If Ange Postecoglou is the master, Tony Popovic is the apprentice. Melbourne Victory and Western Sydney Wanderers play the most attractive football in the A-League.
Postecoglou hailed the atmosphere created by more than 41,000 vociferous fans in Victory’s gripping 2-1 derby day win over Melbourne Heart at Etihad Stadium.
Not for the first time this season, the atmosphere inside the ground seemed to spur both teams on, in what was an utterly compelling 90 minutes of football.
When eagle-eyed referee Strebre Delovski spotted Jonathan Germano manhandling Marcos Flores inside the penalty area – how many fouls is Germano permitted to make per game, by the way? – it was left to another pet Postecoglou project in Mark Milligan to tuck away the penalty.
And while converting spot-kicks is hardly tantamount to ‘sexy football’, it was no less than Victory deserved for their free-flowing, fluid passing game.
That David Williams pulled a fabulous goal back for the Heart says that for all their attractive football, Victory didn’t have it all their own way against their fired-up city rivals.
Indeed, had Heart substitute Golgol Mebrahtu not rattled the crossbar from a stunning free-kick, the outcome might have been different – but then you could say the same of Victory midfielder Billy Celeski rattling the woodwork from distance.
At the very least, what was noticeable from a neutral perspective was just how much time and thought Postecoglou has put into getting his side to play possession football.
Victory were at times mesmerising, as they patiently carved their way through the Heart defence and except for some heroics from Heart goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne late on, they’d have won by a wider margin.
There was no such issue at Hindmarsh Stadium yesterday, as Western Sydney Wanderers thumped an Adelaide United in disarray 4-2.
In what was Michael Valkanis’ debut on the Adelaide touchline following the shock resignation of John Kosmina, it was the visitors who grabbed a somewhat flattering 2-0 half-time lead.
But having established their lead, the Wanderers simply got better in the second half as Aaron Mooy and Shinji Ono dictated play, before the Japanese star limped off with what appeared to be a hip injury.
Wanderers coach Popovic has worked wonders with a squad which many critics claimed was littered with nothing more than journeymen at the start of the season.
The likes of Ante Covic, Michael Beauchamp, Nikolai Topor-Stanley and Mark Bridge might have been around the block but Popovic has got several of his veterans playing the best football of their A-League careers.
And in Jerome Polenz, the impressive Mateo Poljak, workhorse Dino Kresinger and the pacy Youssouf Hersi, Popovic has also coaxed some superb performances out of a group of foreign players most Australian fans had never heard of before.
However it’s Ono and his splendid vision and range of passing which have made the Wanderers the most dangerous dark horse in the race for a top-four position.
Popovic will hope the much-travelled midfielder hasn’t suffered a serious injury because Ono remains a major key in unlocking opposition defences.
It’s the same across town at Sydney FC, where Alessandro Del Piero once again proved his worth to the Sky Blues in their 2-2 draw away at Newcastle.
Not only did the Italian open the scoring with a typically astute piece of finishing, he also set up Blake Powell’s goal with a stupendous no-look pass.
In fact, Del Piero’s passing is second to none and his excellent form – despite an obvious lack of pace – highlights just how valuable a signing he has been for the Sky Blues on the pitch.
There’s a growing sophistication on display in the A-League, so perhaps it’s no surprise to see problem clubs Perth Glory and Wellington Phoenix are the sides struggling to keep up.
Ken
Guest
For me, rivalry and active support are the key ingredients to improved attendance. There is massive potential in developing a genuine rivalry amongst the other HAL clubs in relatively close proximity to CCM, namely, Sydney FC, the Wanderers and Newcastle. Certainly the Sydney derby has and will continue to be a success, but up to now the other matches haven't lived up to the potential. Focusing more energy on these matches is a must. I will be traveling to Gosford to watch the CCM - WSW match and I expect quite a number of WSW supporters including a large RBB contingent will be in attendance. If you're a CCM fan I would suggest you attend that match to see first hand the effect active support can have on a spectator. A pre-season cup amongst the 4 teams could also be a good way of developing a rivalry amongst the teams. The population on the central coast is quite low, so if all else fails lobbying the councils to release more land for residential development might be needed :-)
mahonjt
Guest
There have been plans for such a school here in Victoria for a while now, in addition to the multi-sport Marribyrnong Sports College which has a great football program and a couple of schools with strong football sub-programs. I hope these plans get off the ground. But I know for a fact that the AFL are lobbying coucils and schools very, veryhevily t stop the threat from football.
mahonjt
Guest
Nail - Head!
mahonjt
Guest
Absolutely Mid - exactly what I was thinking when I realised how many there were. The Europhiles will argue that they are not at "top" clubs - but they will not mention that the standard in Europe is rising also. An example of this is how much we all questioned Rogic to Celtic (who I lave by the way). A decade ago that same move would never have been questioned.
mahonjt
Guest
Agree with all that.
mahonjt
Guest
They do both is the point. Possession is nto just the art of holding the ball in your back line and/or around the edge of thebox. The passing in the midfield was trrific at times. I have "bookmarked" a couple of passages onthe iQ box and gone over them. Terriffic possession football.
mahonjt
Guest
Yea, grabbing a player around the waist in the box is a great idea. What on Earth was the referee thinking!!!
mahonjt
Guest
Not our best noght in terms of consistence - but some particularly great passages of play I thought.
Realfootball
Guest
All this is great, Mid. Really impressive. But what is the club doing to get its very ordinary attendances up? The central coast has a wonderful, consistent, successful team, but they're not supporting it the way they should.
Midfielder
Guest
Pink Floyd sang ... Another Brick in the Wall... Well how can I not SCREAM this out ... another long term planing foundation is put in place .... much of this has been organised tho the CEO and a number of former Mariner players coach at the school... The Central Coast is opening a INTERNATIONAL FOOTBALL SCHOOL schools web site http://www.internationalfootballschool.com/ meaning now we have a high school for the best young football talent in Australia ... just so Farrrkkkking good check out the link .... Australia's first private school for footballers is hoping to unearth the next Harry Kewell after kicking-off its inaugural year on Monday. The International Football School (IFS) opened its doors to 75 of the country's aspiring Socceroos and Matildas on New South Wales' Central Coast last week. Unlike other sports schools such as well-known Sydney institution Westfield Sports School, which the likes of Socceroos Kewell and Jason Culina attended alongside a host of current A-League stars, IFS is the first school in the country to focus solely on the world game. From the principal Mr Chapman The Mount Penang campus will cater for up to 350 students from Year 5 to Year 10, each paying $4800 a year. Two hours every morning is dedicated to training as part of the intensive football program which is integrated into the school curriculum with full-time coaches working alongside teachers. Coaches at the school include former Central Coast Mariners Andre Gumprecht and Bradley Porter, and ex-Matildas Julie Dolan and Joey Peters. IFS founder and chief executive Paul Chapman felt there was a desperate need to introduce the school in Australia. "I've come across a lot of parents who are passionate about the game and haven't been able to find an atmosphere where it's taken seriously," Chapman said today. "If you're not interested in football you don't come to my school basically. "One main difference is that they do football every single day where most schools only do two sessions a week." Chapman said he modelled the school on similar ones he'd seen in Europe and while all skill levels are welcome, students are assessed on attitude. "We really try to capture the attitude of the child and their willingness to be coached - that's the key criteria. "Technical ability doesn't matter so much because we're pretty confident once we get them in here they'll improve pretty rapidly." Chapman, a Central Coast resident, said he'd always planned to base the school between Sydney and Newcastle and admitted having the A-League's table-topping Mariners in the region was a huge draw card. While not officially linked to the Mariners, Chapman hopes to build a strong relationship with them and fellow A-League sides and establish his school as a breeding ground for their future recruits. "The goal longer-term is when the kids are getting to Year 11 or 12 we want the A-League clubs to be coming to us and looking at our kids and considering them," he said.
nordster
Guest
The wear and tear on the stadium would be reduced if they brought in removeable seating and standing areas. With mosh like areas in active support they wont be the last seats broken. Instead of getting all narky about it maybe ask why are the seats being broken? Partly there is some trashing going on but likely a fair bit just the fact that seats are incompatible with some types of support. Standing areas could work in the melbourne stadiums especially.
nordster
Guest
Fear for their children who at the same time are prolly the ones having a ball in active support, or itching to get down there when their helicopter parents are looking the other way....oh think of the children...
Realfootbal
Guest
Unfortunately it is true and Heart are working overtime to ID the culprits. Apparently fans are giving them video footage taken on phones. Life bans coming up, I hope.
Realfootbal
Guest
Regardless of what sport you follow, Whateley is an incompetent hack whose should have been moved on years ago. The fact that he is stlll there is symptomatic of how moribund the creaking ABC really is.
Realfootbal
Guest
Yep, agree and I bet we also agree on the teams: any fixture involving Wellington or Perth. I avoid them like the plague, unless they are playing Brisbane. Perth and Wellington never fail to disappoint this season, and for many others before this.
CrossIT
Guest
Hooliganism you say. If you grew up in Britain in the 80's that isn't a word you would throw around so lightly pal. Please, a couple of flares and some naughty words? If that passes as hooliganism for you, then I'm sorry but the world game just isn't for you.
langou
Roar Guru
If 170 seats were destroyed it would make the news regardless of the sport. Realky poor form from the heart fans if this is true
Adrian
Guest
UCL people forget, that some of the top 4 teams , can almost play their 2nd team in some group stage matchers
V bomber
Guest
I have attended close to every MV match since inception, including many away matches. I attend about 20 AFL matches a year, since I was a kid. It is absolutely true that the media blow minuscule events out of proportion to give ALeage a bad name. Makes me angry. Yet, it is also true that violence is much more likely at A League compared to AFL. From my experience AFL fights are much less common and usually occur as a result of an altercation/ incident I.e fan swearing near a kid pissing off a parent resulting in a fight - often fans of the same team. The fights/ tension i have seen at A league stem from groups of young morons who actually look for fights against opposition fans. Therein, lies, a difference.
Adrian
Guest
Fussball NFL has almost "ZERO global appea" to :)