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Unpacking the Biological Maturation Process for Football NSW
Football NSW’s new Biological Maturation Process for the 2025 season outlines a framework that allows players who “Are potentially disadvantaged from a physical perspective, due to later biological maturity” to play in lower age groups.
Players assessed as biologically “late developers” for their chronological age will be approved to play down an age grade provided there are positions available at their club, whereas players assigned as “on-time” or “early developers” are NOT.
It will be applied only for NSW’s girls’ and boys’ Youth Leagues one, two and three from ages 13 to 15.
Only one “late developer” is allowed per age group team and must be registered on their ID as a ‘late developer.’
The test conducted is based on the estimated age at peak height velocity (APHV) measuring differing factors of height and weight. This is then cross-referenced with normative data for boys and girls.
Biological maturity testing will be conducted at Valentine Park on the following dates:
Monday, 9 September 2024
Monday, 30 September 2024
Monday, 25 November 2024 – FINAL DATE
The player must be registered before conducting these tests.
One cannot argue against speed, strength and agility being hallmarks of modern football athletes who are regarded as some of the fittest in the world.
However, football and modern development programs have always advocated that these factors do not only make one a great footballer.
Highly regarded academies such as Barcelona’s La Masia have mainly championed technical ability, hard work and teamwork as routes to success.
Some of the more famous and arguably the best players the world has known have been small or under-developed for their age. Lionel Messi and fellow countryman Diego Maradona, are adored due to their technique and ability, not for their physical prowess.
Even the most physical of positions has had players breaking the stereotypes, Italian centre-back Fabio Cannavaro a World Cup and Ballon-d’Or-winning stands at 6’9.
For a modern example, Manchester United’s Lisandro Martinez 6’9 has proven many critics wrong about his ability to adapt to the physicality of the English Premier League.
Spain’s Aitana Bonmati at 6’3 won the golden ball on these shores in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup. Not to mention is one of the most decorated individual players for a singular season in 2022-23 with Barcelona Feminine, who she captained to a famous treble.
One does not even have to travel overseas to observe this dichotomy, Josh Nisbet who stands at 5’2 was one of the best midfielders in the A-Leagues along with a plethora of players who have broken this stereotype to be successful.
Would these player’s growth as footballers have been stumped by these rules? Would they not have to challenge and adapt their game to play tougher opponents due to their disadvantage? This same physical disadvantage many explained to have been a barrier for them have turned out to be a strength of theirs.
Another topic that’s been championed by many footballers now is the psychological side of sport.
How would it feel for these players in their formative years to be seen as physically underdeveloped and must drop age groups to perform well? How will it be received by other kids or different academy prospects?
There is no shame in finding it difficult or not up to the task. Nor for parents, coaches and technical directors, important figures in these children’s lives, wanting to protect their children and players and give them the best environment to strive.
Now we must accept that the aforementioned players are grown adults who have gone through their bodies’ development.
Maybe a player who has serious development issues or doesn’t show massive quality could do leaps and bounds with this opportunity.
The age group changes are not huge and physical disadvantages have been identified as problems within youth throughout footballing history.
Football NSW also have data and studies to support their decision.
A study from 2020 of Spanish youth football reported that applying biological maturity can diminish the loss of quality in players. On top of this it highlights the need to focus not on competitive results.
Which to Football NSW’s credit they have made a core of their strategies for development but at these age groups specified this focus becomes harder to maintain.
Though the same study around is based centrally around RAE (Relative Age Effect) with people born in the beginning of the year compared to later. Playing down a age group wasn’t an option mentioned, and the psychological effects were still a variable missing a more prevalent analysis.
Is this the forward-thinking that Australian football needs to answer the crucial questions of physical development? This move seems like one that is very possibly going in the right direction.
Maybe it’s old-fashioned to reject this idea, though one cannot help but fear the possibility of holding back young players due to their physical ability or the effect it can have on them psychologically.
Football is a sport for all people no matter what their differences, that’s why it has coined the title ‘The Beautiful Game” and that’s something that shouldn’t be taken lightly.
When Nestory Irankunda, Lucas Herrington and Alessandro Circati all completed high-profile moves, the headlines understandably focused on the massive transfer fees
Record deals, European giants, Australian talent making noise overseas.
But beneath the excitement lies a much bigger story.
For years, Australian football measured success by the players it could retain and attract. Today, success is increasingly being measured by the players it develops and sells.
That shouldn’t be looked at as a weakness of the domestic game.
It’s one of the A-League’s greatest strengths.
Changing landscape
The reality is, Australian clubs will continue to struggle to compete financially with Europe’s elite.
Trying to retain every emerging star was always going to be an impossible task.
Instead, clubs are embracing a model that has proven to be successful in countries across Europe and in leagues like the MLS in the United States.
Develop talented young players, provide them with first-team opportunities and a platform to showcase their talent.
Last year the A-League ranked in the top five for percentage of minutes by players aged 21 or younger across 55 leagues around the world.
These three recent transfers are not an isolated story, they are part of a broader trend.
European clubs are watching Australian football as closely as they ever have. The talent is there.
The World Cup effect
The Socceroos’ performance on the international stage have played a significant role in changing perceptions.
Australia is no longer viewed simply as a physical football nation. Increasingly, Australia is producing technically capable players who can adapt to the demands of Europe’s top leagues.
This exposure has provided players with a stronger opportunity to impress and demonstrate their ability.
The result is a transfer market where Australian players are genuine investments and viewed as integral pieces to a club’s future.
More than transfer fees
The financial benefit of player sales is obvious.
Transfer revenue provides clubs with opportunities to reinvest in academies, facilities, coaching and football operations.
But the impact extends much further.
Every Australian success story abroad raises the profile and trust of the domestic development system.
It encourages and gives European clubs greater confidence to scout Australian football more regularly and more intently.
It creates stronger relationships between local clubs and overseas markets and perhaps most importantly, it gives the next generation a clear pathway to elite football.
The next challenge
Evidently, producing talented players is not Australia’s most pressing challenge
Producing them consistently will be the real measure of how Australian football has progressed.
That requires continued investment in academies, coaching, facilities and national competitions.
Nestory Irankunda’s transfer to Sporting CP will reportedly fetch his junior club Adelaide Croatia Raiders approximately $220,000 under Fifa’s solidarity mechanism.
Fees like this are a reminder of the importance of well-developed pathways and a clear indication of how valuable strong investment in grassroots football can be.
Opportunity, not loss
Whenever another young Australian leaves for Europe, there is often discussion about what the A-League has lost.
Perhaps the better question is what Australian football has gained.
Every major transfer signals growing confidence in the country’s development pathway.
Every overseas success makes it easier for the next player to follow.
While it would be incredible to watch Nestory Irankunda play in the A-League every week, we should feel proud watching him play in the UEFA Champions League this year.
His journey is a reflection of the A-League’s success in giving young Australian footballers the opportunity and platform to reach that level.
Australia is unlikely to ever compete with Europe’s biggest leagues for salaries and prestige.
But it doesn’t need to.
If the game continues investing in youth development and embraces its position as one of the region’s leading producers of football talent, exporting player’s won’t be an indication of decline.
It will be a platform for fans to watch the next generation of world-class Socceroos playing right here on our own shores.
The A-League has just lost a Victorian club. The death of Western United and the suspension of its license by the Australian Professional Leagues (APL) on August 10th was inevitable. The club says it wants to rebuild and eventually return to the competition. That is unlikely to happen considering the search for new owners has to begin.
But one day after the announcement from Western United, South Melbourne stepped forward. The four-time NSL winners announced their intention to begin formal discussions with the APL about joining the A-Leagues. They believe the timing is right. Their argument is understandable. Their football credentials and history are stronger than most A-League teams.
But there is a problem. South Melbourne may have the history. It may have the supporters. It may even have one of the most attractive potential derbies in Australian football. But that does not mean it will get an A-League licence.
In fact, the more realistic prediction from my perspective is that South Melbourne will once again be told no.
South Melbourne has never been better placed
There is plenty to like about South Melbourne’s position. The club is not simply relying on its history. South Melbourne returned to national competition through the inaugural Australian Championship in 2025. It did not merely participate. South Melbourne won it. The club defeated Marconi Stallions 2-0 in the final to become the competition’s first champion.
That achievement matters. The Australian Championship was created to bridge state-based football and the professional game. Whilst it is seen as a second tier, there is no promotion and relegation with the A-League. But it has also continued to perform on the national stage. In the 2026 Australia Cup, which South Melbourne qualified for, they reached the final rounds and then produced one of the biggest results of the tournament.
Adelaide United came to Lakeside Stadium. South Melbourne won 2-1. Adelaide had won the Australia Cup three times. South knocked them out in front of its own supporters. They’re now into the quarter-finals of the 2026 Australia Cup.
South Melbourne celebrating the Australian Championship Image Credits: South Melbourne FC
The club also has a much bigger story to tell than its recent results. Alongside its four NSL victories, the club also won the 1999 Oceania Club Championship and represented Oceania at the 2000 FIFA Club World Championship. The club has a dedicated supporter base and the history to deserve a place.
The club says its Oceania Professional League participation has helped make it Australia’s 13th professional football club. It has more than 150 businesses supporting it in 2026 and a long-term arrangement at Lakeside Stadium, in the heart of South Melbourne.
On paper, it is difficult to argue that South Melbourne is not ready. The problem is that readiness and admission are two different things.
Third time’s the charm?
South Melbourne’s current push is not new. It has been here before. The club was pursuing an A-League return almost immediately after the NSL disappeared. In 2007, South announced its interest in becoming the second Victorian A-League club.
Then came the 2008-09 process. South Melbourne backed the Southern Cross bid for the second Victorian licence. The club proposed a new team based around the redevelopment of Bob Jane Stadium and involvement from the broader Victorian football community.
It lost. The Melbourne Heart bid won the race and eventually became Melbourne City. That was South Melbourne’s first major warning. Its football heritage was not enough. Its second major attempt came almost a decade later.
The 2017-18 expansion process produced the most serious South Melbourne bid yet. South made the shortlist for an expanded A-League licence. It ultimately lost to Western United. Bill Papastergiadis has since explained that he did not genuinely expect South Melbourne to win in 2018, despite believing strongly that the club belonged in the A-League. He also reflected on the barriers facing a traditional club trying to enter the existing Victorian professional football ecosystem.
That is important context for today’s bid. South Melbourne is not entering negotiations without understanding how difficult the politics and economics of the Victorian football market can be. The club has tried the direct route twice. Neither time worked.
The Western United lesson
This is where the current situation becomes complicated. In isolation, adding South Melbourne would be fantastic for the A-League. Imagine South Melbourne against Melbourne Victory. The atmosphere would be enormous.
There is a genuine football rivalry waiting to happen. South itself points to the potential for ready-made derbies and commercial interest. But the argument that Melbourne should simply have three A-League clubs because Melbourne is a huge city ignores what has just happened to Western United.
Western United was supposed to represent Melbourne’s rapidly growing west. Its original vision centred on a major project in Geelong. The club eventually moved into Ironbark Fields in Tarneit in 2024.
Yet the geographic separation never became as clear as the original concept suggested. Western United was not a Geelong club. It was not a regional Victorian club in the traditional sense. It was a western Melbourne club based and that matters.
The A-League already has Melbourne City and Melbourne Victory. Adding South Melbourne would give the competition three clubs operating within the same metropolitan football market. It is not necessarily brilliant for the business model, which has already lost a club operating on the outskirts of Melbourne.
The NSL offers an interesting historical comparison. The Falcons provide an even more striking Victorian example. They became the first and only regional Victorian club to play in the NSL, reaching the finals in 1996. The distinction is important.
A national competition can expand its footprint by adding genuinely new markets. That is different from adding another club inside an existing Melbourne metropolitan market. That was what was envisioned for Western United, and it failed quickly.
Will the APL see South Melbourne as a safe investment? Despite the fact they’re a well-established club, I’d argue the answer is no.
Promotion and relegation is the only realistic route
There is one scenario where South Melbourne could eventually force its way into the A-League, and that’s the great missing piece of Australian football. Promotion and relegation. South Melbourne would not need somebody to decide that Melbourne suddenly has room for another licence. It would simply need to earn it.
They would have done just that in 2025, winning the Australian Championship if the football pyramid was open. Football Australia originally designed the National Second Tier with the possibility of promotion and relegation being considered once the competition matured.
The format connects NPL clubs and established foundation clubs with national competition. It does not provide a sporting pathway into the A-League. South Melbourne can win the Australian Championship, NSL and Australia Cup but none of those achievements automatically produce an A-League licence.
South Melbourne in the Oceania Championship Image Credits: Oceania Championship
Opening the pyramid is far more complicated than simply announcing promotion and relegation. Australia’s football calendar is fragmented. The A-League operates primarily through the summer months. The NPL operates through the winter and early spring. For the 2026-27 season, the A-League Men runs from October to June, while the NPL begins in February and finishes in September.
That creates an enormous structural problem for a fully connected pyramid. The clubs below the A-League would need to operate at a level capable of supporting professional football. If the A-League aligned with the NPL and the lower pyramid, it would compete in a football calendar that already has to coexist with Australia’s other major winter sports. That is a difficult feat against bigger leagues such as the AFL and NRL.
Beyond that, clubs lower down would need travel budgets and to survive commercially would take real sacrifice from all parties to make that work. The A-League’s existing clubs also have something to lose. They have invested heavily in their licences and their businesses.
Historically, A-League licences were extended through to 2034, while those licence arrangements have included provisions allowing promotion and relegation to be introduced. But the existing clubs will do everything in their power to block it. Promotion and relegation removes certainty. An A-League club can finish last in the current system with no threat to their place. Under relegation, its place is no longer guaranteed.
That is a major commercial change for clubs that have invested in securing their position in the competition. It is therefore difficult to imagine the A-League opening the door. The A-League’s licensing system gives the competition enormous control over who enters, and for South Melbourne historically they’ve been left out in the cold.
South Melbourne deserves the conversation.
The frustrating part is South Melbourne has probably never had a stronger argument. It has history, supporters, infrastructure, commercial support and most importantly, ambition. Beating A-League clubs in national competition proves the capability is there.
It deserves to be in the conversation. But being in the conversation is not the same as being selected. The Western United experience should be a warning. If the A-League could not make the Western United project work, it is difficult to see why it would suddenly decide that another Melbourne club is the answer.
South Melbourne may be the better football story. It may even be the better football club. But the A-League is not simply selecting the best football story.
It is selecting a professional competition, and until Australia embraces a genuine promotion and relegation system, South Melbourne’s path back to the top flight will remain dependent on someone handing it a licence.
That is the part of the dream that looks unrealistic. South Melbourne can keep knocking and it should. They always say third time’s the charm. But unless the pyramid is opened, I expect the door to remain closed.
