Brisbane Roar may just be the greatest team to grace the A-League. They play good football like many teams, they play flowing and entertaining football like many teams, but unlike many of those teams, Brisbane get results.
Despite the results, many question the significance of Roar’s historic run and their true credentials as a champion side. It’s time these questions were answered once and for all and time to try to better understand the Roar.
Before the Roar’s current run of play can be assessed, it must be understood how Brisbane turned their fortunes around. That is quite simple, Ange Postecoglou.
Postecoglou was initially criticised for his brutal reworking of the Roar’s list, cutting players like Liam Reddy, Craig Moore and Charlie Miller in favour of younger, untested players.
He famously challenged his early critics to judge him in a year and successfully proved them wrong. However, it wasn’t all smooth sailing. Postecoglou initially struggled to get results with the Roar finishing ninth out of 10.
However, as it is widely known, things began to work for the Roar, drawing with Adelaide in Brisbane to kick start their incredible run of form.
The run wasn’t without fault though. Brisbane have continually struggled against Melbourne Victory and the recent 2-2 draw in Melbourne may have shown other A-League teams the way to stop Brisbane.
This was exemplified a mere week later where Brisbane failed to defeat Wellington at home.
Extremely defensive football prevented the Roar from penetrating the Wellington defense as they have in the past and the Nix used quick, counter-attacking play to expose the Roar’s high defensive line.
But could this signal an end to the Roar’s incredible run? Most likely not.
The truth is Brisbane have been able to adapt to changes in opposing play and yet stay true to their original game plan.
Last year’s grand final saw the Roar down by two goals with 15 minutes to go. Did they play the long ball? Did they rush the play? Did they even cross? No.
The Roar stayed true to their game plan and found a way back into the game with passing football. Brisbane don’t fall to pressure and they can come back from the most bleak situations.
A number of factors have facilitated the Roar’s run. The ability of Brisbane to adapt has been a key part to its success.
On the field, it has made all the right moves and won praise off the field, even from opposing supporters!
However, just as important is the players’ incredible drive. From nothing, many have found the willingness to keep going time and time again in the search for respect and glory.
Postecoglou has created an environment where players feel professional and passionate, two key elements of football that when brought together, produce something special
This leads to the issue at hand. Will Brisbane beat the 70-year old record? Will the run ever end?
At the end of the day, the Roar may not care about the record. Success in football is measured in silverware, not form and the Roar understand that.
This focus on the end result, the ultimate goal, is something commentators of late, have lost. It is not enough to play things out, a game at a time, because football is a funny sport and anything can happen and regardless of the teams on the pitch, both have a chance before the whistle blows.
This is what makes the Roars run so awesome. Despite the competition and nature of football, Brisbane have won. They remain undefeated even after facing games they should have lost.
Newcastle are unlikely to trouble the Roar (especially after last week’s second half performance in Melbourne) and even if they do, the Roar will surely rebound better than ever.
However, one cannot help but wonder when the Roar’s run will come to an end.
TheBeautifulGame
Roar Pro
Exactly right Rusty. Brisbane Roar have done a lot for the league, much of which goes unnoticed and overshadowed by the team's run of form. Hopefully teams in the A-League begin thinking about the long term and getting the best out of the players they have at their disposal.
Rusty0256
Guest
Hey, if it's Victory, I'll even send you one!
Hamish Alcorn
Guest
Spot on Mr Rusty. I'm only a casual observer of teams apart from the Roar, but from what people are saying it appears that the Heart are on that track as well. If I could have my choice I would like the Heart to be the team to break the Roar's run. Whatever team it is, I have promised the universe that I will buy that team's scarf.
Rusty0256
Guest
What is scary about the Roar is that they appear not to be focused on the record. Of course they will see it as an achievement, and rightly so. However Ange's philosophy is much more about maintaining and improving the way they play so the positive results keep on happening. If they happen to lose in Newcastle this afternoon you get the impression that the first thing Ange will ask of his players is "well, what did we learn".. I certainly dont see Brisbane falling into a hole once the run finishes. I get the sense that Postecoglou is drumming into every player that there is a much bigger picture to focus on and that is building a football dynasty at Brisbane. In such a scenario draws and even the occasional loss simply become learning exercises. It appears the the underlying philosophy is one of creating excellence in every area of the club and positive results then occurring more as a bi-product of that philosophy. This is a significant paradigm shift from that which has existed pretty much from day 1 of the A-League where clubs simply buy players and hire coaches to try and win games and hopefully a championship. The good news is that gradually we are seeing coaches (GVE at Newcastle for one) trying to create paradigm shifts at their own clubs. And no, I don't believe we will end up with Roar plus 9 other Roar clones but what I hope we will see is a league where clubs begin to recognize the value of building from the ground up rather than from the top down (buying a star player or two, hiring a decent coach and hope it all falls into place). And that in itself has got to be a good thing for the future of the A-League.
Hamish Alcorn
Guest
Your distinction from teams who are trying to win one game at a time is important. Sometimes I think Brisbane Roar are the only team not asking each week, "How can we win this game?" Instead they constantly work on the question, "How do we play winning football?" And hence they improve. Every game is practice for the future. Even the Grand Final, which you referred to (and it could have so easily been lost), has become in retrospect a learning experience for the team. Every game they practice the football that they will take into the ACL and (hopefully) beyond. That is why they are not merely 'on a good run'.
j binnie
Guest
TBG -A strange article re-cyling oft reported aspect of Roar' success but "gilded" by many little "inputs" that need examination. Give Ange credit.He did clear out the old brigade but replacing them with,young, untested,players????. Like -Theoklites(back from a European sojourn),Paartlu (back from a European sojourn) Smith(previous experience in England &Australia.) Franjic,Steffanuto,Mackay,Van Dyk,Murdocca,Henrique,&De Vere(all fixtures when Ange arrived),not a "young untried" player in sight. Now if referring to Oar,Zullo,Nichols,&Kruse,they are all products of a system in place before Ange came to the club. Roar's undoubted success under AP?. From outside it appears the man is very well versed in modern management techniques,is certainly no fool in the tactical stakes,more than aptly looking at,analyzing. and installing his beliefs into a group of players he selects to put his ideas into practice.If one believes this to be the real reason for that success is not the inability of others in the HAL league to see what is happening at Roar,and after 18 months refusing to doing something about it not a more exact cause of Roar's great run??jb