But can I ask... why do we have these problems this season and last season, when, for example, we didn't the year we beat GCU 6-0?
My own view on that is that people tend to forget that well-run clubs improve with time and do not go backwards much, once improved (Mariners, Brisbane, Victory), or - at worst - go through temporary season of bad wobbles (Adelaide, Newcastle) before trying to recover. Few clubs simply stagnate on and on without improvement at some point. An example of that is Melbourne Heart, who despite enormous local goodwill and a classy foundation coach never managed to soar. Western Sydney started with a good plan and will probably stay like that for a few seasons if Poppa continues to have a role of any kind.
How it applies to Phoenix is that we were competitive several years ago but did not progress with time. This competitiveness lasted while what RH could offer as a coach worked. Players who could offer a new potential (like Kosta B.) were not retained. So the teams I mentioned earlier improved further or at least did not go backwards, so now we have a greater quality gap to bridge. Hopefully we have just a year of wobbles.
I am probably oversimplifying it, but the fact that Ricki's direct football worked 3 seasons ago does not negate the plain truth that it worked no longer last season, and we were largely outplayed by other teams except maybe Heart (possibly because our old-fashioned players were better than their recycled players so the style did not matter).
Ernie is obviously trying to bring us into the modern passing football era, and it clearly is showing as slowly bedding in, by better control on the park, etc. If you think it is achievable over one season, I suggest you try using primarily your left hand for daily tasks (if you are a natural right-hander). It is just as counter-intuitive for some of our older players.