Put your foot on it son!

So Arnie and his men showed that the improvement everyone was hoping for running up to the finals is really happening. Arnie promised there was better to come and he appears to have been right. The team over the last two games have been dominate and played a very attractive and free flowing style of football. We also of course know the team is still a work in progress, there is improvement in this team yet and this could make the Mariners the real threat for the championship.

So in the last two displays there was a notable difference in the tempo and style of the team to past weeks. Finally the Mariners have returned to a variable speed game that they seemed to be developing well at the start of the season. There was a comment I remember from the commentator of the Brazil versus Netherlands game during the World Cup last year. The commentator was making note that the South American countries played at a different tempo to what people attributed to them. They play a very two paced game, the Latin American style teams will slow the game down and knock the ball about and as the defence slows and becomes used to this slow non-threatening style the team will suddenly go into a turbo series of passes and pull the attack apart. On a number of occasions over the last two games the Mariners have employed just this tactic. There were a few passages on Wednesday night where the passing through the centre of the Brisbane defence was so crisp and fast the Roar players could only stand and watch. This is what Perez is bringing to the Central Coast and the A-League.

It was quite telling that in the games against the Phoenix and Roar the team started slowly and gave the opposition a large amount of possession and position. This lead to a number of near misses and heart problems in the crowd. I think that this poor start can be attributed to the Mariners trying to match the other team's tempo. However once the team settled in and slowed the tempo to where they wanted it the possession and position flowed to the Mariners Both the Phoenix and the Roar play a fast up tempo style, this just does not suit our creative players. Let's face it I think it would be completely reasonable to have the Roar logo changed to the Energizer Bunny. It appeared that Graham Arnold through much shouting and his facing turning a rather attractive shade of scarlet the team got the message. Put your foot on the ball and look at what options you have before you make the play.

Once the Mariners are playing the game at their own tempo they are able to start running a number of players on different lines at the defence. With so many players willing to work so hard for the team, especially our fullbacks and the outside midfielders the central players have a huge number of options and outlets. This choice of options means that they rarely get shut down and forced backwards. But the real pleasure to see is once the central players select a direction they are staying alive and prepared to take the ball back if needed. By making themselves available in this way the Mariners are able to keep the ball high while in possession. It was very noticeable in the stats from Wednesday night's game that although the possession was almost 50-50 the possession in the opposition half was far in the favour of the Coast. Even without the statistics it was evident on the field the last two weeks that when the Mariners get blocked from a move forward the ball normally only travels back to Perez or Griffiths where as the opposition was sending it back to the Central Defenders more often than not. The Mariners were only really using the Central pair of Wilkinson and Zwaanswijk when a ball was turned over in the midfield and the team wants to start building an attack.

Hopefully the last two games have shown the team that they are more than capable of matching the Energizer Bunny Roar team. Even when being pressured most of our players are comfortable enough on the ball to ride a challenge or draw a foul. This ball control and the new found self belief allowed the Mariners to dominate the Roar for the majority of the game. I think all the supporters hope that the team continues to play in this way and become a little more efficient if the front third. If the Mariners can relax a little in front of goal and replicate some of the capabilities of players such as Broich or Van Dijk they will be unstoppable.

I am getting very excited about the direction this team appears headed this season, UP