Association of Australian Football Clubs (AAFC) Chairman Nick Galatas has said that all the pieces are there for a National Second Division competition for Australian football and the time to implement is now.
The AAFC released a detailed report that proposed a second division comprising of 12-16 teams to begin in 2023.
Galatas said that there are clubs across Australia that have proven they are ready to participate in the national competition in conjunction with the A-league.
“The main thing is that there are a bunch of clubs who are ready to go in the new national competition,” Galatas said on SEN’s The Global Game.
“They’ve been ready for a while.
“They were ready last year.
“It will be a real National Premier League (NPL) rather than a bunch of national premier leagues.
“We reckon we can start with 12, 14 or 16 clubs.”
Unlike past attempts to install a National Second Division, this latest proposal has the support from Football Australia (FA) as well as other significant stakeholders.
Professional Footballers Australia (PFA), who represent the players’ interests, have voiced their concerns around payment and compensation.
Galatas has assured the PFA that the model the AAFC has proposed will ensure that the players across all competitions will be well looked after for their contribution to the game.
“The players (will be) looked after properly for what they deliver,” Galatas added.
“I want their (the players) input and I seek their input.
“We will incorporate their views into the model because we’d be crazy if we didn’t.
“We won’t start anything if we don’t start sustainably and remain sustainable.”
Galatas says a second division will fill the structural gap that has been lacking in the A-League since its inception 17 years ago.
He further believes that the threat of relegation will create a better product across the A-League and all competitions across Australia.
“Everybody sees what is missing,” he said.
“There’s this big gap…and we want to fill in more teams to fill that gap.
“We are not fighting each other, we are building the game and we are competing with other sports.”