FFA Technical Director Talks About Coach Education and Les Murray Talks About His Work On the FIFA Ethics Committee

Sourced from the SBS World Game


This program contains two interviews sourced from that fantastic SBS Football program – The World Game. If you haven’t already done so, watch it on SBS 2 on Monday nights, or record it and watch it at a more convenient time, bookmark the website on your computer of mobile phone browser – but make sure you follow this program – it does a wonderful to the Australian game and the major leagues around the world. The SBS World Game – a must for Football tragics.
Tonight we cover two topics that have impact on our local football scene:

- The first is an interview with Han Berger concerning the progress of coach education since the launching of the FFA’s National Football Curriculum and Development plans and in particular, the recent Pro C licence, specifically aimed at those Australians that wish to make a career in professional football coaching and very specifically, our A League coaches. Coaches at all levels of the game are the collective leadership group in the game, they set the standard in every respect and are the means by which the National Curriculum is given life and our game in Australia develops. Simple as that! But note the timeframe that Berger has in mind before a sustainable change through good coaching is achieved. This is a long term job! For myself, the national curriculum is essential, but nothing is more critical than the development of our coaches at every level of game, not just the top level. That may well be Han Berger’s lasting legacy to Australian football and if so, it’s a very good one.

- Then its on to listen to that doyen of Australian Football – Les Murray – Mr Football. Murray has been a member of the FIFA Ethics committee for several years and you would be hard pressed to find a better, more principled and more informed representative from Australia or anywhere else in the world game to FIFA. Now, FIFA have been and are still in some serious trouble at the moment with allegations of corrupt conduct by senior FIFA officials. This most recent catastrophe for Football, follows that very dubious decision by FIFA to award a World Cup to Qatar. FIFA is one the nose and that is bad news for the game. Murray’s interview concerns his obligations through the FIFA Ethics committee , what he can say about what has happened in the last couple of weeks and what is likely to happen in the weeks ahead. Les Murray sets a standard for football officials and we need more of his type leading our game. This is a very informative interview.

What’s the take away for us here in the ACT (aside for concern for the game going forward in the big picture context)?

It is this – our governing body here in the ACT, Capital Football, has in recent years been free of the sort of criticism that we see directed toward FIFA and that’s to the credit of those on the Board over time who have made it so. Football has had a turbulent history in Australia off the field.

However, Capital Football has not been good at communication with Clubs and the wider constituency, a fact acknowledged explicitly at the recent Annual General Meeting. At our level of the game, communication and consultation with the football community on a regular and productive basis is absolutely essential. It guarantees that there are no perceived hidden corners in decision making and it opens up all the expertise and knowledge available to the game in our community.
Importantly, our game is built on volunteers and a constant endeavour is required by the Capital Football to pursue and support volunteerism in football. That’s hard work at Club level – all the time. People do it for the love of the game and/or because they obliged to contribute a community service to the Club that assists their child/ children play the game. You seldom get much thanks for all the work done in a Club. If Clubs feel left out of the decision making process, or kept at an administrative arms length by bureaucratic structures imposed on them, or aggrieved by lack of consultation or co-operation, or feel they lack support or understanding on key issues, or indeed, feel that issues they have raised have not resolved fairly, we have a much bigger problem locally in the game than FIFA has on its plate on the other side of the world.
The challenge for the Capital Football Board was most eloquently put by those that sort election to the Board and the Regional Representatives that spoke at the AGM. Nothing should be allowed to get in the way of their intentions!

Download Podcast here: