R23 vs WSW | Sun 19th March | 9:00pm | SS2

And Rossi quite a way along presumably. I'd also assume we weren't doing nothing about FBs, but just that it is very very difficult to coax good Australian FBs to NZ. Our best have either been Kiwi or like Manny and Tratty have come from obscurity. 

IIRC one complaint last was set pieces and that we didn't create enough 

In some other universe Finkler might have solved some of these problems. In fact of those players we had WeeMac, Roly and Finkler as possibles for a number 10. WeeMac was at his best for CCM out on the left and Roly may have been thought of as a midfielder, not exclusively a number 10.

I'm trying to explain, not defend. At the time it seemed like we were assembling a very strong attacking squad and this was adding depth- especially with McG/Kosta out for the AWs and Roy out for Fiji etc etc.

I also strongly doubt that anyone thought that Lia would be one of our best and most reliable midfielders this season, but had in mind him and Riera to be phased out by the younger lads.

Personally think it's strange for buckingham to have come out with that. Parkhouse might genuinely have thought it was nerves or something he could push through. 

Buckingham going public seems more like hanging parkhouse out to dry. Could easily spin out of control and become a wedge issue with the team and supporters. Would have been better just to write it off as a bad day for not a natural left back. 

(but then Buckingham would have to take ownership of his selection) 

We still only have two specialist FBs in a squad of 23, which is nuts, and even more nuts when Ernie's preferred formation asked them to do so much

Another loooooooong off season ahead...

EXPIRES END OF 2016/17:

Roly BONEVACIA (f)
Louis FENTON
Lewis ITALIANO
Vince LIA
Ryan LOWRY
Glen MOSS
Alex RODRIGUEZ GORRIN (f)
Shane SMELTZ
Jacob TRATT (+1)
Hamish WATSON

We need to let go everyone but Italiano and maybe Watson. And of course let go of Buckey and Greenie. If that happens there will be hope for next season.

It's seriously hard to know when you are trolling now

Roly and Moss might be off. I'd try to keep them.

Otherwise I'd maybe keep Tratt and Lowry as squad players. Watson at a push. The rest can go.

yeh, yeh

I said it too, but..

Moss is one of the best I  the league and a kiwi, why are we thinking of letting him go? 

What's to be applauded about playing injured? He let his team mates down when we had a replacement there on the bench 

We're not. He is.

Apparently Boxall's and Brockie's current club is interested.

Purely going on media reports but said we've offered him less money? 

Phoenix, you make it hard for me to love you sometimes.

are we talking about the same tratt . he has defended well, is a team likeable, and has had many good runs and oppertunities  ,fox is good but a magnet for fouls,,,maybe its enthusiasm parkhouse isnt a back but a pretty good at ball placement if given a chance, we need a better vocal, captain and fans who give a frack

Remind me again where all our new players are coming from after you guys have sacked half the team. They havnt exactly been lining up to come here in previous seasons so not sure what makes you think they are about to start.

That's about spot on.

My own impression is that we have an OK team albeit with a slightly suss defence but not the worst team possible. It should be playing better than it is, apart from the usual few mishaps, like losing to a better team despite us playing well. Stuff we would pay to watch.

What I do see instead is a general impression of malaise and lack of purpose on the park, as if everyone suddenly came down with a bad case of  impostor syndrome (yes, it's a real thing).  For quite a few weeks now I've had an impression everyone from players to coaches are just going through the motions without any sense of self-belief, as if they had no real reason to be there, as if all were just waiting to be called out for the sham that this has become. Those that showed an intent are guys like Krishna, Tratt, Moss and (in my opinion) Lia. This comment has nothing to do with their ability, just their motivation and intent.

I am sorry that Ernie was not able to get more out of this team and I accept that maybe he was not the right man. But is it just the coach? 

Would you say Michael Cockerill was right by placing a bit of blame at Rob Morrison's feet for an unimaginative leadership?

Levin AFC 1st team......How can we possibly sign even worse players? I'd rather have f*ckin Elr*ch, Toto or G*o in the squad than the current sh*t of the crop.

It only takes small tweaks to achieve big changes. The main thing is we need to use Roly's import spot on a DM or fullback, I'd keep Rodriguez.

We might need a clean out, but mainly to get rid of any negative influences on the team from the players.

The 1st scenario is what you are championing. Thats not what happened.

100%

I think this is a really important point.  We've seen nothing of McGarry, Rogerson, Fenton has completely gone off the boil, Ridenton has had no chances, something gone wrong with Rufer.  I think we need that pipeline to start flowing for us to be successful given the difficulty with attracting AUstralians

Don't like how the Parkhouse situation has been used to deflect from what was an inept performance in an important game. Like some others I too have questions about our so called development programme because it sure as hell isn't giving us much despite what some like to claim.

Who's in charge of development at the club Hedge/Temple, in the clear out if the club has one they both should go as well The whole place needs a big shake up from top to bottom.Get Stu Jacobs in as the director of youth football he seems to have success with youth in the region The new coach will have a big say on the youth structure so appoint that person soon as.

That's quite a list to break into...

It's a myth/misnomer though isn't it. The idea of a "pipeline". Of generating a flow of players. It's essentially a drift netting process. Not just for the Phoenix but for most professional academies. Churn through players, sift out the gems. We haven't had many gems, sure, but the entire country doesn't have many footballing gems! 

There's a pretty reasonable case to be made that the players signed from the U20s group that had a fight with NZF about paying to go to the WC (Ridenton, Rufer, et al) were signed a) partly to make a case for the Phoenix's new academy setup b) partly because they were a cheap way to fill the squad that made positive Kiwi headlines and c) partly to score points against NZF at a time when the relationship between NZF and the Phoenix was at its lowest. 

Them one day playing in the first team was a marginal factor at best.

I think Hedge does a good job with the WeeNix. You can't blame him for a lack of throughput from the Academy. If there's not quality coming in you can't expect them to spend a year with Hedge in the local national league and then go out and make a difference in the A-League.

That's quite a cynical view!  I still would have thought there must be a reason for the academy and where else will young kiwis come from?

Are we being over sold this supposed pipeline then Smithy because whatever it is it dosnt seem to be delivering guys capable of competing for regular spots.Maybe the guys we are producing just arnt good enough if thats the case lets stop sugar coating it for them and pretending they are better than they actually.

Its what, in it's third year? Kids from the first year can't even drink yet.

You're not being sold anything. Whether the kids are being oversold who knows.

I think there are signs that a couple of prospects are emerging. Singh seems to be the next great hope. I like Liam Wood. But it's still a trawling exercise. Find good players, keep them around until you decide if they're useful and if they don't turn out to be up to much cut them loose and look for the next one.

Thing is though the Academy seems to be the only part of the club that's running smoothly! Perhaps people just have too high hopes for it. The time when we'll see a team stacked full of Academy graduates is: never.

There is no 'intake' system though. There are some lads who have been there for a number of years (Ruairi Cahill-Fleury for example, who I think is excellent) and some who have been there not long at all (Singh for example, who seems to be on the fast track to first team).

The amount of time a player is in the Academy system is largely irrelevant, exposing the 'development' myth.

I think the academy system may also be affected by the Phoenix' need to 'offer something' to the FFA by the way of creating a pathway for young Aussies/NPL players, so that when they ask 'What do you do for Australian football?'  the next time our position in the league is questioned, we have an answer for this.  For example: Fox, Tratt, Parkhouse, Lowry, and Litfin (who was in and out) getting on the team sheet before most of our young kiwis. 

My initial post was about blaming the bosses. Maybe Parkhouse was afraid to say that he has a bug and thought he get away with it. Yes he is 24, but even older and more mature people doing silly stuff out of a group dynamic.

I give you: Yellow Fever.

Parkhouse shouldn't have done it, and it should have been dealt with internally. Buckingham didn't throw Rolly and Doyle under the bus for whatever their infringement was, which was surely larger than playing with a bit of a stomach bug.

It was a heat of the moment comment of someone that knows that he probably doesn't have a job in a couple of months, so it was understandable. Buckingham is young himself.

Ridenton has looked a decent prospect when played in his favoured position, as did Rufer, Fenton, and even McGarry. Those last three all got screwed by injuries, and Fenton and Ridenton are victims of a weird club obsession with shoehorning young guys into unnatural roles. Ridenton effectively got a pathway into more first team football blocked by the Finkler signing too. Whatever happened to Justin Gulley and Tam DiMairo too? I thought both of them were on the fringes of first team football for a while. Gulley didn't have shockers when he was given a chance IIRC. There's also the cases of Musa and Adams who were thrown in the deep end early and then chucked out but might have actually been useful to keep around.

Even with our young Aussies it seems strange that JBS wasn't retained when we then ended up getting squad filler from the NPL for our backline anyway.

Anyway my point is that it might not be a lack of suitable talent coming through but more a combination of unfortunate injuries, unbalanced squad, and lack of backing for the young guys when they do reach a point where they might be able to play with the big boys.

also, the Parkhouse situation and Moss's comments show a bit of insight into a team which is turning on itself I think. I commented a few weeks ago that at halftime in our thrashing to City their players were looking like a cohesive team who liked each other and were in it together and our guys looked like a bus check of dejected individuals who happened to be wearing the same uniform. Now we've got people swiping at others in public. Not a good sign.