View from the convict side

Very modest about Perth.. but sounds like a good lad.

Srhoj

Enjoy this thread - nice reminder of common bonds (support for our respective teams and love of football).

did you just faceplant into the keyboard?

How about Newcastle? Dura, North, Hearfield, Pav, Brown...
martinb2010-09-04 16:43:06

Covs, Old. Hard News2010-09-04 16:44:08

Old and Coveney played for Newcastle?? crazy...

...and Richard Johnson in the first A-League season, but he was at the Knights between Newcastle and us.

 

Indeed.  Forgot we had a Newcastle fan here who would know.

 

You are the best resident of Waipukarau I know. 

Hang on, I've met your Mrs. 

You are the 2nd best resident of Waipukarau I know.

ermmm...may regret this but...

pics or stfu!

Now you've mentioned both residents of Waipuk [was there today actually - Angkor Wat bakery in fact]

Anything for Sydney?

I want to hear what a baby blue boy has to say for themselves.

on their forum they are saying that we will win and they would be very happy with 1 point

 

sorry for the radio silence. I can't post on YF during work time, having a problem with cookies. That's an issue as I do most of my YF stuff during the day time...still trying to fix the issue...and I was away for a week last week.

Meanwhile any volunteers to take this over or help out until this i sorted PM me with your email address

Falling out of the leopard and stumbling to canton.

GCU mate of mine is keen, I'll send him some questions and post his answers up when I get them

nice one.

Terry Hands is the secretary of the Gold Coast United Supporters Club. He is truly passionate about football, wanting to see it thrive both in Australia and New Zealand. He's 46, the father of two boys, and has been to two World Cups (including this year). He blogs online at http://www.handsonfootball.com.


Bruce Djite was signed this year in what was effectively a straight swap for Shane Smeltz. Who got the better deal, Gold Coast or Gen�lerbirli?i? Losing a player like Smeltz who is a 2 time Golden Boot winner is a loss to any side and not easily replaced. Djite is not in the same mould but is a younger player with talent to develop into a great striker. After all Smeltz is a late bloomer in reality but I don�t see him scoring a plethora of goals like Smeltz though in the short term. But a striker scores goals so I would say Gen�lerbirli?i probably get the better deal if he scores more for them than Bruce does for us.

How is Glen Moss stacking up as a replacement for Jess Vanstrattan? Excellent replacement in the opinion of supporters. He is a good GK and has a connection to the Gold Coast and many of the fans who played with and against him at school and in the Premier League, along with Smeltz and Broadfoot. JVS is an odd character and just didn�t seem to fit in. I have it on Good authority that Ricki has also been talking to our Youth Team GK about his National Team aspirations. Another young player that played all junior football in Aus only to be plucked by the All Whites because of heritage

Gold Coast is seen as one of our biggest rivals by many Phoenix fans, often suggested as the main one. How are Wellington ranked as a rival by Gold Coast supporters? Our main rivals are the Raw, and it developed before game 1 last year. As for the Phoenix, the Gold Coast has a big Kiwi population and the fact that we have not beaten you guys in 4 games does add to the contests. Aussies always like to beat Kiwis at anything so the rivalry is there in any case, I am just glad it is not like the Raw rivalry which has gotten a bit nasty for my liking. Rivalry and parochialism are good for any sport.

Gold Coast have already played Wellington this season, drawing with us 3-3 in Wellington. What is the general opinion amongst Gold Coast supporters of both teams' efforts? That was an epic game. The conditions made it bloody horrible but to score 6 goals all up is quite an effort. We feel we played better than the Nix all up and actually felt like we could have and should have won it with the possession we had. But games are about taking chances and Ifil and Greenacre took theirs and did a great job for you guys.

Gold Coast have yet to defeat the Phoenix in four attempts. What will they need to do differently in order to finally accomplish this? Score more goals than you blokes Looking back at last season for us and so far this season, it is all about consistency and we just don�t do it well enough. Miron loves to change the team around depending on matchups rather than stick with a winning formula. But we have to shut both Bertos and Ifil down to give ourselves a chance.

In an earlier interview with a Roar supporter, the Brisbanite claimed that (to quote) "Gold Coast is not a football centre and will never be either". Is this an accurate statement? There is probably some truth in that statement. Like many Gold Coasters I am an import. 15 years now from Sydney. The truth is we are a tourist town that has doubled in population in the 15 years I have been here. We don�t have the history of football like any of the other cities represented in the HAL with perhaps Townsville the only city we come close to in this area. And with that population growth comes more stability in population and the chance to grow sports and end up with History. We have 10,000 local footballers playing in the local competition, and just like every other part of Australia we start to lose them about age 13 to other football codes. History comes with time and to say �never� is rather foolish, only time will tell.

Gold Coast have several players with connections to the New Zealand football, including former Knights (Caravella and Fitzsimmons), a Kiwi in the Gold Coast NYL squad (Neko Vujevich), and of course former Phoenix players (Moss, Rees, Higgins and Smeltz). If GCU could sign any All White and any Phoenix player, who would they be? What team wouldn�t want Paul Ifill on their side, he is quality. But Bertos and Brown are worth considering as well. As for All Whites, I liked the way Nelsen lead the team in South Africa. He appears to have a cool head on his shoulders

What is a realistic target for GCU this season and what needs to happen for you to achieve that? Top 4 is a realistic target and to do that we need consistency. We have a very good squad to chose from but Miron needs to stop chopping and changing week in week out IMO. I like Culina up in the pointy end behind the strikers and I think we will get better service when Porter returns. I think Djite will also benefit from this.

Last but not least, your prediction for Friday? Apart from the 6-0 drubbing you gave us there is only 1 goal in the head to head. I am predicting that will come back to even with a win by a goal to GCU. That is not necessarily a 1-0 win but a win by 1 goal.

Much as I get where he's coming from, he can't say "come back to even". It's like saying "apart from the headbutt, Zidane's WC career was only let-down by the loss to Senegal in '02. But with the '98 win and two goals in the final, it evens out his reputation in World Cups."

Hey I've only just joined but I'm quite a regular over on the FourFourTwo site so I could probably find some opposition fans...depends what kind of people you're looking for though...

Ha ha.

Have read your comments on that forum. The 442 Oz forummers that come over here are rather disappointing I must say.

I'm not from Oz, and their site seems a lot livelier than this one. 

Wasn't having a go at you KC1 (I said Oz). Anyway you'll probably see some comments pop up as the A-League gets going in a week's time.

If only I'd lurked here sooner. Hit me up for the next time you play us. 

I don't think they would like your responses.

I'm a scouse roar fan...welcome aboard buddy...

Are you on 442?

Hooray for lurkers. :D

Scouse cracks me up when I read 442, welcome! 

I've got in contact with Red & White Unite (the MHFC mob)  so hopefully we'll get a volunteer out of them.

Can we get Midfielder to answer our questions for this one?

I could do no better than was posted on the Roar today... I am a huge fan of Tony Tannous ... some may have read his blog for a while now ... the round ball analyst.

He knowledge of Australian football is excellent and his knowledge of football likewise... He writes twice a week on the Roar and his column is always joy to read...

Today he wrote an article on the Mariners.... enjoy the read ... I wish this guy wrote for SMH or News ... anyway enjoy... also maybe make a comment on the Roar if you want as they employ him and it helps to keep him as one of their top sports writers..

http://www.theroar.com.au/2010/11/10/coasting-along-just-nicely-part-one/


Mariners Coasting along just nicely (part one)
While the red-hot Brisbane Roar have rightly grabbed most of the attention in recent times, mine included, quietly ticking along in the background are a couple of Coasties.

Out of sight and perhaps a little out of mind over the past month or so, both Gold Coast United and Central Coast Mariners have been away from home, United not having set foot and Skilled Park since October 17 and the Mariners on the road since October 2 while the Bluetongue turf is re-laid.

But a succession of great results on the road means they are poised just nicely, both on 21 points, sitting behind the two teams that have grabbed most of the headlines, the Roar (29) and Adelaide United (25).

What�s more, both Coasties have games in hand on the Roar, United two and the Mariners three.

Indeed, if we projected that the Mariners took maximum points from their three games in hand, they would be atop.

While neither side will feature in tonight�s double-header (Adelaide vs Perth Glory and North Queensland Fury vs the Melbourne Heart), it�s still a good time to assess what�s going right for Graham Arnold and Miron Bleiberg.

In the first of a two part series, I take an in-depth look at the Central Coast Mariners;

Graham Arnold chopped and changed his midfield diamond in the early part of the season, but in recent weeks has settled on Rostyn Griffiths in the holding midfield role, relegating the hitherto first choice John Hutchinson to a place on the bench.

The big man has done a sound job and, sitting in front of the defence, looks a vastly improved footballer on the one that tried to go box-to-box at both Adelaide and the Fury upon his return from England.

Often, keeping things simple is best, so kudos to Arnold for getting him to sit. By Griffiths holding, it has allowed Arnold�s imaginative advanced trio of midfielders to flourish.

In the past couple of games we�ve seen the impressive 17 year old Mustafa Amini playing ahead of Griffiths and it has been some start to his senior career.

Watching him in flesh 11 days ago at the SFS against Perth, it was clear how silky and sharp his touch is, and he appears to have wonderful feel for the ball and great movement to boot.

I first had the opportunity to cast an eye over him in a pre-season friendly against Sydney FC at the Sydney Showground and it�s fair to say he caught the eye that evening.

More recently, he starred for the Young Socceroos in the number 10 role at the Asian under 19�s championship, combining well with the likes of Kerem Bulut, Tommy Oar and Mathew Leckie.

Having Amini settle in so seamlessly is a nice headache for Arnold as he contemplates the return of Patricio Perez.

While Amini has grabbed the headlines in recent times, the player that has really caught the eye throughout the season, as much for his consistency as his sublime left peg, is Oliver Bozanic.

Whether tucking in, getting wide, dropping back to help or improvising on the edge of the box, it�s been his composure that has stood out. Rarely getting flustered, he invariably looks to combine with team-mates, whether deep in his own half or inside the opposition�s box.

On the other side, Michael McGlinchey appears to have found a position to suit. His effort against the Glory, taking Todd Howarth and Naum Sekulovski to the cleaners, was top shelf.

Behind him has been one of the real unsung heroes of the side, Pedj Bojic. Once again he started the season outside the first 11, but, like last season, he has grabbed his chance and not relinquished it.

Bojic�s forward thrusts, like those from Joshua Rose on the other side, have added great impetus to the Mariners attack.

Meanwhile, Alex Wilkinson and the calm Patrick Zwaanswijk join in at the set pieces, where the Mariners invariably look a threat. The latter is getting among the goals.

Both are experienced and undoubtedly play a key part in keeping young custodian Mathew Ryan settled. After a nervy start, he has done well, so one wonders if the move for Justin Pasfield was necessary.

This team is balanced and very well organised, even if Matt Simon and Daniel McBreen are a little same-same at the head of the formation.

What makes Simon and McBreen especially difficult to defend against is their incredible workrate and physicality. They rarely allow the opposition defence a moment to relax.

Defensively, they are as accountable as anyone with their high-octane pressing game.

The attitude is super, best exemplified by the way Simon and McBreen, and others, combined to encourage Amini every time he touched the ball against Perth. Terrific leadership.

The famous Mariners spirit is alive and well, and if they can keep their creative trio of midfielders on the pitch, whether Amini or Perez are head of the diamond, and continue to get ample thrust from the fullbacks, they will remain a threat.

The next two games, road trips to Wellington and Melbourne, will be tough, but they will at least fancy their chances against the Victory, who they appear to have the mental edge over.

After that it�s back to Gosford, or �Fortress Bluetongue� as Arnold wants it to become, for eight of their next 11 games.

With the news yesterday the Federal Government has honoured its election commitment to fund 25 percent of the club�s $40 million Centre of Excellence at Tuggerah, things continue to look up for the Mariners, both on an off the pitch.Mariners article Mariners LinkMariners Article linkMidfielder2010-11-10 23:32:38