Nix v Adelaide, SS3, 10pm Friday 3rd Feb

Nix v Adelaide, SS3, 10pm Friday 3rd Feb

Righto, 8 games left.  What can we do Friday?  We've got a sh*t record against Adelaide.  We can safely assume Djite, our bogey, will score against us.     I'd like to see Daniel in the starting line up, what has he done to be on the bench is a mystery to me.  I'd  leave Leo on the bench instead.

what say you? 


George Costanza2012-01-30 23:50:44

Assuming he is completely fit, Leo definietly in the starting XI for me. He had he best game since the World Cup on Sunday, and his form is improving.

I wouldn't change the starting XI at all from Sunday, apart from the goal conceded the entire team played well, especially in the second half.

Ricki better get out the away game tracksuit again.

If Bruce sh*tey scores against us (particuarly after he couldn't hit a cow's bum with a banjo on sunday) I'll have kittens.

so long as we play like we did on the weekend we will be sweet.

We always play well in Adelaide...

We won in adelaide last year against a better adelaide team and we are probably playing better football this right now. Hopefully there is no complacency. I don't think the formation change helped Daniels cause. In this 4-2-2-2 we are plaing Daniel doesn't fit in as well, I would definately be starting Leo ahead of both Daniel and Ward. Keep Smith in ahead of Lia as well, might move Downey out from the bench for Pav but would love to see Lindsay get a run.

whqat do you mean he doesn't fit in well, 4 at the back, 1 left winger (DAniel) and Ifill on the right with sanchez and greenie up front, he fits perfectly well into that mix.

Head-to-head
Played 15: Wins: Adelaide 7, Wellington 3, Draws: 5

We've only scored 4 goals and won once in Adelaide.  Not sure how many Adelaide have scored against us, but I'm guessing it's a lot.
George Costanza2012-01-31 09:03:27

Iffill was and will be playing up front in that formation, suggesting him out wide, particularly when he is not fully fit, is pretty wierd IMO. Daniel is a little bit slow and in a 4-2-2-2 there is more space for the wide mids to cover and with Leo being faster, fitter and better at winning loose ball, he is the better choice. In fact I would play him ahead of Sanchez in that formation. Daniel was going pretty well when we only had 1 up front and there was more defensive cover.

and even though he was listed as playing up front on sunday he spent more time outwide and drifting in to score the goals - as Leo is still recovering from his ankle I'd expect he'd start from the bench, Daniel deserves a start for mine.

It'll be Ward... and I will throw a minor tantrum.

Leo's ankle is fine. Expect him to start

20 goals conceded at Hindmarsh, I'm actually looking forward to us playing away though this time, we're playing well, seem to have started sorting out our away form, I'm really interested to see if we can keep it going.

That and Adelaide have been pretty sh*t, but hey...this is football and all that. SUSPENSE.

sh*t that is a lot!  I think we've been playing welll too, but then we were playing well immediately before we played Adelaide (5-2 over the jets) and we lost 2 nil so tbh, I don't expect anything from this game.  Sorry to be negative but history is against us.

True true, although history hasn't counted for much lately...2 away wins...2nd on the table...Paston back in goal.

We were pretty unlucky last time at Hindmarsh...hitting the woodwork a couple of times and rewatching the goals I'd be more confident that Paston would do better in the same situations...nevermind though, in the past, we seem a different team now. I'm going to remain optimistic!

Will be a tough one. We always make Djite look like a world-beater and Van Dijk has a habit of scoring against us too.

'Home in a barrel, you're going home in a barrel'

I strongly disagree with your assertion that Ifill is better out wide, I reckon he usually has quietest games in wide positions and it makes him more of a middle step in moves rather than the end, and Ifill should be the end of our moves because the numbers say he is our best finisher.
Ifill always gets into wide positions when playing centrally anyway, he drags central defenders around, makes space holds up the ball, but he's there in the middle when he needs to be. Best of both worlds.

Siggy never seems to be able to stop him from set pieces. Van Dijk is probably the best in the air in the league.

Post-high slump. In a place that is not kind to us, against a player who always scores against us.

No hope. 0 pts. Gutted.

Two players who always score against us - Djite and van Dijk
djtim30002012-01-31 12:52:29

So we're even more f*rked then. Sack Ricki.

think we will be playing a more narrow side again as we have in our past few away games and try to play more on the counter. Wouldnt be suprised at all to see ward back in the starting lineup

How far away is Lia? Is he likely to come straight back in to starting 11 when's he's right or will they give him a bench spot?

was on the bench on the weekend

He was unused of the bench on Sunday wasn't he?

Oh yeah that's right, so what can we read in to that? He's one of Rickis favourites so I take it for him to remain unused Vince is still carrying the injury. Bench again this week and might get 20 minutes?

I know longer know who said what in that quoted copypasta above, but I'm a fan of central Ifill who roves wide, rather than Ifill who stays wide. He gets the ball and beats players, but he doesn't play like an out-and-out winger - not the pace or fitness for it, I'd say.

My point in reverse, starts wide and comes central. True he no longer has the pace but not many better in the league at beating a man with footwork than him.

Central allows him to be involved in stuff on both sides of the pitch where picking a side effectively keeps him out of any play down the other wing.
A moot point perhaps and I haven't seen enough full games this season to really be qualified enough to judge, but it just seemed to me that his positioning when he's dangerous seemed to be more central than the sides of the penalty area = central role IMHO.
As long as he scores or sets them up I'm good either way though

This will be a good test of where are at. It was only December 30 where we fell to another underwhelming road loss. Since then we've won 4 of 5 and are now in second position.

Adelaide are close to the desperate stage of their season, and they really can't afford to be dropping more points. Sunday's loss to Perth was very unflattering because they had a few good chances, especially falling to Djite.

Djite and SVD always seem to score well against us, but it was also 7s weekend last year where we picked up a valuable away win in Adelaide (which kicked us clear of the chasing pack for the top-6). Hopefully lightning strikes again.

I think it is better that he starts central and others hold their position round him and he can drift wide if he needs/wants to. Which he tends to do. My recollection from watching him play is that he plays better as a free roaming spirit in and around the box.

Sometimes I have seen him back playing wide and I think, get up the front Iffy, you are not going to score from there.  When the action is happening you want him in the centre or thereabouts to be able to score. Not holding a space out wide.

He is our best player and goalscorer, he needs to be in the middle. Full stop for me.

If we have aspirations of winning this league, we really must win this game. As people say though, our record there is fairly appalling so I won't get my hopes up.