IF the traffic’s not bad, it’s only a short drive from Olympic Park to Parramatta — just 11km separating the Wanderers’ temporary home from their original one while it’s rebuilt.

But on the day of the second derby of the season, it must feel like the club has moved light years away — not just from its home of the past four seasons but also the success that was built there.

It’s a situation made even more painful by watching their opponents on Saturday, Sydney FC, conquer all before them to be so far ahead at the top of the league.

Just a few months ago at the end of last season it was Western Sydney chasing the glory, and theirs is a case that makes me more certain than ever that we need a radical overhaul of the A-League.

A-League salary cap punishes success, writes Mark Bosnich. Source: Supplied

In short, it’s time for the salary cap to go, and for free-market economics to hold away in Australia’s football competition. Let me explain why it is that the Wanderers are sitting outside the top six, and why scrapping the cap would stop them and others like Adelaide from being penalised for being strong. It’s very simple.

Eighteen months ago Tony Popovic ripped up his squad and started again, just as he seems to do every year. But in that case he brought in players who he needed to play a new brand of football, and they were highly successful in that enterprise.

But the problems for teams that do well here come months down the line, when successful players in successful teams seek rewards for their achievements. Popovic made offers to the stylish Spanish duo Alberto and Andreu at the end of last season that were limited by how much space he had in the cap. Both players elected to leave in search of better deals elsewhere.

Then cashed up Asian leagues came calling for some of the club’s best servants in Mark Bridge and Nikolai Topor-Stanley, offering them deals far in excess of what they can earn here. Another two bricks were ripped from the citadel.

The same thing happened to Adelaide United, where the hangovers from the Grand Final party had barely abated in May before suitors came calling for their best players.

Other A-League teams cherrypicked some, while European and Asian clubs stole others — all of them able to pay the market rate.

Wanderers coach Tony Popovic applauds his team from the sidelines. Source: Getty Images

In essence, we’re penalising success. Teams in the A-League don’t even get prize money, and then — to add insult to injury — the competition’s rules make it nigh-on impossible to keep their squads together when they do well.

It’s true we have a new TV deal, thanks to Fox Sports, with $350m to be invested over the next six years and more (hopefully) to come from a free to air station.

But while some of that will feed into the cap, clubs have already made clear they want a large proportion for themselves to pay for their day to day business.

Only Australia and America have a salary cap, and it’s not appropriate here any more. The argument was always that it creates a level playing field and prevents the rich clubs dominating.

Well guess what — we already have an equalisation device by virtue of the fact that six of our ten teams get into the finals.

What the cap does is penalise success on so many levels, especially when coupled with the ban on transfer fees between A-League clubs. In their rush to make sure ours was a balanced competition, its architects have ended up stifling innovation.

The Wanderers need to reboot their campaign on Saturday night. Source: Getty Images

REBOOT NEEDED

While it’s true that the salary cap is a major reason for where Western Sydney are, the brutal truth is that football demands success — especially at a club like the Wanderers that has become accustomed to winning ways.

From the beginning I’ve been a great champion of Paul Lederer, a brilliant chairman and passionately engaged with his club. He’s a demanding owner, as he should be.

But I’m from western Sydney, and there are rumblings among the supporters — about the temporary new home, the results, the coaching staff. In the end it’s the coach who carries responsibility for the results, whatever the circumstances.

That’s why Western Sydney, and Tony Popovic, really need a win in the derby on Saturday. With half the season to go, there’ll be no better opportunity to reboot their campaign.