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It was the week everyone was waiting for: an A-League coach was sacked – but it wasn’t Mehmet Durakovic – and Brisbane played the Mariners, but didn’t win. A very interesting week in the A-League, and as usual there was a lot to talk about.
Sydney a championship threat
It’s not easy traveling down to Newcastle for any A-League team. With a recent surge in Novocastrian support and improved home form, Members Equity Stadium has become a bit of a fortress for the Jets. However, it appears Sydney were up to the challenge, defeating the Jets 2-1.
After the Jekyll and Hyde performances against Brisbane and Gold Coast, the Newcastle result would have come as a relief for Sky Blues fans and exemplified a sort of steadying form for Sydney – not as good as in the Brisbane game but better than the Gold Coast game.
Should Sydney continue to build on this result and play a consistent brand of winning football, the Sky Blues could easily shoot up the ladder with two home games to come against Adelaide and Heart.
Brisbane stumbles as the Mariners reign supreme
Brisbane versus Central Coast was always going to be a highly anticipated game, but following Brisbane’s recent slump in form the fixture was picked to be the one that turned their season around. It was an opportunity to silence their critics and shake off any doubt.
For the Central Coast, it was a chance to score while Brisbane were down, grab top spot and truly establish themselves as the A-League front-runner. When the time came, the Mariners stepped up, defeating the Roar 2-1 in front of Brisbane’s smallest crowd of the season.
With the Brisbane bandwagon getting smaller with a more worrying four-game losing streak, something needs to change at Brisbane, and this may be the imminent return of Thomas Broich.
The Mariners, on the other hand, have a shot at first position on the A-League table and their coach, Graham Arnold, has proven once again to possess the tactical genius to beat any team in the league.
The Mariners, unlike the Roar, show the ability to adapt and with a host of young, developing players including Mustafa Amini, Bernie Ibini-Isei and Rostyn Griffiths, and it is very possible that we are yet to see the Gosford based team hit their full potential.
Victory find form
After months of poor form and poor results, Melbourne Victory has begun to show signs of brilliance. All the hype and potential finally began to reveal itself in Melbourne’s clash with Wellington Phoenix, as the Victory cruised to a 3-1 win.
The Victory dominated from the start, scoring three goals in the first 25 minutes and creating a host of chances throughout the match. Should the Victory have hit a few on target, they could have easily won by five or six goals.
However, it is important to understand that the game was Wellington’s third in a week and the team was missing primary playmaker Paul Ifill. To put it simply, Victory was always going to win the game. That said, Melbourne were in hot form and played fantastic football. The first half was particularly impressive and displayed the short sharp passing Durakovic has tried to implement, along with a handful of timed long balls showing Muscat’s influence.
Melbourne showed patience and skill and have begun to finally hit form, and at the right time to! Next week’s Melbourne derby is shaping up to be a cracker!
Adelaide seeing red?
Is John Kosmina the right man for the job at Adelaide United?
Adelaide started the season with a great weight on their shoulders. With a herd of new players and impressive pre-season results, the Reds were the favourites for the A-League title. However, after months of poor results and poor football it was only a matter of time before heads began to roll.
Following Adelaide’s embarrassing 3-0 defeat to Gold Coast at Hindmarsh, the board had obviously had enough. Coolen was relegated to youth coach and ex-coach John Kosmina was appointed to turn the Reds’ season around.
Adelaide are now just one point from the bottom and five points from a finals position. The team desperately needs points and quick, but is John Kosmina the right man for the job?
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