With all due respect to the Western Bulldogs (a footy team I have supported for the past 18 years) and Fremantle, the Dogs v Dockers clash is one of the more nondescript on the calendar. The Dogs do not have the largest following in Victoria, while Freo does not exactly pull a vast number of travelling fans either. So why not shift the game that day to Geelong's Simonds Stadium — which, it is understood, is willing to host the match — and allow 55,000-odd Victorian soccer fans to cram into Etihad and savour a grand final that, if it came to pass, would surely be one of the more memorable in the competition's 10-year history? Talks are taking place for such a contingency, but, six weeks out from the conclusion of the 2014-15 A-League season no agreement has been reached. Discussions over financial compensation for the AFL are still a sticking point, it is believed. The FFA's concerns over an appropriate venue to host an A-League championship decider in Melbourne are very real although the possibility remains, as yet, hypothetical. While the chances of Victory facing City in a title decider are slim — Victory are the $3.50 favourites for the championship with Sportsbet, City are priced at $11 to win it — they are not impossible either.

Victory play Wellington in New Zealand on Sunday. A win there would put them top of the table and make them an even shorter favourite to take the Premiership Plate and put them in pole position to host the grand final irrespective of what City do. Given that if they make it into the finals they are likely to finish sixth (or perhaps fifth if Perth Glory end up with a significant points deduction if they are convicted of salary cap breaches) City could not host the play-off however well they fared in the finals race. Why, you might ask, would the FFA not play the grand final at AAMI Park if Victory eventually qualify to host it by topping the table and winning their semi-final? It's a purpose-built rectangular stadium, designed specifically for soccer and the rugby codes. It is Victory's home and consistently generates a tremendous atmosphere. All good points and from a sporting point of view — giving the right team the chance to host the grand final — there is a strong case for AAMI.

But for the FFA the grand final is a showpiece game. Historically it has always pulled big crowds, selling out the 52,500 Suncorp when Brisbane Roar have hosted several recent championship deciders. It is the code's marquee occasion, and for the FFA a major revenue source. It is on the way to becoming one of the big days on the sporting landscape - and will generate even more traction when the game's governing body fix it for the same date every year, as it plans to. The reality is that AAMI Park's capacity of about 30,000 is simply not sufficient for a match of the grand final's magnitude. What's all that to do with the AFL you night ask? Certainly dyed-in-the-wool footy fans and the game's administrators who see the rise of soccer as a major threat will not feel as if they owe a rival code any favours. They will argue that they are entitled to use Etihad Stadium as they please. They are its major tenants and should be entitled to run their competition as they see fit. All true, all valid. But at what cost? It won't matter to the traditionalists and one-eyed in the footy community, but if Victory qualify to host a grand final in their home city and are forced to move it interstate then there will be a significant PR and reputational impact on the AFL.

A large number of Victory's 27,000-odd members are also footy fans and members at an AFL club, not to mention the casual supporters who buy tickets on the day and also go along to the AFL in winter. How many of them are likely to continue their footy affiliation if they are forced to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars travelling interstate to watch a grand final they should be seeing in their home town? Imagine if Victory qualified to host the match against Sydney, Wellington or Adelaide and the game had to be shifted to Homebush, Westpac Stadium or the Adelaide Oval, a move that gave the opposition a huge advantage and ultimately proved crucial in determining the result. All hypothetical at this stage, of course. But it could become a reality. If it does there will be plenty of explaining to do.