GOVERNING bodies in sport rarely win.

Unlike the players they look after and throw money at, unlike the teams they praise to the heavens and work silly hours to ensure their sport is well organised, it’s the norm for the top brass to get only stick.

The Guernsey Football Association’s executive are well used to it, of course.

But this week they deserve a big pat on the back for forcing through the disbandment of council, but, more importantly, legislation restricting the number of matches that under-18s can play.

It’s not before time.

But, surprise, surprise, clubs are already groaning that they will struggle to field sides.

Restricting players to just 40 games per season – excluding representative ones and school matches – will cause wholesale problems, say even the most successful vehicle of youth football development in recent times, Northerners.

‘Our club is definitely going to struggle with this,’ said president Dave Finn.

Well, they won’t get any sympathy from these quarters.

While fully appreciative of what North have consistently done for many years – that is hone and develop good footballers with quality coaching – they surely cannot moan about a lack of players when they have happily kissed goodbye to so many who have not met their very high standards.

For some years, the chocolate-and-blues have operated an elitist system which, while producing good footballers, has led to them being overplayed and the not so good disappear to weaker clubs or quitting the game.

It was an interesting concept and one I have to agree has been successful.

What irritated North rivals and me is when the club sought and got matches postponed because they claimed they did not have enough players to fulfil Youth One, Jackson and Priaulx fixtures in the same weekend.

Who’s fault was that? North’s, of course. They wanted their cake and eat it.

In the light of the new legislation, North may have to review how they operate their youth structure and one would hope they do, because if the most successful can’t move with the times, what hope for the game here?

For too long, some of the island’s most talented have been overused and regularly played in matches that served them little purpose other than topping up the goal difference.

Football will now have to think a little more how they use their best players and at the same time there should be more action for the fringe players who too often are neglected and, ultimately, are lost to the sport.

OH, the joys of GFA council nights.

I will remember them to my dying days and whom who regularly attended them in their pomp wouldnot?

Chewing the cud over the issues decided by a large group of men sent along to get the best deal for their clubs always made for entertaining discussion back in the bar when all the grind of the fortnightly meeting was over.

The meetings themselves were infamous for discussing weighty issues such as should games go ahead without a toilet door to the referee’s room, whether a Railway League player should be granted a transfer, or simply listening and chuckling along to the referee reports on what so and so said to so and so before clonking him one and being sent on his way.

Such issues have always been in need of discussion somewhere, but for many years now council has not been the ideal vehicle to do so.

Dave Dorey identified the need for change, set up standing committees and, now, under Dave Nussbaumer’s leadership, the association is operating a slicker, modern fashion.

The clubs, of course, do not always like what they hear, but the new ways is the best and the only way to go forward.