National Soccer League

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For other uses, see National Soccer League (disambiguation).
National Soccer League
Country Australia
Other club(s) from New Zealand
Founded 1977
First season 1977
Folded 2004
Number of teams 42 (total)
Last champions Perth Glory (2nd title)
Most championships Marconi Stallions
South Melbourne
Sydney City (4 titles each)
Most premierships Melbourne Knights (5 titles)
TV partners Seven Network & C7 Sport (1998–2002)
ABC (2000)
SBS (2002–2004)

The National Soccer League (NSL) was the former top level soccer league in Australia, run by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977, until its demise in 2004, when it was succeeded by the A-League competition, run by Football Federation Australia, the successor to the Australian Soccer Association.[1][2] During the history of the NSL the league was contested by a total of 42 teams; 41 based in Australia and one based in New Zealand. Seasons initially ran during the winter seasons, until 1989 when this was changed to the summer season. In 1984, the league was split into two conferences (Northern and Southern), so to introduced more teams in the competition; was later reverted with the return to a single division in 1987. The competition was also known by various names through sponsorships; these names including the Philips Soccer League, Olympic Airways Soccer League, Coca-Cola Soccer League, the Ericsson Cup and the A-League.[3][2][4][5][6]

From the league's inaugural season to its demise in 2004, a total of 13 clubs were crowned Champions through either a system of first past the post or a finals series, culminating to a Grand Final. Successful NSL clubs gain qualification into the continental competition, the Oceania Club Championship, although the competition only occurred in 1987, 1999 and 2001. The National Youth League ran in conjunction with the NSL as a national youth developmental and reserve league.

History

Origin

Competition between club sides from different states existed in various forms prior to the formation of the NSL. The petroleum company Ampol sponsored cup competitions in the various states, starting with New South Wales in 1957, with other states following in their stead.[7] Later a national Ampol Cup was conducted which continued throughout the 1960s. From 1962 until 1968 an Australia Cup was held,[8] but its ambition of becoming an FA Cup style knockout competition went unfulfilled. In the 1970s the top sides from Melbourne and Sydney played off in an end of season series,[9] but the tournament didn't seem to quite capture the legitimacy and popularity that was hoped for.

Plans for a national home and away league went back as far as 1965 for a 1967 start,[10] and were followed up by variations on the theme throughout the 1960s and early 1970s, but faced opposition variously from clubs, who deemed the notion uneconomical, and state federations who feared losing their power. Australia's qualification for the 1974 World Cup led to various discussions in 1975 and 1976, with eventually 14 teams being chosen to participate in the inaugural season of the national league.[11]

The transition from state-based leagues to a national competition was not all smooth. The Victorian Soccer Federation was reluctant for its big clubs to be involved and it appeared the dream of Alex Pongrass of St George and Frank Lowy of Hakoah Sydney for a nationwide club competition would not evolve. Little-known Mooroolbark from Melbourne's outer eastern suburbs broke the deadlock by joining the competition, bringing three other Victorian sides with it, making the national league a reality.[12]

1977–1983: Sydney dominance

The first seven seasons of the league would be dominated by Sydney clubs, with Sydney City winning four titles, and only West Adelaide being able to wrest the title from New South Wales. The competition at this stage was a simple first past the post. A post season finals series was played during this era but was considered more of an exhibition series rather than a legitimate game to decide the national champion, although some confusion still exists on this matter particularly amongst some Heidelberg supporters who consider the 1980 'final' as a legitimate decider.[13]

1984–1986: Conference system and power shift

Shrinking crowds led to the radical move of introducing more teams (mainly from Victoria and New South Wales) and splitting the league into two conferences, with the winner of each division to play off in an end of year two legged final. For season 1984 the 'Australian' Conference had competing teams from New South Wales and the ACT, whilst the 'National' Conference consisted of Victorian, South Australian and Queensland clubs. For 1985 and 1986 this reverted to 'Northern' and 'Southern' Conferences. Strangely, the competition's most geographically northern sides, Brisbane Lions and Brisbane City were in the latter grouping.

This period saw South Melbourne become the first Victorian team to win the league, followed by Brunswick Juventus, and Adelaide City, all Southern conference sides. At the end of the 1986 season, the system was scrapped, and about half the teams were dumped back to their respective state leagues. The criteria used to decide who stayed and who went was based 50% on the 1986 playing record, 40% on past playing record, and 10% on crowd support.[14] The result was that only one team from outside Sydney and Melbourne, reigning champions Adelaide City, was retained.

1987–1989: Return to single division and last years of winter football

The revamped league suffered a major setback early on when Sydney City pulled out of the competition after just one round into the new season.[14] Apart from returning to a single division, the league also dispensed with finals for the 1987 season, reverting to first past the post. Many considered this an ill-considered move, as it robbed the league of its most high profile games.[15] Finals were re-introduced from 1988, and were to remain until the league's demise. The 1989 season would be the last to be played in winter. This period saw a re-emergence of New South Wales dominance with all titles, minor premierships and runners-up being from that state.

1989–1996: Birth of summer football

Attempts to shift the league towards a summer season went back into the early 1980s, but only came to pass for the 1989/90 season. The rationale for this change was simple. The league would avoid being marginalised in the media during the peak of the Australian Football League and Australian Rugby League seasons, as well as providing better playing surfaces and spectator comfort owing to the better weather.

The impetus given to the league from the switch was not enough for some clubs to remain in the league, with many clubs being relegated or being demoted back to the state leagues, including former champions Brunswick Juventus, St George and APIA Leichhardt, as well as once upon a time contenders in Heidelberg and Preston. This coincided with a renewed push by soccer authorities to force clubs to market themselves to mainstream Australia, as opposed to their own mostly migrant fan bases. This included name and logo changes, as well as the banning of ethnic flags, changes which were begrudgingly agreed to by the clubs, though in the terraces the fans generally continued to chant the old names. Marconi, South Melbourne, Adelaide City and the Melbourne Knights were the dominant sides of this era, with numerous titles and grand final appearances between them.

1996–2001: New clubs and attempts to enter the mainstream

From 1996 onwards the league attempted to revitalise the competition and attempt to hook into the mainstream support by finally introducing a team from Western Australia, in the form of Perth Glory, as well as other new entities which promised to deliver mainstream support, as well as being fully professional outfits as opposed to the majority of clubs and players who were only semi-professional. Among the new clubs at this time were the Collingwood Warriors, Carlton, Northern Spirit and Parramatta Power.

These clubs would have varying degrees of success on and off the field. Collingwood Warriors barely managed to last a season, while Carlton reached the grand final in its debut year, but was unable to attract a substantial fan base. Northern Spirit started off with record crowds, and a good debut season reaching the finals, but gradually crowds declined, and financial difficulties along with a controversial takeover by Rangers,[16] didn't help matters. They would survive until the end of the NSL, but fold thereafter. Parramatta Power failed to gather much support, placed as it was in the midst of the already crowded western Sydney soccer market, and it too would not last beyond the end of the NSL. Perth Glory became the most successful of the new mainstream entrants. High crowds and good performances throughout the NSL's last decade made Perth Glory for many observers the benchmark and role model for all future entrants to the Australian top-flight.

A then record grand final crowd of 40,000 people saw the Brisbane Strikers become the first Queensland side to win the title in season 1996/97, but it never resulted in Brisbane gaining much bigger crowds in the following seasons than they were accustomed to. South Melbourne FC won back to back titles in the late 1990s, and by also winning the 1999 Oceania Club Championship, earning the right to play in the 2000 FIFA Club World Championship, where it put in some respectable performances, and a tidy sum in prize money. Wollongong Wolves became the only side from regional Australia to win the league, with their back to back titles in 1999/2000 and 2000/01. The 1999/2000 Grand Final against Perth Glory at Subiaco Oval in Perth saw a record attendance of 43,242, overtaking the 1997 figure in Brisbane and a record that would remain until the 2007 A-League Grand Final in Melbourne. The cancellation of the 2001 FIFA Club World Championship however was a major blow to the league as clubs which had seen a way of making a substantial amount of much needed money.

2001–2004: Decline and demise

After the 2001 FIFA Club World Championship was cancelled, the NSL was in great turmoil. High profile Australian players began to leave the NSL due to more enticing offers from overseas leagues.

In 1998, Soccer Australia sold the television rights for the NSL and Socceroos matches to the Seven Network in a 10-year contract that was worth $2.5 million a year. Seven bought the rights to be one of the flagships of its pay TV sport channel, C7 Sport. It also broadcast a small amount of coverage on its free-to-air network. At one point in 2000, the amount of free-to-air coverage on the NSL was only a one-hour highlights package of the NSL after midnight on Wednesdays.

In 2002, C7 Sport closed after the Seven Network lost the AFL rights and pay TV networks stopped carrying the channel. The next year, Seven severed its contract in the last week of Soccer Australia's existence. This left the NSL with no TV coverage at all until SBS picked up the rights soon after.

The consequent lack of sponsorship meant the league fell into even further decline which lead to its eventual demise at the end of the 2003–04 season. Highlights were few and far between, but Sydney Olympic re-emerged as a genuine leading club for the first time in a decade, winning its second title, and Perth Glory went on to win the last two titles of the NSL, after previously having lost two grand finals.

The birth of Adelaide United, as a quickly formed replacement of Adelaide City who withdrew just before the start of the final NSL season, was perhaps the sole major highlight of this era, as they put in good performances, but most importantly, registered crowds which had not been seen in Adelaide since the heyday of Adelaide City and West Adelaide.

The league in 2003–04 was won by Perth Glory after a 1-0 win against Parramatta Power on April 4, 2004, almost 27 years to the day that the national competition began. Nik Mrdja had the honor of scoring the last goal in the NSL, a 98th minute golden goal to seal the championship for Perth. After this, national competition went into recess for a year and a half. In November 2004, 8 teams, including 5 from the now defunct NSL, formed the A-League, the revamped national competition. The first competition began on the 26th of August 2005, ending the long recess.

Competition format

The competition structure changed many times throughout the NSL's history. From its inception in 1977 until 1983, it was simply a matter of first past the post. However a compromise format was devised between the traditional first past the post and the Australian system of finals. In 1978, 1979 (two-legged Grand Final), 1980 and 1982 a finals series was conducted but the winner of the Grand Final didn't determine who won the title. From 1984 until 1986, the league introduced more teams split into two conferences (1984 – Australian Conference, New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory clubs and National Conference, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland; 1985 and 1986 – Northern Conference, New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory clubs and Southern Conference for the rest) with 12 teams in each. The top five in each division would qualify for the playoffs, with the winner of each of the divisional playoffs playing off in a two-legged Grand Final. In 1987, the league dumped 11 teams, scrapped the split divisions, and the championship system reverted to first past the post.

In 1988 the league re-introduced a finals system, with the top five sides qualifying for the playoffs. In season 1992/93, the league increased the finalists to six. This system was used for the rest of the league's duration, except for season 2002/03 when the top six sides played a further series of home and away games against each other, with the top two playing off in the Grand Final.

The NSL also used a variety of point systems throughout its history. From 1977 until season 1991/92, teams were awarded two points for a win, one point for draw, and none for a loss. The exceptions to this were 1979, in which wins by four goals or more were awarded a bonus point, and 1983, in which three points were awarded for a win. From season 1992/93 onwards three points were awarded for a win, except for season 1994/95. In that season, four points were awarded for a win, with games ending in draws, being decided by penalty shootouts at the end of the game. The winner of the shootout received two points, the loser one point.

NSL Cup

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Main article: NSL Cup

In addition to the main league competition, the NSL also held a knock-out cup competition between 1977 and the 1997 season. It was held initially during the regular season, before gradually becoming a pre-season warm-up tournament.

Clubs

Team Also known as Years participating Current status
Adelaide City Adelaide Juventus
Adelaide City Giants
Adelaide City Zebras
Adelaide (City) Force		 1977–2002/03 National Premier Leagues South Australia
Adelaide United 2003/04 A-League
A.P.I.A. Leichhardt Leichhardt Strikers 1979–1991/1992 National Premier Leagues NSW
Blacktown City 1980–1981
1984–1986
1989–1989/90		 National Premier Leagues NSW
Brisbane City Azzurri
Brisbane City Gladiators		 1977–1986 National Premier Leagues Queensland
Brisbane Lions Hollandia 1977–1986
1988		 Brisbane Premier League as Queensland Lions
Brisbane Strikers Brisbane United 1991/92–2003/04 National Premier Leagues Queensland
Brunswick Juventus Brunswick Pumas
Melbourne BUSC
Melbourne Zebras		 1984–1988
1993/94–1994/95		 Victorian State League Division 3 as Brunswick Zebras
Canberra City Canberra City Arrows
Canberra City Olympians		 1977–1986 National Premier Leagues Capital Football
Canberra Cosmos 1995/96–2000/01 Defunct
Canterbury-Marrickville Canterbury-Marrickville Olympic 1986 National Premier Leagues NSW 2 as Bankstown Berries
Carlton 1997/98–2000/01 Defunct
Collingwood Warriors 1996/1997 Defunct
Football Kingz Auckland Kingz 1999/01–2003/04 Defunct
Footscray JUST Footscray Eagles
Melbourne City JUST		 1977–1989 Defunct
Green Gully Green Gully Ajax 1984–1986 National Premier Leagues Victoria
Heidelberg United Fitzroy United
Heidelberg Alexander		 1977–1987,
1989,
1990/91–1994/95		 National Premier Leagues Victoria
Inter Monaro 1985–1986 Defunct
Marconi Stallions Marconi Fairfield
Marconi-Datsun Leopards		 1977–2003/04 National Premier Leagues NSW
Melbourne Knights Essendon Lions
Melbourne Croatia
Melbourne CSC		 1984–2003/04 National Premier Leagues Victoria
Mooroolbark Mooroolbark United 1977 Victorian State League Division 2
Morwell Falcons Gippsland Falcons
Eastern Pride		 1992–2001 Defunct
Newcastle Breakers Newcastle BHP Breakers 1991/92–1999/00 Defunct
Newcastle KB United Newcastle United
Newcastle KB Raiders		 1978–1984 Defunct
Newcastle Rosebud United Adamstown Rosebuds 1984–1986 National Premier Leagues Northern NSW as Adamstown Rosebud
Newcastle United Jets Newcastle United 2000/01–2003/04 A-League
Northern Spirit 1998/99–2003/04 National Premier Leagues NSW 2 as GHFA Spirit FC
Parramatta Eagles Melita 1984,
1989/90–1994/95		 National Premier Leagues NSW 2
Parramatta Power 1999/00–2003/04 Defunct
Penrith City 1984–1985 Defunct
Perth Glory 1996/97–2003/04 A-League
Preston Lions Preston Rams
Preston Makedonia		 1981–1992/93 Victorian State League Division 1
South Melbourne South Melbourne Hellas
South Melbourne Gunners
South Melbourne Lakers		 1977–2003/04 National Premier Leagues Victoria
St George Saints St George Budapest 1977–1980,
1982–1990/91		 National Premier Leagues NSW
Sunshine George Cross 1984–1990/91 National Premier Leagues Victoria 1
Sydney City Eastern Suburbs Hakoah
Sydney City Slickers		 1977–1987 NSW State League Division 2 as Hakoah Sydney City East
Sydney Olympic Pan-Hellenic
Sydney Olympians
UTS Olympic
Olympic Sharks		 1977–1979
1981–2003/04		 National Premier Leagues NSW
Sydney United Sydney Croatia
Sydney CSC
Sydney United Pumas		 1984–2003/04 National Premier Leagues NSW
West Adelaide West Adelaide Hellas
West Adelaide Hawks
(West) Adelaide Sharks		 1977–1986
1989/90
1991/92–1998/99		 National Premier Leagues South Australia
Western Suburbs 1977–78 amalgamated in 1978 with APIA Leichhardt
Wollongong Macedonia Wollongong United
Illawarra Lions		 1990/91 Illawarra Premier League
Wollongong Wolves Wollongong City 1981–1986
1988–2003/04		 National Premier Leagues NSW as South Coast Wolves

Champions

Year Champion Runner up Score Venue Crowd
1977[17] Sydney City Marconi Stallions No finals series played
1978[18] West Adelaide Sydney City Season decided on league standings
1979[19] Marconi Stallions Heidelberg United Season decided on league standings
1980[20] Sydney City Heidelberg United Season decided on league standings
1981[21] Sydney City South Melbourne No finals series held
1982[22] Sydney City St George Season decided on league standings
1983[23] St George Sydney City No finals series held
1984[24] South Melbourne Sydney Olympic 4–2 agg. over two legs Olympic Park
St. George Stadium		 10,000
11,221
1985[25] Brunswick Juventus Sydney City 2–0 agg. over two legs St. George Stadium
Olympic Park		 2,491
7,560
1986[26] Adelaide City Sydney Olympic 3–2 agg. over two legs Hindmarsh Stadium
Parramatta Stadium		 12,232
14,032
1987[27] APIA Leichhardt Preston Lions No Grand Final held
1988 Marconi Stallions Sydney United 2–2 (5–4 on penalties) Parramatta Stadium 17,064
1989 Marconi Stallions Sydney Olympic 1–0 Parramatta Stadium 23,387
1989–90 Sydney Olympic Marconi Stallions 2–0 Parramatta Stadium 26,353
1990–91 South Melbourne Melbourne Knights 1–1 (5–4 on penalties) Olympic Park 21,338
1991–92 Adelaide City Melbourne Knights 0–0 (4–2 on penalties) Olympic Park 15,463
1992–93 Marconi Stallions Adelaide City 1–0 Parramatta Stadium 13,376
1993–94 Adelaide City Melbourne Knights 1–0 Olympic Park 13,790
1994–95 Melbourne Knights Adelaide City 2–0 Hindmarsh Stadium 15,573
1995–96 Melbourne Knights Marconi Stallions 2–1 Olympic Park 14,258
1996–97 Brisbane Strikers Sydney United 2–0 Lang Park 40,446
1997–98 South Melbourne Carlton 2–1 Olympic Park 16,000
1998–99 South Melbourne Sydney United 3–2 Olympic Park 15,194
1999–00 Wollongong Wolves Perth Glory 3–3 (7–6 on penalties) Subiaco Oval 43,242
2000–01 Wollongong Wolves South Melbourne 2–1 Parramatta Stadium 13,402
2001–02 Sydney Olympic Perth Glory 1–0 Subiaco Oval 42,735
2002–03 Perth Glory Sydney Olympic 2–0 Subiaco Oval 38,111
2003–04 Perth Glory Parramatta Power 1–0 Parramatta Stadium 9,630

Performance by club

Club Winners Runners-up Winning years
Sydney City
4
3
 1977, 1980, 1981, 1982
Marconi Stallions
4
3
 1979, 1988, 1989, 1992–93
South Melbourne
4
2
 1984, 1990–91, 1997–98, 1998–99
Adelaide City
3
2
 1986, 1991–92, 1993–94
Sydney Olympic
2
4
 1989–90, 2001–02
Melbourne Knights
2
3
 1994–95, 1995–96
Perth Glory
2
2
 2002–03, 2003–04
Wollongong Wolves
2
0
 1999–00, 2000–01
St. George
1
1
 1983
Brisbane Strikers
1
0
 1996–97
APIA Leichhardt
1
0
 1987
Brunswick Juventus
1
0
 1985
West Adelaide
1
0
 1978
Sydney United
0
3
 1988, 1996–97, 1998–99
Heidelberg United
0
2
 1979, 1980
Preston Lions
0
1
 1987
Carlton
0
1
 1997–98
Parramatta Power
0
1
 2003–04

Competition timeline

See also

References

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBgvIvI8lek
  5. ↑ http://www.scoretank.com.au/champ.cgi?champ=47
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ http://www.ozfootball.net/ark/States/VIC/1961NightCup.html
  8. ↑ http://www.rsssf.com/tablesa/auscuphist.html
  9. ↑ http://www.ozfootball.net/ark/States/VIC/1972InterChampT.html
  10. ↑ Hay, 2006, The World Game Downunder, pp 199
  11. ↑ Hay, 2006, The World Game Downunder, pp 120
  12. ↑ Hay, 2006, The World Game Downunder, pp 121–122
  13. ↑ Heidelberg United SC – History
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Thompson, 2006, One Fantastic Goal, pp 263
  15. ↑ Thompson, 2006, One Fantastic Goal, pp 263–264
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  26. ↑ http://www.ozfootball.net/ark/NSL/1986/Playoff.html
  27. ↑ http://www.ozfootball.net/ark/NSL/1987/NSLTable.html

External links

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