The Cat is Dead.

It's common wisdom that the cat has nine lives. What happens when it gets to death number nine?

I can only hope that it dies. Forever.

Yes folks, Adelaide have lost nine in a row to Melbourne and each one has hurt. Badly. Saturday night's loss was no less painful for the fact that no-one really expected a win. In fact, a spirited Adelaide performance that left Victory shaky after the first half was enough to inspire small dreams of recovery.

But we lost. Again. It was no-one's fault but our own. So I dearly hope the dead cat that is the Reds team against Victory has cast off its last soul and can be buried along with the memories of blue domination.

Next time we need to be a different team. No more dead cat.

Will it happen? Of course it will. Our day will come.

Adelaide now enter into the exciting early stages of the ACL campaign. With Victory for company of course. Both teams have earnt the right to compete at this elite level. Every player will be hoping to showcase his skills on the big stage. Spirits will lift as new challenges become real.

Most opposition fans will expect Adelaide to fail badly. It's possible that we will. It's also possible that we'll do what we did last time and confound the critics.

Adelaide are bent - not broken. We still have great players. We also have a new creative midfielder specially signed for this competition. If we can find a way to put the ball in the net then we'll be dangerous.

If.

This new dawn gives Viddie a chance to roll the dice and decide who really deserves to wear the red shirt. With few expectations he has nothing to lose.

I hope he gives Monterosso a chance. I hope he succeeds.

Thing is, even though this season has been a trial for those of us who love the Reds, we still love our team. Even a sniff of success is enough to get the heart pumping and the hopes soaring.

It's been great to see Travis Dodd come back into form in the last few weeks. Great to see Jamo swinging in the crosses and set-pieces on Saturday. Fantastic to know that, low as we are, we still have the best keeper to grace the Australian league.

We are the Reds. We are Adelaide United. We are proud of who we are.

The ACL beckons. Last time we made the final.

The cat is dead. Is something new about to be born?