Who should replace Holger?

I think it's too early to sack Osiek.....even if we do lose this game, unless the players get unsettled- I think appointing an international coach with 2 games to go is extremely risky. Better if Holger (who is familier with the players) stays on until the end of the qualifiers. Would be opening to replacing him after the qualifiers, but I don't think Ange is good enough (simply because victory havent been that sucessful). I think it wouldnt be wise to give it to poppa, only because WSW is developing and the FFA--DO NOT-- want that to fail. I think Arnold would be a reasonably good choice, considering the work he does given his budget.

Thank you JB for your reply. For what it is worth, I appreciate you putting down your experiences in black-and-white from a time I was barely alive for. Amazing as always to see again history repeating itself somewhat. You're not writing a book on this by any chance? You should. Anyway, my own recent experience a few years ago on being trained as a coach when the curriculum as it is was very new (and the training itself has been updated again at least once since then in a restructure) was done by the state federation community manager, still playing then and now. Not sure if he was trained himself from another or referencing the instructor manual from FFA. Recently there has been more grassroots and Junior licensing clinics run around various regions, subsidised by the club or region (had to chase this myself years before). More could be done here? While all parents who volunteer to be coaches at the club are encouraged to at least do the 3hr grassroots course if they have no football experience, it is not compulsory. A change needed there perhaps to make it compulsory? One of many small changes that add up to something noticeable in the near future? I don't know who is running these courses at present. What always struck me when in discussion at local club meetings was, as you aluded to if I am correct in interpreting the last part of your reply, was the dissemination of information from FFA, to state, to local fed, to region, to community club - basically all left up to the local club to implement as best they could, after some adjustment decreed by the region, after the local fed had done the same perhaps... ...which not for the first time left me wondering if the football structure is over governed. Too many layers to spend on too many people to get down to the club at the bottom of the pyramid where it all begins for the future Socceroo or Matilda.

I have used two criteria: i) Out of work, and not about to walk into a new job ii) Good enough to take us to the Round of 16 in Brasil: Roberto Mancini (ITA, recently of Manchester City) Jupp Heynckes (DEU, about to finish up at Bayern Munch) Roberto Di Matteo (ITA, recently of Chelsea) Gérard Houllier (FRA, recently of Aston Villa). Two things - Does he have health considerations? He went close to becoming Socceroo boss in 2005.

The Perth Vidosic?

j binnie Yes I remember Eric Worthington & Rothmans well ,not from your inside perspective,but as a fan looking for signs of the game in Australia improving. Seems that a lot of my memory looking back(& confirmed by yourself) is that the ASF should have been called " Adjusting Soccer Fiddlers. Alright to fiddle if you understood what your fiddling with ,but my general impression of Sir Arthur George was one of being a lawyer who just happened to take the job,because there was nobody better or interested for that matter. You may have deeper inside information on that. The rest of the head honcho's after he quit the ASF seemed to be in the same mould to me, So those who complain today about too many non football people involved in the game,well many of the Chairman & board of the past were supposed football people,but just how much they really new about the nuts & bolt,what made it tick ,well the word sceptical comes into mind,judging by the many ill informed utterances from their mouth's. I said before what is the plan? So far as you state the question hasn't been answered. But I can tell you one thing for certain, I will know when there is a plan in place in my mind at least & it will be when a returning Socceroo ,puts bums on seats in the A-League the way Del Piero does. Maybe that's a big call ,but so far in my experience only Kewell has come close & Viduka would have equalled him had he chosen to end his career here. What that means is some Australian players are cracking & holding a first team position at a club in one of the big European Leagues & indeed starring as Viduka & Kewell did at Leeds in particular.

Holger has stated in the past many times pre-and-post game he does not like the long balls but either that is lip service to appease the press/fans or his players have natural tendencies for that play? I expect the Japanese midfield and wingbacks to put all sorts of pressure on Wilkshire at right back as his natural instinct is to boot it up the line when cornered. Holger has also stated recently that he will not play the Kennedy/Cahill combination again - but the pressure is on him for this match in the extreme so desperate times and desperate measures... If the lead up to the game is any indication it is going to be a cracker of a match.

Griffo Could not agree more with your post but can not offer any solution..

Griffo- Thank you for your informative & thoughtful reply. My worry is that I have now experienced 2 "master plans" & both in my opinion have not come up with the answers, not ,may I add, for the same reasons. Plan (1) - In 1974 our learned football fathers appointed a man with vast coaching experience to become the country's first Director of Coaching.This man came out with a plan whereby he wanted a Director of Coaching in every state whose bailiwick was to set up statewide coaching sessions for aspiring coaches all around their given state.Coming from England he set about filling these positions with people with a proven talent outside football,they were all qualified school teachers & coaches who, rather than having great CV's in football,knew how to teach!!!!!.His selections didn't come out of a who's who of football coaches & because of this were immediately branded the "Pommy Mafia" by people who refused to look deeply into the problem.What is needed, a "great " football background or the ability to get the message over??.Then came the inevitable,interference from the "founding fathers,& their like at clubs around the country. Firstly,as the top man's wages were being paid by a cigarette company & that source was banned by government, the football heirarchy decided to spread their costs & the head coach was made to take charge of representative teams (not his job) & the seeds were sown.State Federations immediately copied & the State Directors were inviegled into taking charge of the State rep teams,further eroding the original plan.So with no money,the dispersion of coaches into jobs they were not qualified to do,& the breakdown of the intended "state wide " coaching courses the whole thing collapsed like a pack of cards, not because of the plan itself but from interference from people who should have known better but failed to recognise the long term gains.I attended the first "live in" course in Queensland & learned more about coaching in a few days than I had learned in 30 years. Plan (2) Now ,while appreciating my cynicism, we are told there is to be a new plan that will solve all our problems. It took 2 years to formulate so I watched with great care & what did we get, "Dutch 4-3-3" for every rep. team in the country,(the 1974 Socceroos played 4-3-3 under Rasic !!!). We were introduced to small sided games which were to change our junior football over the next 5,then 10,and now 15 years.At that first course I told you about in 1974 SSG'S were discussed and demonstrated as a useful tool in teaching kids ball skills. I coached my grandson in a small sided team league 9 years ago but now I am being asked to believe it is something new.However that is nothing compared with my main gripe.Despite untold millions of dollars being spent on this coaching master plan I still don't see State Directors of Coaching getting around states running courses to teach (note that word) other prospective coaches,& yet in the first plan that step was in place after only 2 years. We have now had 5 years & ???????, local clubs & teams are still devoid of contact from above. When is that going to happen,we have to teach the coaches on how to teach the kids, do we not ??? jb

Interesting psychological play going on for this game and lots to look forward to. Holger said that he wasn't going to play long balls and arial threats and then Josh Kennedy comes out in the press today and says that Australia's biggest threat is in the air and that they fear him and Tim Cahill on set pieces and corners. After the result against Bulgaria where the Japanese were lacking in defence in the air and set pieces, I wonder if Holger plans to chance his tactics or if he is just foxing. With Cahill and Kennedy we don't have the speed for fast counter attacks, so you would think they will be used as lone wolves hoping to pick up the occasional free kick (or penalty) and corner. However our defence with ageing Neill and Ognenovski will be too slow for the fast moving Japanese attack, so its going to be a very tough game whatever formation or tactics we play.

Jbinnie, I have no answers, but as I've walked around the community grounds on weekends and weekdays over the years, one of the big questions has been what a massive effort the FFA have in trying to get someone capable and instructed enough for each of those U6/7/8 teams running around. I think that the 'elite' pathway in the National Curriculum is where the money has and is going to be spent; that the community SSF teams are the nursery where the (it is assumed I think) talented cream will rise to the top and be skimmed off at U8 level for 'elite' development... ...but then in speaking to someone recently who witnessed the apparent choosing of tall, athletic players over obvious technical (and smaller players) for Emerging Jets team, I am wondering if the 'old dogs' (those in the elite coaching caper for many years) cannot be taught new tricks (technical over 'physical' attributes). It's not a cliché I usually subscribe to. The grassroots/elite/youth development is a complex beast I think when historical structures, geography, money etc. are all part of it to varying degrees. But I am sometimes left to wonder if culturally we get too hung up on creating, drafting and re-drafting the 'perfect plan', the need to get it right once on paper before committing to action. While it seems we are and have already spent millions for little apparent return (a very small, 'elite' talent pool, that gets showed up internationally), it seems we do so with one hand tied behind our backs. Implementing strategies in careful, pragmatic ways only seems at the end to make little difference and another year passes us by while the rest of the world moves forward in ever increasing rates. Perhaps it is just time to just do it, analyse and adjust as we go; we've studied the best apparently, we're in touch with our 'Australian Context'... ...but I'm still left wondering how anything will translate down to the local parks, the grassroots, for 1 hour training per week/ 40 minute game on weekend. Maybe I'm not the only one that is wondering this...

JPN just got beaten 0-2 at home by BUL. I wonder if JPN fans will now want to axe their coach? Regardless, it's a good psychological boost for AUS. Whilst it was only a friendly, in recent years, JPN doesn't lose many at home. BUL were good value for the win - they stuck to their plan & were a constant threat on the counter attack & at set pieces. JPN's central defenders were poor in the air & Josh & Timmy could cause massive problems.

Neeskens gets mentioned a bit over the years - who can forget this guy, hand over heart, singing the Aussie National Anthem in Germany 2006? Legend player, but remember reading his stats a little while ago and his win-loss record wasn't that crash hot (in South Africa I think). Maybe why he's out of work?

Franko, I shudder at the thought of Aurelio at the helm of the Socceroos. His long term assistant coaching role is reminding me a lot of the same role that Graham Arnold had with the Socceroos for 10 years. Having made the top position finally, Arnold was found wanting. It would have been hard to follow Guus but if the Asian Cup in 2007 was not entirely his fault (some player arrogance there), then the Olympics the following year was proof enough that he still wasn't ready for the top job, even with players he didn't have a close association with. With Arnold's growth with the Mariners after his brief sabbatical and the insepid Olyroo campaign under Aurelio in mind, I think Aurelio needs to be back out there with a club gig. It's a bit like a young player wearing their bum print into the pine - if you're not playing regularly then you are stagnating and need to move elsewhere to practice what you are observing so you can continue to grow and improve...

there is no surpirse that arnie hasn't taken on another spot yet. the language has been firm in the news over the last 2 days. either holger impresses or he's gone. it's time for arnie. he'll be in it for the long run. le guen might be an interesting choice as well. if the roo's get in it means his time at oman will probably be up. he might be the gun for hire we need to get us through the WC. and then arnie can take the reigns afterwards as we pick up the pieces and finally send some of the boys into a long overdue retirement.

Just get Guus back. Or failing that., The Special One. I'd back him to get us out of the group stages.

Jamesb The Dream Team ....

Hey Middy, Have a Ange/ Poppa double act! Ange would coach the side to be attacking, while Poppa can look after the defensive side of things. Having said that, if it's not Ange or Poppa, then I hope Australia's next coach is well known and has a better pedigree then Pim and Holger combined

Th imponderable question is raised again,who or what is best for thr Socceroos?. Names are bandied around like confetti at a wedding with unemployed "name" players being put forward (why they are unemployed is never mentioned) , and then the perennial cry for a "local" , many of whom have only short term jobs in the HAL as "past" experience and little, or no successful sojourns at international level. Are we alone with this problem???, no, for many other lesser football identities around the world scene are having the same problems and I suppose the coaches associations around the globe are eternally grateful for such a state of affairs for if nothing else it keeps people in work albeit only for one or two seasons. It has been spelt out before in these columns many times before,the huge difference in performing as a National coach as against at club level football. If this need explained to the reader then he or she should read no further for the problem is really beyond their comprehension. So whereto for the Socceroos? We have a huge problem that has existed over the last 30 years and that is the vast distant areas in which some of our better performers are playing.When we had the majority playing in the UK or Europe the problem could be managed but with lesser, or ageing players now playng in countries spread across the breadth,not of the continent ,but of the world,USA to Japan via UK ,Europe,Middle East and West and East Asia the task for a national manager has become almost impossible.How to keep track of the form of these players,fit them into his plans,and then arrange how, and when, they can play together to build all the essentials needed for a successful national side. Towser has asked what is the "PLAN" to overcome this state of affairs. First of all the "exodus" of players is unlikely to diminish in the forseeable future and despite the apparent long term strategy of the FFA's National Curriculum,there is little evidence that our youth players over the last three years have gained any great benefits from this source.There is a huge debate going on in the lower echelons of our game on how "talent" is noted and developed and, where there is debate, there is weakness of some sort, and that is where the improvement may have to begin. We have huge numbers of kids "playing" the game and yet if you travel around these lesser grounds they will tell you of the lack of guidance they have on how to develop their coaches and staff. One would imagine this should have been solved by now ,for if we continue to ignore this state of affairs I don't see how the national team manager's job can be improved. After all if all our top players were playing in the HAL his job would be so much simpler.. jb

Melange, you've actually asked a good question and you've got me thinking. Jukes, I apologise for my comment for I am not to say what's wrong and what's right. I respect your opinion and I am now left pondering my own perception in life. I believe the Socceroos do hold their own fate in their own hands and the choices they make will determine their destiny. :)

Fate? Is our fate in our own hands?