Isaac
Years ago
Lowy wants two-tier A-League in the future
Bit late to the game on this considering his comments were made on May 23, but top dog in the A-League, Frank Lowy, has plans for a promotion-relegation system that would introduce two tiers to the competition.
I've long thought this would be troublesome for the NBL given the travel and venue costs for a second tier would still be significant and that they're struggling to effectively run one league as it is, but read something suggesting that this could be a master-stroke from the A-League - a way to get a foot-hold in all the regional areas that the AFL, for example, won't dare touch.
If Wollongong, Hobart, Darwin, West Sydney and so on can only afford a smaller budget team, let them do it in a second tier. If they build up and are competitive enough, they can make a run in the upper tier.
Tier 1: Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, South, New Zealand, Cairns.
Tier 2: Darwin, Hobart, Canberra, Singapore, Gold Coast, Townsville, Wollongong, West Sydney.
Tier 1 are all established teams or cities large enough to sustain them in a revamped league. Tier 2 are all reasonable NBL teams (some that would benefit from a reduction in costs) or smaller areas that could probably get 2,500 people to a game and drum up some sponsorship.
The additional three teams would create opportunities for both coaches and players. Could be modelled after the NZ NBL where teams usually train in the evenings and players often study or have day jobs to supplement their income.
Should the NBL re-learn to crawl before it walks, or start new with grand plans?
