Above: Southern Cobras coach Stephen Jasiak said the Pirates should be regraded by the SFL before next season.By Glen Atwell
PARKMORE Pirates are sailing towards next season with growing numbers, but several division three clubs have called on the league to consider regrading the 2005 wooden-spooners.
Southern Cobras coach Stephen Jasiak said if Parkmore became a division-three powerhouse the league would go backwards.
Jasiak said if the Pirates came out and belted opposition sides by 10-20 goals every week the division would be in big trouble.
“It takes away the community spirit of the SFL, it’s clear they have the big names, so why not regrade them?
“This could wreck division-three football,” Jasiak said.
Club officials said the league’s administration should assess the talent on the Pirates’ 2006 list and possibly regrade the club higher.
But, according to Southern Football League president Tony Troon, a swag of gun recruits and a sack full of money doesn’t ensure footballing success.
With no salary cap system operating in the SFL, the Pirates are free to recruit and field any number of stars.
But Mr Troon said regrading Parkmore before next season was out of the question.
“We’ll be closely monitoring the Pirates, but there is no way they will be elevated to division two,” he said.
Mr Troon said a handful of recruits didn’t automatically equal success and he didn’t expect the Pirates to run away with the premiership.
“Nine out of 10 times, big sponsorship means success, but the Pirates can’t get too far ahead of themselves yet.”
However Jasiak disagreed, saying that action should be taken immediately.
“They should be regraded before the start of the season, our club would love to see that happen.
“If the Pirates have the big recruits on the way, and are paying big money to players, I would say they are at least a division-two club,” Jasiak said.
Leading the Pirates revolution is Fintrack Mortgages chief executive Richard Houston, who initially had ideas of forming a new club.
Mr Troon said the SFL would have taken Houston and his new club on board, but Houston failed to secure a ground before the cutoff date.
Houston said the Pirates were more than happy to start in division three, but admitted he was expecting to play finals football.
“I wouldn’t say a premiership next year is out of reach.
“We’re talking to plenty of good players who have the ability to take us to a flag next year,” Houston said.
Houston said that playing in division two would give the club greater recruiting access to star players.
But he said building a positive culture at Parkmore would be the key to helping the club climb from division three to eventually secure a division-one position.
“Not everything is based on money,” he said.
