The football season has come to an end, and as announced, I will not be contesting the election for the post of president of Sliema Wanderers. This after a successful run of 12 and a half years, where the achievement of having and leaving SWFC as the most successful club in Malta was attained.

This was due to the enormous support I received over the years from the players themselves, but the backbone of this success was due to the various committee members, officials, supporters and sponsors who gave their bit. Football at this level is a collective game. I am proud to have served this club for so long, and to have led it to so much success. It will take a very long time for any local club to surpass Sliema in the total amount of trophies won.

The span of years had also its losses. The club placed second on numerous occasions, probably cashing in on more runner-up medals than winner medals. This is a proof that the club passed through a great time. No matter what any Tom, Dick or Eddie says, success was there.

Criticism was there too. However we were always deemed to have the best elements in our squad. When our youths were successful, and not only promising, they slotted into the squad, some making it to the top, others rising up to under 21 level, then stopping. Some players were given the chance to ply their trade abroad, and on a number of occasions, Sliema gave the green light to our players to play in Hungary, Cyprus, Germany and wherever when players got his chance. We did this out of respect for the youths’ future, giving them a chance while depriving ourselves of that talent.

I am proud that we gave youngsters their chance. That is what genuine football, sportsmanship and fair play is all about. Money is secondary to people’s lives and future. Football in Malta is all about giving your time, and money, to a thankless hobby. Many give up their time and their money to be involved in local football. It is a hell of sacrifice that hardly anybody appreciates. The few, in Malta, get paid.

The receipts from Maltese football have become a pittance, and the cheque we recently received from the MFA is a mockery to local intelligence on football. Such are the induced expenses on the clubs that, in all probability, most of Maltese clubs’ share in gate money is a loss, and they are in the red with the association. So, you spend time, you spend your money, you sacrifice yourself, and your association demands more money on any small pretext – fines, seat damage and a long list of expenses.

All this stifles the improvement of local football. In my 12 years, Maltese football has not improved one iota. We rejoice in the Uefa competitions when we get a good result and celebrate when we manage to pass the preliminary round as if its a World Cup win. We should have been doing this on a regular basis, and compare ourselves to the Cyprus, to Turkey and others who we used to beat regularly some years back, but today left us so much behind. We are one of the worst performers in international terms, bar the occasional win that we welcome.

The teams that visit us are not of a good spectator value, as today a local team draws a mediocre opposition. You must pass two rounds to start drawing bigger names, that make people go to the stadium. And why shouldn’t we be like abroad, where having a match ticket or a season cardholder is something you look forward to?

No matter what we say, the format that all the world uses is surely better than ours. And recognition to people’s efforts must be there. The fewer the presidents willing to part with their money, the lesser the spectacle. Future presidents, sponsors and people who in one way or another fork out time and money should be respected. They are, after all, employing the various people that cash in on local football.

I did enjoy the whole of my 12 years, and made numerous friends, few foes, some who could not swallow success, but on the whole the football family is great. The love to the game cannot finish in one flash, and although I will not be taking up any other post in any other local club, the passion of the nicest game in the world is still there.

Robert Arrigo is a Nationalist MP