/league and creating one are 2 different things, and require 2 different skillsets. Building a business from 0-$1 million versus managing and maintaining a multi-million dollar business, means the league should be looking to hire football people who have done that and have entrepreneurial, innovative and design thinking backgrounds, as well as experts & consultants that have worked in the USL , J-League 2 as well as in the smaller European leagues in Denmark, Croatia, Scotland etc
- Detail what clubs actually need to do in the next 12 months, and the first 12 months of the league to prepare them. This 24 month period has been shown to be the most important if looking at other startup clubs successes and failures in recent years.
- Bring the start of the Womens League to 2024 to build off the back of the Women's World Cup. A 2026 start just looks like "in the future...". Although reports are true around the lack of depth & viability, it can also be said that the AFLW was in a similar if not worse position when it launched. We have the advantage to use the momentum from the WWC. A 2026 launch will not have this, and as seen by the Asian Cup, interest soon wanes.
- Avoid Committees where possible and get some people of the ilk of John Didulica etc to add some valuable detail and actions to avoid having this league delayed again.
Long time player, Coach, Technical Director and general football tragic.
2 年Too complicated James. Australian powers that be have looked at something that has been around for over 100 years and said that can do it better. Too many non football people coming up with ideas for football. Using consultancy firms that don’t know the sport. The model is out there copy what everyone else does’ full pyramid system if they can’t hack it at the top then they will drop down and someone else will rise to the challenge. No guarantees if you are bottom you go down if you are top you are the champions. Simple simple organisation at every level, we have kids NPL teams winning by over 20 goals so no development anywhere. Seperate league systems for every age again bottom teams go down and top teams go up or are champions.
Broad range of skills in ITIL based roles, Project Management, Governance, Grant & Organisation Management and Consulting, Coaching and Operations. Flexible to support you, however your organisation requires.
2 年Well done mate, nicely assessed and providing constructive feedback that is achievable. I
Football Coaching - AFC/FFA - A-Diploma Qualified
2 年Well written and relevant points. The second decision has been treading water in the same spot for the last 2-3 years, just expecting that they all deserve it! We need a second division, and if planned and implemented correctly - not assuming 'we were NSL we know how to do it' - this could become a league that is followed by so many football supporters. This could help create more opportunities for our young players to go to the next level. But the think tank for this needs to expand, and as you said, bring in football people.
AEK ATHENS
2 年We have one more chance to get it right..The 2nd division or B League has the potential to outgrow the A League within 2 years . That’s the exciting part.Congratulations to the hard work and the forward thinking of the people who have persisted with this vision under all the adversity..This will move Australian football forward ..????