TO BE strictly accurate, big Lloyd Owusu came on in the 58th minute - but that's close enough to the hour. And when he came on Adelaide were a different team.

A lot has been written and spoken about the way Adelaide play. Much of the negative comment this year has come from disgruntled Reds fans who want to see more attacking play and are sick of the structured defensive style that garnered us so much (penultimate) success last year. They wanted a change from Viddie and the boys. Well, we got it - twice.

Viddie shuffled the pack and sent out a very strange formation for the first half. For ten minutes it seemed to be working, then GCU scored and it all fell apart. It was as if Adelaide fell under the spell of the Gold Coast hype machine. Don't misunderstand me, GCU played some awesome football (as I've written about on the match thread and various others - credit where credit is due) but Adelaide lost their mojo. And just about everything else. It was the proverbial football 'lesson'. The stadium went quiet and the electricity left the air. We went 2-0 down.

Then everything changed. The subs board went up and off came the missed but underdone Mullen and on came the man that Reds fans have pinned so much hope on. All of a sudden the place was alive again, the air was crackling and the crowd started to believe. When Owusu went straight into the forward line via a friendly 'bump' to Michael Thwaite the fans started to smile. It was as if big Lloyd was saying, "You picking on my little brother? Try me!".

All around him the team lifted. Cristiano looked like a man who had been crawling through a desert and finally discovered an oasis. Travis Dodd remembered that he played best shooting in from the right wing. Adelaide were all over GCU for the remainder of the game. Don't believe me? Have a look at the second-half highlights on here. How many chances? How did we not score? A little rusty maybe. It's been a while.

To my mind what came on with Lloyd 'Hangtime' Owusu was a little thing called self-belief. That "little thing" that has turned A-League rejects into key players at GCU. Character, personal charisma and confidence. Sasa used to embody it in a scary way. Lloyd does it and laughs. It was as if every player and fan at Hindmarsh went, "Finally - WE HAVE A STRIKER"!!!  Or should that be, "We have a second striker", because, unlike some, I haven't forgotten the incredible job Cristiano did for us last year in that impossible solo position.

Owusu literally bubbles (and babbles) both on and off the pitch. Already we love him. He won't do it alone. Not at all. Shin shone when he came on. It was great to see Barbiero back. Cassio was missing but he's pledged to the cause. Reid, that crucial piece in our play was gone but will be back soon. Marrone yet again showed why he's the player I most fear we'll lose to Europe. But Lloyd instils confidence. And confidence wins games.

When I left Hindmarsh last Friday night, I was annoyed about the loss but my heart wasn't nearly as heavy as it might have been. I felt like I'd just watched the beginning of something new at Adelaide United. Time will tell but, for now, I'm looking forward to the visit of Fury. We owe them one. Or two. Or three.....

Meanwhile, back with Red.... (for those who missed the first part you can read it here)

Waking up was never the best feeling the day after a fight. Red stretched out, feeling the aches and pains. Rolling on to his side his kissed the still sleeping woman who had welcomed him home the night before without a word of recrimination. He wasn't sure why she stuck by him but he was glad she did. Who can understand the nature and motivation of love?

He was still angry that he'd lost. Maybe he'd tried too hard early on. Changed things round too much. He'd been feeling good and then that sucker punch had taken away his wind. That'd hurt and he knew that for the majority of the first round he'd been backing away, trying to work out the way Goldie fought. That boy was just so fast. He'd been lucky not to have taken a knockout blow.

When they'd smashed the bottle to signal the end of the first round he'd been grateful just to sit down. Even his mates had been quiet and he knew that was a bad sign. Something had to change and he'd known that too. But what? He hadn't felt the  new training moves were quite ready.

The beginning of the second round had been a lot like that first one. Then Goldie had knocked him down. Maybe it was the shame. Maybe it was the sight of his boy peeking around the verandah rails as he picked himself up. He still wasn't sure but he'd decided that was enough.

Back on his feet, Red had looked Goldie squarely in the eye - then started to fight on the front foot. The new moves were raw but they had begun to land. Goldie had started moving away, dancing backwards. Not that he'd lost his threat, it had just receded. Red remembered how close he'd been to landing the punch that would have turned it. Close, but not close enough. When the second bottle smashed he knew he'd lost.

Shaking hands was never hard work. The young man was obviously ecstatic. He'd come to show he was a real contender - and he was. It'd been small comfort for Red when he'd noticed Goldie's leather pants had split down the back. Had that been a glittering....no, couldn't have been.

The phone rang. It was Red's mates, planning a trip up north to have another go. Have to work on those moves a bit before then. Think about Goldie's style. He began to smile.

But that was for the future. Time to make breakfast for the boy. First things first.