Central Coast Mariners Squad for 2009/10 HAL Season

[midfielder]

I get the feeling that LM is looking at playing Huke in defence.

I thought he played pretty well in that DM role in China....I think it was...the 2-2 draw?

I reckon he'd be alright in the Jedi role.

I reckon Huke would make a great stopper ... not sure if that is still a position in today game but if he played in front of the defense he could be handy at closing things down and then playing out from the back.

 

[scottmac]

looking forward to seeing wilko next to another experienced CB. Think Huke will do well in Jedi role too.

On another note, does anyone have news on how Simon is recovering?

 

[bulldogmariner]

Doig looks like the type of defender we need in the squad. I just hope McKinna still doesnt want to play Boogs in midfield like he did last season because he cannot handle it. Looks like Boogs will be relegated to the bench or a squad player.

 

[Deej]

Dylan.........<add a CM>............Huke...............Doig...........Danny

Thats a v strong spine, now add some wingers (Elrich will do for 1) and a couple of speedy fullbacks (Heff + a n other) and you have room for another striker and...............

A luxury creative AM (like tp see Porter given a go in his natural position too, I dont think we have ever played him in the Tommy role?)

Any good side starts with a strong spine

I think we played him there for a few pre-season games before V4, personally I don't believe he's the answer to an attacking midfielder otherwise Lawrie would have kept faith in him when trialing him there, 1 of Porters main assets is his ability to cross a decent ball, his footwork and finishing required for that role would need a lot of work for HAL level I believe.

 

[Wombat]

I get the feeling that LM is looking at playing Huke in defence.

I thought he played pretty well in that DM role in China....I think it was...the 2-2 draw?

I reckon he'd be alright in the Jedi role.

I definately wouldn't play Huke in defence.  He looks tailor made for defensive mid with a creative mid around him (obviously not Hutcho!).

I'm very excited by the signing of Doig.  Sounds perfect and I'd make him captain.  Could be the making of Wilko.

As for Boogs, on his form in the 2nd half of the season he sould only be a sub (as should Pedj & Heff) however he will keep Wilko honest.

 

[Wombat]

I don't think Porter is anywhere near good enough for attacking mid.  He has played in centre mid a couple of times and didn't impress enough.
He is a decent utility and will be very useful coming of the bench late in the game. He is also useful as cover for RB spot.

 

[BigNuts]

On another note, does anyone have news on how Simon is recovering?

He is four weeks away. That is straight from the horses mouth.

 

[dibo]

On another note, does anyone have news on how Simon is recovering?

He is four weeks away. That is straight from the horses mouth.

Clearly wasn't an ACL then. What actually happened there?

 

[Jesus]

Huke and porter are too short to play in the backline.
Porter should be on the right mid, unless we play 3 cb's and we play him in an advanced wingback role.

His overlapping is great, but he could do the same off the striekrs. And though he tries hard, he is about 20cms too small for defence and provides a weak spot for headers.

 

[dibo]

Porter's 1.79m. He'd be playing wide, where really he shouldn't be facing as many headers as the central men. He's also a powerful little nugget who might be able to outjump some guys even if they've got a couple of inches on him.

Even still, Fabio Cannavaro's 1.77m and pays in the middle. If you're good enough you're tall enough.

 

[BigNuts]

On another note, does anyone have news on how Simon is recovering?

He is four weeks away. That is straight from the horses mouth.

Clearly wasn't an ACL then. What actually happened there?

He just said he injured his knee... that's about all I got.
Good news though

 

[Bex]

Yeh, he was in my wife's shop a few weeks back and told her that he was only going to be on crutches for a couple of weeks and that it wasn't as serious as first thought.

Interesting to see some of the comments on fourfour2 saying we haven't got a decent striker. Matty Simon will be back, a near on golden boot winner, and heres hoping D-Mac will find the form that we know is lurking somewhere inside.

 

[Jesus]

Porter's 1.79m. He'd be playing wide, where really he shouldn't be facing as many headers as the central men. He's also a powerful little nugget who might be able to outjump some guys even if they've got a couple of inches on him.

Even still, Fabio Cannavaro's 1.77m and pays in the middle. If you're good enough you're tall enough.

But he is often left with big men to mark.

And it is not the same to say a central defender who has played his whole career in the centre of defence and considers himself a defender, is the same as a midfielder who is pushed to right back because we have no options, though he is good enough to get in the team,  not quite better than our midfield options (not that i agree to osman being a better right mid than porter, i very much think osman played his best for us at right back)

They are apples and pears at best.

Please now suggest that doig move to right back so we can have porter in the centre of defence because he is good enough.

Porter could outplay out cbs, and likely position better than them in my opinion. But if you dont have the height you need a physical presence.

 

[Jesus]

Yeh, he was in my wife's shop a few weeks back and told her that he was only going to be on crutches for a couple of weeks and that it wasn't as serious as first thought.

Interesting to see some of the comments on fourfour2 saying we haven't got a decent striker. Matty Simon will be back, a near on golden boot winner, and heres hoping D-Mac will find the form that we know is lurking somewhere inside.

Simon was the most prolific striker in the HAL last year.

Dmac and Mrdja both have it in them.

Up front is not somewhere i am worried.

Especially from the reports i have heard of the serb gent

 

[~Floss~]

Agree, our strikeforce is "good enough" as-is
... with the potential to be "lethal" with an experienced (or talented) CAM to create the chances.

 

[midfielder]

Wombat
[/quote]

I definately wouldn't play Huke in defence.  He looks tailor made for defensive mid with a creative mid around him (obviously not Hutcho!).

I'm very excited by the signing of Doig.  Sounds perfect and I'd make him captain.  Could be the making of Wilko.

As for Boogs, on his form in the 2nd half of the season he sould only be a sub (as should Pedj & Heff) however he will keep Wilko honest.
[/quote]

Gotta agree with you

Also what most are not bringing up is Elrich if back and fit fit IMO has the potential to be one of the best players in the League..Meaning a  midfield of Travis, Elrich, Huke, Heff , Porter (Drop one) is looking not bad...

Will also be interesting to see the formation... most are assuming a 4  4 2 ... but LM showed last season with his 4 3 3 he is not stuck on 4 4 2 ... maybe a 5 3 2 or 3 5 2 could be on the cards as well.

 

[bulldogmariner]

If LM play 3 at the back it would be with Bojic playing as a sweeper as he has a lot of pace to do this. I would like to see it as it will release Heff further up the field and we can then play 2 DM's and an AM quite easily. This however might not suit Elrich or Adrian.

 

[midfielder]

If LM play 3 at the back it would be with Bojic playing as a sweeper as he has a lot of pace to do this. I would like to see it as it will release Heff further up the field and we can then play 2 DM's and an AM quite easily. This however might not suit Elrich or Adrian.

Bojic as sweeper not something I had ever considered ... me thinks he is not good enough on the ball to anchour a 3 man back line... the new guy maybe is in this class ... but if we pushed Porter into a CM roll & Heff to LM ... Wilko RB Doig as CD ( LOL I typed Dibo instead of Doig the first time imagine) lB maybe Bojic

 

[dibo]

I'm going to guess that we're only going to sign two more - there's surely going to be a striker to replace Petrovski and a central midfielder with some creativity (we've got all other midfield options covered twice).

If I'm not mistaken, our list is as follows:

Bojic
Boogard
Caceres
Clark
D'Apuzzo
Doig
Elrich
Heffernan
Huke
Hutchinson
Kwasnik
Macallister
Mrdja
Nash
Porter
Redmayne
Simon
Travis
Vukovic
Wilkinson

I've no idea what any of the trialists are like, but with just a little something, that list could come together pretty well. So many of our players are at the moment maybe 5-10% off what they need to be, but with a good unit around them would lift at least that much.

I'm not 'optimistic' in the Clive Palmer sense, but am hopeful at least that the club can put out a solid enough team. If they can do that and basically keep the wheels on while the owners sort their money issues, then we'll be alright.

Certainly would appear to be another Lawrie McKinna special - hard workers and honest triers without having any superstars. I'm not sure that bothers me half as much as did the periods of complete lack of effort or intensity that plagued the side since January. If we get the basics right, we build a platform to build a better team. There's no point in having a lovely passing movement if you're going to hand the ball over in midfield and leave a man free to tuck it home.

I had the 2nd leg semi against the scum from the season before last on the other day, and what struck me was how much has changed since that match.

Thinking about who we've lost and who replaces them:

From that match we've lost:
John Aloisi
Alvin Ceccoli
Andre Gumprecht
Mile Jedinak
Greg Owens
Sasho Petrovski
Tom Pondeljak
Tony Vidmar

From other squad members that year we've also lost
Damien Brown
Paul O'Grady
Matthew Trott

Since that point we've picked up:
Pedj Bojic
Adrian Caceres
David D'Apuzzo
Chris Doig
Ahmad Elrich
Shane Huke
Dylan Macallister
Matthew Nash
Nicky Travis

Have we maybe underestimated just how much we've changed the side around over the last few years? It's not exactly like there's been the same bunch of plodders, we've actually brought a few people in (with varying degrees of success). Some of the talent we've lost is significant and I'm not sure we've covered the gaps.

In Aloisi and Ceccoli we also had two players we simply couldn't have had under the salary cap now (because injury replacement rules have changed).

It seems to me that the problem we're having is that it's all not quite working at the moment. It's that few percentage points missing that are crucial.

From that semi, something that struck me was how differently we were playing. The defence was much the same, just more effective, but in attack there were lots of smart angled passes. I mean loads.

Midfielders were putting themselves in position to move quickly with the ball, play 1-2s where need be to create space and aim sharp balls to the outside channel. Strikers worked wide to receive and runners came to meet them. One man who struck a bunch of the best passes is the darling of the BSE...

To end this pointless ramble - given the number of changes in the last off-season and how optimistic we were at the start of last season in spite of that (and we all know how that ended up), I'm not sure we can be justified in being particularly optimistic or pessimistic about this season. Simply put, it's hard to know how the mix is going to work on the park, but if the unit comes together and is cohesive, it can't help but be better than the last 6 months.

 

[Razorback]

heres hoping D-Mac will find the form that we know is lurking somewhere inside.

Here's hoping we sign someone else (from serbia maybe) who can knock em in! I have zero confidence in D-Mac and judging by his form last year we best hope Matty is not too far away