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Tuesday 25 August 2009

20,000 registrations? You're dreaming

The next time someone in Canberra tells you we've a huge junior base with 20,000 kids/registrations tell them they are dreaming, same goes for 260,000 registrations across NSW or the paltry 50,000 in Victoria.

What we have is a lot of people playing independently in their own clubs, maximum community in Canberra is Woden Valley 1800. Not such a big community is it?

Because until you can show a sponsor we have the contact details, emails and mobile phones for 20,000 registered players, until you can communicate directly with those kids to tell them the A-League is in town or their season is about to start..you have nothing do you.

That's where Australian football has to go to grow the game. Communicate with the masses, the grassroots and you have a chance to grow. We don't have free-to-air so we need to look at other sources..should have done it ten years ago..but better late than never.

3 comments:

Gordo said...

There is a system (MyFootballClub) that has all the players in Australia's details, but it's so dysfunctional even clubs can't get their own info back out.

Leagues at CF said...

For clarification - from the most recent census, we have 12471 registered juniors and 3291 senior players with another 710 stand-alone registered Futsal players (ie those not also playing football) in CF competitions. (Almost 16,500 players with either direct contact details or information through the 42 registered clubs.) This does not include players in the Goulburn, Cootamundra, Wagga, Highlands, south coast or other regions close to Canberra that might make up the 20,000 claim? The latest census details we have for junior players in Canberra.

Eamonn said...

Thanks for the detail Leagues at CF, but in blogland we don't care much for detail, merely sentiments:

My point holds:

There is no direct communication with any individual player on a regular basis from Cap Football is there?

If you think communicating to a Club and thru that the message gets to each player....that is not a communication worthy of the modern world is it?

The message may or may not get passed on. Everybody know's that.

In a world of SMS, ind emails etc an organisation needs to by-pass the middle person where possible.

Do CF know every person's email or mobile who went to Canberra United game last year? They should.

Do you have a list or all those who have expressed an interest in Canberra United in anyway over the year? They should

Have you emailed or txt them directly to tell them re:season tickets.

I imagine you haven't as there is no definitive list, only maybe a general one.

Just one example.

How many people ahve been contacted directly from Cap Football re A-League games in Canberrra.

How many people are on the A-League list based on the previous games held in Canberra.

These are the mostly likely people to re-sell to but bet you don't have that specific list do you?

No there is a heap of work Cap Football need to do, urgently, on:

Football infrastructure..where is our Futsal Stadium..or should we keep giving all our money for the next 20 years to Netball, where is our retail shop or should we keep giving all our money to others)

Communication methods ..see above but additionally (can't wait to see the professionally produced documentation for the HP unit. They'd better match Coerver or Public Service docu, Education handouts etc as this is what we the parents expect/demand..a professional outfit)

Sponsorships and future revenues...need to hire some professionals to plan/do this methinks.


And if a peak body relys on that; the club email system you mention, then in essence we have no such number, 12,000 or otherwise in our "community" in my view. No business person would disagree. Ask them!

When this problem is professionally solved we can then target real sponsors with real money, until that day comes we carry on as the amatuer schmozzle we are in football in this community.

A game run by volunteers in clubland, with little of no significant infrastructure to show for all our years or number of kids playing.

Why are we so poor? Has anyone asked the question.

Has anyone started to solve it?

I see no evidence.

And the season ends on Sept 5th. Did it even start?

That is not a season. You can't produce footballers in 16 weeks football a year.

Someone somewhere needs to be lobbying hard for change....or otherwise another generation will miss out on real football development, enjoyment and the benefits the game can bring.

Anyway enjoyed the season, the first fifteen games have flown,see you next April...if I still remember where the ground is:)