Lewes FC Ladies manager, Jacquie Agnew and Head of Ladies’ Football at Lewes, Ronnie Moore, are asking questions about the direction the game is taking in England.
One key question that needs to be answered in a sound, rational sense is that of the intention of creating a professional women`s league in this country. Steps obviously have already been taken by The FA in the creation of the WSL which, for all intents and purposes, is a breakaway summer league created and sponsored by the FA itself.
There are two questions that require answers since the launch of this WSL initiative, they are:
1) Should there be an alternative breakaway summer league operating outside the pyramid of women`s football?
2) Should the FA be sponsoring such a breakaway league to the tune of some £930,000 per season, and for it to be continued for the next four seasons up to the year 2018?
Further questions arise from this unique situation:
1) Is the bidding process flawed for entry in to this somewhat elitist set up?
2) Is this scheme doing more harm than good to the rest of the women`s pyramid (now known as the winter pyramid) and is the summer pyramid proving to be detrimental to the rest of the women`s pyramid as a whole?
3) If clubs cannot win entry by promotion on merit to the WSL, can such an irregular set up be considered fair and perhaps legal under the FA rules and regulations currently in operation?
What is required is clear and concise evaluation and an understanding of the FA’s future thoughts and intentions for the women`s senior game, as at present there is a lack of clarity. It appears The FA are trying to create a women`s professional league and they see this as being best operated in the summer (for perhaps better and more exclusive coverage by the media) between the months of March and September and furthermore the WSL has, since its inception, operated outside of the conventional women`s pyramid.
A Special General Meeting in January resulted in The FA agreeing to retain the Women’s Premier League title and to further look into possible reinstatement of promotion from the WPL to the WSL within the next two years.
After 150 years of football in this country, promotion has been denied in favour of invitation only. No wonder so many clubs are up in arms over the way the women`s game is being directed. For whatever reason(s) this has been allowed to happen, it is clearly not in the game’s interest, or the spirit of the competition, where success can be repaid by the failure of not being promoted and furthermore, those whom finish bottom of WSL2 are ringfenced from relegation, which provides little incentive to be successful.
This situation would never have seen the light of day in the men`s pyramid – imagine Championship clubs barred from promotion to the Premiership and no relegation from the Premiership! This situation just would never happen without strike and riot, so why has it been allowed to happen in the women`s pyramid of football?
This creation of WSL summer football and the way the structure has been implemented has serious implications for the future of women`s football in this country, so a closer look is required into the methodology and reasoning for its implementation.
Part 2 will be posted tomorrow.
SHE KICKS – the online community for women’s football
