Its hard not to get cranky with Capital Football when the subject of suitable playing surfaces in sufficient numbers to support the development and growth of the game, raises its head. And that's every week this season. They move with the speed of treacle! Has anything got better this season from the last? No!
So many of our grounds are in an appalling condition. They have been so for the greater part of this season. Government policy has clearly adjusted in a fashion that is not supportive of a level of maintenance that is sufficient to ensure the grounds will support quality football outcomes. The maintenance conducted on some grounds close tot he start of this season, was nothing short of vandalism by the ACT Government. But I heard not one word from Capital Football. Th Clubs had plenty to say if they had been "on receive"! The Kanga Cup cannot move forward, as it must do and become a truly international tournament (eg Dana Cup) unless we have sufficient quality playing surfaces to underpin the competitions. And these days, we are definitely talking about FIFA standard artificial surfaces - wasting our time if we consider anything else.
No better example than Woden Enclosed, and ACT Government ground - the worst it has been for many years, tot he extent that Premier League football was abandoned by the club at this location in the second half of the season - worse that the peak of the drought and it was still payable then! There are many others. We are going nowhere fast on the facilities front, nowhere near fast enough for 2012! What will Capital Football do about it? Does the Football community have enough political muscle to make the ACT government
Two things are interesting in the article below from 442. The first is the emergence of another form of "Football" in Australia and the second - a fantastic special to purpose Football faciltity. The FFV is right behind this intiative, after all, its all Football!
Football Fives is popular in the UK. Its got a bit going for it, particulary for the younger players.
Capital Football does provide opportunities for small sided games throughout the year and good that they do. We were once the pioneers of small sided games. The "Football Five" concept is a bit different by way of rules and reminds me to some degree of the old indoor soccer game that had a spongey ball bouncing off walls. "Football Fives" does require a bit more than a flat pitch (and we don't have much of that in the ACT (leaving aside Hawker Enclosed or Nichols or Willows), together with some rebound walls around the pitch so that the game just keeps going on. Gotta figure that the players get lots and lots of touches on the ball and that can't be a bad thing.
But it is the Knox Regional Centre facility that has me excited. Perfect! This is what we need in the ACT - a cluster of fields (not just for five a side) with FIFA standard articificial surfaces (not the ANU Willows surface thankyou) - after all, why would you build a football pitch and not build it to the appropriate FIFA standard (that's the one thing CF did get right at Hawker).
The extract below from the Football Fives website describes precisely what Capital Football did not do at Hawker by way of amenities and care for the football public and players, and one hopes that they crack it this time with the proposed development near Melrose High. Time will tell and lets hope we don;t have to wait 3-4 years. We just never think big enough at Capital Football when it comes to facilities for the game, nor with the required degree of sophistication. The Knox Regional Centre in Victoria shows what can be done, so many other examples around the world (some have been illustrated on this Blogspot), and it all makes that $26 million over ten years of ACT taxpayer funds to an AFL team in Western Sydney, look positively disgraceful. And is anyone at Capital Football - the Board members (those that were there when it happened) or the CEO likely to stand up and declare themselves responsibible for this missed opportunity? If it was there for AFL it was there for the biggest participation sport in the ACT, Australia and the World!
Things must change on the playing faciltities front - our grounds are in tatters and how do you develop a possession based game in these circumstances? Capital Football are contemplating changing the timings for games and spread them across a weekend, in order to ensure that all who wish to play can do so. Very commendable and essential as some club teams missed out playing this year - another spectacularly unsatisfactory example of sports administration of a growing game, a game that was growing before these decisions were made and a game that continues to grow. Clubs are struggling to keep apace with the demand to play the game. Spreading the games over the weekend gets them playing, but does not solve the playing facilties issues - just delays the inevitable.
Its time the Capital Football Board called a crisis meeting with the ACT Chief Minister and Minster(s). Flex your constituents collective muscle - that's what you are there for! What about all those promises at teh last AGM? Time to deliver!
"FOOTBALL FIVE5 offers a full service recreational facility with plenty of parking, modern changing rooms with secure lockers, a licensed café with indoor and outdoor dining and big screen TVs playing the best football matches from around the world. The centre is operated by professional venue staff with a wealth of experience in Five a Side football. "
Anyway, have a read of this article, you'll find it interesting:
Biggest Football Match Ever!
EXCLUSIVE: The new Knox Regional Football Centre will host an audacious attempt to smash the Guinness World Record for the most number of players in a match.
Football Fives and Football Fans Down Under have joined forces with popular charity Movember to launch the attempt at the brand new Knox Regional Football Centre on Saturday 19 November.
The target is to set a new record of 555 players. Given the current record sits at 63, confidence is high that Melbourne will make the record at this new facility for football.
To provide the number of players required to set a new unreachable mark FFDU and F5 will be staging a Five a Side tournament in conjunction with the record attempt.
Teams will be invited from around the country to participate in the tournament and compete for some great prizes.
The added attraction will be the chance to get involved in the record attempt and have their names enshrined in football folklore.
And if that’s not enough they will be contributing to a worthy cause with all funds raised on the day going to assist Movember’s impressive track record of support for Prostate Cancer and Men’s Depression initiatives.
The Knox Regional Football Centre is the largest purpose built five-a-side facility in Australia and with the introduction of Football Fives, will give the football community the opportunity for 25,000 extra matches each year.
The Football Fives (F5) concept offers football in a five-a-side format played in a ‘cage’ (see picture gallery) with the games at high intensity using the side walls to keep the ball in play.
The Knox Regional Football Centre will have nine floodlit, all-weather FIFA standard synthetic pitches which will be complemented by a full sized synthetic pitch, with an emphasis on community access.
au.fourfourtwo.com toured the facility this week. The centre, located in Wantirna South in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, is a partnership between FFV (Football Federation Victoria), Knox City Council as part of Council’s Eastern Precinct Project and the state government.
The venue is set to open in October with FFV signing a lease with council that will see state body run it for the next fifteen years.
Chris Hain, Knox Regional Football Centre Manager, said the venture was another way for the code to meet demand from grassroots players 12 months of the year, day and night.
“Our business model is all about more people playing more football more often,” he said.
“Even if it’s just more people playing five-a-side it just means more growth for us and more people playing the beautiful game.