Johnson emerging as the 'marquee' leader Australian football needs

As Australian football reels from the unprecedented chaos being caused by the coronavirus, the fans at large can take comfort from the fact that the new Football Federation Australia leadership appears to be well equipped and smart enough to steer the game to safer waters.

Football Australia CEO James Johnson addresses the media Source: Getty Images

FFA has decided against suspending the A-League and will stage the remaining six rounds of the competition, plus the weekend's W-League grand final, behind closed doors.

Everything was pointing towards a suspension of the competition especially since the governments of Australia and New Zealand decreed at the weekend that any visitors to both countries would have to be quarantined for 14 days.

Wellington Phoenix, who are genuine contenders for the championship, have now agreed to play out the rest of their A-League commitments on Australian soil.

The FFA must feel that the second option of playing behind closed doors is the lesser of the two evils also because it keeps broadcaster Fox Sports happy.

Chief executive James Johnson, who is emerging as the 'marquee' leader football has not had for many years, was a self-assured man during a press conference detailing how the rest of the season will pan out.

He came across as one who was comfortable with the delicate decision to play on and, more importantly, he gave hope to those of us who were losing faith in the game's governance for the best part of a decade.

Who knows? 'Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose' might not apply to Australian football any more.

"I want to send a message to the football community that we are here to look after you and I'd like to extend a message to the government and public that we as a sport want to be a good citizen and play our part in helping the broader community through this difficult period," he said.

He also pointed out that the FFA will be agile and responsive to the changing nature of the pandemic.

It was the kind of talk you would expect but somehow you got the impression that Johnson was not merely paying lip service to a complex situation but meant what he was saying.

Notwithstanding the FFA's positivity, one should not for a moment forget that Australian football is still walking a tightrope.

It is unknown if the game is strong enough to combat the latest challenge to its existence.

But our game has a history of survival despite great odds and the importance of being united in this most difficult period cannot be overstated.

This will be an 'asterisk' season no doubt but at least we still have a game to watch on television so let's make this work for now and take stock of the situation when this coronavirus storm is over.

The game's leaders should be backed to the hilt because, for the first time in many years, they seem to know what they're doing.

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