AUSTRALIAN football chief David Gallop couldn’t guarantee the A-League season would kick off on time, amid the standoff over the players’ new Collective Bargaining Agreement.

The uncertainty heading into season 11 is further underlined with Gallop revealing that they were still hopeful of a rival Free-to-Air network pinching the live Friday night coverage from SBS.

It’s understood that Football Federation Australia is talking with two networks, including Channel 9, about televising Friday night games, just three weeks before kick-off.

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On Wednesday, FFA and the players’ union, the PFA, will continue negotiations to resolve the unsigned CBA agreement, which underpins the contracts of A-League players, Socceroos and Matildas.

While confident a deal would be struck, a defiant Gallop slammed the PFA’s tactics and couldn’t guarantee an ‘uninterrupted’ October 8 A-League start.

“I’m cautiously optimistic that our fans wouldn’t be let down like that,’’ Gallop said.

“The players’ association would recognise how fans would regard actual games not going ahead in the A-League.

“So far the disruption in the male game seems to be based around disrupting away from the pitch. Having said that nothing’s guaranteed and we’ve been surprised at some of the things that have happened, including up to 12 Matildas turning up in the (FFA) unannounced with their suitcases last week.

“I’m very frustrated with the way the players’ association has dealt with this issue and categorised things as a salary cap freeze because it’s absolute nonsense.

media_camera David Gallop is growing increasingly frustrated with the PFA’s stubborness. Picture: Brett Costello

“We’re lifting the salary cap floor (85 to 90 per cent), and every dollar you spend above the floor is a discretionary dollar, so when you hear them talk about flexibilities, payments that are not compulsory, it’s nonsense.

“NRL clubs would laugh you out of town if you said that an allowance wasn’t a lift in the salary cap. They’re a pure lift, they mean more money going out of clubs’ bank accounts and into players’ accounts.

“Salary caps are a cap on payments ($2.55m), but there are always allowances above, so our clubs are paying on average $3.9m in player payments, it’s just that the cap captures the top 23.’’

On a day that ABC announced that it would simulcast W-League games with Fox Sports this season, Gallop revealed that Friday night FTA coverage was still up in the air.

The current TV deal has two years to run but talks continue about another FTA network would replace SBS for the duration of the current deal.

“That’s still got potential (to change). It’s reasonably well documented that neither us nor SBS are totally committed to that arrangement,’’ he said.

“We’ll certainly make it work if we have to, but there are still some talks going on in relation to Friday nights.’’