Vertigo

Two points clear at the top of the table. Mmm...feels good !

It's heady stuff after Round One to be the only team with a win under its belt, the only team that took an early lead and defended it successfully for 85 minutes.  Andy Harper, self-confessed president of the Matt Simon fan club (hey, that's my job), couldn't contain himself.

"There's Graham Arnold waving his arms very demonstrably", he observed as the Mariners defended right up until a last-minute dodgy corner.  Dear Harps, how we've missed your glorious tautologies, your creative analogies !

And you seemed as genuinely excited as we were to see Arnie's first win as the Mariner's new coach. I admit I had tears in my eyes at the end of the 94 minutes (does anyone else think four minutes added on was excessive?) and all weekend I prayed for draws for every other match.

Miraculously, it was a clean sweep, ensuring we'll feel good for at least the next week.  Yeah, I know : our seasons always start like this.  But I'm not living in the past anymore or listening to the doubters.  I'm here for the next 29 Rounds and building my confidence little by little.

I can only hope my team does the same. This season will be the longest in A-League history and it will take a lot of grit, determination and positive thinking to keep on believing.  As we start the season with such excitement I can't help but wonder what lies ahead and how we'll feel by the end of the year.

Watching Arnie introduce the players on Mariners fan day, I feel genuinely proud of the team I support : new guys from Europe and South America, stalwarts like Hutch, Wilko and Porter, wide-eyed teenagers and battle-scarred veterans. There's a wealth and variety of experience there this year and it will surely make for a season to remember.

The sun shines as it does every fan day and everyone's in a great mood.  Zwaanswijk proves to be a natural comic ("How do you pronounce your name ?" asks a fan. "Patrick," he replies), star attraction Perez lurks modestly by the temporary tattoo tent while Wilko jokes about aiming for The Golden Boot.

Given the microphone, Arnie is anything but inarticulate.  One minute he's joking that Matt Simon is "a danger to other players at training", the next he's graciously thanking the Mariners' staff and humbly asking for our support this season.

No-one in the crowd could have doubted his sincerity.  And while I was unashamedly one of Lawrie's  greatest fans, Arnie is clearly keen to become part of the club culture and genuinely   respect its supporters.

Surely he deserves credit for that, not to mention the tactical decisions he made against Heart. His use of Simon to shut down Skoko was a masterstroke and made a crucial difference to the outcome of the match. Since Josh Rose is still awaiting his visa clearance, perhaps we may see Simon play a similar role this week.

Who knows what else Arnie has up his sleeve ?  I for one, am looking forward to finding out as the season goes on. And in case you were wondering, Lawrie looked relaxed and comfortable as he chatted in the crowd, strangely not wearing yellow and navy. You get the feeling he's casting a proud eye over the new squad and yet enjoying passing the reins to someone else.

And while fans may share this pride, it's hard sometimes not to feel helpless in this whole unpredictable process of supporting a team.  Sure we're on top of the table for one brief shining moment and I'm quietly confident about beating Adelaide (despite Stephen's beautiful motivational words to his team !)  but what about the weeks ahead ?

What can we do in the face of injuries and unfair ref decisions and simple twists of fate ?  On fan day I have this terrible urge to hug players, tell them I believe in them, tell them that watching them play helps me cope with all the tedium of daily life.

But that would be rather pathetic.

Of course I could write thousands of words of encouragement and hope they occasionally read them.  Better still - keep a respectful distance, send positive thoughts and simply be there through all the pain and boredom and aggravation and delirious excitement to come in Season 6.

And if you ever find yourself at the top of the table, don't look down.