Pointy end of the season & the future

[Gratis]

bit of a general discussion thread

As usual we've made things hard for ourselves.

Premiership - WSW need only slip up once with a draw and the premiership is again ours to lose. One draw to WSW and a win to us puts us even on points and CCM have the superior goal difference. Someone hold them scoreless please! Still a big job to win the remaining games but, and I say this genuinely believing it as do many of the 'pundits', CCM are currently the best team in the league and can do it.

Grand Final - on form we're a real shot at the GF this year. I geniunely prefer the premiership to the championship but would take either (or both *grin*).
I think everyone is expecting CCM vs WSW and they'd be the 2 deserving to be there too.
Teams shaping to challenge - (IMO) WSW & MV. BR & possibly SYD may throw up a few surprises in the finals.

Golden boot - McBreen - 15, Brockie/Rojas - 14.
Go Macca, this is your year sir!

Documentary - we have this to look forward to in April (?) I believe. Probably even better viewing with all the twists and turns and drama.

Arnie - if CCM take all before them this season there would be little for Arnie to stay for.
Not sweeping all before us (deserving as we are and as painful as that'd be) when combined with potential investment, i.e more in the kitty for coaching and player wages, and Arnie might just decide it's worth hanging around for a while and really ramp things up. I'm hoping he'll think that whatever happens but depends on what he's offered with rumours of europe taking notice.

Investors - ??? as usual. Be nice to finally secure a decent $ to secure the club and splash out just a little

ACL this year - this years ACL has a lot of potential and again while we've dropped valauble points the boys are looking competitive. Tight schedule will be the difficulty but that's never going to change, just have to learn to make the best of it. My only concern is going to Japan just before playing the Roar - don't see either game being easy and it's another potentially season-defining week with fatigue to contend with.

ACL next year - 2 sides to this coin. If we don't gain auto-entry next year by winning the premiership I actually wouldn't consider it disaster not to be in next years ACL. It might not hurt the cause to have a year with a refined team focused just on the HAL so we can really focus come end of year for a change.
Ultimately I think we'd do better again next year in the ACL and ultimately would far prefer to be in it.

 

[FFC Mariner]

In all honesty, 1 game at a time. I think we are fragile and this season could very easily turn to shit.

 

[true believer]

bit of a general discussion thread

As usual we've made things hard for ourselves.

Premiership - WSW need only slip up once with a draw and the premiership is again ours to lose. One draw to WSW and a win to us puts us even on points and CCM have the superior goal difference. Someone hold them scoreless please! Still a big job to win the remaining games but, and I say this genuinely believing it as do many of the 'pundits', CCM are currently the best team in the league and can do it.

Grand Final - on form we're a real shot at the GF this year. I geniunely prefer the premiership to the championship but would take either (or both *grin*).
I think everyone is expecting CCM vs WSW and they'd be the 2 deserving to be there too.
Teams shaping to challenge - (IMO) WSW & MV. BR & possibly SYD may throw up a few surprises in the finals.

Golden boot - McBreen - 15, Brockie/Rojas - 14.
Go Macca, this is your year sir!

Documentary - we have this to look forward to in April (?) I believe. Probably even better viewing with all the twists and turns and drama.

Arnie - if CCM take all before them this season there would be little for Arnie to stay for.
Not sweeping all before us (deserving as we are and as painful as that'd be) when combined with potential investment, i.e more in the kitty for coaching and player wages, and Arnie might just decide it's worth hanging around for a while and really ramp things up. I'm hoping he'll think that whatever happens but depends on what he's offered with rumours of europe taking notice.

Investors - ??? as usual. Be nice to finally secure a decent $ to secure the club and splash out just a little

ACL this year - this years ACL has a lot of potential and again while we've dropped valauble points the boys are looking competitive. Tight schedule will be the difficulty but that's never going to change, just have to learn to make the best of it. My only concern is going to Japan just before playing the Roar - don't see either game being easy and it's another potentially season-defining week with fatigue to contend with.

ACL next year - 2 sides to this coin. If we don't gain auto-entry next year by winning the premiership I actually wouldn't consider it disaster not to be in next years ACL. It might not hurt the cause to have a year with a refined team focused just on the HAL so we can really focus come end of year for a change.
Ultimately I think we'd do better again next year in the ACL and ultimately would far prefer to be in it.

and

 

[Gratis]

In all honesty, 1 game at a time. I think we are fragile and this season could very easily turn to shit.

agreed.
that's how the team and coaching staff have to treat it. they will be too

 

[scottmac]

I don't see us as being fragile. we are easily the best team in the league & dominated WSW before being beaten on the counter. any other day we win by a few. we'd take more out of that than they would & would be confident of doing it again next time with a different result.

 

[FFC Mariner]

The longer this weeks game goes 0-0, the nervier we will become.

God forbid we get awarded a penalty too.

 

[finally retired]

God forbid we get awarded a penalty too.

love this......I wonder who will step up.....it has to either be Patrick or Big Mac

 

[pjennings]

Can WSW go to 12 wins in a row - my gut says no.

As for penalties - I'm looking forward to a string of 6 tight games where we get awarded and score late penalties all the way to the toilet seat!! - then we might finally get rid of the chokers tag.

 

[FFC Mariner]

Hutch and Lawrie are on 2GO tomorrow being hypnotised.

Tell him he can take penalties maybe?

 

[Gratis]

looks like Breeny will be the man delegated to take penalties from now on

 

[nebakke]

Can WSW go to 12 wins in a row - my gut says no.

As for penalties - I'm looking forward to a string of 6 tight games where we get awarded and score late penalties all the way to the toilet seat!! - then we might finally get rid of the chokers tag.

My gut is with yours, but my head isn't quite - which is lucky, cus we could run out of room I struggle with the concept of them going on a 12 win spree, but then I look at their run home and I can't pick a team that I see as likely to beat them, so I dunno... Sydney, if they show up on the day - maybe... Much as I'd hate the agony, gee there'd be all kinds of joy from a situation where the Jests find themselves fighting for 6th in the last game of the season, us having kept up with WSW and Jests to show up for that last game to hand us the plate. Jesters would be spewing, a good rivalry would be supported and we'd get the plate... Win-win-win

Re. Macca taking the penalty... I have been pondering this for the last couple of days, probably just like everyone else, and I think it's a reasonable approach. I think the time has come to ignore nerves and everything else. It seems like the only way to start scoring off those penalties is to try-try-again. It can't get any worse, so we may as well stick with the same spot-kicker until he gets it right permanently.

 

[bikinigirl]

. re the penalties: i would like to propose fitzy and dukie

. reasoning: they are the only two i recall recently scoring from 12+ yards

. bold prediction: we start peppering the goal from anywhere near the box (18 yard not 6) ... scoring left, right & centre plus picking up any crumbs spilt by the 'keeper - penalties become redundant

 

[nikko]

The longer this weeks game goes 0-0, the nervier we will become.

God forbid we get awarded a penalty too.

Should sub on Pellers when a penalty gets rewarded, as I heard he likes to score!!

 

[true believer]

looks like Breeny will be the man delegated to take penalties from now on

he has an excellent ball strike .if gets the first ,being a confidence player he'll be very good.

 

[ballantyne]

I don't buy this we're the best team. We have the best goals for and gd but fewer points than Wanderers. They just won eight in a row, we just threw away 3 of our last 4 games. We're choking, as is blindingly obvious from our penalties. Wanderers are the best team in the league. It's theirs to lose now. If we take 10 or 12 points from the remaining games we have a chance, as 12 wins in a row for Wanderers is unlikely, although possible.
What we can do as supporters is get to the games and sing our hearts out.
COYY.

 

[FFC Mariner]

^This

 

[Gratis]

in terms of winning games, all that counts for the premiership, you're right. in terms of who's playing the best football CCM are definitely superior creating far more chances and scoring way more goals with a similar defensive record.as has been
said many times we were gonna get bitten for wasting chances eventually and if we learn to be more clinical with all our chances we'll score bags of goals every game

 

[style_cafe]

The job of the defending team,when a penalty is given, is to delay the kick for as long as possible.
This puts the pressure on the kicker as he time to think about where he is going to put the ball,how he`s going to celebrate, will he get etc.
In our situation, where few players have the confidence to take the penalty, is that once the referee has retained control of the game the captain then changes the penalty taker.

 

[adz]

I like that we're actually talking ourselves up a bit... not like previous seasons where we've always said we're the underdog. I don't know if it's a recent thing or it happened gradually over the season and I only just noticed it. Just hope it translates into some more goals in the next few games.

 

[promdi442]

The job of the defending team,when a penalty is given, is to delay the kick for as long as possible.
This puts the pressure on the kicker as he time to think about where he is going to put the ball,how he`s going to celebrate, will he get etc.
In our situation, where few players have the confidence to take the penalty, is that once the referee has retained control of the game the captain then changes the penalty taker.

I would like to see whoever is going to take the kick begin his routine AFTER the ref has got control. He should go to the ball place it again eye ball the goal keeper and move back with confidence and put the bloody thing in the net. In the ACL look how long we had to wait for the kick and Monty was just standing still waiting and contemplating for way too long. We have to take the ascendency and get the mind games going in our favour