Blog: Less Bouncers, More DJ's

LAST Friday I had a really stressful day at work. Unfortunately, watching the Mariners lose to Adelaide did little to make me feel better.

Last week we benefitted from a goalkeeping error. This week our opponents did, which I guess is rough justice.  But let's not blame Vukes, who has been performing brilliantly since the start of the season, nor Mrdja, Macca and Simon who haven't been getting much chance to score. 

Simon Hill perhaps hit the nail on the head when he described Bojic as "a bouncer not a DJ".  Sure, we've got the security issues sorted out up the back and some fine strikers up front ready to dance. But what about the music ? 

Since the loss of Caceres, much has depended on the sparkling partnership of Travis and McGlinchey to create a danceable soundtrack.  With Mickey on the road with his side-project, the party just never got started.   

Maybe it's time to unleash the West Indian rhythms of Wolry Wolfe on the Gold Coast next week?  I don't know about you, but I'm hanging out for a reason to party. 

Luckily, Robbie Fowler gave us all something to celebrate on Saturday.  Has there ever been a better goal in A-League history ?  The kind of goal that lifts the spirits and glorifies football, even for those who don't share our passion for the game. 

Even this early in the season, it's fair to say that Fowler is the best marquee player the A-League has ever seen.  A player whose breathtaking technical ability is seemingly matched by dignity and a genuine commitment to his team. His unrivalled ability to raise the status and profile of the A-League this season is sure to prove a tremendous marketing asset. 

Or as Robbie Slater advised : "If he's coming to your town, don't be stupid - get a ticket !" I'm not sure that line would work as an ad campaign, but what did work was the "Aloisi vs God" marketing that was inescapable in Sydney last week. Hats off to the SFC marketing department : on one day alone there were nine separate ads, including a full-page ad, in the 32 page free commuter newspaper MX.   

Call me a football tragic, but I still get a thrill to see the A-League given such a high profile.  Although it might sound strange, I love the A-League more than I love my club.  I rejoice in Fowler's goal and hope Fury do well because ultimately it's good for the game.  

For a long time, Australian football was riven with club divisions based on ethnic difference. While giving the utmost respect to those who built football in this country, such divisions ultimately proved to be a serious stumbling block to the development of our domestic competition.  

I find it therefore incredibly problematic that there are football fans in Australia who continue to effectively boycott the A-League because they "don't feel part of it." Sure, it was fantastic to see the Liverpool supporters out at the SFS, but if they love football that much why don't they come every week?   

The same question could be asked of football fans in western Sydney, who will find out this week whether their A-League bid has been successful.  According to Mike Cockerill : "there's a fair argument crowds would at least match Sydney FC,  but to get them will require honesty and hard work," as they feel "marginalised by the FFA".  

Marginalised ?  Why?  I live in the far north of Sydney where there will never be an A-League team, nor a Premier League team for that matter, but I'm not hanging around feeling marginalised. I'm too busy driving 100 kms every other week to support my club. Other people in my area support the Sky Blues, as they prefer to struggle with idiots in the SFS carpark than idiots on the F3.  Either way, we're not waiting for the A-League to come to us.  

But there's more to this than travelling. Apparently, many people in Western Sydney didn't support a general Sydney team when the A-League was originally formed because they saw Sydney FC as being controlled by particular NSL-associated groups. Isn't this just the whole pointless ethnic divide of "old soccer" all over again ?  Why can't someone support a Premier League team AND Sydney FC ?  

I wish the Western Sydney bid the best of luck but as far as I'm concerned when it comes to football : love the one you're with. We live in multi-cultural Australia in the 21^st Century. Time to join the A-League party, not cling to the past.