Round 16 - Sheep-shaggers v Mariners

[LFCMariners]

Lawrie has done a pretty good job considering. As of this point in time, we are still in 4th. Could be alot worse. We could be Newcastle for starters. I think we'll beat them 2-1 or 2-0 next weekend, I don't expect the boys to dish out anywhere near the same crap as last night.

IN terms of the finals, I don't see Sydney being a threat and the Roar's home form has been ordinary, so that leaves us with the Nix, who we have a much better G/D than. So long as we stay level on points with a top 4 team and don't concede too many, we'll be playing Finals football.

 

[FFC Mariner]

Of course, you do all realise that only the League Champions and GF winners go to the ACL dont you? (or runners up if Champions win the GF).

Playing finals football means f**k all really unless you can win it. We were league champions last year and this year we probably wont be - whether other sides have got stronger or we have got weaker doesnt matter TBH. Bottom line is we have gone backwards.

IMHO we need:

A fit and firing Heff
A fit and firing Owens
Dylan and Matty never to play together up front again
Nik to be able to start alongside Dylan

We can still win this thing but we need to play with some brains and guile

 

[David Votoupal]

I don't think the squad is weaker, but last season not much separated the top four in the end in what was frankly a very ordinary league. Hardly any team last season showed consistency, whilst teams like Melbourne Victory and Adelaide United had disappointing seasons.

This season the quality of the league is much better, it is far more competitive, most sides are stronger compared to last season and have a realistic chance of the four.

 

[MrCelery]

We lost an away game 1-0 in terrible conditions to a team that has good home form this year after creating a million chances. Sometimes things just don't go your way.

The worst thing that could have happened is to concede so early as they could just sit back and defend. They were time-wasting after 20 minutes which says it all really.

The sky hasn't started falling in just yet.

All good points. Their spoiling tactics worked well. We dominated some parts of the game, so it's  not all bad. Just losing the 3 points and seeing the scum win (although they did us a big favour) hurts.

 

[Arabmariner]

We're the leagues top scorers and yet we haven't scored in 3 games against the sheep  ???

 

[Roy Law]

Ah Serious! You cannot be serious. Sycophantic? that's why I criticised Bojic and Gumprecht. That's why I said 'Not happy'. But your pseudo management style, although clearly superior to Lawrie's, is from the days when players were on maximum wages and sprigs were nailed on. Get the dubbin out mate and polish your brain, what's left of it. I see the strengths and the weaknesses of the Mariners, and the A League;I enjoy the honesty and the naivety, the sweat and occasional skill, the despair of defeat and the delight of victory;  that's why I watch it, it's much better than the over paid, over hyped, over publicised mercenaries and prima donnas who parade in the EPL.

 

[Tassiemariner]

Shit performance. So so so very frustrating to watch and even comment on.

Heff and Bojic looked like under 12s. Why the hell does heff just dribble straight at players, doesnt pass, doesn't do a trick to beat the player, just runs straight at them and gets the ball taken off him and puts Wilko under immense pressure.

Over the past 3 weeks i feel Wilko has been one of our better players. He hasn't been caught out for pace, lost his opposing forward on regular occasions and besides the "Hoofing", has been very composed at the back.

At the moment the only players who i would select for ACL matches with any confidence are
Jedinak
Gumps
Porter
Simon
Caceras
Mrdja and
Wilko.

The rest seem to becoming lazy, out of form or look like they know there guaranteed a starting spot and are taking there foot off the gas.

 

[nero]

We blew our 2nd attempt at being top of the table this season. Can we win the league? Only if Adelaide blow it now.

2nd is our best shotand  a pass to the GF with an ACL ticket attached.

Wish we could string 2 wins together. Newy and perth we MUST win or risk dropping out of the top 4 come finals time.

Caceras has been my fav. player this season, but last night his final pass/shot was terrible. We have 4 strikers who can score. Change the pairing cause Matty does not play well with Macca.

 

[bikinigirl]

Why do we not have anyone sitting just outside the 18 on corners ready to have a crack at a loose ball... from memory there were a few chances when, if someone was there would've had a good amount of time to drive a shot(ala Gumpy style), instead everyone's in crowding the box and then chasing the ball back on the counter.

. agree. free kicks as well.

. it is so frustrating to see the ball just pop out and there is half a dozen of us all sitting in the front line lookin' stupid. this is magnified when our crossing is off ... anything wrong with a cut-back option?

. when we get frustrated and struggle to score, we push forward in huge numbers. everybody is so keen to score we are taking all our options away

Of course, you do all realise that only the League Champions Premiers and GF winners go to the ACL dont you? (or runners up if Champions Premiers win the GF).

. is this correct?

Caceras has been my fav. player this season, but last night his final pass/shot was terrible.

. not just last night imo. he does so much work in the lead up and often ruins it with the last pass/shot. seriously needs to get some confidence/agression/power in his shooting

 

[FFC Mariner]

No, the team that wins the league are the Champions.

Sadly in Australia, we have the ridiculous post season cup contest to try to copy the "lesser" codes and their silly Grand Final concept.

 

[tuftman]

No, the team that wins the league are the Champions.

Sadly in Australia, we have the ridiculous post season cup contest to try to copy the "lesser" codes and their silly Grand Final concept.

If/when do you reckon that it will just be first past the post? I think when we have 12 teams, and assuming we play them 3 times as is now...33 games would be surely a post season cup is just overkill

 

[bulldogmariner]

just tuned in, who's 'Luke" that your talking to?

Luke, one of our co-commentators, who is in sheffield at the moment

Thanks Mick i hope everyone who listened to the interview got something out of it.
I will try to get more interviews on my travels over the next month or so with Australian players.
Main points from the interview is that Carney wants out of Sheffield and will not return to the A-League in the near future.

 

[bikinigirl]

No, the team that wins the league are the Champions.

Sadly in Australia, we have the ridiculous post season cup contest to try to copy the "lesser" codes and their silly Grand Final concept.

If/when do you reckon that it will just be first past the post? I think when we have 12 teams, and assuming we play them 3 times as is now...33 games would be surely a post season cup is just overkill

. ahh, but the finals series is money for nothing for the ffa ... and judging by all the shit they were feeding us about ticketting to last year's finals - it is here for a long time, and likely to mean even more to the ffa as time goes by

. but i do wonder whether a genuine 'cup' style competition involving the second tier may help to win the ffa some concessions with regard to not having a relegation option when negotiating our acl position

. yes i know i am off topic

 

[FFC Mariner]

Be fascinated to see if you can get to Princess Leijer at Fulham (let me know if you are going to London and I will try to get a contact for you..somehow).

Rumour is the club was filthy about him coming back from the Olympics unfit and having not played

 

[bulldogmariner]

Be fascinated to see if you can get to Princess Leijer at Fulham (let me know if you are going to London and I will try to get a contact for you..somehow).

Rumour is the club was filthy about him coming back from the Olympics unfit and having not played

I will be in London some time so let me know. I am working with BBC today on Sheffield v Palace at Sheffield so try to get Nick Carle

 

[FFC Mariner]

Ask him why Jest is a cluster f**k lol

will start digging through the contacts for a name/number and pm you

 

[bulldogmariner]

Ask him why Jest is a cluster f**k lol

will start digging through the contacts for a name/number and pm you

Cheers i will look forward to that in the near future

 

[Bear]

Ah Serious! You cannot be serious. Sycophantic? that's why I criticised Bojic and Gumprecht. That's why I said 'Not happy'. But your pseudo management style, although clearly superior to Lawrie's, is from the days when players were on maximum wages and sprigs were nailed on. Get the dubbin out mate and polish your brain, what's left of it. I see the strengths and the weaknesses of the Mariners, and the A League;I enjoy the honesty and the naivety, the sweat and occasional skill, the despair of defeat and the delight of victory;  that's why I watch it, it's much better than the over paid, over hyped, over publicised mercenaries and prima donnas who parade in the EPL.

I agree with most of this

People should take a step back, and see our league for what it is, 4 years old ffs.

People bag out our coach. He has taken us to how many finals? Would you prefer we were like Perth, or Sydney, with how many coaches now?

We finished top of the league last year, we are going to asia, we have in the past signed 3 of the best socceroos in our countrys history, and we are now the richest team in the country, possibly one of the richest in asia.

Take a f**king chill pill ffs, is life THAT BAD as a Mariners fan?

 

[Arabmariner]

No, the team that wins the league are the Champions.

Sadly in Australia, we have the ridiculous post season cup contest to try to copy the "lesser" codes and their silly Grand Final concept.

If/when do you reckon that it will just be first past the post? I think when we have 12 teams, and assuming we play them 3 times as is now...33 games would be surely a post season cup is just overkill

If we were going to ditch the post season cup we'd need to be playing each other twice (or 4 times) and not an uneven three imo.That way it's an even contest unlike the thugby etc who have a lopsided competition (everyone plays each other once and some teams twice).

I think we might find a 22 round season when we go to 12 teams and eventually 26 rounds with 14 teams.Hopefully with the ridiculous post season cup ditched in favour of an FFA Cup played throughout the season with the final on the last day.

 

[Part_Timer]

Take a f**king chill pill ffs, is life THAT BAD as a Mariners fan?.......


only in the bay....