THERE was some interesting rustling at Sydney FC training this week.

First off there was the training ground spat between Clint Bolton and Terry McFlynn. The headline on FourFourTwo earlier this week read "Bootsa Blow -Up at Sydney training".

Clint Bolton is the one known as "Bootsa". In the Greek language bootsa means penis, so reading that headline again with that in mind it takes a very different direction to what you initially thought it would be.

Anyway, getting my mind out of the gutter for one moment, the other interesting headline again involved Sydney FC keeper Clint Bolton.

The FourFourTwo headline shouted "Bolton: We've Never Been Bling"

Bootsa had a few words to say about the 'Bling' tag. Apparently the players felt uncomfortable wearing it.

"We've always been a hardworking side that spends a lot of hours out on the pitch," he said.  "That's always been our trademark really, despite the old tag 'Bling FC'", Bootsa said.

To be truthful the 'Bling FC' moniker was only worn by 'All night' Dwight Yorke. He was the only one who could really afford any proper 'Bling'. The rest of the team were dragging on Dwight's 'Bling' encrusted coat tails.

So when Dwight left early in season two the 'Bling' left with it, replaced by a hard drinking instant coffee connoisseur called Terry Butcher. The 'Bling' did make a short lived come back later in the season when Benito Carbone had a guest stint, but that was until he pulled his hamstring.

I really liked the nickname. It gave Sydney a term of reference that differentiated us from the other teams. All it takes is a new marquee who doesn't have a dodgy knee (*cough* John Aloisi *cough*)

To the Mariners

Public Holiday Monday should see a pretty good crowd at the SFS particularly since it's a double header involving the W-League game with the Sydney ladies taking on the Central Coast ladies.

The A League ladder is as tight as a camel's arse in a sand storm at the moment. If I was on radio or television I would sum up the season as a "tipsters nightmare". People like to slag off the Mariners as long ball and boring. You can really say that about most A League teams most, English Premier League teams and most International Football teams.

I hope Larry keeps on picking Disco Stu. I also hope he drops the ineffective Kisel. It's not that the ex Slovak international is playing that badly, it's just that he hasn't done anything that well either.

I thought the performance by Sydney against Brisbane last week had its moments. Even though we lost, I thought the movement and intensity was perhaps the best the team have shown so far this season.

It must be said that the clear cut chances so far this season have been frustrating low. The Mariners will be hard to beat but so is Sydney and after the 0-0 bore draw at Gosford earlier in the season both teams have a duty to perform for the crowd.