Every Game Is Exactly The Same

This was supposed to be a humorous, tongue-in-cheek blog poking fun at the different kinds of football fans we have in this country. Unfortunately, due to my club serving up yet another insipid home performance on the weekend against Brisbane, I’ll have to postpone receiving my Pulitzer prize. My tongue is firmly out of my cheek, and you can say hello to Mr Ranty McRant.

And now, some Trent Reznor:

I believe I can see the future;
Because I repeat the same routine.
I think I used to have a purpose;
But then again, that might have been a dream...

Every day is exactly the same...
Every day is exactly the same...
There is no life here, and there is no pain;
Every day is exactly the same.

-- Nine Inch Nails, ”Every Day Is Exactly The Same”

Glory fans have been long-suffering supporters in the A-League. We’ve had some of the worst coaches, players, and administrators ever to grace the five-year history of our ‘new football’. The last three seasons have brought three straight second-last finishes. After a few years like that, Perth fans will take any improvement as a godsend. So it takes some doing to have fans up in arms when your team is sitting fifth on the table and on a four-game unbeaten streak. Predictably though, they’ve still managed it - and after this weekend’s game, even yours truly is throwing his arms up in despair.

Glory’s problem is not that they’re crap - it’s that they’re not performing to quite to the level that they could or should be. In addition, there’s a ‘sameness’ about their style of play and results from week to week - and we’re not talking about continuous 5-0 victories here either. It is guaranteed that nearly every week you’ll see 30-45 minutes of football from Perth Glory FC. In that period of time, there’ll be nice passing, some good crosses, and if you’re lucky maybe even a goal or two. You might think, “that’s great - it sounds like an entertaining prospect!” and more often than not you’d be right.

The only problem is that somebody forgot to tell the coach and players that a football match doesn’t last for 45 minutes. It actually lasts for an hour and a half (plus three minutes- ALWAYS three minutes), and that leaves a lot of time where fans wonder exactly what is happening out there on the park.

It’s incredibly frustrating to watch games like Sunday where you know your team has an excellent chance of picking up all three points, but they fail to take the game by the scruff of the neck and earn themselves the win. Whether it be Sunday’s match against Brisbane, the 0-0 draw with Central Coast, or the 2-2 draw with Gold Coast earlier in the year, Glory certainly aren’t short of examples. Sunday was particularly torturous- at half time I said to a fellow supporter; “We only play one good half in every match. Was that it?”. Unfortunately, I soon had my answer when Luke DeVere bundled the ball into the back of the Glory net.

An Axe To Grind

So, after such a disappointing result on the weekend, you’d expect heads to roll. Not so at Perth Glory! While Adelaide chops and changes to avoid remaining at the bottom of the barrel (sounds familiar) Perth are ‘sitting pretty’ in fifth place and as such David Mitchell doesn’t see the need to shake things up too much. After all, the team hasn’t lost in four matches, right? Well, yes - but by the same token, Perth have won only one of their last seven matches; which to me seems pretty mediocre for a squad of their quality.

What’s more, the team looks tired; players just wander about, no-one really cares to run for a fast-breaking counter, and there is a distinct lack of imagination, intensity, and creativity. We are boring, predictable, and static - and you do not win games if you play football like that, especially at home. 

Not everyone falls into this category. Andy Todd and Victor Sikora play with their hearts on their sleeve- they show a team spirit and work-rate twice that of many of their teammates, and seem more committed to the club than nearly anyone. Considering neither of them were born in this country, let alone this city, that’s just sad. Of the local lads, you can always rely on Jamie Harnwell - a true legend of the Australian game, even if he is desperately underrated outside of Perth. Captain Jacob Burns another who gives 110% every match - even if it does rack him up an impressive collection of yellow cards. Hell, even local ex-cop Scott Bulloch, if you overlook his lack of skill at this level, still puts in for the team.

But for every tyro on the park there is a passenger. Eugene Dadi failed to show any movement or defensive pressure while playing upfront, and quickly found himself on the outer with team management. Adriano Pellegrino, while on the improve compared to earlier in the year, just hasn’t done enough to warrant a regular place in the first XI. For me though, the greatest frustration of all has been Wayne Srhoj.

Capable of brilliance and yet unbelievably lazy at the same time, anyone who has seen Srhoj play can quickly point out his talent. Cutting passes, a good eye for interceptions, and a screaming long-range strike. But his engine does not match his potential, and he runs out of puff after 60 minutes, is weak in the tackle, and won’t run unless certain of a goal. Yet every week he’s out there from the kick-off, and the message from the manager is loud and clear: “just keep plodding along boys, I’m sure a goal is just around the corner”. Well, I call bullshit on that message.

It’s been suggested by some that a squad this talented doesn’t need a manager to get a result. I hope that this year is proving these people wrong; because I haven’t seen much management at all lately from David Mitchell. Under-performing players are left in the team. Reserves and subs don’t get a look-in apart from when people are injured. Very little attention is paid to tactical changes in personnel between matches. The result? Players aren’t kept on their toes; mediocrity is rewarded; the team grows stale, and we end up with results like last Sunday at ME Bank Stadium. Double training sessions are tiring players out three days before the game are they? My arse they are!

With all this in mind, I’ve decided to take a hacksaw to the regular Glory lineup and shed a bit of stale blood. With the game against North Queensland in mind, this would be my lineup:

Velaphi

Neville---Todd---C. Coyne--Sekulovski

Sterjovski------Jukic------Burns------Sikora

Amphlett----Harnwell

Bench: Vrteski, J. Coyne, Howarth, Pellegrino

The first thing to note here is that I’m assuming Chris Coyne will be back and Jelic won’t be fit for Friday night’s game. If he is, I’d throw Harnwell onto the bench in the place of Pellegrino. More on that in a moment; for now, here’s a quick summary of the key ins and outs.

OUT: Wayne Srhoj. Seems harsh, but harsh is what we need to be. You cannot simply play 60 minutes of each game before tiring unless you’ve got the skills and influence of a fit Charlie Miller. While Srhoj is talented, he’s never going to be that good; and he needs to be taught that unless he’s fit and focussed for every game, he won’t earn a place in the starting lineup. In other words, he needs a rocket put up him.

BENCHED: Jamie Coyne. Coyne had a shocker last week; he made one or two good runs upfield but his marking was often poor and his distribution simply horrendous. The amount of Coyne passes that went out of play, out for a goal kick, or straight to an opposition player just beggared belief. Kept around simply as defensive cover for the bench.

BENCHED: Adriano Pellegrino. Missed being thrown to the youth by the barest of margins, saved by his versatility and the fact he’s gradually improved just recently. Still needs a rocket put up him, and with any luck a game on the pine will help him recapture some of the scintillating form of last year. Has the talent and the work ethic, but needs to apply it more often than he’s shown this year.

STARTING: Jamie Harnwell (if Jelic misses out). Harnwell is the ultimate ‘X-Factor’ for any team; when he’s on the pitch, ‘shit happens’. He might not be able to run out the full game, but in that case Jukic, Sterjovski, or Sikora could push up and we could bring on fresh legs for the midfield. More than anything, Harnwell is a big-hearted symbol of determination and passion; something the team desperately needs to show more of.

STARTING: Tommy Amphlett. Screw a midfielder masquerading as a striker; a poacher like Jelic or a target man like Harnwell needs another forward playing alongside them, and Tommy’s just the kid to provide that. A Harnwell-Amphlett combo would be ideal; both are local lads who have a passion for representing their state, and Tommy knows how to play off a bigger striker after his time with Ian McMurray at ECU Joondalup. The kid’s got pace and can replicate Sikora’s role of “angry ant” up front; leaving Sikora free to send in his slide-rule passes and pinpoint crosses- two things Glory really miss when playing Victor further up the park.

IN: Andrija Jukic. When Andy Todd was asked by Whinging Pom Magazine who he thought the player with the most skill at the club was, Andrija Jukic was his answer. With Srhoj and Pellegrino frustratingly inconsistent, Perth needs someone creative to set up chances for the two strikers, and occasionally drive forward have a pop himself. Jukic fits this role perfectly - he’s young, he’s fit, he scores goals, and he’d be chomping at the bit for a full 90 minutes. 

There you have it - maybe I’ll forget the Pulitzer completely and just settle for “A-League Coach of the Year” right now. A rock solid centre-half combination; fullbacks with attacking potential (and a hard worker in Sikora in front of Naum to cover his runs forward that leave gaping holes at the back); two quality wingers to cross, pass, and get into the channels; a defensive midfielder ready to scythe opponents in half and a creative playmaker young and fit enough to run back and help him when necessary; and a traditional big-man-small-man combination to play to upfront - it even fits the official Perth Glory 4-4-2 formation!

Of course, this just won’t happen. We’ll turn up to Townsville with a near-identical lineup, and we’ll have a near identical result to last time. Wayne Srhoj will have maybe one half of football in him due to the oppressive weather, and Andrija Jukic will simply remain with the youth team. We’ll fight, but not fight hard enough, and escape with two or three points less than what we should have had. And things just won’t change any time soon.

Every Game Is Exactly The Same...

(Please lads... please, please, please prove me wrong this Friday!)