New regulations regarding the loans of all players under the age of 23 were announced by the Football Federation of Australia. From the coming season, all A-League clubs will be able to sign on loan up to two players of that category from any other club of the competition.
The new rules state that the team that is signing the player will not pay any fees, and that the loan can only be for a maximum of one season. Also, the player who is on loan will not be eligible to play in the games against the team who maintains the rights of his contract.
According to the head of the league, Greg O’Rourke, this move was made in agreement with all A-League teams for the benefit of younger players who might not be finding enough play time at their current clubs.
“We envisage that it will improve the prospects of young Australian players to feature more regularly in the Hyundai A-League, while adding to the conversation around the competition as clubs secure new players on loan deals.”
The first agreement under these new regulations has already been made in fact, with Sydney FC signing 21-year-old attacking midfielder Daniel De Silva from the Central Coast Mariners for the next season, breaking new ground.