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Olympia Warriors have missed out on the NPL Tasmania and the Women's Super League competitions for 2023.
Launceston United have been granted an NPL licence and will take Olympia's spot in the competition.
Nine clubs applied for licences - the eight clubs from the 2022 NPL season, as well as Launceston United from the Northern Championship.
Olympia was adjudged not to have met the required criteria for 2023 and have been replaced by Launceston United.
This means there will be four northern teams and four southern teams in the 2023 NPL.
The teams are: Devonport Strikers, South Hobart, Kingborough Lions United, Glenorchy Knights, Launceston City, Clarence Zebras, Launceston United and Riverside Olympic.
Playing performance is not a criterion, but facilities, qualified coaches and sufficient number of players are, and this is where Olympia fell short.
Their artificial pitch at Warrior Park is not deemed to be up to standard.
Some of the club's coaches were adjudged not to have the prerequisite qualifications for their roles, and with the requirement for four youth teams - one of which will be the Under-21 team that underpins the NPL senior competition - the club was considered to be short of players.
Football Tasmania intend to work with Olympia and the Clarence City Council to address the problem with the club's facilities.
It is believed that an artificial pitch that meets FIFA's minimum standards could cost up to $1 million.
The Women's Super League will be reduced to six teams with the exclusion of Olympia.
The 2023 competition will consist of Clarence Zebras, Devonport Strikers, Kingborough Lions United, Launceston United, South Hobart and Taroona.
Again, Olympia were stripped of their licence because they failed to meet the criteria, which include a requirement for youth teams, which Olympia did not have.
Football Tasmania would like to expand the NPL to 10 teams by 2024 and will work with Olympia to help the club return to the NPL and the WSL as soon as possible.
While the decision must be disappointing for Olympia's players, coaches and fans - they have recently announced the appointment of former Australian Under-20 captain Kurt Reynolds as senior coach - the situation is not unique.
Olympia were relegated from the State League in 1979 - ironically, together with Launceston United.
When the State League ended in 1981 and regional leagues were reintroduced in 1982, Olympia were included in the Premier League South, the top-flight competition.
There is a way back for them, but it will take time, money and a concerted effort by everyone involved with the club.
Glenorchy Knights showed it is possible.
They were dropped from the NPL and won the Southern Championship three years in a row before finally being readmitted and winning the NPL title in 2021, their first year back in the top flight.
47 comments:
***Alternative reality***
Newtown Eagles win Southern Championship. They nominate for the Championship promotion play-off series.
Northern Rangers win Northern Championship. They don't nominate for the Championship promotion play-off series.
Launceston United finish second in Northern Championship. They nominate for the Championship promotion play-off series. Their nomination is accepted.
Norther Rangers play Newtown Eagles in a home and away Championship play-off series with cumulative score including extra time and penalties if required.
Launceston United win the Championship play-off series.
Olympia finish last in the NPL. They nominate for the promotion play-off series. They play the winner of the Championship play-off series in the Championship-NPL play-off home and away series.
Launceston United win the Championship-NPL play-off series Vs Olympia.
Launceston United are promoted to the NPL where the new media and opportunities mean increased sponsorship and revenue for the club, and increased interest in their youth system. They have shown that they have both the desire and are the best football team from the Championship to be admitted to the league.
Olympia are relegated to the Southern Championship where they maintain their desire to play NPL but have time to improve their squad and football ability.
The play-off series all generate great local media and in person support. Football public talks about the series all summer. Other Championship teams with a desire to play NPL put additional resources into their football programmes after being inspired by Launceston United. NPL teams with more limited resources begin planning to not finish bottom the next season.
***Similar outcome as actual reality, different pathway***
I don't think that excluding Olympia based on the ground makes much sense. Last season multiple games had to be moved to play at Warrior Park due to poor playing surfaces elsewhere, so what happens to these games next season? They certainly can't use it to host games if it was deemed unfit for their re-entry.
Despite a poor season last year, they still weren't the bottom team in the league, and beat the premiers of both the North and Southern Champs in their cup run. Performance should definitely be a consideration for FT in their decision making to produce a balanced and competitive League. Isn't that the premise of promotion and relegation?
I think that Riverside will likely be the team who suffers the most in NPL from this decision. It looked like they may have struggled regardless, but with a smaller NPL player pool to choose from and potentially stronger Southern teams, it may be an even tougher season this year. Keep in mind they finished bottom of the ladder previously. Launceston United will likely also struggle. Facilities and player depth is one thing but NPL quality players is an entirely different story.
I think this decision definitely needed mediation by an external body. The consequences that this could have on Olympia are extremely significant. Players will leave at all levels of the club to pursue NPL football. Re-entry is extremely unlikely within any short period of time as this will take years to rebuild. Poor decision making from FT with very very few who are in favour of this decision.
Despite many people not being fans of the Warriors, I think everyone can appreciate the history of the club and the contributions of the club to the NPL and Football Tas over the years. It would be sensible to overturn the decision, however it is clear FT were looking for excuses to exclude the clubs entry and that is likely to continue. Long live the Warriors.
Unfortunately Walter, FT make their own criteria to suit the teams and clubs that they wish to include.
Our great game is marred by dodgy political decisions and alliances and the world cup in Qatar is evidence of this.
To quote;
"Some of the club's coaches were adjudged not to have the prerequisite qualifications for their roles, and with the requirement for four youth teams - one of which will be the Under-21 team that underpins the NPL senior competition - the club was considered to be short of players."
Olympia had addressed all the requirements and requests from FT in regards to the licence application.
For example, the coaches have been appointed meet their required qualifications for their roles.
In regards to fulfilling an under 21 team, Olympia would have quite easily been able to do this as the majority of the championship team from last year were under the age of 21, as was most of the NPL team.
Lastly, the issue with the ground had also been addressed but it seems that FT preferred to ignore this and instead go down the path of choosing a team team that is located in a smaller population area and expecting three teams from the same area to be able to sustain not only the three NPL teams but to also produce three under 21 teams for the league.
Why do you think Northern rangers dropped out of the competition a few years ago.
FT say that they will work with Olympia to address the issues which caused them to not be successful but even Olympia do not know what these reasons are.
What FT do not realise is that they have put Olympia back 3 years now by not accepting them into the NPL as the affects of dropping down a division will mean that they will not be as competitive if and when they are back in the NPL.
FFT did this to both Eagles and knights a few years ago when Eagles rally should have been a part of the victory league all those years ago.
Why not just introduce a nine team competition and show the league to grow this way and then introduce another team the year after to make it a ten team competition?
That would be too simple it would seem.
By introducing this unstable and unbalanced competition, FT have more or less killed the NPL.
We need to introduce teams where the population and pool of players is much larger and unfortunately in Launceston, it can only sustain two teams based on player choices, especially with the under 21 competition.
May the NPL rest in peace.
Unfortunately Walter your comment about Olympia being relegated in the football purist term is not quite correct as the bottom team is normally relegated with the least number of points but not based on performance it would seem by FT's requirements for a licence.
I wish I had an employer like that, I can imagine the conversation with my immediate supervisor would go something like this, "yes, I haven't been performing for the past few years and all my work is overdue but look how clean my desk is and I now know how to turn my computer on".
Here's a bit of a conundrum.
What would have happened if Launceston United had not put an application for an NPL licence and there were only 8 applications, would Olympia not have been found suitable still, or would they have included them to keep the 8 team structure?
If they weren't found suitable and there was a 7 team competition based on that, then why not go with a nine team competition and keep the current league teams and introduce Launceston United and expand the league to 9 teams.
Interesting thought indeed.
One problem with that scenario I doubt the current Launceston United team defeat Olympia.
Olympia defeated both the Northern and Southern Championship winners in the cup this year.
Hopefully the NPL and WSL will be better for it. I do not mean this as an offence to Olympia. Simply that the WSL remove that bye. Now we have a 4v4 NPL which will help spread the talent around the South some more. Hopefully the standard of both competitions improves.
On a side note, Knights would have never got back without the huge injections of funds they received at the time. But they did show things can turn around.
Firstly, welcome back online Walter. It’s been some weeks and have missed your informative posts. Once again, your knowledge here has explained more than most of the online posts regarding The Warriors. Thankyou. Keep up the good work and hope your health is improving x
Walter , you state in your article that performance is not a criterion. If I recall correctly on the tv news , one of the reasons given was due to results.
Now it either is or it isn't, which is it ? Where would the reporter obtain that reason if not from FT? However it is not a criterion ? Results are results but performance should also be an indicator , but you cannot measure or record performance, unless you witness the games or sit down and watch replays or the games live. The results on paper were not the best but performance did improve as the year progressed.
To me it seems there is one person at FT that did not want Olympia in the league, for reasons only he knows. I recall on a weekend when many other grounds were closed , an FT employee appeared at the Olympia ground and began taking photos of the few puddles on the ground , during play, which were quickly cleared with a quick sweep with a broom by a club official. Now what was that all about ? Gathering evidence, information ? For what ?
FT are a real problem for the game and they are only puppets of FA.
FA send them an email of what the criteria are and FT apply , without the knowledge and/or ability to discuss issues, negotiate ,reason with FA in respect to the standard of facilities, funding available in a regional area of the country.
Having said that I also believe Olympia have to take some of the blame , if not more of the blame, for allowing the club to get into the situation it finds itself.
If they still had their decent women's program , 150 player academy, academy coaches , quality junior teams , stable pathway for youth , which they did have only a few years back, then they may still be in the league. For reasons only known to the club itself , these are the more serious issues that were allowed to deteriorate and now its too damn late. Does the club have people willing to step up and make the hard calls to get the club back on track ? That is the real test . Time will tell. It may the be the beginning of the end. Lets hope not.
Look at FFT and were some current people were involved in and you have your answer the ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM .
All your ideas had merit, Walter, but were, of course , ignored by FT. Now they have kicked out Olympia ! Football in Tasmania will go nowhere while these buffoons administer the sport. They are a bad joke!
FFT has an agenda and wanted Olympia out.
It's pretty rich to say their ground isn't up to scratch while hosting possibly the most derelict soccer facility in Tasmania at KGV.
I'm sick of the current leadership group that governs our local game. Why didn't they hold a public forum before making this decision?
Launceston has a limited playing pool as it is. Where are the 15 quality players coming from to get LU a win? This has screwed the NPL and Northern Champ in one foul move.
Anon 9.28am and 10.29 am.
Both of you spot on. I think we all know who the elephant is.
FT are a joke and the sooner the organisation includes people who understand the sport and requirements of players clubs and supporters the better.
I have personally witnessed 2 senior FT people sit and listen to another senior employee who was providing a running commentary on a game and what should have happened or what didn't happen. They held onto every word which indicates that they had little or no idea of what was going on. Pretty poor really.
And these guys are running our game !
Other clubs luring Olympia’s young players away from the club with money also doesn’t help. A lot of Olympia’s junior talent that they have brought up are now playing else where in the npl.
In regards to the first comment, that is a very good scenario.
Only problem with it is that Riverside finished bottom, not Olympia.
FFT were always out there to oust a southern team to introduce a northern team and this was always their agenda.
It was either Olympia or Zebras who would get the boot but we know why Zebras would never have been picked............
It is very simple.
FT have the model/product (NPL).
But what they don't realise that without the stakeholders (clubs) their product is useless and does not work.
Think about it FT.
You are all delusional.
I say clubs create a breakaway league and have some competent people look after the league.
The Federal Group State League has a good ring to it.
Could be a major sponsor if clubs were willing to look into it and have a say about their clubs and competition instead of being bullied by FT.
FFT have a huge conflict of interested issue's with this process with one club the major benefactor the web we weave .
Not surprised about the WSL as I know of clubs that asked FT to remove Clarence and Olympia from the women's Championship and championship 1 and have them play Championship 2 as it completely stuffed the rosters up and having players spread over two venues was ridiculous.
Ft wouldn't do it as the perception of the the organisation would be what are you doing? to remove the pPremiers and Cup winners would be disastrous for them.
Everyone knew Olympia couldn't meet the criteria season just gone so to me FT should of told Olympia no go for next seasons WSL.
Not convinced about the men. maybe a scapegoat due to the women's teams.
Looks like FT have now stuffed both Southern & Northern leagues. Only difference it took 10 years to ruin the North.
Not one person has looked at the stats which generally don’t lie
All clubs had to meet a criteria , finance , facilities , pathway , coaches , etc etc
Simple stats show Olympia missed out on several of these
If Fft do it right they will publish these and show all in black and white
If not we will continue with the conspiracy
Sone are talking about player retention
Last year Olympia in the npl lost a large number of pjayers and youth due to poor decisions with coaches - they are facts
Anyone who honestly believes the club has been run well and has made good decisions in the last three years really has their head in the sand
Launceston United backed by marginal election pork barrelling,probably comes with electoral promises of joining the NPL too!
FFT..... The truth please!!
Thank you Walter for the information and others for their comments. I am still in a state of flux. Warriors applied, projected and advocated for a grant to assist the club and Football in general. Facilities catering for all. To what end. Of course players will leave in a bid to play at a higher level. Their walks the experience and current depth at Olympia. We, the soccer community have seen this happen, unfortunately too many times to varying clubs. Question, has football benefited.
Still the only team from Hobart to play in Melbourne against South Melbourne Hellas (Oceania team of the century) and beat them.
What an occasion.
Thanks FT for ruining the league.
https://www.myfootball.com.au/video/south-melbourne-v-olympia-fc-highlights
What a mess the state league mens comp has become
In reply to Nov 10. 8.03pm. Finally someone who has looked at the big picture & not through rose coloured glasses. Just because a club has success in the past, doesn’t mean they automatically deserve a place in the NPL. And yes there are a lot of things undisclosed to the public at this stage but in particular, financials are vital but the club can’t be expected to make their financial status public knowledge. Things change year by year whether it be sport or otherwise. To the Olympia club & supporters who feel hard done by, stop complaining & jump the hurdle! Teach your young ones the challenge’s in life. A few people have also mentioned players who left due to being offered more money. Actually may be true for some but there are others who left due to the downfall in the running of the club! No coach player support including verbal abuse towards players ( also being heard on livestream games!), a committee who are full of self importance and not welcoming, along with no encouragement for advancement! The club was struggling big time to fill places in an NPL team last year with quality places and that was obvious to all and very much a regular conversation piece so how was this going to change overnight? So many factors to this decision, so look beyond the ‘poor Olympia’. This situation is no different to applying for a job. You either have a dam good resume with a lot on the table or you don’t, simple as that.
You have a short memory, I'm almost certain Olympia did the same when George was funding your club!!!!
Has anyone seen the leaked emails and text messages going round a storm brewing at KGV .
For your information.
Part of the Application (and I'm only assuming part, but could be totally based on) for an NPL Licence is based on a number of criteria.
There are 89 criteria in total covering, Sporting, Infrastructure, Personnel & Admin, Legal and Financial.
42 - A CRITERIA:
Mandatory- if any of the criteria are not fulfilled, the club cannot be awarded a licence
20 - B CRITERIA
Mandatory with sanctions - non-fulfilment of any of these criteria leads to sanctions but club can still be granted a licence (sanctions could include warning, fine deduction of points, etc.)
27 - C CRITERIA:
Best Practice- no consequences for non-fulfilment of these criteria; may become future B Criteria
The upshot is, there are a 62 A & B criteria that can seriously affect your chances of success.
FT management and Board need a big clean out. We need football people. How many of them have even played. ???
Isnt it funny that warrior parks facilities were fine for npl games last season when lightwood park was flooded. And promotion relegation works everywhere else in the world. FT are an absolute joke.
Let's be clear the exclusion of Olympia was entirely at the discretion of FFT
The new FFA rules for NPL state clearly
"NOTE: The 2022/23 NPL Men and NPL Women Licensing Cycle is a soft / pilot implementation for both the NPL Men and NPL Women Criteria. Non-fulfilment of A Criteria does not automatically preclude a club from participating in the 2023 NPL Men or NPL Women competition"
If the FFT were genuinely committed to working with clubs to meet the criteria 2023 be the year to do it
If FFT did want to go hardline this year on the FFA guideline there are other clubs that would clearly and objectively miss the cut based on the "A" criteria whereas the Olympia shortcomings appear to be subjective at best and certainly debatable
So why did FFT decide to work with other clubs this year that do not meet the new criteria to help them meet the criteria for 2024 season but not Olympia?
I don't know the politics but it appears the answer has nothing to do with the FFA criteria and FFT are using this as a smokescreen for their hidden agenda
Meanwhile the game, the players and the fans all suffer the consequences of the decision and this is ultimately who FFT are meant to support
This decision is an epic fail from FFT in my opinion
Anonymous comments hold little merit. Own your comments.
Poor decisions with coaches? Criteria not met? Please elaborate you fountain of knowledge you?
Pity to see the Warriors go. I will not use the ethnic name as I believe that was banned about 40 years ago. If they had dropped that name & stuck to the eastern shore area name they would have been just fine. I can remember so many talented kids from Warrane / Mornington which is so close to the current ground. I'm sure they'll be back - I hope so. Loved watching them get beat!.
NPL is not sustainable financially moving forward I'd suggest given the cost of living rising this will certainly impact on club running costs aan player involvement when work commitments take precedence over playing. There is a fair chance that four other southern clubs will join in olympia in southern champs over the next few years anyway
Ray C - such a stupid comment.
That's like saying that I won't call someone Ivan or the dessert Pavlova because of their ethnic ties and background.
That was and still is history.
Has nothing to do with NPL for 2023
Practice what you preach mate LOL
Reply to November 11 9.16 am. Complete wrong there mate, the committee is run by nearly all former players who have so much love and passion for the club. Looking at an olympia fan perspective, you must feel hard done by. Olympia tried everything to satisfy FT, they come to suggestions to meet the criteria and FT completely wiped them off with no support and then let the club know 5 minutes before the announcement with no reason as to why there licence has been removed. Cannot believe you think Olympia hasn’t been hard done by here. As far as last season, yes the performances weren’t the best but we saw improvement through the back end of the season and the club proved that they can compete at the top level even with the second least experienced side. You have no idea what kind of affect this decision has had on Olympia as a club, they have now been set back at least 3 years and for you to be telling them to stop moaning is a cheap call from a clueless outsider. The club is hurting deeply at the moment but I’m 100% sure they will get back to their old ways. One of the biggest clubs in Tasmania with a rich history of success, show a bit more respect to a club that is going through alot at the moment. You are an inconsiderate outside who’s talking absolute waffle with no care in the world.
Anon Nov 13 5.51pm.
Your reference to the previous comment on Nov 19 is not entirely fair.The comment may not be 100% correct but does have some merit. The way FFT handled the situation may well be unfair and not transparent, HOWEVER if you are honest with yourself you must agree that the club did struggle on many many fronts and the decision may well be the right one, albeit not handled in the best possible way. Loss of 150 juniors/youth in the academy seemed to have been accepted by the club and number of participants in the academy be permitted to whittle away over a 2 year period to 0.Is that anyone else's fault other than the club ? The womens program went from arguably the best to one where the WSL team would have 5 players at training . Who is to blame here ? Why was it permitted to go along week after week after week ? Again surely the club should have stepped in and taken some action. The lack of numbers and quality in the reserves and NPL team. Why did that occur ? who is to blame for the situation in respect to that ?
None of these are FFT's issue. They are the club's issues.
So you should at least see it is not all FFT's fault that it has come to this . Maybe the way it has been handled maybe , however the decision may be right one for now. I am not saying it IS, but it MAY be the correct one. A club cant be accepted or admitted to the league based on what they say they are going to do but on the current situation.
I never said it was.
Why would they remove clarence zebras from the champs .
Now Taroona should have been removed they were beaten by some big margins and couldn't even field teams some weeks,and Kingbourgh only beat teams below them and on the last round Olympia WSL beat them so how rubbish are they.
Brilliant, thanks for the link. Makes me chant Olympia, Olympia from the plastic covered sofa just like the old days, bring them back FT, have a heart. The sport is passion, this is Tasmania not the EPL, watching their supporters get stuck into South was worth the price of dial up alone, haven’t seen that sort of interaction from any other teams this year. Walter, your induction into the hall of fame is public recognition for the respect we all have for you, what you have done for the sport, individuals who get a lift and recognition when an article used to appear in the muck raker and the community at large, chapeau Walter.
You aren't to bright are you
Would be ridiculous to move clarence to the lower league as they under pin a superheated team
By rights should only be champship teams underpinning a super league team .
Taroona was shocking last year did they win a game but still going to be running around.
Did New Town Eagles apply?
Newtown Eagles are not that stupid i would suggest!!
They were shafted once, and certain people whithin the club would know that this competition is not sustainable in the long run, so why throw money at a competition which is run by incompetent yes men and bureaucrats who have no idea of reality or football knowledge.
On top of that they have no idea of how the world economy is travelling!!
$400 per game for div2 players a few years back is a joke.
No wonder clubs will go broke unless you have benifactors, but they move on and what have you left??? Nothing!!( Olympia ) perfect example!! knights will be next!! Juventus sold there soul for what?? Laughable!!
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