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Here are some the A-League talking points to be discussed around the Christmas dinner table.
Wanderers take the points again in Grand Final Replay II
Western Sydney closed within two points of league leaders Brisbane after completing a Grand Final replay double against defending Champions Central Coast.
Tomi Juric celebrated his return from injury with a goal before Yousouff Hersi completed the scoring before half time against a toothless Mariners.
Last season’s golden boot winner Daniel McBreen had little impact and the Wanderers minimised the influence of Jon Hutchinson, Nick Montogomery and Marcos Flores in the Central Coast midfield.
Just as they did last season the Wanderers are building into the season in the lead up to the huge clash away to Melbourne Victory on Saturday night.
Yet to be beaten at Wanderland, Western Sydney will again have set their targets on the Premiers plate for this season.
As for the Mariners they are still adjusting to life after Graham Arnold who also took with him strength and conditioning coach Andrew Clarke.
With the impending departure of Michael McGlinchey the Mariners will want to stabilise their squad if they have any hope of defending their crown.
Phoenix finally notch their first win
It’s been coming for a few weeks now but the Wellington Phoenix have finally grabbed their first win of the season at their 11th attempt.
The New Zealand team dominated their game against Central Coast on Thursday night but lacked killer instinct, with the biggest culprits being Jeremy Brockie and Steyn Huysegems.
The latter atoned for his penalty miss against the Mariners by showing some composure, not normally associated with the Phoenix, slotting the only goal in their clash with Sydney FC.
The big Belgian has, dare I say it, a good touch for a big man and he has shown rare glimpses of silky skills in his time in Wellington.
Coach Ernie Merrick will hope he can go on a goal scoring run with Jeremy Brockie far from his best and the enigmatic Paul Ifill unfortunately out for the rest of the season with an Achilles injury.
Jets inflict first home loss this season on Roar
Brisbane Roar dropped three points after having two-thirds of possession and twice as many shots against the Jets on Friday night.
An own goal from Roar defender James Donachie and a late prod from Joey Gibbs were enough for the fourth-placed Jets to take the maximum points back to the Hunter.
It was the second time this season that the Jets have upset the Roar after they won 2-1 in round six at Hunter Stadium.
The Jets have surprised many this season and credit to Gary van Egmond who has tinkered with his team and made no apologies for playing ugly and sometimes direct football away from home.
A fair enough argument from the Newcastle coach who knows that points are all that really matter when on the road with no obligation to entertain the crowd.
Is finishing and decision making in the final third a problem in the A-League?
There is no doubt that there are several quality strikers in the A-League. Berisha is the standout alongside youngsters Adam Taggart and Tomi Juric but so many strikers have been off their game this season.
In the last few weeks the standard of finishing has been really questionable as has the decision making with players shooting when they should pass and vice-versa.
Stats never tell the whole story but just as a snapshot the six games in round 11 of the A-League produced 9 goals from 131 shots with 46 on target.
So 35 percent of total shots are on target and only seven percent end up in the back of the net.
Compare this with the nine games so far played in this weekend’s English Premier League that produced 30 goals from 232 shots with 82 on target.
This roughly translates to 35 percent of total shots on target and 13 percent resulting in goals.
The stats do suggest that conversion rates are a problem in the A-League but teams are creating enough chances so with the addition of a top quality striker A-League teams could definitely benefit.
Should the Sydney clubs re-sign their marquee stars?
Lots of rumours around that ADP and Shinji Ono’s time at their respective clubs will shortly be over.
Both players have expressed their desire to stay in Sydney but particularly in Ono’s case contract negotiations have been put on hold.
These two have brought so much to the league in one and a bit seasons but by season’s end it is time for them to move on.
Ono hasn’t had the same impact this season as he did last while Del Piero’s fitness is a week to week commodity.
Is Bozza right? Should Alosi resign?
Following Heart’s 3 -1 derby loss to Melbourne Victory on Saturday night Fox Sports analyst Mark Bosnich asked John Aloisi if it’s time to resign to which he replied and I’m paraphrasing here:
‘Obviously you don’t know me, I’m the right man to lead this club forward’.
One feels that if the Heart can’t break their winless run of 16 games against fellow strugglers Wellington Phoenix on Friday he will be sacked anyway.
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