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Mariner stuff not worthy of a whole thread

Rowdy

Well-Known Member
a) Is probably pretty close to the truth but with input from a few of the players.
b) I doubt because AD is a Mariners fan.

Definitely not a serious journalist, a published author of fiction, historical fiction and a biography (of someone who shall not be named).

I do not know if he posts on this forum but his posts on SFCU a few years ago used to be good value.

Meh, overall it is positive and entertaining. Unlike a lot of the crap written about our team.
I was well aware of who he is, just NOT buying the line he's trying to sell that he's truthfully talking to 'just one individual'. :cool:
 

Rowdy

Well-Known Member
Nobody seems to have mentioned it elsewhere, but how good do our beloved Palm Trees look in the new 'Season 15' TV ad for the A-League, featuring DDS & Sammy Silvera.

Enjoy:
 
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Allreet?

Well-Known Member
Allreet?

There are one or two perceptive chaps out there. The Secret Mariner is a composite of more than one person, but that's all I'll say. Do not want to get anyone in trouble, and do want to continue occasional pieces from the SM.

Best wishes for a great season everyone.
 

Ironbark

Well-Known Member
Western United sign injury replacement
8 hours ago 14:23
New A-League club Western United have signed Australian attacker Kwabena Appiah as an injury replacement folllowing an injury to Valentino Yuel.

The new signing wasn't announced by the club but Appiah was included in United's squad for their first A-League match on Sunday and came on in the second-half as Mark Rudan's side claimed a 1-0 win.

Appiah has previously played in the A-League for Western Sydney Wanderers, Wellington Phoenix, Central Coast Mariners and Newcastle Jets.
https://www.goal.com/en-au/news/live/transfer-news-and-rumours-live/1vpild4o8zlys1gwktzn6i511w
 

pjennings

Well-Known Member
It looks like a W-League team will happen eventually

Wide-reaching plans for independent W-League revealed
The future of the women’s game has finally been addressed with the goal of creating a sustainable, competitive and professional competition

Samantha Lewis


The APFCA, FFA, PFA and Women’s Council have been involved in drawing up a blueprint for the W-League.
Following the A-League’s decision to sever ties with Football Federation Australia earlier this year, the future of the W-League – and, by extension, the Matildas – is at a crossroads. For all the talk of a new dawn for Australian football over the past year, there has been little to no mention of how independence will affect the women’s game.

But Guardian Australia can now reveal the plans for an independent W-League – as part of a three-pronged approach to the men’s, women’s and e-sports competitions – which aims to transform the league into a sustainable, competitive, and professional competition over the coming years.

The information, gathered from a range of sources close to negotiations, is believed to be part of a dedicated strategy document that has been developed over the past four months by the Australian Professional Football Clubs Association (APFCA), and includes input from FFA, Professional Footballers Australia, member federations and the Women’s Council.

It is understood this will be used as the central blueprint for the league moving forward, ranging from short-term (one- to two-year) proposals to the longer-term (more than four years ). The plan can be organised into four key themes: players, clubs, the league and broadcasting.

Players
A priority for the independent body is retaining Australian internationals in the W-League. Combating interest from clubs overseas, the league aims to incentivise Matildas players and capitalise on the pulling power of the global brand. As such, player payments will gradually increase, while the salary cap will be lifted to $450,000 for the 2019-20 season. This will be the first season that the minimum hourly wage for W-League players will be brought into line with A-League players, as per the CBA renewed earlier this year.

The marquee player program will continue, with every club eventually able to field a marquee player outside the cap, while the international player quota will gradually increase as the league expands. Finally, there is a long-term aim to develop a progressive maternity leave policy that includes financial and job security as well as postpartum player care and childcare.


Keeping Sam Kerr in the W-League for the coming season will be a boon for the competition.

Clubs

As part of the league’s “one club” philosophy, every A-League team will be required to have a W-League counterpart, with the long-term goal being 16 W-League teams in total.
While there are concerns regarding a thinning local talent pool, the clubs believe expansion is necessary to attract more international players and provide more opportunities for youth. Club social media accounts will also be merged in line with the league’s unofficial slogan: “It’s not men’s football, it’s not women’s football, it’s just football.”

W-League sides will occupy one consistent home stadium outside of double-header games, with attention paid to accessibility, fan atmosphere and pitch quality. Elite training facilities will be developed in tandem with dedicated staff, equipment, and programs based on cutting-edge sports science. W-League licences will hinge on meeting minimum facility standards.

Every club will be supported to develop girls’ academies, ensuring that Australia continues to produce world-class footballers. One idea being floated is the creation of a national draft, where academy players are picked by clubs and distributed across the W-League to guarantee development opportunities for young talent.

The league
An extended home-and-away season is a short-term priority. While many fans and players had hoped this would be in place for the 2019-20 season, it is understood its implementation had been delayed due to the late administrative handover from FFA. Season length will gradually extend with expansion, with the long-term goal being parity with the A-League: 30 rounds plus a finals series.

A formal partnership with another domestic women’s league, likely the NWSL in the United States, is believed to be in the early planning stages. Based on calendar availability, other partnership options might include a league in Scandinavia or eastern Asia. This partnership could lay the foundation for multi-year contracts and official player loan agreements both to and from the W-League, with clubs likely paying loan fees and player salaries.

A new ticketing and pricing system will be developed that centralises all club data and charges fans accordingly, while W-League match-day experiences more generally will be overhauled. It is understood this includes: the implementation of safe standing areas to incentivise fans to participate more actively and collaboratively in games; showcasing matches in A-League stadiums; increasing the number of double-headers to attract bigger crowds; creating pre-match fan zones; and implementing half-time entertainment for women’s games.

The commercial branches of each club will be centralised and discussions with new and existing commercial partners ramped up, with an aim to recruit more appropriate brands to the league, such as women’s products and health foods. A renegotiation with league naming partner Westfield is also believed to be on the table, with multiple organisations thought to be ready to step in to further invest in the W-League off the back of the success of the World Cup.

Broadcasting
With the aid of a $30m government grant, Fox Sports and Kayo will continue to broadcast every W-League game for the next two seasons. Thursday (or “Hersday”) night football will return, while one game per round will be simulcast live on ABC on Sunday afternoons at 4:00pm, as well as the entire finals series.

A medium-term ambition is for every W-League match to be broadcast live, as well as expanding and improving digital and radio coverage generally. This may involve the development of a live feed or an over-the-top platform that can provide ongoing content both within and outside of games, including press conferences, interviews, training sessions and archived footage.

Fan engagement is another crucial area of development. By capitalising on digital platforms, including a plan to partner with a global football media outlet such as DugOut or Copa90, the league hopes to better capture the interest of younger fans and grassroots participants.

The final pillar of the strategy, which encompasses all the others, is a commitment to gender equality across the league. It is understood this involves clarifying and streamlining pathways for women in Australian football, including supporting female coaches who may want to coach men’s teams, and any other women who want to work in the top tiers of the Australian game.

These changes are believed to be part of a long-term strategy that seeks to make the W-League a more sustainable and professional competition. How these changes will work in practice, and the consequences for failing to abide by the pillars established by the independent body, remains to be seen.
https://www.theguardian.com/footbal...ching-plans-for-independent-w-league-revealed
 

Pirate Pete

Well-Known Member
The man who helped turn the English Premier League into a worldwide commercial behemoth has officially joined the push to save the A-League.

The Sydney Morning Herald can reveal that Richard Scudamore, who headed up the Premier League for nearly two decades, has been installed as a "special advisor" to the A-League clubs and competition boss Greg O'Rourke.
https://www.smh.com.au/sport/soccer...igns-on-to-help-a-league-20191015-p530x8.html
 

style_cafe

Well-Known Member
The man who helped turn the English Premier League into a worldwide commercial behemoth has officially joined the push to save the A-League.

The Sydney Morning Herald can reveal that Richard Scudamore, who headed up the Premier League for nearly two decades, has been installed as a "special advisor" to the A-League clubs and competition boss Greg O'Rourke.
https://www.smh.com.au/sport/soccer...igns-on-to-help-a-league-20191015-p530x8.html
It`s not really rocket science is it?
Bring in more teams,increase revenue to grass roots football,have a home and away competition,market the game(there`s a thought for you)
create a fun football tv program that actually has humans on it (unlike Fox),promote school football competitions for boys and girls, get the players to do more promotional work, work harder for sponsorships with international companies
There`s a few ideas for you " DICKY "
 

Tevor

Well-Known Member
It`s not really rocket science is it?
Bring in more teams,increase revenue to grass roots football,have a home and away competition,market the game(there`s a thought for you)
create a fun football tv program that actually has humans on it (unlike Fox),promote school football competitions for boys and girls, get the players to do more promotional work, work harder for sponsorships with international companies
There`s a few ideas for you " DICKY "
You have the job Style.
 

turbo

Well-Known Member
I don’t think the high level ideas are that tricky but executing it all and against a backdrop of shrinking audiences and media rights is where the big bucks are made.
 

adz

Moderator
Staff member
giphy.gif
 

turbo

Well-Known Member
https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/s...k/news-story/94a120b6d044f25d7931ea99be152760

Possible issue for our Adelaide game in Rd 6 that could postpone it at Adelaide’s request. We could potentially have a few out too depending on squad selection.


ADELAIDE United’s revelation Al Hassan Toure still hasn’t decided whether to represent Australia or Liberia says football director Bruce Djite.

As the club prides itself on youth it could come at a huge cost to its title hopes.

Adelaide is contemplating a potential reschedule as it braces itself for the loss of at least seven internationals for the next two A-League matches says Djite.

“When I spoke to Toure a week ago now, he hasn’t come back to me yet, but I’m assuming sometime this week he’ll let me know (about which country he prefers to play for),’’ Djite said.

“If he says yes (to Australia), the passport is in the envelope, it goes straight to FFA to get visas but we don’t know yet.

“There is regulations around getting (A-League) games postponed depending on who gets selected but we don’t know if we’ll be in a position to do that yet.

“The other side of the coin is it opens up opportunities for others.

“I’ve already sent an email to the under 20s (national team) manager saying that if we’ve already qualified before their third game of the little tournament than can Louis D’Arrigo at least come back early.

“He is really the only player for the U-20s playing regularly and starting (in the A-League).

“There needs to be a bit of give and take from the federation.

“The last thing you want is for clubs to revert back to playing more established players that don’t have a risk on going on national team duty.”

National teams boss Graham Arnold has invited Toure for Australian U-23 duty after Liberia – the country where his parents were born – made an unofficial approach to cap the striker through coach Peter Butler as revealed in The Advertiser.

If Toure chooses Australia he is certain to miss Adelaide’s away clash against Central Coast on November 16 alongside Riley McGree and potentially George Blackwood and reserve gloveman Daniel Margush.

FFA is this week expected to announce the Olyroos squad bound for an unofficial tournament in China during the November FIFA international window from the 11th to the 19th.

An FFA official said Toure is not expected to run into the same hurdles as Ex Red Awer Mabil when he faced an eligibility crisis before playing for Australia in official matches in 2014.

Toure, 19, and McGree, 21, are expected to face Liverpool legend’s Robbie Fowler’s Brisbane Roar at Hindmarsh Stadium on Sunday before flying out for China on Monday.

However Adelaide’s first big international hit of the season is already underway.

The Reds have lost three Australian U-20 players for three Group H matches in Chinese Taipei in a bid to qualify for the 2020 AFC U-19 Championship and to win a spot at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2021.

Impressive holding midfielder D’Arrigo – a mainstay of coach Gertjan Verbeek’s first 11 in the Reds first three A-League matches – is certain to leave a massive hole against a winless Roar.

D’Arrigo is joined by teammate Lachlan Brook – who featured in the Reds 2-1 loss to Melbourne City – and young goalkeeper Cameroon Cook.

The U-20 tournament ends on Sunday with a clash against Chinese Taipei after the Australians face Laos on Wednesday and Macau on Friday
 

Capn Gus Bloodbeard

Well-Known Member
https://www.foxsports.com.au/footba...t/news-story/1f30844e4cc1c4db364f11854f913afe

Sometimes pros can’t afford their hefty fines. Danny Vukovic reveals he once took out a loan
Players don’t get off lightly when sanctioned.
That’s pro sport. It’s accepted.

But we quickly forget that not all elite athletes are draping in cash.

Stream every game of the 2019/20 Hyundai A-League season LIVE & On-Demand with Kayo Sports. Get your 14 day free trial & start streaming instantly>

Take a 23-year-old Danny Vukovic, for example.

He was handed a lengthy suspension and fined $10,000, punished for striking referee Mark Shield in the 2008 A-League Grand Final.

“I was on minimum wage at that time at the Mariners,” Vukovic said on the Fox Football Podcast.

“So, I had to go and get a loan.
It was about a quarter of my salary.”

We can probably assume that not all sports and clubs would treat these situations like Central Coast did back in the early stages of the A-League, it must be said.

Other sporting organisations are more financially secure, of course.

And that was a reality that compounded Vukovic’s predicament.

“When the fine came down, (Mariners management) said it’s something that you’re going to have to deal with,” he continued.
I had to get a loan to pay the fine. I don’t think I’ve ever said that in an interview!

“I did the crime, I had to do the fine.

“It was hard on the pocket, as well as everything else I had to go through.

That episode didn’t just have tangible consequences, too.

“The money side of things wasn’t as bad as missing an Olympic Games,” Vukovic admitted.

This all worth considering, when an athlete that resonates with you gets hit in the hip pocket.

 

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