FOOTBALL Mid North Coast chairman Lance Fletcher is convinced the Coastal Premier League (CPL) concept was correct.
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However, he said the process of setting up the competition was rushed and could have been better managed.
"They should have allowed 18 months to establish the competition. Not six,'' Mr Fletcher said.
Mr Fletcher was not zone chairman when the CPL was mooted.
The CPL initially involved 10 clubs from FMNC and the Coffs Harbour-based North Coast Football. It kicked off in 2020 and two new clubs - one from each zone - were admitted last year, stretching the boundaries from Forster-Tuncurry to Coffs Harbour.
However, the competition collapsed last November when North Coast clubs withdrew support.
They should have allowed 18 months to establish the competition. Not six
- Football Mid North Coast chairman Lance Fletcher
"I was against rushing the competition at the start, but I still believe it was one of the right thing for North Coast football going forward,'' Mr Fletcher said.
Mr Fletcher said the COVID lockdowns and restrictions also played havoc, with the kickoff for the inaugural season delayed and the competition then shortened. The 2021 season also ended before the semi-finals started due to a State lockdown.
A full competition was completed last year.
"COVID certainly didn't help - that was critical,'' he said.
Mr Fletcher added that a 'lack of honesty' was another factor.
"It would be nice for people to say in club meetings what they were saying behind the two boards' backs. A lot of things were happening in the background that weren't good for the product,'' he said.
"You rely on people to be honest and open to help the concept work.''
Mr Fletcher said ongoing wet weather early last year that saw games postponed or southern clubs having to travel to Coffs Harbour to play on synthetic surface fields also had an impact.
"The CPL really didn't get its best opportunity until the back half of last year,'' Mr Fletcher said.
What could have been
"But the back half of last season was brilliant - and grand final day, with a couple of thousand people there, showed what the competition could have been like.''
Mr Fletcher said FMNC's board will work to resurrect a Zone Premier League (ZPL), similar to the competition that ran from 2000-2019.
"We'd like to get back to the glory days of having 12 to 14 clubs in the premier league,'' he said.
However, this year's ZPL will be played by just five clubs - Port United, Port Saints, Camden Haven, Macleay Valley and Kempsey Saints. A sixth club, Iona from Port Macquarie, has withdrawn, citing a lack of numbers for two grades.
The zone did hope to get a club from the southern area. While none were forthcoming this year, Mr Fletcher is confident there will be representation in the future.
"Most clubs informed us that they have a lot of under 18s coming into the senior ranks this year and they want to give them one more season in the southern competition,'' he said.
"We have to respect that.''
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