Gavin’s wishlist is yet to be fulfilled after his six years at the helm

OVER SIX years since his appointment as Airtricity League director, the wishlist of Fran Gavin has changed little.

Asked on Friday what he would like for 2014, Gavin (pictured), reeled off the usual suspects, a competitive league in both divisions, improved performances in Europe, the continued development of younger players and more people at games.

His ambitions may not have altered but the landscape of the game he is appointed to govern, and to nurture, is in a state of flux.

His publicised target of 2,000 fans at every Premier Division game last season fell short by 18 per cent, and while there was a tiny increase of around 50 bodies per match to 1,670, the numbers would have been grimmer but for Dundalk’s resurgence

Worryingly, the country’s three biggest clubs, Shamrock Rovers, Sligo Rovers and Cork City, all had fewer fans going through the turnstiles.

It would help if the FAI flexed their marketing muscle and reminded the Irish soccer family there is more to the beautiful game than the senior team.

Recruiting Roy Keane and Martin O’Neill, who both began their careers in domestic soccer on this island, to front a PR campaign for the 2014 Airtricity League would help.

So too would heralding the presence of the Irish management duo at games. With a direct line into Denis O’Brien’s national radio network, it is about time the FAI levered for a live broadcast every Friday, plus updates of other games.

Gavin has welcomed a Shamrock Rovers second team into the First Division, stressing that eight teams allowed for a tidy 28-game programme, with no free weekends. How convenient.

That there is no senior club west of a line between Galway and Sligo, nor west of Limerick and Cork, can’t be progressive for a sport which is fighting gaelic games for new recruits in these vast areas.

If places like Tralee, Killarney, Castlebar and Westport don’t have a senor soccer team, the FAI should be asking: what can we do to get you over the line?

Gavin insisted the invite to Rovers was approved after other interested parties dropped out of the running. If only wealthy clubs like Rovers can bump up the numbers in the Airtricity League, should the FAI not consider a summit with their IFA counterparts about a way forward for soccer on the island?

Looking further afield, the need for improved results in European competition is crucial for the League’s reputation, as well as finances – Shamrock Rovers are still living off the fat of their 2011 Europa League largesse.

After finishing dead last in Europe last season with one draw out of eight games – even worse than Andorra – Irish clubs must be given every opportunity to prepare for European competition.

For starters, no club should play a domestic game between home and away legs.

Through the curse of spot fixing, players may be lured to assist outside influences on the first throw-in, free-kick or yellow card. It’s a scourge which is only going to get worse and Gavin’s fears in this area are valid. As for clean bill of health for the Airtricity League in 2014? Don’t bet on it.