It is an old joke that men never read instructions. Yet the joke is not so amusing when it affects others.
With a large percentage of football club presidents still being male that may be why some ,or their representatives have failed to read the responsibilities or rules and regulations that fall under their remit when appointed to positions of power. Rules and regulations that can have an impact on the game as a whole, and not just their club.
Sadly with the dawn of social media everyone has a platform to air an opinion, but the key thing to remember is that many of those opinions are ill-informed and those airing them have also not read the regulations and how they are to be applied.
Across all sports at all levels one of the biggest issues is the failure of elected representatives to understand what a conflict of interest is. It would be great if as soon as they are elected someone shared with them a document explaining what this is and how vital it is that such conflicts are declared. Then each elected member should be required to sign a document stating that they understand the meaning of a conflict of interest, and that if they are found guilty of not declaring such an interest they face severe consequences.
In Western Australian Football there have been two issues of late that have been getting clubs, players and fans hot under the collar.
The first relates to Perth Glory’s NPL team and their fight to avoid relegation.
The team avoided relegation on the weekend thanks to an 11-0 thrashing of Dianella White Eagles.
The game was played at the home of Football West, the State Football Centre currently known as the Sam Kerr Football Centre. Which also happens to be the venue used as a home ground by the Perth Glory side.
For such a game one would have expected that a neutral venue would have been used. Even if only to avoid accusations of the State body Football West trying to protect Perth Glory’s NPL status. Yet in the competition regulations there is nothing to say that these games should be played at a neutral venue.
In fact in the NPLWA Competition Rules 2024 it states under Article 23 – Promotion and Relegation Play-Off in section 4: “The winners of each semi-final Match will play each other in the Final Match, which is to take place over a single leg at a venue determined by Football West.”
If clubs in State League division One were not happy about this, and they believed it would with hindsight appear to give the Glory an advantage, their Standing Committee should have raised this as an issue at the start of the season, not at the end.
No doubt many did not expect Perth Glory to find themselves in this position, so never thought it would be an issue. In fact for a long time we have witnessed the likes of Perth SC or Floreat Athena host Finals series games when their teams have been competing, so many have come to accept that neutral venues have become a thing of the past.
Apparently Dianella White Eagles did ask if they could train at the Sam Kerr Football Centre before the important match, which would appear to be a very reasonable request, but allegedly did not receive a reply to that request.
When it came to the game itself there have been complaints because Perth Glory had eight players in their 18 player squad who are members of the Perth Glory’s senior A-League squad.
These players were it has to be said listed in Perth Glory’s NPL squad at the begining of the season. In fact 11 professional players were listed, four whose contracts expire in 2025, six whose end in 2026 and one whose contract will end in 2027.
The question one has to ask is why would Perth Glory play so many professionals in such a game? It should come as no surprise as they have done it in the past when faced with the prospect of relegation. (No Two Ways About It) Yet if the new owners want to win over those who you know are football fans, because they are involved with and support the local game, this is not the way to do it.
Once again one has to ask did any of the clubs object when the squads were announced? They certainly should have.
The Constitution of Football West states quite clearly under section 8 and the heading FIFA and FFA in the very first sub heading 8.1 Compliance and co-operation
The Company must:
(a) comply with this Constitution, all By-laws, the constitution of FFA and all by- laws of FFA.
(b) comply with, and do everything within its power to enforce compliance with, the Football Code of Conduct, the Statutes and Regulations and the Laws of the Game;
Not The Footy Show has contacted FIFA and also the Asian Football Confederation of which Australia is a member, and in whose competitions Australian and A-League teams compete, – including Perth Glory in the past – to ask them to confirm whether full professional contracted A-League players are permitted to compete in the NPL competition.
The AFC stated that “The status of any player under the jurisdiction of FIFA and as such this matter should be referred to FIFA.”
FIFA’s response was that under The Regulations and Status of the Transfer of Players “section 5 par. 2 stipulates that a player may only be registered with one club at a time.” They also advised that in the same document, and this applied to all member nations, “Article 1 par. 3a) states that the above provisions are binding at national level.”
While both sides carry the Perth Glory name the registrations for both competitions are not the same. So by playing for the NPL side these individual players have been registered in two competitions at the same time, which is not allowed. This is why players go on loan. When a player is loaned to another competition their registration with the other is cancelled. In nearly all cases there is also a financial implication to the player as well, whereby their wages will no longer be paid by the original club and they often receive a lower wage from the club they are loaned out to.
The one thing that was made very clear is a player cannot at any time be registered to play in two competitions.
Of those players who played in the play-off match, five of the eight have played in the A-League, with goalkeeper Cameron Cook having made 34 appearances. One would say that he is therefore an established A-League player. Only two players who played have yet to make their A-league debuts, but that sadly is irrelevant if they are registered as a contracted senior squad A-League player. One player Abdellah Faisal made his debut for Perth Glory in the Australia Cup against Brisbane Roar, and the same thing applies to him.
These are FIFA regulations they are written in black and white and apply across the world. So do Dianella White Eagles have grounds to appeal, it would appear that they do. Their defence when asked why they did not complain prior to the match could simply be that they have no say on the NPL, this is controlled by the NPL Standing Committee and Football West.
Which leads us onto another issue which is the NPL Standing Committee. When the National Premier Leagues was bullied through in 2013 those clubs that were selected to be a part of the NPL did not make sure that the Football West Constitution was amended to reflect their existence. The State League Standing Committee is still a member of Football West and has voting rights, the NPL Standing Committee is not.
Eleven years on and the Constitution has been amended in 2017 and most recently in May 2023 and their existence is still not recognised under the Member section of the Constitution. Which means that legally even if they did object to the professional players playing in the NPL constitutionally they do not have a leg to stand on. They have no legal say on the competition in which they are competing.
These clubs recently formed the “Alliance of WA Football Clubs” to try and fight the decision by Football Australia to do away with the NPL junior academies and bring them in house and have them run by Football West.
It was announced that “The Football West – Football Australia Academy will cater for talented boys aged 12-15 and girls aged 12-18 who are in the Hyundai NTC program.”
Understandably the clubs are upset. They risk losing talent they have developed. There are a myriad of issues that this development raises, and the concern to many is that once again Football Australia has knee-jerked and not thought through the consequences of such a move. Let us not forget that the NPL was rushed through to satisfy a promise made to the AFC that Australia would have a second division to the A-League. The then technical Director of the FFA, Han Berger, adapted a model that was used in the Netherlands – which failed and was abandoned – and with a few cut and pastes came up with the National Premier Leagues model. The FFA who at that time were blinded by the brilliant orange of the Dutch accepted the proposal and were convinced that it would immediately solve all of their problems. Despite being warned by many very smart people in football they did not listen, and have now found out that the country is no longer developing talent the way it was in the past.
What is criminal is the cost to all of the clubs who have had to comply with a whole new set of standards to be accepted as a NPL club, such as employing a technical director and having junior teams with accredited coaches across all age groups. Such developments have not been cheap.
While the NPL clubs may not have any power to stop this development due to their failure to be recognised as constitutional members of Football West, if they wanted compensation a class action could be an option. Football West under the direction of Football Australia forced these costs upon the clubs and they are essentially now moving the goalposts. If they can prove the adverse affects on their clubs they may be able to build a case, was the advise that Not The Footy Show received.
The crucial factor in all of this is that those elected to be a Zone rep or on a Standing Committee or even on the board/committee at their club must familiarise themselves with the Constitution of Football West in order to challenge decisions that they believe are detrimental to the game as a whole. Also, as both Football West and Football Australia are governed by the rules and regulations of FIFA it pays to read those regulations, even when local administrators will tell you that what they are doing is acceptable. As the state bodies and the national body are bound by their membership of FIFA to adhere to the World body’s rules and regulations.
If you know the rules and regulations you can object before an event takes place rather than after, when many will tell you it is too late. When elected to such positions you have a responsibility to the game it is important to recognise that and read the relevant documentation to fulfil your role as an elected office, charged with protecting the integrity of the sport and ensuriong what is best for its future.
