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Give Nik another go

FFC Mariner

Well-Known Member
No.

One is an EPL footballer, one is a gutless oxygen thief who has sucked members money out of the club for 4.5 years.

Easy to tell apart
 

David Votoupal

Well-Known Member
Ante Milicic knew he wasn't up to A-League football anymore, and was released by the Roar during V3. Surely that fact has flown over Mrdja's head?

It's Zdonkey all over again ::)
 

FFC Mariner

Well-Known Member
David Votoupal said:
Ante Milicic knew he wasn't up to A-League football anymore, and was released by the Roar during V3. Surely that fact has flown over Mrdja's head?

It's Zdonkey all over again ::)

Unless he agreed to go, we would be obliged to pay him out in full.

Sydney have Adonk, we have Mdonk
 

fedelta

Well-Known Member
David Votoupal said:
Ante Milicic knew he wasn't up to A-League football anymore, and was released by the Roar during V3. Surely that fact has flown over Mrdja's head?

Rumours a while back on GHFA forums that Milicic was signing for Gladesville Ravens Prem League  :popcorn:
 

David Votoupal

Well-Known Member
Milicic was a regular scorer in the NSL, and also in V1 with the Jets.

Zdrilic somehow managed to live off being in the right team at the right time, his record over the years apart from that was lousy.

One thing though: why is it that ex-Socceroo strikers like Zdrilic and Aloisi struggled at Sydney, whereas Smeltz and Dadi had poor records overseas and have done better in the A-League?
 

pjennings

Well-Known Member
To be fair to Aloisi his fitness and confidence have not been great for a few years - even before his return. We nursed him at the end of his stay with us. A fit and firing Aloisi - in his prime - would have got us over the line against the Scum.
 

Forum Phoenix

Well-Known Member
On a quick note. Actually think Aloi$i looks good this year. Hungry and fit.
More game time and I'd lay money he'll outscore Brosque and Bridge.
Kosmina and his mad ego pandering was terrible for him.

Anyhow... who gives a shit... lets talk about us ;D

FACT IS... as everyone I'm more than sure knows Krusty...
We need another striker who can consistently score goals.
There's no arguing with this, and I don't think anyone has or would.

BUT...
Nik has been given numerous chances and has not for whatever reason taken them. 
4 goals in youth does not cut it. At the very least not yet.

Kwassie has played much less game time upfront than either Mrdja or DMac and is already ahead on goal scoring. He put in a quality performance up front last week. Superior to Mattys.  So if we are to play two upfront from our current squad options - Kwassie on merit deserves one spot until he proves otherwise and Matty obviously deserves the other.

Regardless of ease of goals its still great Nik is scoring in the yoof, but I think its very fair to say that it needs to be backed up by several weeks of such consistency before he deserves to get another chance in the first team at someone else's expense. Its competitive to make our bench now. Which is great.

Which Brings me to the 442 v 4231/451/4321 discussions...

I'm in agreement with FFC, Scottmac and others that this may well be our best option. Hard not to have reached this conclusion watching our striker troubles and abundance of talent in the midfield over the past few weeks.

Though I do also share Arab's inbuilt reluctance.

Beside squad strength, the major consideration for me in this is that teams with a strong defence, who then also adopt a 4231 can go along way toward winning seasons because they become all but impossible to score against. Adelaide when they still had the Og monster was a perfect example. (As opposed to recent times when their defense has weakened AND they still couldn't score goals)

Matty is a great poacher and hassler an is one of the few strikers in the league who can play lone striker and have some success, and with Crowell and PedJ on, I think like Kareem says, our 4231 would not be as defensive as it might suggest. It's a formation that suits getting your wingbacks forward - which is how Heff and more recently Boogs are looking to play and can let your mids focus on being more attack oriented - which I think is essential whether we stay 442 or not.

As for the shape/team selection...
I agree with Kareems 4231 if we are going to do it. Pedj deserves a spot.

Let Travis, Hutch, Kwas and Porter fight it out for the wide positions.
Hutch can also obviously play DM if required for Pedj or Crowell.
And D'mac or Kwas can sub for Matty or in the future yes possibly even Nik.
Play a lone striker, and you actually don't expect him to score many anyway in truth, so it might suit him ;D

Finally, like some others I bare no grudges towards NIk, I don't believe he has chosen to get injured or to play crap. But he has been poor and ineffectual at best. So he's in the yoof until he's either a gun or gone as far as I'm concerned- and this seems to be Lawries thoughts as well from I can tell.
 

elevated position

Well-Known Member
Maybe Kwasie form last week was because LM has annoited him as striker and now for a few weeks does not have to play second choice to nik. Also lets nik play along at his pace to game fitness to proceed any further.
 

Forum Phoenix

Well-Known Member
Yeah, for me at least I think the secret is that you have to trust that your screeners and back line will do their job so you can keep the other bodies forward, regardless of whether an opposing fullback is making a run or not - once they drop back in - being pressed is almost inevitable (a real chicken or the egg scenario) and unless you have some serious pace in the squad you can't counter or mount and offense at all.

Also I believe your two screeners have to excellent engines and the willingness/ability to get forward - and back all day long.

Funnily, I think teams with less sound back lines are often the ones to adopt a 4231 or 4321 to sure things up. But as per my earlier point it actually works best for teams who already have a good defence and know it so that their attacking mids are able to remain positive.

I think this principle is one of the main reasons why roar and MV have usually been so good in attack. (Different formations) But same principle - the trust they both so clearly have had in Moore and Musc**t respectively at the back for them has always allowed their mids to remain very attack minded.
 

Kareem

Well-Known Member
Forum Phoenix said:
Anyone else read todays article in the local rag about Nik and our "polarised fans" ;)
i did last night.
Let's hope he means what he said...
good to know that the media notices our angst ;)
 

Wombat

Well-Known Member
Teddy Bear said:
I think it is a bit unfair to say he plods around uninterested. The bloke is obviously not match fit which he showed in the recent games he has been involved in. The result of this is that Lawrie has put him in the youth side to get his match fitness up. Whether he can get close to what he was capable of before is up to him and the coaching staff will surely assess that.

If we see him back in the senior team soon we will know he has been making progress

To re-sign him or not re-sign him is going to be up to Lawrie. He has a good eye for who to let go and who not to. I can't think of one player he has got rid of because he didn't need them that has gone on to prove him wrong.


Gumps.
 

FFC Mariner

Well-Known Member
Wombat said:
Teddy Bear said:
I think it is a bit unfair to say he plods around uninterested. The bloke is obviously not match fit which he showed in the recent games he has been involved in. The result of this is that Lawrie has put him in the youth side to get his match fitness up. Whether he can get close to what he was capable of before is up to him and the coaching staff will surely assess that.

If we see him back in the senior team soon we will know he has been making progress

To re-sign him or not re-sign him is going to be up to Lawrie. He has a good eye for who to let go and who not to. I can't think of one player he has got rid of because he didn't need them that has gone on to prove him wrong.


Gumps.

Please explain?
 

Wombat

Well-Known Member
OK................Gumps is the only player that Lawrie showed flaws in his make-up as a coach. (Apart from not signing Mori in season 1)
For most people at the Mariners (apart from some  Marinators who many blindly believe what they are told) Gumpy was the most popular player.
Why........because players like Joe Cole and Matt Le Tissier and Glenn Hoddle show quality and stand out.  They are not always the coaches fav but always the fans... because fans want talent and guts.....not machines with no talent but heaps of fitness.
Gumps always showed the way when lesser talents like Clarke, Osman, Hutch, McMaster, Porter and Kwas were unfairly favoured by Lawrie.
This season thankfully we have some great new imports in WeeMac, Travis and Crowell so Gumps loss is not so stark (although it was shining like a beacon last week!)
Due to Gumps age he probably wont prove LM wrong but f**k me how does Clarky get a spot when Gumps can't.  It's either money or Lawrie is unprofessional and feels threatened by Gumps knowledge of the game or he simply doesn't like him.....for everyone thats ever met him...the bloke is a diamond and as genuine as you can get so like many people have said its a BAD reflection on Lawrie.
 

Jaza_SFC

Well-Known Member
Gumprecht was viciously overrated. No matter how nice you are, you need to earn your place as a footballer. Gumprecht was very lucky to be in the entire squad by the end, let alone playing.
 

Wombat

Well-Known Member
What a f**king idiot you are.
Still you probally rate Sydney FC.... who apart from Dwight in season 1 and Corica have been the biggest joke of HAL despite having the biggest budget.
Shit fans and shit team....and according to you....shit for brains.
 

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