Strange Things Are Afoot At Sydney FC

That is how I view Sydney FC at the current moment. As a neutral sitting in the stands on Saturday night to watch Sydney FC take on Melbourne Victory many thoughts were going through my head as I took in the atmosphere and feeling of the parochial crowd.

After an embarrassing drubbing at the hands of Central coast on a week earlier, it was still no surprise that a 20,000 plus crowd turned up to watch the Sky Blues. The Cove was full and in full voice from the start. It seemed that many in the crowd were there for one reason only and that was confirmed when the team was announced. At the announcement and the arrival on the field of Alessandro Del Piero brought the crowd to life. Sydney could have lost 20 nil last week and they all still would have turned up to see there football hero. Sydney loves an event.

Before the game started I had no doubt that if Sydney capitulated again there would be serious questions asked of the team and especially the coaching staff. By half time with Sydney at 1-0 the Cove were in full voice and the fans were in a nervous excitement. When Pascal Bosschaart scored his first ever professional goal the crowd was buzzing and preparing to party the night away.

All this was to change though in the 66th minute when Del Piero was substituted. Although many are critical with this decision, I would maintain it was the right one. With Del Piero returning from a hamstring injury and starting to struggle, it was not worth the risk of further injury to a player that is worth so much to the team both on and off the field. This raises an issue that I hope is not the problem. Everyone agrees that Del Piero has been a masterstroke signing and marketing coupe for the game and the attraction of extra supporters to the ground and the merchandising bonanza he has brought the club has been worth it. What you do not want to see is that he is kept on the ground for the marketing reason rather for team tactical reasons and player injury management. If he is run into the ground every game, he will not last the season.

Last thing Victory's Adrian Leijer wanted was for a Del Piero free kick to connect the same spot as the five stitches he received after a head collision

The substitution brought out the fears I feel most in Sydney wish was not there. Without Del Piero on the field the teams structure holds in place as well has the little pigs straw house. Although Sydney capitulated and lost in an an amazing blitz in the last 12 minuted from Melbourne, they always looked vulnerable. As soon as Melbourne scored their first, there was a sense that the crowd knew that only luck would allow Sydney to hold on for a win. The faith amongst the fairweather fans is not very good.

When the final whistle blew and Sydney were leaving the field as losers, the next few days were always going to be interesting. Sitting at the airport early on Sunday morning I was waiting for news of a "please explain" from the club to coach, Ian Crook. I was a little surprised to land to the news that Ian Crook has resigned but in the end it was the only move he could make. As soon as he found himself in a situation where he was explaining himself to loyal supporters in the aftermath of the game, the writing was on the wall. If he feels he needs to explain himself to the supporters so quickly after a game, then he may as well go to the pub before the game to get his tactics.

Where to for Sydney though?  I am sure that when they signed Del Piero they never imagined such a  scenario where the were after their 7th coach in eight years. This is not a good sign for a proud club. Coaches come and go but if you average little more than a coach a season, then there will never be a real structure in place and the management of the club must come under scrutiny. It is also make you wonder if coaching Sydney FC is seen as a poisoned chalice. Sydeny FC supporters will need to hope that a quality replacement is found quickly, but they also need to support and back the coach and realise it may take time for improvement.

The Sydney Trip: Part 1

Not my normal sort of article but one I would like to share.

As I am a member of the Football Media Association I was given the opportunity to attend a Professional Development Day focusing on social Media. As I am a blogger and a facebook/twitter addict this was a good opportunity to learn and make sure that I know how it should be done by a journalist.

Thanks to the Johnny Warren Foundation I was flown down to Sydney to attend the day and a few more to take in an A-League game. My thanks can not be said enough for this opportunity. This though created a situation I never thought would be conquered. Firstly, I have a fear of flying. I had never flown before and with a history of collapsed lungs knew that flying was a major risk (mainly long distance flights, ie: overseas) but a fear nonetheless. Once the flights were booked though I knew I couldn't turn back but was that nervous at the airport waiting, I was shaking.  Although the air-con was cold so for now I am blaming it.

From the Moment I checked in though I knew it was all meant to be. Someone I knew was at check in and from there in I seemed to get special service. I was on a Dash-8 to Brisbane which didn't give me much confidence but seated next to me was someone who was part of a flight school and had flown a lot. They kept me distracted and once the plane was in the air, it became one of the best experiences in my life.

This is where the second issue arises. For those who don't know, I have facial agnosia, which is the inability to recognise faces and from that I have an anxiety of sorts about being at large gatherings or on my own in unfamiliar places. Brisbane airport was an overwhelming experience but it seemed that every staff member that dealt with me knew. Once I got on the plane to Sydney all my fears of flying were gone and all I wanted to do was watch the scenery out the window. I think I now have a want to fly more. Major fear conquered.

Once in Sydney though my anxiety kicked in again. Stars were aligned though and from landing onwards it has all been good. Taxi driver was excellent and hotel staff have been brilliant (gotta love housekeeping that sorts your clothes out for you)  and the food is great. Also Bundaberg needs to send people down so they can learn to make coffee.

Today was the main reason for the trip. A Professional Development Day for the Football Media Association on Social Media by Julie Posetti. I can confidently say that in Bundaberg I might be one of the most knowledgeable people on how social media should be used by journalists. To have had the opportunity to be trained and meet Julie is an honour and one I never thought I would get. One of the best, if not best, trainers/facilitators/teachers I have ever had. Now I think I have to start hassling the local paper. As a socially awkward person though it took me awhile to relax and talk to those attending. Very grateful that I did though. My passion could now grow to an obsession.

After talking to Julie my passion for sports writing has grown and I now have the confidence to write the article I have been sitting on for awhile but it will take time. Next stage is tomorrow where I will be at a pubcast that talks all that is football and it will be another test of my social awkwardness and if I conquer it I know I am doing the right thing.

Football Drama

The weekend was a football show piece of what ruins a great game.  In all cases in caused for game changing situations and affected the final result. Sport in itself sees plenty of poor decisions and it is something that will always happen as human error is always bound to occur. But it is when mistakes are made that should never happen that cause greater concern. The main incidents I am referring to are the disallowed offside goal in the EPL during the Everton v Liverpool game and back home in the A-League it was the dive by Adelaide's Geronimo after being interfered with by Wellington's Ben Sigmund.

Offside?? Never!!

The rest of the article can be read at....The Armchair Selector

Rugby 4th Stringers Do Alright

On Saturday night the World Champion New Zealand Rugby Union team ran out their strongest side possible and approached the game like they just needed to turn up. What they didn't account for was a resilient 4th string Australian side to stand up and play with pride and determination, something that has been missing all season. Considering Australia had about ten players who would not have been selected if all players were eligible it was a good result for Australia even if it was a draw.

Australia needed to come out strong early and show New Zealand that it was not going to be a cake walk for a side that is used to winning.  Also Australia needed to play a whole game and not just glimpses here and there.  In general it was Australia's defence that ensured the game was drawn and to hold a New Zealand side tryless is no mean feat.

What I want to talk about though are the two areas in the game that cost Australia victory............

The rest of this article can be read at The Armchair Selector


I have joined forces with The Armchair Selector after being approached to submit articles to the site.  I will still be writing articles here but you will notice that not all articles can be fully read here.

Why Take A Flare?

When going to a game a supporter ensures they have certain things in their possession to take to the game. They ensure they are attired in their teams colours, their ticket for the game is on hand, money to cover the cost of the celebratory ales before, during and after the game, flags and signs heralding their team and favourite players and of course the chants that have been put to memory to shout during the game. All of this I can understand, where I fail to follow the logic though is when the supporter makes sure that the flare is carefully concealed before they head off.

Whilst setting off flares is a common happening in football, one has to ask why? Fans are not only letting flares go off in the stands now though they are taking the idiotic decision to throw them onto the playing surface or as seen recently at the VPL Grand Final a supporter took it to a new level when they fired a flare across the ground.

When a flare goes off questions are rightly asked of ground security and how the supporter was able to get it into the ground. With with such stringent security at grounds now this is a legitimate question. When I see a flare go off though, I always question the intelligence of the person that set it off and the people around them that surely knew it was going to happen.  

Something else that eludes me to the whole childish concept is why it is seen to be a good idea by the intending culprits. Even stranger is why someone would think it is smart to fire one across a ground where the only thing that is going to come from it is most likely an injury or worse. The game is quite happy to vilify publicly a player on the field who dives, maybe it is time for the game to start doing the same to offending people who set off flares. Lengthy bans are always a necessity but a little public humiliation could do so much more.

Dog Act by A Bulldog

2012 for the NRL will never be forgotten and it is unfortunately for all the wrong reason. In a season ruined by video refs everyone was very worried that they would have the final say on who were the premiers for 2012. This in one way was luckily not the case but instead we are now dealing with an issue that is one of the  worst I have ever witnessed in sport. So instead of talking about the game lets highlight an incident that will go down as one of the worst the game has seen and should be dealt with accordingly.

Before I prattle on though take a look at the incident itself.

The Dog Act

This incident raises many issues.

1.  Why did the referees not ask for it to be reviewed when after all, this is what the judiciary will do. If the game is happy to stop everything for more than five minutes to review a try or a melee, why did they not take what could have been seen within 5 minutes was obvious to everyone else. Why are the referees so scared to send players off. A player can commit a high tackle or similar and get sent off after a review, so why change it now.

2.  How can a the Bulldogs as a club or any supporter of the club from this point forward want this player as part of their organisation?

3.  Why did the commentators gloss over this issue so easily yet make more complaints about strips that were rules as knock-ons.

For one I am glad that this player did not end up affecting the end result of the game. What I cannot understand is how they managed to finish the game. What needs to happen from here though must be a hard stance and carried out very quickly. A very long suspension at minimum is required, and personally I would like to see this player rubbed out of the game for good. No normal person in their right mind takes this action and the game needs to acknowledge that. If allowed to ever play the game again in the NRL then he and the NRL also have to be accept that every game, opposition players are allowed to say "watch out, make sure he doesn't bite you". If the NRL doesn't want this to happen then a life ban is the only option.

If the Bulldogs as a club want to retain any respect then it should act on this issue very quickly, accept any punishment the player receives without fighting it and then terminate the contract of James Graham. Rarely do I swear on twitter or facebook, let alone in my club but this is a rare instance that has caused that. I have commented on many issues through the season and admit to be very vocal about certain issues but on this occasion, if the NRL take a soft stance then it is going to lose a lot of fans and sponsors in the process as it will be highlighted as a grubs game.  

NRL Heralds Drugs & Racism

On a day that should be celebrated in Rugby League circles will now be seen as one of the darkest days and one that will tarnish forever the reputation of the game. In some strange wisdom the 8th person named as a Rugby League Immortal was Andrew Johns.

The award is judged purely on playing ability and character & off-field incidents are not taken into account but in this situation the premise of this so called honour has been shown to be a blight on the game. Regardless of what you think of Andrew Johns playing ability he is a player that should have had all his records wiped from the books and never mentioned in high regards.

Andrew Johns is a self confessed drug cheat who only came forward after he was caught in possession whilst overseas in London after his career was over. Although he never tested positive any player who confesses to a long history of drug taking through their career should be wiped from the game. Johns himself admitted that he had taken drugs for about ten years throughout his career and it was in a need to escape the pressure and to be able to cope. With this said, if John's never took drugs he most likely would never have reached the heights he did and therefore needed the drugs to reach the levels he did. On this basis alone Johns should never be held in high regard, let alone be made an immortal of the game. It also needs to be pointed out that Johns would never have come forward about his past drug taking if he was not caught.

Also to be considered is the racist comments made by Johns that were aimed at Inglis and Folau that caused Timanah Tahu to walk out of State of Origin in 2010. The comments made are not ones I will repeat but it is not hard to find exactly what was said. This incident also was not a one off and it is claimed that Johns has a history of using racist terms.

Now Rugby League has the great honour of one of it's Immortals forever tarnishing it's image with the spectre of drugs and racism.