Here’s what we learned from a controversial weekend …

1. They’ve Lost That Ruthless Feeling
Jim Magilton could be forgiven if he asks for Ernie Merrick’s phone number. He'd probably even be applauded if he did, as the man who coached Melbourne Victory to a 6-0 Grand Final win should have a pretty good idea of how Victory’s once ruthless mentality can be restored. While Archie Thompson alone could have buried Adelaide in the first half of Friday’s night see-sawing encounter, Magilton will be acutely aware that his new side’s woes stretch beyond technical deficiencies – perhaps best evidenced by Thompson’s failure to gamble on a Jean Carlos Solorzano through ball in the 74th minute. Unless he can manage to clone the fast-improving Harry Kewell, who was unlucky not to be leading the all-time A-League assist chart by the final whistle, the man who has inherited Mehmet Durakovic’s suit must find a solution to Victory’s waning fear factor if their former glory is to be restored.

2. Coaches Want a Slice
In a weekend of heated rivalries and Twitter confrontations, 35 minutes into an F3 derby Newcastle coach Gary van Egmond did his best to upstage fans, European imports and television pundits for the title of best sledge of the round. Upon hearing of Graham Arnold’s plans to adjust Mariners' midfield away from their finely tuned diamond formation, van Egmond suggested his opposite number’s move was counter to Arnold’s hardened belief in his structure. The Central Coast boss has, of course, previously rewired his midfield during proceedings, but we won’t let “facts” get in the way of amusing and endearing banter between coaches, especially after the much hyped Kosmina/Muscat sideline meeting was, predictably, another letdown. The jibe won’t have annoyed Arnold as much as Mariner Troy Hearfield’s penalty miss, however, as it meant the home outfit had to wait until the hour mark for regular penalty-taker Patrick Zwaanswijk to right the earlier wrong by equalising from within the Jets’ penalty area.

3. Watch Your Legs
In a match with more talking points than a regular Melbourne Victory fixture, we can be sure of one fact: not one player or staff member kicked another. Don’t underestimate the significance of this detail which has thus far been overlooked in post-match discussions. There is no worse look for football, or any game, to have its participant’s legs flailing around during a stoush, attempting to emulate the characters of Shaolin Soccer and, in an always cringeworthy manner, injure their opponents/referee/pitch invader as we so often see in overseas footage reported by the mainstream Australian media. From the stunning conclusion to the attempted brawl, the five minutes stoppage time, Vitezslav Lavicka’s possible head explosion, the attempted brawl, Thomas Broich’s return, Liam Reddy’s elbow nearly removing Besart Berisha’s head, the attempted brawl and Mark Bridge scoring, Brisbane’s 2-1 home win over Sydney will live long in the memory for a variety of forgettable and unforgettable moments. While there will probably be some ashamed members of Saturday night’s fracas, they can at least be somewhat redeemed in the knowledge it all could have been much, much worse.

4. Away Days Are Evolving
Congratulations Perth Glory: first, for recording a second away win over Melbourne Heart for the season and, second, for the number of Glory supporters who were in attendance to see it. A heartwarming weekend of away support in the A-League was confirmed in the fourth match of the round (later cemented by the Yellow Fever’s showing on the Gold Coast) as a healthy Perth contingent followed their side in its bid to maintain an equally promising revival. None too often has the Glory faithful been rewarded on the pitch for their support, making Steve McGarry’s fortunate, yet deserved, winner all the sweeter for purple sympathisers. The lamentable nonexistence of an effective form of free teleportation will always hinder Australian sports fan’s pursuits of following their team interstate; hopefully January 2012 will set the bar for A-League supporters’ attempts to overcome such difficulties.

5. With Great Technology Comes Great Responsibility
At football’s most fundamental level, players should play, coaches should coach and armchair critics should criticise from their comfort of their armchair hub of wisdom – that’s the status quo and how it should remain. Granted, credit should be duly paid to Fox Sports for implementing innovation and looking to further engage audiences by experimenting with live insight. However, Gold Coast manager Miron Bleiberg’s live tactical insights during his team’s 1-0 loss at home to Wellington should be just about the extent of the experiment. The concept itself was interesting enough – the home side’s increased urgency to test Phoenix ‘keeper Mark Paston from long range on Bleiberg’s insistence might have previously gone unnoticed – but few coaches around the globe are as outgoing as the Gold Coast boss, and nor should they be forced into unwilling situations outside of their realistic commitments. For now and into the future, a voluntary approach should be the limit of ‘coach commentary’ as a balance between football and entertainment.