“THREE-Two-One. Happy New Year!”

“I love you man. You’re the best!” Thanks buddy but after last Saturday, I think that title belongs to Ney. Or maybe Danny for his hip and shoulder on Kossie.

“We’ve been through a lot this year mate, with the credit crunch and all.” Tell me about it! That away game stretch was nasty too.

“Dude, what about resolutions?” Umm...every morning I’m gonna run the Tan and I’m only eating food from farmers markets. Oh, and I’m putting all my money on Victory to make the finals.

I awoke late the next morning, nursing a slight hangover. I couldn’t be stuffed going for a jog so I drove to Maccas for a feed. On the way, I got to thinking about what some of the Victory’s resolutions should be.

There’s one that springs to mind immediately. How about having a few less distractions in 2009? I’d love just to keep it about the football rather than spitting, swearing and gambling.

Anyway, let’s have a closer look at some of Victory’s key personnel.

First up, Kevin:

Few A-League players divide opinion more. The recent betting scandal hurt Kevin a lot.

“I consider myself a role model to other people, how they look upon me matters to me, and the thought that some might change their views is very hurtful to me...This will never happen again”

But it also hurt the fans. This is not behaviour that we expect from any of our players, let alone our captain. Last chance in my view.

Resolution – Lead by example on and off the field as this determines the benchmark for our club.

Next in line, Carlos:

There’s no doubting this guys talent. When in full flight his creative passing and excellent hold up play makes him one of the A-League’s finest.

Just last week, Gary Cole said, “We think he's made a significant difference to our side and we would love to keep him around if we can.”

No joke Gary. The problem is his fitness. He huffs and puffs and is usually out of gas by the half. If Carlos can contribute for the full 90 minutes I say pay the rumoured $650k to LD Alajuelense.

Resolution – Lay off the Bavaria Negras and get stuck into a few more laps at training.

Finally, it’s Ernie’s turn:

Let’s sort out our defence. It took our first ten games to concede 11 goals. In our last four games, we’ve conceded just as many.

Michael Lynch summed it up pretty well before the Sydney match, “(Victory’s) midfield lacks cohesion and inspiration, and its strikers, while on target four times in the past three games, cannot compensate for the defensive frailties.”

There’s no doubt our leaky defence has to do with a lack of structural consistency. A lot of Victory posters have been banging on about this for ages and the proof is in the pudding.

I personally like a back three but with key players playing in their preferred positions across the park.

Resolution – Experiment on FM09 but leave it to the tried and true on the field.

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Much has been made of Queensland’s cracking away form and defensive record this year. They did beat us at the Dome last time around but despite this, I fancy us to take the points on Friday.

I feel our attacking players are full of confidence and will run rings around Craig Moore and co. Plus I reckon the team will still be riding high from the Sydney match and will look to carry that form on.


Tristram is a Victory fan and wishes he could say that a knee injury curtailed his promising football career.