Terry McFlynn: “I’d like to see clubs have stand-alone facilities”

Terry McFlynn played over 200 games for Sydney FC, second only to Alex Brosque. After retiring from the game, he joined the staff at Sydney FC before heading west to be Perth Glory’s football operations manager, and he is also a Executive Committee member of Football Coaches Australia. Terry spoke to Soccerscene about his career, how the A-League has improved and where it can continue to grow.

Q. How did you become involved in football?

McFlynn: “Well, obviously it was back when I was living in Northern Ireland. I was an avid watcher of the game, and my uncle Mark who was a big influence on my career all the way through, I’d go visit him and just play on the street. At the age of 12 or 13, he took me to my first team in the next village to where I lived in Swatragh. So I got involved in the game at an early age.”

Q. How did the opportunity to play for Sydney FC arise?

McFlynn: “I left Northern Ireland when I was 15 to go to QPR, and I was there for 5 years. I dropped out of the Football League into Non-League and conference with a few various clubs and ended up with Morecambe, who had just got promoted up to League 1 now. During that period living in London, I met my wife Emma who is an Australian from Perth. She wanted to come back to Australia after being in England for a few years, at that time the A-League was just starting, so I sent an email to all the clubs asking for a trial and Sydney FC was the only team that replied to me and offered me one, so that’s how it all came about.”

Q. What were your impressions of Australian Football after joining?

McFlynn: “I’d come from the conference so I didn’t know what to expect, to be honest. We had a lot of very good players at Sydney FC in season 1, like Steve Corica, David Zdrilic, Ufuk Talay, Mark Milligan, David Carney, Robert Middleby, and then after some time, we signed Dwight Yorke. We had a lot of very established Australian internationals and the standard was high. The coach at the time was Pierre Littbarski with Ian Crook as his assistant, so the intensity of training was very high. We had a fitness coach named Darren Welsh who previously worked in the AFL so the fitness levels were high too throughout the whole group. It was a really pleasant experience when I first joined the club, because of the professionalism, intensity of training, and quality of players I was training with every day.”

Q. Was the challenge of transitioning into a backroom role a challenge?

McFlynn: “It did have its challenges. I was fortunate because four years before I decided to retire I started studying a master’s of coaching education at Sydney University. I was preparing myself for retirement, and life after football. When I finally did retire I had a few different conversations with Scott Moore, the chairman of Sydney FC, and then had a meeting with Graham Arnold. Frank Farina had left the club and he was coming in as the new coach. We discussed life, football, the A-League, we hit it off and Graham offered me a position in his staff. It was difficult initially to make that transition from getting up for over 20 years to the training ground with a focus on a game on the weekend, to just a normal 9-5 job. Even though in football no job in 9-5. I was very fortunate to have people around me to help with that transition. People at the club helped me a lot.

Q. Do you think the A-League has improved in terms of professionalism since season 1?

McFlynn: “Yeah definitely. If you look back at season 1 of the A-League there were a lot of marquee players and younger players, unknowns. Off the field clubs have made a lot of improvement in terms of facilities, they’ve done a great job with the CBA (Central Bargaining Agreement) negotiations in terms of minimum medical standards, travel, and all the other things that add layers to professionalism in what we are trying to achieve. I think the level of coaching has improved, as the A-league has progressed, and the quality of recruitment has improved. We aren’t seeing older European or South American players coming here for a payday, we are seeing the likes of players like Marcos Flores signing for Adelaide, who was unknown, and they come and lift the league upwards. Melbourne Victory with Fred, Milos Ninkovic, Diego Castro at Perth Glory. In terms of professionalism and recruitment, it has improved since season 1. 

Q. Where could it continue to improve?

McFlynn: “I think something that if you ask anyone in around and the Football department of all clubs, its facilities. If we can get to the point where we all have our own stand-alone facilities because I think a lot of the clubs, not just in the A-league but sport in general across Australia, share facilities. I know that is a bugbear for many people in football departments because they don’t have access to gyms, recovery centres, and pitches when you need them. That is something I’d like to see across the board, similar to the MLS, where clubs have access to stand-alone training facilities and stadiums, which contributes to the revenue-raising part of the football business as well.”

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Australian Championship Launches with Promising Debut Weekend

The inaugural Australian Championship has burst onto the scene with an impressive opening weekend, marking the return of a national second-tier football competition in Australia for the first time in over 20 years.

This new competition represents a vital bridge between the grassroots and professional levels of Australian football, finally providing a stage for National Premier Leagues (NPL) clubs to showcase their quality to fans nationwide.

With 16 teams competing and SBS broadcasting 17 of the 55 matches live, the Championship has already brought unprecedented exposure and excitement to Australia’s football landscape.

Not many other second-tier divisions across the world are given the opportunity to showcase their talents through this kind of broadcast deal, making it all the more unique for the best NPL teams to show their players’ talents to division one clubs in other countries, who may never have gotten the chance to watch them before.

Comparing Beginnings: How the A-League’s introduction changed the game

Back in 2005, as the A-League formed, fans of the old NSL were reminded that Australian football was entering a new age with the game’s governing body’s official name changing from Soccer Australia to Football Federation Australia.

During the A-League’s first season in 2005/2006, attendance was at an average of 10,544 per game from a total of 61 matches. It is not the expectation that the Australian championships will showcase the same numbers, but it just goes to show how a competition’s start will only keep increasing in the future.

The Australian championships have already shown promising attendance numbers, with South Melbourne (6,825), Preston (4,241) and Heidelberg (2,083) cumulatively getting 13,149 fans attending games, resulting in the remaining five teams getting a total of 6,374 at an average of 1,275 per game after the first week of play.

Though with the A-League season starting just one week after the beginning of the Australian champions, it may be better to have the NPL teams in winter and in doing so prevent the possibility of having fans attend A-League games instead.

These NPL teams should be given the chance to stand on their own and thrive instead of trying to compete against a league that’s starting its season behind 20 years of history.

While it is the aim of the Australian championships to provide this spotlight, which they have, it is of this writer’s opinion that they are not reaching their full potential due to the overlapping schedules with the A-League.

A Platform for Growth: What the Championship Means for Clubs

Small clubs have seen magnified attention from the Australian championship during its first week; one of the teams, South Hobart, was able to round up an estimated 1,300 for their home game at D’arcy Street.

South Hobart has been one of the longest-running NPL clubs in Australia, with 115 years of history. The Australian Championship has given them much-deserved spotlight and provides the club with an opportunity to compete against some of the best NPL clubs in the country.

Recently, South Hobart has secured funds of $1.5 million from the Australian Government and the Government of Tasmania to support the improvement of facilities at D’arcy Street that highlight a new attention to detail for the club.

These improvements include female change rooms, lighting, a club room, and an accessible toilet, which are just some of the new advancements coming South Hobart’s way.

NSW Spirit is one of the other teams that will have the opportunity to spread its wings from the Australian championship after being crowned premiers of the Men’s NSW NPL competition this year.

After entering the NPL competition in 1962, the NSW Spirit formed in the wake of the success of the Gladesville Hornsby Football Association’s U21 NSW team, which signified the team should be playing in the NSW Federation 1st Division Amateur Competition.

The Australian Championships will be another milestone for the Spirit after the club reached the Round of 32 in the Australian Cup for the first time in 2022.

However, South Melbourne FC has seen the most success so far from the Australian championships, attendance-wise. Their match against Sydney Olympic FC drew an estimated 6,825 at Lakeside Stadium.

South Melbourne FC has already seen their fair share of success from having won 10 Victoria men’s titles, five women’s titles, 10 Dockerty Cups and one State Cup, with their eyes now set on becoming the first winners of the Australian championships.

I believe the Australian championships will only grow in popularity the more it airs coverage for the NPL and, in doing so, will help grow the popularity for these clubs and take them to heights never before seen in their history.

Auckland FC Partners with Tāmaki Health to Champion Community Wellbeing

Auckland FC have confirmed a partnership with Tāmaki Health  for the upcoming A-League season. 

Tāmaki Health will become the official healthcare partner of Auckland FC under the White Cross GP & Urgent Care, and Bettr 24/7 online healthcare brands.  

The partnership will include Tāmaki Health becoming the sponsor for the number of ball kids seen around the pitch on game day. 

Nick Becker, Auckland FC CEO spoke about the great connection both companies will have in this deal. 

“Tāmaki Health is a future focused business revolutionising the way we think about healthcare,” he said in a press release. 

“They also believe in the power of sport to unite communities as well as the obvious health benefits that come with sport and exercise. They are a perfect partner for us, and we look forward to a fruitful working relationship.” 

Tāmaki Health is one of the largest privately owned healthcare groups in New Zealand, caring for over 4,000 people everyday through their many general practice clinics, and urgent care clinics. 

Tāmaki digital online healthcare forum, Bettr, is an accredited provider of Health New Zealand’s 24/7 online GP solution. 

Dr Lloyd McCann, the CEO of Tāmaki Health (Local Doctors, White Cross & Bettr) says it is an important collaboration, as health is more than just treating symptoms, it’s about prevention.

“We believe good health is about more than treating today’s symptoms. Holistic wellness and prevention are at the heart of what we do – and staying active plays a vital role in boosting wellbeing, reducing stress, and improving our mental health. Supporting sport in our community is a natural fit with this vision,” McCann explained in a press release.  

“Auckland FC is a forward-thinking club with great energy, and we’re excited to stand alongside them in encouraging participation in sport and building healthier communities.”

The collaboration between Auckland FC and Tāmaki Health will be a positive alliance for both organisations, as the promotion of health through sport will encourage people, especially younger children to support and play the sport, and it is a great representation for both organisations to promote healthy living and good wellbeing.

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