2026 membership and public transport updates

First, yes, my AGM report is coming. But for now, other things.

Memberships
At last, memberships for the 2026 season have been made available. You have to head to the Intix site to purchase them if you're doing so online. 

All membership cards will be digital now, via the Intix app, unless you choose to purchase a physical membership card at the additional cost of $5.

Overall value seems to have gone down again. Both the season ticket and social club memberships now only guarantee access to NPL Victoria matches - so no Dockerty Cup, Australia Cup, or even any Australian Championship matches. For the record, the OFC Pro League, run as a FIFA/OFC event, exists outside our control, and memberships are irrelevant for that.

Social club members at least get a $40 merchandise voucher, and two NPL general admission tickets to bring along a friend (which don't count for the Preston home match), as well as voting rights.

Public transport guide
Boy, did my guide cop some stick on a Reddit thread last year. Fair enough, but remember, it's mostly a guide for me. If other people bump into it, that's their own fault. If they know how to get to a place with a better method, and with more detailed instructions, I'm not going to stand in their way.

To that end I've done the best that I could under the circumstances, given that some of these new and returning venues are just a pain to get to. We also have the Home of the Matildas to deal with again, which bothers some more than others.

One should note that the main change now, apart from the annual arrival and disappearance of venues from this guide, is the implementation of the Metro Tunnel. Sunbury, Cranbourne and Pakenham trains will use it exclusively - they will no longer go through the City Loop. Frankston trains return to the loop for the first time in over a decade. For everyone else, it's as you were, but you if you do plan to use public transport in 2026, you better get your head around these changes.

Season 2026 begins. What, already? Yes.

The most important thing right now about the Oceania Pro League - HOW TO WATCH IT!
In order to watch our matches in the Oceania Pro League, you will need to download the FIFA+ app on to your phone. As far as I'm aware, there will be no other broadcast channels available to Australians to watch this thing. The good news for those who, like me, hate downloading yet another app, is that you can cast the stream to your TV, and even better, it doesn't seem like you need to sign up to anything to watch the streams.

I also had to download the Futbol24 app, which I've otherwise done without the past year or two, because it automatically adjusts kickoff times to my current timezone. 

EDIT:
It appears that the phone app's ability to cast to a TV won't necessarily work, in which case, just download the app direct to your Smart TV.

Several other less important things about the Oceania Pro League
This Oceania Pro League business is strange on many levels, but especially its quietness. The lack of hype, promotion, and social media spectacle in comparison to its utterly gauche opposite (in the form of the Australian Championship) is there for all to see. But rather than spend a lot of time writing about what to expect from this Pro League business, I was invited by a podcaster to give a South fan's perspective on the matter. I thought it came across OK, but as always, it is just one South fan's point of view, not the view of all South fans.

The first half of the podcast begins with South Melbourne general manager Strati Xynas explaining how South fits into this new league - including some details about the regional sporting diplomatic angle - as well as hinting towards the broader strategic direction the club is looking to take. It's actually rather encouraging to see one of our people talking openly and at some length, and without too much PR guff, about what the club's strategic direction actually is.

As for my contribution in the second half of the episode, it's the usual thoughtful, well-considered, and utterly lacking in personal grandstanding content that you've become accustomed to over the years, both on here and in person. 

But one of my brothers said I came across as smug! Can you believe such a thing? Me? Smug!

Anyway, you can watch this podcast here or Spotify or on Apple podcasts.