Yo Mofos
Not that I been spending far too much time Stateside or anything or that all the Nexoids now refer to each other as 'duuuuuuude' or 'bro'.........but....
We had to commit to play the 4 EXLs and we also had to make provision for Orlando XBall final (if we qualify in the top 4).
We do this for two reasons, firstly and most importantly, it gives Nexus an XBall franchise option at the end of the year and with TV having been promised for start 2005 season, it was thought the considerable time and money investment we had to do was worth it.
The top four positioning for this year then qualified those teams for a Stateside tournament against the top four NXL teams and was going to be televised as the first production by Dick Clark.
The people Stateside are now unable to confirm this is the case and with the prospect of some teams flying all that way and coming home after one game, this carrot has lost some of its attraction.
I could handle all this if the thing was gonna be on the box as told to me but this isn't now the case.
On top of that, we had to play enough NPPLs and or NPPL ranking tourneys in Europe to qualify for the top 17 NPPL pro status.
At the end of this year, the NPPL guys are closing down the opportunities for pro teams to be eligible for their pro bracket and with their TV deals looking more and more substantial, it is something that any aspiring, serious pro team has to aim for.
This meant we had to play a minimum of three Stateside NPPLs and at least two European ranking tourneys to qualify.
This is a total of 10 frikkin tournaments costing thousands for each one and on top of that, we gotta train and supposedly have home lives.
Bottom line is now; top four positioning means little, the main goal of qualifying for a XBall franchise will still be there come end of season even if you don't get in top four.
There is no hard and fast statement forthcoming from anywhere regarding the fate of Euro teams and what they will be aiming towards.
I mean, why should I direct tens of thousands of pounds of team’s resources (training XBall and playing of XBall tourneys) if there is no TV at the end of it, it makes no sense to me.
I can get bragging rights playing 7-Man if that's what I want for a lot less expenditure.
For Nexus at least, (I’m sure others in the EXL will or should feel the same) it feels as though this season's goals have been diminished and left us out of pocket and out of Xball goals.
The NPPL looms large on most top Euro team's agenda right now, how they negotiate this requirement remains to be seen.
I been talking to Laurent and Sergey and I think we will all tread water for the time being but from my own personal point of view, I don't really need to see many more negative signs before I have a serious re-think about what to do and where to direct team's resources.
XBall is without doubt the most exciting format to play and more importantly spectate, I do believe it is the future for us (or something very much like it).
Pure Promotions (NPPL) leads the way in promoting our sport to the masses, this situation cries out for reconciliation but I doubt this will happen unless some sacrificial lambs are led to the altar but in the meantime, us Euros are gonna blow some serious dosh in trying to keep one foot in each camp/.
As team owner and coach, I would much prefer one focal point for the team