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Roar Guru
20th November, 2018
5

Here is my take on the coaching ladder after the first month of the A-League.

1. Tony Popovic (Glory)
A no-brainer and the best coach in the A-League in the first month by a long way. He has shown his quality as a manager through the discipline and structure that he has instilled in the Glory players. His rotations are first class; he takes risks, having substituted senior players Andy Keogh and Neil Kilkenny and no individual is bigger than the team.

Above all else the Glory have converted their chances into goals scoring eight goals in four games.

2. Warren Joyce (City)
He has coached reasonably well with City only losing one out of the four games that they have played. They were comprehensively beaten by the Sky Blues, which may prove to be an aberration as that has been City’s only loss for the season.

He took a risk dropping Luke Brattan in their last match in Round 4 of the season, but the gamble paid off with City claiming the three points on offer.

3. Steve Corica (Sky Blues)
The Sky Blues got off to a shaky start in Round 1 of the season where they were lucky to get a point out of the game when they faced the Reds, but they have bounced back as they are one of two unbeaten teams in the A-League this season. The only criticism I can make of Corica is that he has generally kept the same lineup, but he has the results to back up his selection of the Sky Blues’ starting eleven.

4. Marco Kurz (Reds)
Kurz is a quality coach, but the Reds form has been patchy this season. The Reds found it tough to back up their form which they displayed in the FFA Cup. Kurz would have been higher on the list, but the Reds were outplayed by the Glory in Round 4 of the season.

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I expect the Reds to bounce back, but Kurz has some work to do to help the Reds improve.

5. Marcus Babbel (Wanderers)
Babbel has been sent off in one of the games that he has coached this season, but he has still done a descent job. The Wanderers have only had one loss this season and have managed to play some good football.

6. John Aloisi (Roar)
Aloisi has coached the Roar reasonably well this season with the Roar claiming three draws out of the four games that they have played. The Roar have played a fairly good style of football and have been missing Stefan Mauk due to injury. They have only scored four goals this season.

John Aloisi Brisbane Roar

(AAP Image/Dan Peled)

7. Kevin Muscat (Victory)
The Victory were good in two of the four games that they have played in, but poor in the first two games. They have scored in every game, which is a positive for Muscat and a stat that means they are playing an attacking style of football.

8. Ernie Merrick (Jets)
The Jets may have only scored three goals for the season, but they have played a good style of football; all that is lacking is the finished product. I expect the Jets to improve, but unfortunately they need to score more goals to do that, which they haven’t shown so far this season.

9. Mark Rudan (Phoenix)
The Phoenix have failed to score after they managed to score two goals in Round 1 of the season. The decision to drop Liberato Cacace, Alex Rufer and Max Burgess was a dubious one as they are three good young players.

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The Phoenix have been poor after an impressive first round. They were unlucky in Round 4 with a dubious decision that went against them and they are lacking a marquee player so I have some sympathy for Rudan.

10. Mike Mulvey (Mariners)
Two comprehensive losses means that that the Mariners are in a precarious position both on the table and in the system that Mulvey is endeavouring to implement. The Mariners have recruited fairly well, but they are lacking quality in the defence with Antony Golec performing admirably, shouldering much of the responsibility in that area of the field for the Mariners.

Hopefully the likes of Michael Mcglinchey, Tommy Oar, Matt Simon and Ross Mccormack can bring goals in the final third of the pitch. Connor Pain has been quality, while Andrew Hoole deserves the start as he has the ability to change the game, which he showed in the second half against Victory, which is a half that gives Mulvey some hope in the Mariners improving in the future.

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