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I only witnessed my first live A-League encounter in Round One this season between the Newcastle Jets and Adelaide United. I confess I’m not a football tragic however I’m a lover of all sport, particularly in Australia. I was aware of a general consensus that the A-League was quite poor in quality and to be honest I believed it.
However as I walked out of Hunter Stadium I realised that this golden experience had made me a self-confessed convert.
And there are obviously tens of thousands of Australians in a similar position, as the first round attracted 93 500 fans through the turnstiles around the country. Whoever saw the Newcastle Jets and Sydney FC spectacle in Round Two will agree with me when I say it was a great sight for Australian football.
The individual performances of Alessandro Del Piero and Emile Heskey highlighted - they were worth every cent. It obviously had a positive impact on Sydneysiders as the first local derby between Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers this Saturday night is already sold out. Some are even complaining that they can't get tickets.
With marquees comes the perceived increase in playing standard. Fans are seeing for themselves the quality of the league, which in reality has been growing steadily over the past eight seasons but which new fans see as a result of the influx of superstars and returning Socceroos. Which is partly true of course. Marquees are also drawing back fans that witnessed the poor level of play in season one and were turned off by the A-League. Until now.
Can this increase in standard attract the supporters of European clubs who are dedicated enough to wake at ungodly hours to watch their European team, but are as yet unwilling to attend the local league? Perhaps players like Del Piero and Heskey are the lure that’s needed. The way I see it, who cares if such supporters aren’t converted? It’s their fault if they miss the A-League’s transformation into what I am of no doubt will be a top quality league.
Yes, it didn’t set help when the coach of our national team says that training in Europe was of a better standard than the A-League. And yes, Pim Verbeek said this five seasons ago. But the ramifications are still being felt.
To what extent does the A-League’s standard need to reach before the national coach takes notice of the younger Australian talent? Holger Osieck should look at players such as Newcastle Jets utility Craig Goodwin and left back Aziz Behich from Melbourne Heart, both of whom are ready to step up.
Let's be clear, the A-League will never rival the EPL. One of the key differences between football and other popular sporting codes in this country is that it doesn’t have to be of the highest standard to be entertaining. Just look at the Melbourne derby in Round One and the Sydney vs Jets clash in Round Two.
We are heading in the right direction. The average NRL crowd for last season including finals was 17 346. So far in this year's A-League the average crowd is 17 533. I do not doubt rugby league has a greater following however when one remembers the A-League is indeed national in comparison, the potential for growth is enormous.
Exciting times ahead for Australian football fans.