Melbourne Victory has a discipline problem

 
Slippery Jim Roar Rookie

By Slippery Jim, 21 Oct 2008 Slippery Jim is a Roar Rookie

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Sydney FC and Melbourne Victory in action last month in Sydney. (AAP Image/Jason McCawley)

When most A-League fans think of discipline problems, they may cite John Kosmina’s touchline antics and bitter post match remarks about officials fom seasons past. Yet this season, the coach most troubled by discipline problems is the polar opposite of the outspoken Kozzie — it’s Ernie Merrick, the quiet, poker faced Scot who is coach of Melbourne Victory.

Disgracefully, in the last five matches, from rounds four to eight of the A-League, Melbourne Victory players have committed five offences that have resulted in a flurry of red cards and suspensions.

It all started in round four of the A-League on September 12th, in which Fabiano spat at an opposing player, Cornthwaite, and was given a straight red card in the 29th minute.

Although Melbourne appealed on the grounds of what they called “obvious error (red card),” the sending off was found to be the correct decision and Fabiano handed a multiple match ban.

Next to err was the Victory keeper, Theoklitos, who was found guilty of deliberate “violent conduct (stamping)” in a goal-mouth incident on September 20th.

Melbourne Victory this time decided not to appeal the sending off.

On September 28th the red card count mounted further when Victory playmaker Hernandez was handed a yellow card for a foul on Matthew McKay and then a second yellow for diving in an attacking move, resulting in a sending off.

The latest red card was on October 18th, this weekend gone, in which Archie Thompson was given his marching orders for apparently calling the referee a “F*****g C***t.”

Although Thompson has apologised to his captain and his coach, given the FFA’s stance on dissent this season, it is possible he will be given a two-match ban and hopes of a call up for Thompson for the World Cup Qualifier against Bahrain could also be jeopardized.

Ernie Merrick has stated that, “the four red cards [this season] have hurt us. There’s no excuse and it put a lot of pressure on our team. It’s always frustrating. We have got the lowest yellow card count, but four red cards is not good enough and we will pay the price for that.”

While it seems indisputable to any neutral that four red cards in five games constitutes a serious disciplinary problem at Melbourne, Merrick still seems to refuse to acknowledge there is any problem, let alone try to identify the cause of it.

Instead he say, “now and then everyone stuffs up, but I think all of them (except Theoklitos) were fairly harsh (red cards). We’ve addressed it, but it’s not like any of the players are repeat offenders or we’re repeatedly breaking the rules.”

If Ernie’s head in the sand approach is to be taken at literally, then it seems that spitting in the face of other players, diving, and abuse of referees are all par for the course in Merrick’s book.

This kind of attitude coming from the coach shows that the disciplinary problems at the club may come, not just from the players committing these acts, but from Merrick and his blasé approach to serious foul play, the kind of dirty tactics and violent disgraceful actions that all of us would like to see weeded out of the game for good.

Something needs to be done by the club to address the problem. And soon.

Melbourne hard man Kevin Muscat declared after the Victory’s last match, “We’ve got a massive game to look forward to next week now … and you’ll see a different Melbourne Victory.”

For the sake of the A-League, we hope so Kevin.

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