Everyone knows the old football quote from Bill Shankly about the importance of football so I'm not going to insult your intelligence by rolling it out again. However, I am sure some people actually feel football is more important than life. I feel that football is life.

I love how your life and your mood can be shaped and changed by the fortunes of your club. It's the recent actions of my club that have instilled some pride about Brisbane Roar. It has made me proud of the direction Brisbane are heading and the way they are going about it.

I must admit in years gone by there have been moments when I have been embarrassed by the actions of my club, whether that means conduct on the field (i.e. red cards etc), treatment of the core Brisbane Roar fans and the interaction with the wider Brisbane community.

Having said that, I will always love Roar no matter what they do and I would never turn my back on them. It's the community aspect which has made me particularly proud of my team this pre-season. I believe Lyall Gorman the A-League chairman says it best concerning a community based interaction of an A League club:

"If we can really engage our communities, fan-base become tribalistic which can be done over time. And we've got to be aware that you don't build a sense of history and tradition in five years. It takes time to grow.

"And we've also got to look at the event day experience and make sure it's a place where fans can really engage emotionally because support is the key to our future success with the fans with the derbies and tribalism - it is that emotional connection between the clubs, players and fans.

"We want fans to become part of clubs' journeys year in year out. "

Thanks Lyall.

This sense of community, I believe, Roar have lacked from the early days of the club. Whether it's from the association with the local Brisbane team, the Lions (which Roar have distanced themselves from) or the poor marketing and community outreach from Roar in the early days, it doesn't matter. It only matters what they are doing about it now.

The players were sent to the corners of Brisbane, appearing at schools for jersey presentations, and talks, engaging and signing autographs. Roar appeared at the Paniyiri Greek Festival, with the highlight being Roary (the best club mascot in the league) Zorba dancing. The Roar players returned to their local clubs to spread the word and form stronger links to Brisbane Football. Ange reinforced this improved Brisbane football interaction by liaising with clubs and forging ahead for the first time in Roar history. This shouldn't be an adversarial relationship.

Where there was a cause, there was a Brisbane Roar player. Perhaps the best example of this was a charity game for local Brisbane player George Wani who was involved in a car accident. Roar played an invitational African Team to raise funds for the George Wani Foundation. My club is sending out a clear message, so clear they made an advertisement about it. We are one, we are Brisbane. It didn't always feel like that, but its starting to.

It's not only the community outreach that has impressed me. It's the squad itself. There is no doubt Ange is a hard task master as a coach. He expects people to train hard. You have to earn your place on the field. Not to be given your place on a silver platter. If there is one thing I can't stand it's a player with tons of skill but no motivation or fight. So in this aspect I love what Ange is doing.

One of my favourite community based outings is the Roar Family Fun day which happened on Sunday. The players get presented their jerseys and sign autographs. There are food stalls, mini train rides, jumping castles, mini football field and a petting zoo for the kids. This year I got to take my seven month old daughter to the family fun day. She doesn't it know it yet, but she is a mad Roar fan as well.

My wife took her down the line as the Roar players signed a poster for her. Theoklitos smiled and talked to her, but he was no match for Eric Paartalu who managed to attract my daughter's gaze for a full five minutes, I guess we know who her favourite player is (with a full history of heterosexuality I can say he is rather good looking). Reinaldo and Ricky smiled as Reinaldo got up and touched her hand, and finally Luke Bratten at the end of the line was impressed by her hat as he beamed a smile at her. The ways these players interacted with my daughter only endeared me more to the club.

I have already written a couple of blogs about the direction of my club. That is with good reason.Roar are headed in the right direction as far as I'm concerned. As Lyall Gorman pointed out, you need to engage with the community to create a tribalistic following. The way my club is going they are making inroads in that respect, and although it may not pay off it huge crowd numbers initially, the positivity they are generating with their actions can not help but touch the community and break down barriers in the future.

If your club is just about training, winning and going home, I don't think they are doing your community justice. Football is more than kicking a ball and collecting a pay cheque. It's about us against them, it's about making your kids happy, it's about being apart of something larger than just yourself and what goes on in your bubble.

Well that's what I think, but maybe I'm just an idealist.