By Liam FitzGibbon
November 23rd 2009 @ 4:58am
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Jets finals ambitions melt in the heat
Newcastle coach Branko Culina was left frustrated as his side’s finals ambitions began to melt with a 1-0 loss to Wellington in brutal heat at EnergyAustralia Stadium on Sunday.
Coming off a 2-0 win over North Queensland that had renewed Culina’s hopes of his ninth-placed side reaching the finals, the Jets failed to back it up [...]
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![It’s been a week of extremes for the A-League, from the invisibility of a week off to the thrilling finals matches in Wellington and Sydney.
The week just past has been a fascinating microcosm of how the promising developments for the wider Australian football community are sometimes the same factors that impede the growth of the [...] Adrian Musolino: The Catch-22s that continue to impede the A-League](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/five-reasons-a-league-th.jpg)
![UEFA ban Eduardo for two matches for diving, Chelsea are blockaded by FIFA from making any signings until 2011 after illegally poaching Gael Kakuta, and now Manchester United will “appeal for ideas (from fans) as to how to curb (the vile chant directed at Arsene Wenger during the last round of Premier League action).”
Maybe it’s [...] Davidde Corran: Which football chants are acceptable?](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/which-chants-acceptable-th.jpg)
![When Football Federation Australia chairman Frank Lowy announced that Australia were hoping to both host and win the 2018 FIFA World Cup you could almost hear the sniggers echoing around the globe.
The Socceroos squad that made such great inroads in Germany 2006 might have been filled with players of European quality like Viduka, Kewell and [...] Davidde Corran: Socceroos 2018 aspirations to begin in Egypt](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/socceroos-2018-egypt-blatter-lowy-th.jpg)
![To catch the atmosphere before the opening ball of the 2009 Ashes series, I turned to the Fox Sports coverage. The studio team of Mark Waugh and Damien Fleming were incisive and fluent.
Waugh made the point that he didn’t rate Nathan Hauritiz as a spinner, but as he was in the squad, he had [...] Spiro Zavos: The best way to watch The Ashes is on radio](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/best-way-watch-ashes-simon-kaitch-th.jpg)
![After a comprehensive 3-0 rout of Ireland in their recent friendly in Limerick, the Socceroos will be out to extend their winning streak when they take on Korea Republic in Seoul.
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![The Brisbane Lions’ decision to remove the Fitzroy lion from its home and away jumpers – and replace it with the much-criticized “Paddle Pop lion” – is remarkable considering just how desperate some clubs are to have a secondary supporter base in another part of the country.
Hawthorn’s relationship with Tasmania has seen a number of [...] Michael DiFabrizio: Brisbane’s jumper stance makes no sense](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/fevola-lions-th.jpg)
![There have been some exceptionally good pieces written over the last few days from members of the football media. Even more exciting is that they’ve all come from the next generation of local football journalists.
Vitor Sobral and Tony Tannous have both written great analysis of the Socceroos friendly with the Netherlands.
Here at The [...] Davidde Corran: Crowds aren’t just FFA’s responsibility](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/forget-second-division-create-ffa-cup-th.jpg)
![When Graham Arnold met journalists for the first time as Central Coast Mariners coach this week, he was a cocksure picture of confidence and enthusiasm.
Some football followers might remember a time not so long ago when Arnold wasn’t so accommodating with the press.
But that time is past. Arnold this week began preparations to take over [...] Paddy Higgs: Graham Arnold deserves to be given a chance](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/graham-arnold-th.jpg)
![Let’s make one thing clear. Robbie Deans knows rugby. 10 years of provincial rugby and five test matches proves he is capable of understanding the game at the highest level. He can coach – that surely isn’t in dispute.
He led the Crusaders to five Super 12/14 championships. No other team has even won the [...] David Wiseman: It’s time to go Wallabies](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/its-time-to-go-wallabies-th.jpg)
![Are the Australian selectors expressing the growing concerns of the greater national cricket punditry by giving Brad Haddin a match in charge of the international team?
Haddin had shown for a number of years at New South Wales that he had the tactical and leadership nous to be a skipper at the elite level. In [...] Geoff Lawson: ACB have had enough of blonde tips and sports cars](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/why-clarke-haddin-th.jpg)
![There are a lot of easy targets in the Sonny Bill Williams saga: the headstrong runaway who’s done the dirty on his mates, the conniving managers, and the aloof CEO hypocritically demanding support from an enemy that has been savagely plundered by his predecessors for over a hundred years.
All of them make great caricatures for [...] Garth Hamilton: David Gallop, it’s time to merge the codes](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/david-gallop-th.jpg)



