Will they win Melbourne’s Heart?
Melbourne Heart FC. New kids on the block.
Last month the A-League climaxed with Sydney FC winning the title over the Melbourne Victory in a tense Grand Final. Next season it might be a different Melbourne side facing a similar predicament, with a new club set to enter the competition. The Melbourne Heart FC will become a part of the A-League in 2010/11 expand the championship to 11 sides.
There is no questioning the success of the A-League; Australia’s premier football fixture. With it’s inception in 2005, it emerged from the murky shadows of the previous competition, the National Soccer League.
With Australia having a strong ethnic population, many migrants rallied around teams that consisted of fellow expatriates and created club cultures based around their motherlands. Unfortunately, after starting with good intentions, the NSL became comprised with clubs harboring strong nationalistic overtones.
In the mid 90‘s the league tried to mainstream the competition from ethnically based support which had alienated much of the footballing population. The media over scrutinised the racial tensions that existed between clubs, which while existing, didn’t overrun the league. This coupled with mismanagement, bad television rights deals and lack of sponsorship lead to it’s ultimate demise.
The sport governing body Soccer Australia (now Football Federation Australia) got it right when they decided to overhaul the competition and started over with the new A-League. A new charter was written which decided to ban any nationalism and racial characteristics to the new A-League and make it inclusive of all people. Coupled with the qualification for the World Cup in 2006, it revolutionised football in Australia and no where more then in Melbourne. The team Melbourne Victory FC was born. Many clubs which made up the NSL and other club competitions of that era still exist in state leagues but the Victory stands alone at the front of the pack.
Melbourne is a wonderfully diverse place, however it was also where most of the tensions in the NSL came from. The effort made by the FFA and the people of Melbourne has assured success with the Victory. With the nations biggest supporter group, the largest stadium and weekly attendance levels, best administration and greatest on field performances it is the example for all other clubs.
One club for all the football loving people of Melbourne to get behind regardless of heritage, class or belief; that was the idea and it’s worked a Sunday treat.
As of the 2010/11 season, the city controlled by the Victory name will have a second club to contend with. The Victory, as with all foundation clubs, had a 5-year exclusivity clause to protect itself from competition and when the time was up, 2 groups (Melbourne Heart FC and Southern Cross FC) bid to become the second Melbourne club.
In the end Melbourne Heart FC won the right to the new license created to expand the competition. It had the more professional bid and the greater financial security to succeed.
Regardless of all this the question remains is Melbourne ready for a second team?
The A-League seems to think so. Melbourne is the sporting capital of Australia and has enough facilities and a new stadium to support two clubs. It’s not a matter of logistics, the real problem standing in the way of success lies with where the fans will come from.
Who will the Melbourne Heart target to become members? The majority of passionate football fans in Melbourne flocked to the Victory five years ago when the competition started. It’s unlikely to be current Victory supports; who would be disgruntled with how the team is going?
Placing both teams under the one banner of Melbourne is going to be arduous. How can two teams represent one place?
It seems the Heart are going after casual A-League followers or people who were hesitant at the beginning of the competition. Also, by making the administrative and training base in the ever expanding northern and eastern suburbs of Melbourne, they can target a large section of the public not represented by major sporting teams.
The Heart are promising a different kind of football club to that of the Victory. They have already signed big names such as Sydney FC Trio John Aloisi, Clint Bolton and Simon Colosimo. The Heart are also promising ‘beautiful’ football by signing John van ‘t Schip. As a former Holland international and flamboyant player with Ajax, he promises to be a refreshing change to the more direct and generally rougher style played in the A-League.
If, however, they don’t get the punters through the turnstile and the money keep it in existance, it won’t succeed. While good results on the field will more then likely attract more fans, the Heart must be aggressive off it. Vigorous campaigning and creating a strong rivalry between the Victory will cause more media attention. So far the Heart have done well by releasing more information about the club every now and then to keep it in the sporting pages consistently.
Something I find the Victory haven’t done much of, and what the Heart could capitalise on, is going grassroots. Creating partnerships with existing local clubs like the Melbourne Knights and schools is only beneficial. It is hoped that this doesn’t lead to support similar to NSL teams of the past by targeting clubs with an ethnic makeup. The Victory seem to be more interested in creating alliances with Asian confederation teams in China rather then in their own backyard.
By already having their new jersey, players on board and a major sponsor in Westpac Bank signed, they have formed an identity to build on.
Only time will tell.
