Five years ago the A-League made a conscious decision to push the starting date of the season back to October to accommodate avoiding the NRL and AFL finals. A smart strategic decision that has worked, given the record attendance figure last weekend. The A-League now avoids competing in the busiest sporting month of the year when the two strongest codes are reaching their season peaks, it also allows every sports fan in Australia to enter a smooth transition period between sporting codes and basically not leave the couch with the AFL/NRL-ALeague crossover. In recent seasons the FFA has introduced the FFA Cup, a great concept melding the NPL and A-League clubs together. Only in its infancy this competition has plenty of room to improve but it does provide a much needed link to clubs that have played an important role in the history of football in Australia and also provides a much needed distraction for the longest ever offseason we endure every season. In their infinite wisdom the FFA has scheduled a very top heavy schedule with the Sydney derby featuring in round one, and round two comprising of a Melbourne derby and a grand final replay. Throw in an [...]