The Club v Country Conundrum.

They say if you wait long enough everything changes.

It was back in the early 2000’s that a meeting took place between the then coach of the Socceroos Frank Farina and coach of the Kookaburras Barry Dancer to look at the similarities between two sports and to see what lessons could be learned from each other.

At the end of the meeting the only real similarity was the fact that both were team games and only allowed 11 players on the pitch at any one time.

One of the key points of difference was when it came to players representing their country.

For in football at that time there was no Football Federation of Australia, the game was being run by Soccer Australia, an organisation it has been said gambled every four years on making the World Cup finals in order to survive. Money was tight.

Soccer Australia would fly players back from Europe but not in the comfort the players of today enjoy, and often on airlines whose schedules did not suit the timeframes the players needed to be back with their clubs. One UK based player who returned for a weekend International was booked on an Alitalia flight back via Rome that saw him arrive into the UK on Thursday, which would rule him out of that weekend’s game. So had to pay for his own ticket to fly out on the Monday to be back in the UK for Wednesday.

At this time when Australia was part of Oceania European based players were asked to return for matches, but were loathe to do so. Faced with a game at Old Trafford, Anfield or Highbury as it was then or a match against Fiji or Western Samoa, the decision was easy.

For the players based in Europe there was always pressure from their clubs, that paid them a regular income, and one far better than their International match fee, to stay and play for them. So strong was the pressure that many Australian players had it written into their contracts that they were allowed to play for Australia.

David Mitchell was one who suffered due to that clause. He left Feyenooord to play for Australia at the 1988 Olympic Games as per the terms of his contract. His club coach told him if he went, he would sign another striker and he would no longer be required. When Mitchell returned the coach banished him to the reserves. Jim Patikas was another player to suffer a similar fate when playing for AEK Athens. He played in a World Cup Qualifier when his club did not want him to leave, when he returned he spent close to three months playing in the reserves, having been a regular starter before playing in that key game for Australia.

To give an illustration of just how strong the pressure was on Australian players to stay at their clubs and not fly home for International matches, Mark Bosnich who was regarded as one of the best goalkeepers in the top flight in England at Aston Villa, before moving to Manchester United, played only 17 games for the Socceroos between 1993 and 2000.

Let us not forget that at this point in time there was no International Fixture window, where all top League matches stopped. In fact this “International Window” was eventually created specifically to stop the fight between club and country. It was clearly a fight that was undermining the League competitions, and also the International matches for some nations.

Football tackled the issue head-on by creating a match calendar that sets out which dates can be used for ‘Official matches’ and ‘Friendly matches.’ FIFA also determines when the Continental Championships can take place within their calendar.

FIFA also insist that ‘official’ and ‘friendly matches’ should take precedence over domestic matches. However, they do state that international friendlies that take place outside of the designated International dates do not take precedence.

While on the surface this may appear to have solved the problem, the European clubs are still not happy. They continue to pay the lion’s share of the player’s salaries, and yet are expected to lose their top players from Africa, when the Cup of Nations is scheduled, or their top Asian players when the Asian Cup is contested. They have been pushing for compensation to be paid by the National associations to their clubs. In 2010 they did actually receive GBP40million as compensation from FIFA.

Twenty years ago when this meeting took place Hockey-player Jamie Dwyer was about to head to Europe to play professionally for Bloemendaal in the Netherlands. Newly appointed India coach Graham Reid was one of the first to head to the Netherlands to play professionally. Despite a number of players taking up that option over the years the Australian team has continued to be pre-dominantly made up of players who do not derive a living from their sport. Although the Hockey India League meant that many were in a much more secure financial position. So the Club v Country issue has not really raised its head.

Hockey was rarely in a similar position to that which Football found itself in, as most of the international tournaments were played outside of the Club League seasons. There may have been the occasional Test match, but usually these were arranged by the National Associations in consultation with the clubs.

Yet once the “Hockey Revolution” was announced it was clear that change was just around the corner. Our “revolutionaries” locked themselves away and plotted a path forward for the game. One of the goals was to “develop a clear and coherent calendar of meaningful events spread through the year and distributed across the world. We will deliver a fantastic experience which will work perfectly on TV and online, attracting new fans and inspiring participation.” A noble goal.

However was the focus solely on the International game? Had they cocked and eye to football and foreseen the possible problems that lay ahead if players had to chose between Club or Country?

As every sports fan will tell you it is the clubs that are the lifeblood of any sport. They are the ones who develop players, and turn them into the International players of the future. In fact most fans have a stronger connection to a club than their country.

When the teams for the FIH Pro League were announced the then CEO of the FIH, Jason McCracken stated on BT Sport, “We strongly believe that this new competition will fuel the growth of our sport for many years to come, significantly increasing revenues for hockey. As a result it will become a professional sport, making it a career choice for athletes who will be given the opportunity to perform in big, bold, packed and loud venues both in their homeland and overseas.”

The FIH Pro League was to be the flagship tournament of Hockey’s Revolution, and it has achieved that with the quality of some of the games, which have showcased the dynamism of the game and the skill-level of those playing for the top sides.

Sadly just last week the rumblings from the clubs started to become a little louder as it was reported that Oranje-Rood in the Netherlands had refused to give up their internationals for the FIH Pro League game against Spain. Only following the intervention of National coach Max Caldas, was the conflict resolved.

It was reported by Hockey World News that “Off the record, those involved are more talkative and want to tell their side of the story. Everyone makes it clear that the intention was never to let the players suffer, but in the meantime the internationals involved are struggling with a huge loyalty conflict.”

When the FIH Pro League was announced not surprisingly it was the Dutch League that protested the loudest, as without doubt theirs is the best League in the World, in terms of players, crowds, standard of competition, and most importantly viability. Their protestations were heard and the fixtures were adjusted, and they said they were happy with the changes. However, as was reported, they are now beginning to notice that the Pro League is hurting their competition. The underlying issue is the one that football faced, that they are paying the players, who are increasingly being claimed by their National federation. Not only are they losing key players, which can impact on results, but also are a key attraction to their fans.

As Football soon realised, despite representing your country being the highest accolade for a player, the International game must be careful not to undermine the structures and Leagues that have produced current-day and International players of the past.

A meeting was held in the USA two weeks ago to discuss where the Pro League was sitting half way through its first season and where it was headed. The word is that the competition may well see some structural changes in 2020 including an increase in participating teams. There are even murmurs that the League will be split into two parts. It may well be that it will see a European conference with five teams competing within a set window that does not impact on their professional Leagues. Then there will be an Asian/Oceania and Argentina conference making up the other half of the competition.

This may suit the European teams in terms of a huge cost saving due to less travel, as the majority could travel by bus to games. It would also most likely free the players up to play for their clubs and not face the decision of whether to play for their club or their country. Players from the Southern Hemisphere playing club hockey in Europe would however still be faced with that issue

If what is rumoured to be the way forward does eventuate travel is still going to be an issue for the teams outside of Europe, with flights required to every game. To give an example of some of the logistical problems in this part of the world it seemed incredible that in the past month Australia flew further for a ‘home game’ when hosting New Zealand than their opponents did! The Kiwis had a two hour flight from Auckland while the Aussies should have had a five hour flight from Perth; that ended up being far longer when their flight was diverted due to storms.

Yes, the club competitions need to be protected, and maybe moving forward Hockey has to look at the Football model and have “International windows” when FIH Pro League matches are played. The other option is for the sport to find a way to contract their international players and give them a wage that means, as Mr McCracken stated that the sport “will become a professional sport, making it a career choice for athletes.”

The Spanish men’s team flew to Australia and New Zealand last month for their Pro League ‘away matches’ with these two nations. They played in Sydney on Saturday 2nd of March, hopped on a plane to Auckland where they met New Zealand on the following Friday evening. The next day, Saturday, they boarded a plane back to Barcelona, arriving back on Sunday. On Monday all bar two players had to be at work. Then on Thursday they had to take another two days off to head to Valencia to play Germany on the following Friday. Hardly the life of a full time professional athlete.

The athletes cannot afford so much time off from work, and their employer’s understanding is being stretched to the limit. This is because outside of this competition there will be other tournaments to be played, such as World Cups and Olympics. As one former International said “What happened to the honour of playing for your country?” The sad truth is that in today’s world the realism is that players still share that sentiment, but the clubs and their employers give them a livelihood, and expect certain commitment in return.

This issue sadly doesn’t stop with just the players. A way has to be found to pay the Umpires. Historically Hockey’s top umpires were not paid when they attended tournaments; apart from per diems. The Pro League officials now receive EUR100 for the match and their travel and accommodation is paid for. Once again all have jobs. Many are fortunate to have jobs in teaching, so have more freedom to officiate during school holidays, but those who don’t have to take time off work. Is it feasible for an umpire to take time of work to fly to a country on the other side of the world to officiate one match? To be fair many have been rostered to cover two matches, but when games have been in the USA or China, it has been the lone fixture.

When the FIH launched the Hockey Revolution it was said that the game was at a crossroads and things had to change. Few disagreed. Now the game faces a very real challenge that has to be addressed or the FIH Pro League could see its potential damaged with nations sending teams of junior players on the road trips. Those with jobs will stay at home and only play the home matches. Or, there is the very real possibility that the clubs will stand united and request compensation for every match they are without their players; remember football’s top clubs are still making such demands!

The integrity of the top competitions must not be undermined. Neither can the quality of International competition, by clubs refusing to release players. It is a tough balancing act. Is an “International Window” the answer? Whether it is or it isn’t a compromise must be reached, or a match schedule agreed upon that works for both parties, but one that most of all stops a player being forced to chose between Club or Country.