Six Month Progress Report
I have been in post now for just over six months and so this Blog reflects on what has been achieved so far and identifies priority actions for the next few months.
Organisational Development – Human Resources
In the last six months the staffing compliment of the HKFA has been significantly increased thanks largely to the Project Phoenix funding allocated by HAB. Some key appointments include:
· Coach Education Manager
· Women’s Football Manager
· Grassroots Football Manager
· Referees Manager
· Futsal Manager
· Head of Corporate Governance
· Head of Marketing and Communications
· Assistant Manager – Marketing & Communications
The Head of Corporate Governance started with the HKFA on 20th February and is already having a significant impact. The Marketing Team is now at full strength with one incumbent confirmed in post and one additional vacancy filled. There has been a notable increase in marketing and promotional activity.
The HKFA Man Power Plan was submitted and approved by the Football Task Force in March. As a result three new positions including a Representative Teams Manager, have been advertised and are being recruited as we speak.
The Organisational and Development Committee (ODC) is overseeing a harmonization programme which aims to reduce the real and perceived differences between the HKFA employees not covered by the HAB funded Project Phoenix and those employed with the subvention. A series of staff seminars is taking place to introduce the process and timescale to staff to ensure their continued motivation and commitment.
The ODC is also overseeing a review of the HKFA’s internal systems, procedures and protocols with a view to ensuring that they comply with best practice and that they are as administratively efficient as possible.
Representative Team(s)
The Acting Head Coach continues to perform his duties diligently and effectively. The away draw in Malaysia and the good showing in the EAFF Cup 2013 were built upon by an excellent 0-0 draw away in Uzbekistan. This performance was at least matched in an exciting home 1-0 win over higher ranked Vietnam. This match was played in front of a capacity crowd at the Mong Kok stadium.
The players received their new bonus payment based on HK$10 per FIFA World Ranking points. This new system has been well-received by all parties.
The HKFA is attempting to arrange friendly matches as part of the preparations for the competitive Asian Cup qualifiers in the Autumn. Hopefully these will take place on FIFA International Match days in June, September and October.
New Professional League
Progress is still being made on the ‘journey’ to a new Premier League in Hong Kong. The HKFA Head of Competitions attended a recent AFC Seminar on the revised criteria for entry into the AFC Champions League (the criteria set as the target for the new HKFA League). The proposals for the new league have been revised based on the new AFC approach.
The General Secretary is preparing a new set of Rules for the new league and these will be presented in draft form at the next Premier League Working Party meeting. In the light of recent developments internationally regarding match-manipulation, this issue is taking greater prominence. Discussions remain on-going regarding the sponsorship and funding for the league with commercial sponsors. This is seen as key to the success of the venture.
Hong Kong Football Training Centre
A Concept and Business Plan has been prepared which has received the endorsement of the HKFA Board, the Football Task Force and the HKJC. Significant progress has been made and we hope that an announcement on the timescale for development will be made soon.
LCSD Subvention Application
A number of meetings have been held with LCSD over the recent months and the discussions have been forward looking and positive. As a result of this growing partnership and the additional confidence that the Government has in the HKFA, the LCSD has just awarded the HKFA a 41.6% increase in subvention funding (as compared to the last year). This level of increase will enable the HKFA Technical Department to increase the number of activities and programmes particularly at the grassroots level.
FIFA ‘Goal’ Project and Performance Project
On 18th March FIFA agreed to provide additional funding of USD500,000 towards the phase 2 renovation of the HKFA premises. The renovation work will start soon and is estimated to take 6 months. Concurrent with this, funding of USD100,000 is also being discussed for various initiatives following a recent FIFA Performance Review. This additional money will be used for new systems and procedures to streamline the operation of the HKFA and to improve efficiency.
Recent Events and Activities
The HKJC supported youth invitational tournament was played at the Po Kong Village Park Road Pitch between 18th and 20th February. The Hong Kong U-13 team played against teams from Singapore, Thailand and Guangzhou whilst the U-18 team played against teams from Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. The players gained good experience from this event.
The U-20 HK team recently participated in the 12th National Games of China.
Funding support was generously given by the HKJC for the AFC U-14 2014 Championships which took place in Hong Kong between the 11th and 17th April.
The newly appointed Futsal Manager is making good progress in preparing for the Asian Indoor Games due to take place in Incheon, Korea in June. Preliminary squads have been chosen for both Men’s and Women’s teams.
The Coach Education Programme is up and running with massive demands for the new Youth Leader level 1 and 2 courses. Furthermore, different levels of AFC and FIFA coaching courses are also being organized. For existing HKFA registered coaches, an online library is being established and seminars will also be held to reinforce their knowledge.
Preparations continue in relation to the BAT 2013 tournament involving South China, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspurs and Sunderland. Discussions are now on-going between the HKFA, the Premier League and the British Council regarding the use of the US$100k ‘Good Causes’ fund and in particular how the expertise of the EPL coaches and referees can be used to good effect.
The AFC Technical Director visited Hong Kong between 8th and 10th April to review the new Football Development Plan and the new Coach Education Programme which are being developed.
The CEO, Acting Head Coach and Technical Director continue to be in discussion with the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the University of Hong Kong and the Medical Profession regarding an integrated Player Welfare system given the working title of ‘Testing, Training and Caring’. The purpose of this initiative is to develop a more scientific approach to the development of footballers. The programme will include a longitudinal study of physiological testing to establish benchmarks for fitness levels at each age group, the development of a customized athlete training, conditioning and lifestyle plan and agreed levels of care for injury detection, treatment and rehabilitation.
Summary of the Last Six Months
As some of you may know, I have done a bit of sailing and to use a nautical analogy, the past six months has been ‘all hands on deck’. The ship has been steadied, leaks have been plugged and good headway is now being made. Indeed considerable improvements are apparent both on and off the football pitch.
We have laid some important foundations. For example, the staff compliment is almost full now and the work of implementing Project Phoenix can really start in earnest.
The relationship with stakeholders has improved especially with the fans, the media, the Government, the Football Task Force, the Jockey Club, sponsors etc. Feedback is positive and can only improve with a further period of consolidation and the delivery of some outcomes and targets.
There have been significant improvements in the marketing and promotion of the HKFA, its activities and programmes.
Progress is also being made in relation to the large scale projects that are fundamental to Project Phoenix. In particular the HK Football Training Centre concept and business plan has now been accepted by stakeholders as the basis of a plan that can be supported. The proposal for a new league is coming to fruition but the main issue there will be generating sufficient funding to make it substantially different to the existing league.
Additional funding has been levered in most notably from FIFA, LCSD and the Football Task Force. However the financial sustainability of the HKFA remains a priority task. The implementation of Project Phoenix requires significant additional expenditure. Receiving funding for staffing from HAB is important but they need budgets to work with. Finding sponsorship remains a priority action and some of the promising leads need to be converted into agreed sponsorship packages.
In conclusion, I am content with the progress made over the last six months. However, now is not the time to be complacent and I know that considerable further effort will be required if the foundations are to be built upon.
In particular, the next few months will be critical in terms of preparing a realistic budget for the FA, in delivering the major projects including preparations for the new Premier League, the development of the national training centre, the adoption of a new football development plan and a five-year strategy for the HKFA. In addition there are still new staff to recruit and induct, an internal systems and procedures review to undertake and a whole new set of constitutional documents to prepare. This is in addition to the day to day work of the HKFA such as delivering its development programmes, coach education, competitions management etc.
The future success of the HKFA depends on everyone working together in a positive spirit of cooperation.
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半年工作進程報告
我寫下這篇文章的目的，是回顧過去半年內在Blog內所提及的事情的成果，以及在未來數月內各項目的優先處理工作。
組織架構的發展 — 人力資源
過去六個月內，首先感謝由民政事務局資助下的「鳳凰計劃」，讓香港足球總會得以作出各項重要的人事招募安排，當中包括：
· 教練培訓經理；
· 女子足球經理；
· 草根足球經理；
· 裁判經理；
· 五人足球經理；
· 機構管治總監；
· 市場推廣及傳訊總監；
· 市場推廣及傳訊助理經理
機構管治總監於本年二月二十日開始履新並已帶來顯著的改變，市場推廣及傳訊部的團隊亦已宣告組班完成，市場推廣及傳訊總監將聯同一個現任及一個新聘職位，將會為本會籌辦更多市場及推廣活動
本會的人力資源計劃已於三月時呈交予足球專責小組並獲得審批。如我們早前提及，將新增三個職位，包括香港代表隊經理，並已刊登招聘廣告及進行招募中。
組織及發展委員會現正督導本會檢視現時員工，包括「鳳凰計劃」下聘請的員工和舊有的合約員工，在薪酬制度及附帶僱傭條款上的安排，「目的是統一和協調相關的制度，以減低有關的差異。
一系列的員工會議正已進行，向本會同事簡介計劃細節及時間表並聽取意見，確保他們可積極和投入地工作。
同時，組織及發展委員會亦正推動本會審視內部制度、程序和規章，以確保相關行政管理政策有效地實施和執行。
香港代表隊
現任香港代表隊署理主教練用心辦事，堅守崗位，從作客逼和馬來西亞的友誼賽與及2013年東亞盃外圍賽的出色表現可見一斑，為其後0:0作客逼和烏茲別克的出色表現打下穩固的根基；港隊這股優良的表現，繼續於主場1:0擊敗排名較高的越南大放異彩，令當晚旺角大球場的氣氛熾熱高漲，座無虛席！
此外，球員的全新比賽獎金制度，與國際足總之系統計算出來的排名積分掛勾，即按國際足總之系統計算出來的每一個積分，參賽成員可獲頒港幣十元，新制度得到各界正面的評價。
另一方面，香港足球總會為港隊應付秋季舉行的亞洲盃外圍賽，將安排多場友誼賽，本會希望可於今年六月、九月及十月的國際足聯比賽日期間進行．
全新職業聯賽
本港全新的職業聯賽正在擬定計劃的「旅途」上，本會競賽部總監已出席最近亞洲足協舉行的講座(新聯賽的賽制將適用於亞協盃的參賽資格)，並根據亞洲足協的指示修訂新聯賽計劃書的內容。
本會總幹事已為新聯賽的章程大綱及細則進行預備工作，並將草擬文件於下一次舉行的聯賽工作會議上呈交，鑒於國際關注的非法操控賽事課題，本會將會於此重點落墨；此外，會議上亦會進行有關商業贊助新聯賽的討論，這將是新聯賽的成功關鍵所在！
香港足球訓練中心
已備妥的概念及商業計劃已獲得足總董事局、足球專責小組及香港賽馬會的鼎力支持，有關計劃的最新進度及時間表將會盡快對外公布。
康樂及文化事務署撥款
數月來與康文署舉行的聯席會議取得正面進展及加深夥伴關係，讓香港特區政府對本會增加信任，康文署對本會的撥款亦比去年提高了 41.6%(與去年比較)，以幫助本會技術部門為草根階層提供更多項目和活動。.
國際足聯“Goal”計劃及“Performance”計劃
三月十八日，國際足聯同意為香港足球總會大樓的第二期翻新工程增加五十萬美元的額外撥款，該項為期六個月的翻新工程將盡快展開；同時，因應國際足聯早前的表現評估而提出的各項倡議，其十萬美元的資助金額亦正商討中，這筆款項將會用於本會採用的新系統，以改善公司營運的效率。
最近活動
香港賽馬會支持的「國際青年邀請賽2013」，已於二月十八日至二十日在蒲崗村道公園足球場圓滿結束，香港十三歲代表隊與新加坡、泰國及廣州隊同場競技，而十八歲代表隊亦有幸與來自新加坡、馬來西亞及印度尼西亞的選手們相互比拼，港隊小將們透過是次比賽獲得難能可貴的經驗。
最近香港二十歲代表隊亦參加了在上海舉行的第「十二屆中華人民共和國運動會足球預賽」。
至於由香港賽馬會支持的「2014亞洲足協14歲以下錦標賽外圍賽」於四月十一日至十七日期間完美落幕。
最新聘請的五人足球經理將會全力備戰於六月南韓仁川舉行的亞洲室內運動會，並已決出初步的男子及女子代表隊的球員名單。
教練培訓課程已順利展開，而青年足球領袖(級別一)及(級別二) 課程報名亦反應熱烈。此外，不同級別的亞洲足協和國聯足聯認可的教練培訓課程亦已在籌辦中。同時，為顧及現時註冊足總教練的需要，本會已成立網上圖書館及舉辦不同主題講座，以輔助他們汲取知識。
本地甲組球隊南華將聯袂三支英超球隊包括曼城、托定咸熱刺和新特蘭，共同參加今年夏天於香港舉行的「巴克萊亞洲錦標賽2013」。香港足球總會、聯賽代表和英國大使館文化教育處就有關十萬美元的“Good Causes”基金用途展開討論，尤其是如何從英超球會教練及球證的專業知識中學習和借鏡。
亞洲足協技術總監在四月八日至十日期間曾到訪香港，並參與了本會全新足球發展計劃及教練培訓課程的審視工作。
本會行政總裁(本人)、香港代表隊署理主教練及技術總監將會繼續與香港中文大學、香港大學及醫學專家討論名為「測試、訓練及關顧」的一站式球員福利系統，目的是透過科學化來發展足球運動員，計劃包括心理測試縱向研究來設定每個年齡段的體能基準、發展個性化的運動訓練、體能和生活計劃，以及球員受傷後的關顧、照料和康復進程。
過去六個月的總結
或許你會了解，我個人喜歡以航海作比喻，在過去半年間一直「在甲板上幹活」，務求保持船身穩定、堵塞漏氣及讓船頭指向正確方向，正如賽場上下的可改進之處。
我們已經擁有一些重要的基礎，舉個例，對於「鳳凰計劃」得以如實執行，員工付出的實在功不可沒。
其次，香港足球總會與球迷、傳媒、政府、足球專責小組、香港賽馬會、贊助商等之間有著千絲萬縷的關係，而正面的回響是有助繼續加強鞏固及達至美滿的成果。在市場推廣上，本會將持之以恆地在組織活動上不遺餘力！
關於「鳳凰計劃」下的大型計劃之進度，尤其是香港足球訓練中心的概念及計劃已經得到廣泛團體的接受與支持，而全新的職業聯賽亦已經步入收成期，但要建基於充足的敗政支援才可以與目前的甲組聯賽有所區分。
大部分的額外撥款由國際足聯、康樂及文化事務署、足球專責小組共同承擔，維持本會的營運開支依舊是重中之重，「鳳凰計劃」的執行需要龐大的財政支出，而民政事務局的撥款亦需與預算配合，因此尋找合作夥伴是本會當務之急，部份更已開始進入傾談贊助合約的細節。
總結而言，上述是回顧過去半年內的一些工作進程，但現階段我們不會自滿，深明要建立穩固的根基，我們必須繼續努力付出所有。
未來數月的主要工作包括為各項目籌劃務實的預算，各項重要計劃（包括全新職業聯賽、香港足球訓練中心）的預備工作、新足球發展計劃及未來五年計劃的推行等。此外，亦在其他日常工作如籌劃發展活動、教練培訓及籌備比賽等以外，繼續一些新同事的招聘、內部制度和程序的檢視以至新的憲章文件的籌備等的工作。
香港足球總會的未來，實有賴每位人士的共同協力、以正能量注入動力，才會取得空前成功！
