CHRISTMAS is coming and mums and dads everywhere are going to be trying to convince kids around the world that Santa really does exist.

That he slides down non-existent chimneys, travels at the speed of sound and really did drink the beer that we left out (“Stop burping, darling!”). It’s all a harmless fantasy and we’re all happy enough to play along.

In Adelaide this week we’re dealing with a far more dangerous issue. On Sunday we played for equal top spot against the bottom team on the ladder. Their coach was consigned to the stands, their best player was suspended and a key defender was out.

They were in terrible form and have been losing players to new clubs at an alarming rate. Cut and dried – yes? You would have thought so.

Unfortunately Viddie had a crisis of faith. He stopped believing in strikers. Adelaide played, against a team ripe for the picking, for around 70 lethargic minutes without a recognised striker on the pitch. What was that about?

Admittedly our most expensive player, the charming but permanently injured Paul Agostino, has now become club mascot but that hardly means that all strikers must be disregarded. Or does it? Apparently.

Cristiano was sitting in the sun having a quiet day at the office. True, when he came on there was a need for greater urgency but his appearance did coincide with Adelaide putting real pressure on the Jets’ defence. Young Robbie Younis, who knocks them in for the Y-League team seems to be completely out of favour. Yes, he’s raw but at least he shoots. After that the cupboard is bare. So play Younis!

I’m all for attacking midfielders but I’m also a believer that it’s nice for them to have a striker to work with. Travis Dodd is a great player and a fine captain but he’s not superman. He can’t be expected to do everything. We need strikers on the pitch to win games.

Credit to the Jets for their performance. Adam Griffiths was awesome (and I detest that word – but he deserves it) and Covic was in fine form until seconds from the end. His save from Dodd’s second effort towards the end was inspirational. They wanted the game more than Adelaide and it showed.

But they still shouldn’t have got anything from it. Adelaide are too good a team. Or maybe we’re not.

Maybe, in all the excitement of the season to date, we’ve forgotten that we’re back in the A-League and that strikers score goals and that winning actually means a hell of a lot and is worth busting a gut for.

This is no time to stop believing.