ONE look at the Herald Women's Premier League first grade ladder in 2019 will tell you one thing - Mid North Coast are struggling.
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But perhaps things aren't quite so bad.
Football Mid North Coast technical director Larry Budgen admits there are two main reasons for their current predicament.
Firstly, a handful of their 2017 playing squad have now joined Newcastle opposition for their 2019 campaigns.
That 2017 side progressed to the semi-finals after winning six matches from 18.
A lack of players then meant they couldn't field a side in the 2018 competition.
This year, Shannon Day signed with Warners Bay, while Emmeline Pepper, Imogene Tomasone and Sophie Jones linked with New Lambton.
Courtney Anderson signed a contract with Mid North Coast before she left the area and then joined Merewether.
One of the main reasons is those clubs can provide financial incentives for their players that Mid North Coast simply can't compete with.
Wealthy clubs such as New Lambton can now afford to offer their players up to 10 times the amount Mid North Coast can provide.
As a result, 2019 is the first year where players representing the region at WPL first grade level have been paid to play.
But there is still a long way to go.
Budgen hopes that carrot can potentially lure those Mid North Coast players back to the region in coming years.
While financial incentives encourage players to sign with rival clubs, Budgen admitted Mid North Coast's lack of consistently successful results on the field had also played a major part.
"There is a stigma (around Mid North Coast) for the last three or four years that we're always going to lose," he said.
"So how we tried to change that is by offering contracts."
But it will take some time to come to fruition.
The first piece in fixing that problem could be the potential signing of former Adamstown Rosebuds midfielder Olivia Trinka.
"She is our sports trainer for the NPL so we're trying to get her to play and she's a former first grader," Budgen said.
"As soon as you get beyond under-17s, that's when there's trouble because girls move from the area for work or uni.
"Our only hope here is the uni and we're starting to see that."
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