Football Victoria set to change NPL junior boys for 2020

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Football Victoria, in a media release earlier this week, have announced that next year, the Junior Boys NPLVIC will be expanding.

12 new licenses were granted to sides as the competition will have 48 eligible teams.

It is a great move by FV, showcasing that the sport at the community level is just as important as the elite level.

With this expansion, the sport of soccer in Victoria will be allowed the grow as more aspiring juniors from more suburbs will have access to playing NPL for their local sides.

The media release can be found below in full:

Football Victoria (FV) has announced a major expansion of its Junior Boys National Premier League (JBNPL) competition for season 2020.

Following the most comprehensive review ever commissioned by FV, the revamped JBNPL will have up to 48 eligible teams next year after FV granted 12 new licenses today.

The 18-month review, which covered both the Men’s and Boys’ competitions, was completed by Sports Business Partners (SBP) in September 2018.

In line with the review’s recommendations, the FV Board agreed the 2020 JBNPL will now comprise four age levels – U13, U14, U15 and U16.

Subsequently, FV’s Board unanimously agreed on the recommendations made by the Assessment Panel to accept the following 12 new licenses (in alphabetical order below).

  1. Ashburton United SC
  2. Berwick City
  3. Caroline Springs George Cross
  4. Eltham Redbacks FC
  5. Essendon Royals SC
  6. Gippsland FC
  7. Glen Eira FC
  8. Malvern City FC
  9. Mornington SC
  10. Nunawading City FC
  11. Peninsula Strikers FC
  12. Ringwood City FC

In addition, all existing NPL and Hyundai A-League (HAL) clubs will be eligible for new licenses for the JBNPL 2020 competition.Both existing and new clubs must agree to the updated participation license in order to take part in the JBNPL 2020 competition.

FV President Kimon Taliadoros said the granting of new JBNPL licenses followed a competitive application process involving all interested community clubs.

“Football Victoria would like to thank and congratulate each of the 31 clubs for their submissions and interest in the JBNPL 2020 competition. FV was overwhelmed by the quality of the applications,” Mr Taliadoros said. “The unanimous selection of the successful 12 clubs by the Assessment Panel followed a stringent process in accordance with the published JBNPL criteria.”

As part of its commitment to improving junior development, FV will regularly review the NPL Junior Boys competition structure – including the provision to increase the number of clubs beyond 2020. FV will also continue to work with the unsuccessful applicants and any other community clubs who aspire to participate in Football Victoria’s NPL Boys Junior Development pathway competitions.

The Assessment Panel consisted of highly credentialed individuals with expertise across the various criteria.

FV has also confirmed that an additional position is available (to make up the 48 clubs for season 2020) as a result of Western United delaying their entry until the 2021 season.

As such, the Board has requested the Assessment Panel consider an additional license. FV will conduct a review in the next two weeks to confirm which club will be offered that license.

FV’s new JBNPL 2020 competition structure is designed to improve the level of competition whilst providing more opportunities to aspirational Victorian footballers. The competition will feature an 11-game qualification phase before teams are re-graded into leagues that best reflect their competitiveness.

Further details of the competition structure can be found at footballvictoria.com.au or by clicking here.

FV is well underway with the equivalent Women & Girls’ competition review with recommendations to be considered by the board in mid-August. The full report will be released to the football community once the recommendations have been approved.

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Caelum Ferrarese is a Senior journalist with Soccerscene. He reports widely on micro policy within Australasia and industry disruptions at grassroots level.

Key concerns for FIFPRO’s Player Workload Monitoring report

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Image credit: Jude Bellingham Instagram

FIFPRO has recently released their annual Player Performance and Recovery report for 2024, this report is developed by FIFPRO IQ in conjunction with Football Benchmark, a leading data and analysis group on football business.

The report explains in detail the problems facing professional footballers by leaders within the industry and the players themselves. This report not only factors in the physical impact of the sport but also the psychological impact.

FIFPRO’s Player Workload Monitoring tool (PWM) the primary system behind this report monitors 1500 players spread across 100 leagues and 150 nationalities.

They have pointed out the obvious lack of appreciation by tournament organisers for the physical and mental well-being of football players and an evident lack of organised calendar planning.

Acting FIFPRO General Secretary Stephane Burchkalter stressed the importance of this report via press release:

“We release these reports for a good reason. Because, today, we face one of the most serious and urgent problems in our sport. A problem that results from the abuse of governance and a failure of the duty of care. The holistic workload that confronts our players is unprecedented. It has produced a physical and mental fatigue that is now dangerous.”

With increased match loads, travel loads and shortening of preparation the risks have never been higher with 54% of PMW players experiencing excessive or high-demand workloads.

88% of players’ time is recorded to be spent in the workplace environment and 17% in national team environments.

The world-renowned Uruguayan coach Marco Bielsa stated via press release:

“To ignore the consequences of the number of games and amount of travelling will end in injuries for any player.”

This report identifies that some players have seen their free time fall to nearly 12% of the calendar year, which adds up to less than a single day off per week. This fails to comply with international Occupational Safety and Health standards.

There have been calls for a guaranteed rest period which 72% of players and 78% of coaches support.

As the demand for games grows and the push for more revenue skyrockets, the players see their health and voices continue to deteriorate.

This report and FIFAPRO highlight the firm action that needs to happen to protect the stars of the sport.

For more information about the report, read more here.

AFCAS recruitment and scouting workshops coming to Australia

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Image credit: AFCAS website

The Association of Football Coaching and Scouting (AFCAS) have confirmed that their recruitment and player scouting workshops are coming to Australia.

These interactive workshops are all online and led by AFCAS managing director Ged Searson – a professional football scout with over 15 years of experience and who has also been a football coach for almost 30 years, learning from the likes of Sir Bobby Robson.

Searson has previously worked as a scout for clubs such as West Ham United, Grimsby Town FC and Leyton Orient FC in England.

Most recently, he served as the chief scout and analyst of the Malawi national team during the 2022 African Cup of Nations in Cameroon going as far as the Round of 16.

The workshops run for three and a half hours over two evenings and are designed for both new and experienced football scouts aiming to enhance their skills and development.

This will also be helpful for football coaches and agents to help them improve their scouting abilities and also to gain an understanding of the recruitment process at professional football clubs.

Throughout these workshops, video footage will be used to complete scouting tasks giving participants the chance to practice scouting techniques.

Attendees will also develop a better understanding of how professional clubs scout players and how recruitment systems operate at the highest levels of football.

Some of the content in these workshops will include:

  • Learning various professional football scouting techniques and skills.
  • Learn how to write and create your own scouting reports.
  • Understanding different types of scout reporting and assignments.
  • Assessing player performance in different playing positions.

These workshops are limited to nine attendees, creating opportunities to interact with not only the presenter but also fellow attendees and it will provide potential networking opportunities with different people in the football industry.

Participants will also receive a scouting pack, including software, to complete their own scouting reports following the workshop.

The sessions will run on Wednesday, September 11 from 7 pm – 10:30 pm and on Friday, September 13 from 6:30 pm – 10 pm.

If you are interested in having a career in the football industry, click the link to claim your spot in these online workshops.

For more information about AFCAS, visit the website.

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