Salary cap and transfers different issues.
Transfers:
Why limit our selling opportunities? The Australian market would be our biggest opportunity. Look at Caceras as an example his lack of European passport might limit his overseas opportunities. We can sell to Asia where they only want the best due to their restrictions, lower England leagues have to much choice to spend much and Holland etc also want the best players. A lot of the players we sell are Socceroos or have Socceroos potential. They don't come around all the time. Also we have sold a few times in Jan when the player has been in the last 6 months of their contract therefore reducing the price we would have received and no guarantee they would resign or they did resign based on a condition that we would sell as soon as they found a buyer.
Caceras wanted out for some reasonable reasons that were basically club inflicted but also might have had someone pushing it. He allegedly wanted to go to Syd, we were prepared to let him go if we got players in return, which is fine but does the new player really want to be here (another argument). Sydney getting the shits shows they had him in their sights and might have been niggling at him. We didn't need to cave and possibly wouldn't have and he might have come back and tried harder knowing a line had been drawn or he might have had a bigger sook so hard to tell. Our motto is to sell for profit, so to make us viable we need to sell.
Look at the other end, Fitzy. He obviously was not a sellable commodity but Melb City took him. If there was a transfer system we might have been able to get some money for him. Even 10k is better than the see you later we got. We could sell lesser players to Aussie clubs as well it's not all about the big deals. All this is what the club wants, fans yeah for sure I don't want them running around for the other clubs but if we don't sell in our contract period they can just walk. Maybe the recent history of everyone going to Syd clouds the judgement
Also a transfer fee goes club to club and has no effect on the player.
So doesn't matter what we get for the sale the buyer still needs to put his contract in the salary cap. If Syd or City want someone bad enough let them pay us what we can get. If the player gets an increase at the new club they might be happy. E.g we might pay Caceras 100k and City might pay him 200k per year. Let City or Syd waste their spare cash on us if they want. Not our problem if the players wage is less than a transfer fee.
Also we don't need to sell. It can be easy to shut down transfer gossip. Jump on the front foot. We are not selling the end stop talking about it.
Look at Dortmund hands off their striker he not for sale don't bother, but Madrid are weak in their comments because they want the chatter.
The risk could be we have to look at longer contracts than present and that could be a problem if they fail.
Ideally the Jan window doesn't exist but that will never happen.
Also
Salary Cap:
Absolutely needs to be kept and strictly. Already the small changes are making an obvious divide in my mind. Think we just lucky Syd and West Syd Marquees aren't as good as City. Overseas recruits are very important atm.
I think the drama already exists in the A League the remedies are just limited to release or swap deal. We might not always want what the other team has to offer.
Thanks for that post Big Al.
Firstly, I don't think I conflated salary cap and transfer fees. Certainly wasn't my intent. I just cited it as an example of something that we do differently in the HAL (compared to more open markets) and while it may have hampered clubs with wealthy owners and better turn overs,
it has clearly been of enormous aid to CCM and the other smaller HAL clubs. So glad we agree on that.
"Why limit our selling opportunities?"
Because:
A) We haven't been struggling for adequate market opportunities. To the contrary we've been doing very well. Our problem has been keeping our players, not our ability to offload them.
B) You're making the assumption that by being open for poaching in the HAL that we will see more profitable sales. We might see more regular sales - but there is more evidence to suggest we would lose players sooner and for less than suddenly we'd find the lucrative selling opportunities we've always been missing? You're a young prodigy, everyone knows you'll probably go OS , only a matter of time. Got six moths left. So why sign on with CCM for another 3 years to be transferred in the next 18 months, when you can sign to MV now on an improved wage, play for bigger crowds at a bigger club and then still go OS in 12 months time.
C) A transfer fee is not the only measure in assessing the value and wisdom of a sale. While important, it is still only one measurement in determining whether a sale will be of best VALUE to the club. You're a switched on guy, you know how much work must go into acquisitions, getting the right fit, squad balance, team understanding, pre season etc etc... A balance must be struck between disruptions to the squad, preparations, on field performance and longer term growth/greater$$potential. Those things are dollars to a club. Caceres is indeed a good example. Because if he had buckled down and started dictating games, scoring regularly and providing assists, we should have been looking at him genuinely going OS for twice the fee we received. I'm POSITIVE that's what the club was hoping. And a better reflection of the investment made and opportunity provided. Instead because we faced disruption and mid season sabotage we had to work hard to make the most out of it. But make no mistake, his agent will be hoping/believing that he will now have his break out season and then goes OS for a bigger fee next and he can rub that fact in to the Mariners.
D) I don't think it is easy at all to shut down transfer issues. Not sure what gives you this idea. You can watch the biggest clubs in the world fail. No reason to think we would be successful.
"Our motto is to sell for profit, so to make us viable we need to sell."
This statement is inaccurate and really needs to be more specific/nuanced. Our motto is to develop young talent and then sell that talent on for a 'true' profit and provide better career opportunities as then other young players will continue to join our pipeline.
How much has been invested in a player, and where it will leave the club and what gain if they leave now, or later, and to whom all count. 100K transfer fee from MV may be a profit on the books but represent a loss in future revenue and prior investment. And while you think wage doesn't come into it, will be hard to stop when a player wants to earn even just an additional 20K a year at Victory and agents bang on about not being played what your worth etc etc.
And we ARE selling. What opportunities have we missed Big AL? I can't think of a situation were we've failed in this to date? That includes Fitzy. This is clearly just us freeing some up some needed funds from an unhappy player and doing him a favour fro services rendered by releasing him because he's unlikely to get picked up for a fee by another HAL side. The fact City just bypassed the rules to get Caceres but made no offer for Fitz, just proves they didn't want to pay a fee for him. Not that "no transfer fees between HAL clubs" cost us.
Of course, I can imagine a situation where it would be good to offload a player to another HAL club for some cash Big Al. But I think those few gains, would almost certainly be overwhelmed by other net losses. Like playing good football for one
I would ask of you to consider why do you think the present rule exists?
HAL/FFA ineptitude? Which I've heard Euro snobs and 'big club" fans purport.
I know the PFA opposes it because the off loading, swaps and loans etc that take place are not always in players best interest. But for the lowest resourced club in the league, do you really think we would not fall prey to other clubs who have more dollars, bigger profiles, facilities and media support? That we would simply profit and grow?
The free markets of the world do not bare this conclusion out Big AL. The opposite is true. Odds are we'd be left battered, bruised and cynical like so many other once proud clubs around the world.
Do you really think we'd be in a better position if other HAL clubs could swoop in mid season for our best players over the past ten years?
Always willing to concede I may be wrong, but my own opinion is that for a couple of times where we may have made a few grand, the price would have been seeing our squad consistently dismantled for what would in relative terms pennies on the pound - making any silverware even harder to come by.
Anyway, my two hundred cents as ever. make of it as you will mate.
Best
FP