Stats meh….. as the great Chris Berman used to say “that’s why they play the games”.
Well stats are half the fun for me. I'm too old to play football manager or anything like that. I want to know what we're getting from each of the boys.
Before the game on Friday night, we averaged 0.50 points per game against the Victory in our first encounters with them in a season. That's 8 points in 16 seasons. Will happily take a point every day of the week in that instance.
On a more serious note, the football we played on Friday - while gritty and backs to the wall and gets us a result etc etc. As others have said it's not exactly sustainable in the long run.
I like the way we defend, and our shape seems to aide in that. But that midfield is a real problem in transition and guiding attacking play. A midfield trio of Pennington - Rufer - Al-Taay is simply too much of a muchness - They're all scrappers and ball winners more than they are creative influence on the pitch. Of the lot Pennington is the most creative, but again that's not going to strike a lot of fear into the opposition if i'm being honest.
Would look to have Old/Ball/Sutton involved much more/from the beginning, if possible - (Match fitness/Injuries/Conditioning etc taken into account of course) which would probably suit a formation similar to a 4-5-1 or even a 4-2-3-1.
Failing that, if we were to keep the same shape I'd be happy to see Conchie chucked in the deep-end of a midfield three and try and develop him as the next Clayton Lewis - a classic deep lying playmaker. Its a toss up for me at this stage as to whether he replaces Al-Taay or Pennington though. 🤔
Before the game on Friday night, we averaged 0.50 points per game against the Victory in our first encounters with them in a season. That's 8 points in 16 seasons. Will happily take a point every day of the week in that instance.
On a more serious note, the football we played on Friday - while gritty and backs to the wall and gets us a result etc etc. As others have said it's not exactly sustainable in the long run.
I like the way we defend, and our shape seems to aide in that. But that midfield is a real problem in transition and guiding attacking play. A midfield trio of Pennington - Rufer - Al-Taay is simply too much of a muchness - They're all scrappers and ball winners more than they are creative influence on the pitch. Of the lot Pennington is the most creative, but again that's not going to strike a lot of fear into the opposition if i'm being honest.
Would look to have Old/Ball/Sutton involved much more/from the beginning, if possible - (Match fitness/Injuries/Conditioning etc taken into account of course) which would probably suit a formation similar to a 4-5-1 or even a 4-2-3-1.
Failing that, if we were to keep the same shape I'd be happy to see Conchie chucked in the deep-end of a midfield three and try and develop him as the next Clayton Lewis - a classic deep lying playmaker. Its a toss up for me at this stage as to whether he replaces Al-Taay or Pennington though. 🤔
Yeh, I agree with that, though Pen, Rufer, Al Taay did the job we needed for this game. Ball is old and Old and Sutton still coming back from injury. So they're all obviously on less time. Conchie yet to be put in the A League deep end. But those sort of guys in the squad is part of the reason I think we'll get better. That's still a🤞but reason to believe/hope we'll be able to up the attack.
On a different point, anyone else think that the refs and opposition players seem to have got onto Zawada's holding and pushing? He's getting called more and his marker is making it obvious for the refs more often, I thought. So I was thinking it'll be interesting how he adapts if that continues.
I wouldn't be surprised if by the transfer window we are still doing well we get an import striker or central attacking midfielder. I think they wrote off this season for youth, but they may spend some money to get us over the line if they think it's worth it.
Here is another one then lol “your eyes don’t deceive you” - Roy Keanekungfu panda
Napier Phoenix
Stats meh….. as the great Chris Berman used to say “that’s why they play the games”.
Well stats are half the fun for me. I'm too old to play football manager or anything like that. I want to know what we're getting from each of the boys.
Here is another one then lol “your eyes don’t deceive you” - Roy Keanekungfu panda
Napier Phoenix
Stats meh….. as the great Chris Berman used to say “that’s why they play the games”.
Well stats are half the fun for me. I'm too old to play football manager or anything like that. I want to know what we're getting from each of the boys.
Unfortunately for Roy his managerial career also offers up a range of interest stats. Even Allardyce uses them. There’s no serious manager who isn’t indebted to statistical analysis. Sure, management is much more than that, but they all use the stats.
Here is another one then lol “your eyes don’t deceive you” - Roy Keanekungfu panda
Napier Phoenix
Stats meh….. as the great Chris Berman used to say “that’s why they play the games”.
Well stats are half the fun for me. I'm too old to play football manager or anything like that. I want to know what we're getting from each of the boys.
You miss way too much with your eyes. And I take anything that Roy Keane said with a pinch of salt. Great Player but stop there.
Unfortunately too many coaches don't look at stats. Especially top former players.
Not sure how much you need us to improve KP but we are currently sitting 3rd on the table, equal on points with top, and we drew with the other two teams "above us". Best start to any season EVER! and some of you aren't happy with that. I dont get it.
Statement of fact. We have mostly young players who are a long way from their peak. We will improve. Kosta and Ball will probably not be better players in a year's time. The rest will be.
best start to a league season and we didnt even have a shot in our last game! bizzare!! Unbelievable 1 pt when you digest all the facts. We need to be having more than 6 touches in opposition box, we looked decent attacking week before. League is poor this year if we improve as we go we could be top4. Young boys are learning they will be alright.
I expect Melb City will be targeting Kelly Heald rather than Payne in our next game, just like M Victory did in our last one. He is a good promising player but still young and relatively inexperienced and it is understandable that his side of the pitch will be overloaded causing him to struggle somewhat. I thought it was good to see Barbarousas helping him out (he is very active this season so far and plays better than I expected even if not scoring). Many here are dissing Evans for being a one-sided ref last Friday. I disagree. He was simply his usual poor self, but we got a hospital pass when he decided not to award a penalty against Kelly Heald. Not for the "handball" but for the in-the-box tackle from behind that looked truly marginal to me, especially on replay.
I went to the game on friday like I do every Melbourne game, and it's bloody painful 99.9% of the time, games here so getting a draw was decent result.
We defended quite well & with a lot of numbers, Paulsen was also great.
Quite poor in attack, and I worry that it's now two away games where this has happened, and I worry this will become a bad habit. So far, results has been kind playing like this, but i'm not sure it's sustainable playing this way? It looked pretty early on we were there to not lose rather then go out for the win & in a league where there is no promotion/relegation, im not sure getting this mindset in a young team is the way to go? These things become a habit that's hard to shake off if you're not careful.. and sooner rather than later, we will lose playing like this & I fear the narrative will turn from "great result in a tough environment" to "how can we lose to a terrible Jets team"..
In saying that, a draw is a good result. But I hope we dont have many more games with 0 shots on goal, because in reality, it's not sustainable & probably wont attract many neutrals.
Best draw ever. We didn't even fire a shot and still got a point! I love that we're playing the kids. What a season. 8 points from 4 games. All you negative dooms-dayers and nay-sayers can go and join the Auckland mob. Wellington is Wonderful!
Not sure how much you need us to improve KP but we are currently sitting 3rd on the table, equal on points with top, and we drew with the other two teams "above us". Best start to any season EVER! and some of you aren't happy with that. I dont get it.
... I don't think it's weird to say that we should and must improve from "0 shots on target". Last year we had a pop-gun attack and a leaky defence and we've only fixed one of those.
Looks a bit to me like Chiefy has clear tactics/ game management strategies that are different for home and away games. Playing in the heat in Aus after the travel is something that surely has to be factored in. Our performance in both WSW and MV games were similar in there defensive grit. Things a bit more free flowing here at Sky Stadium.
Not sure how much you need us to improve KP but we are currently sitting 3rd on the table, equal on points with top, and we drew with the other two teams "above us". Best start to any season EVER! and some of you aren't happy with that. I dont get it.
... I don't think it's weird to say that we should and must improve from "0 shots on target". Last year we had a pop-gun attack and a leaky defence and we've only fixed one of those.
True, but it might be that Chiefy decided that Victory game was one he'd rather not lose, whereas against Brisbane he decided that even if we lose some goals we would score more. If that was the plan then it worked. I may be guilty of wishful thinking.
Looks a bit to me like Chiefy has clear tactics/ game management strategies that are different for home and away games. Playing in the heat in Aus after the travel is something that surely has to be factored in. Our performance in both WSW and MV games were similar in there defensive grit. Things a bit more free flowing here at Sky Stadium.
Thing is that every away game in Aus is likely to be hot - I'm fine with this approach away to WSW and MV (who seem to be top teams, and away games we really struggle in in the past), but will be disappointed if we see it on a regular basis away from home. Most other games will be more winnable than those two.
Looks a bit to me like Chiefy has clear tactics/ game management strategies that are different for home and away games. Playing in the heat in Aus after the travel is something that surely has to be factored in. Our performance in both WSW and MV games were similar in there defensive grit. Things a bit more free flowing here at Sky Stadium.
Thing is that every away game in Aus is likely to be hot - I'm fine with this approach away to WSW and MV (who seem to be top teams, and away games we really struggle in in the past), but will be disappointed if we see it on a regular basis away from home. Most other games will be more winnable than those two.
The time the game is played will make a massive difference, anything in Aus between 3-7pm is still gonna be warm compared to NZ conditions, the later games will be more condusive to a high paced press and attack kinda game.
Looks a bit to me like Chiefy has clear tactics/ game management strategies that are different for home and away games. Playing in the heat in Aus after the travel is something that surely has to be factored in. Our performance in both WSW and MV games were similar in there defensive grit. Things a bit more free flowing here at Sky Stadium.
Thing is that every away game in Aus is likely to be hot - I'm fine with this approach away to WSW and MV (who seem to be top teams, and away games we really struggle in in the past), but will be disappointed if we see it on a regular basis away from home. Most other games will be more winnable than those two.
Think Chief either stated, or alluded to, the fact that the team isn't yet aclimatised to Australia and that performances will get better as the season progresses.
Looks a bit to me like Chiefy has clear tactics/ game management strategies that are different for home and away games. Playing in the heat in Aus after the travel is something that surely has to be factored in. Our performance in both WSW and MV games were similar in there defensive grit. Things a bit more free flowing here at Sky Stadium.
Thing is that every away game in Aus is likely to be hot - I'm fine with this approach away to WSW and MV (who seem to be top teams, and away games we really struggle in in the past), but will be disappointed if we see it on a regular basis away from home. Most other games will be more winnable than those two.
The time the game is played will make a massive difference, anything in Aus between 3-7pm is still gonna be warm compared to NZ conditions, the later games will be more condusive to a high paced press and attack kinda game.
Except that later games are at 10pm NZ time. Don't they train in the morning here ??. Just something else to factor in. Maybe not that easy to be on a high paced press when its past your bed time..... I'm sure they prepare for this. But just saying
Looks a bit to me like Chiefy has clear tactics/ game management strategies that are different for home and away games. Playing in the heat in Aus after the travel is something that surely has to be factored in. Our performance in both WSW and MV games were similar in there defensive grit. Things a bit more free flowing here at Sky Stadium.
Thing is that every away game in Aus is likely to be hot - I'm fine with this approach away to WSW and MV (who seem to be top teams, and away games we really struggle in in the past), but will be disappointed if we see it on a regular basis away from home. Most other games will be more winnable than those two.
The time the game is played will make a massive difference, anything in Aus between 3-7pm is still gonna be warm compared to NZ conditions, the later games will be more condusive to a high paced press and attack kinda game.
Except that later games are at 10pm NZ time. Don't they train in the morning here ??. Just something else to factor in. Maybe not that easy to be on a high paced press when its past your bed time..... I'm sure they prepare for this. But just saying
The KO time will always be easier to adapt to than the heat. WSW was 3pm KO in the blazing sun. The post 7pm games will definitely be easier on the body, but even then going from NZ to Oz you need time to adapt to the warmer climes.
But it's not just the Nix. The quality of the ALM & ALW as a whole suffers when it's too bloody hot. The games definitely become slower paced, as players just get gassed in the conditions.
But re the Nix, the season is only 4 games old, with a new coach, and lots of news players. Give it some time. The Roar game, showed what could be possible as the attack gells over the season. Given the general doom & gloom about the side being wooden spoon contenders this season, an unbeaten start is fantastic. But improving your defensive structures first is the right way to go about it, and hopefully the attack gets better as you go along even in the heat.
Looks a bit to me like Chiefy has clear tactics/ game management strategies that are different for home and away games. Playing in the heat in Aus after the travel is something that surely has to be factored in. Our performance in both WSW and MV games were similar in there defensive grit. Things a bit more free flowing here at Sky Stadium.
Thing is that every away game in Aus is likely to be hot - I'm fine with this approach away to WSW and MV (who seem to be top teams, and away games we really struggle in in the past), but will be disappointed if we see it on a regular basis away from home. Most other games will be more winnable than those two.
The time the game is played will make a massive difference, anything in Aus between 3-7pm is still gonna be warm compared to NZ conditions, the later games will be more condusive to a high paced press and attack kinda game.
Except that later games are at 10pm NZ time. Don't they train in the morning here ??. Just something else to factor in. Maybe not that easy to be on a high paced press when its past your bed time..... I'm sure they prepare for this. But just saying
The time here doesnt make a difference, they traavel to Aus and are playing there. For the younger ones the adjustment to the time difference will take some getting used. The time/temp in NZ has no impact in the time/temp in Aus.
Looks a bit to me like Chiefy has clear tactics/ game management strategies that are different for home and away games. Playing in the heat in Aus after the travel is something that surely has to be factored in. Our performance in both WSW and MV games were similar in there defensive grit. Things a bit more free flowing here at Sky Stadium.
Thing is that every away game in Aus is likely to be hot - I'm fine with this approach away to WSW and MV (who seem to be top teams, and away games we really struggle in in the past), but will be disappointed if we see it on a regular basis away from home. Most other games will be more winnable than those two.
The time the game is played will make a massive difference, anything in Aus between 3-7pm is still gonna be warm compared to NZ conditions, the later games will be more condusive to a high paced press and attack kinda game.
Except that later games are at 10pm NZ time. Don't they train in the morning here ??. Just something else to factor in. Maybe not that easy to be on a high paced press when its past your bed time..... I'm sure they prepare for this. But just saying
They should. But not always clear that they do. But I think that there was research about high intensity training at the same time you usually play being better for your play?
Looks a bit to me like Chiefy has clear tactics/ game management strategies that are different for home and away games. Playing in the heat in Aus after the travel is something that surely has to be factored in. Our performance in both WSW and MV games were similar in there defensive grit. Things a bit more free flowing here at Sky Stadium.
Thing is that every away game in Aus is likely to be hot - I'm fine with this approach away to WSW and MV (who seem to be top teams, and away games we really struggle in in the past), but will be disappointed if we see it on a regular basis away from home. Most other games will be more winnable than those two.
The time the game is played will make a massive difference, anything in Aus between 3-7pm is still gonna be warm compared to NZ conditions, the later games will be more condusive to a high paced press and attack kinda game.
Except that later games are at 10pm NZ time. Don't they train in the morning here ??. Just something else to factor in. Maybe not that easy to be on a high paced press when its past your bed time..... I'm sure they prepare for this. But just saying
The KO time will always be easier to adapt to than the heat. WSW was 3pm KO in the blazing sun. The post 7pm games will definitely be easier on the body, but even then going from NZ to Oz you need time to adapt to the warmer climes.
But it's not just the Nix. The quality of the ALM & ALW as a whole suffers when it's too bloody hot. The games definitely become slower paced, as players just get gassed in the conditions.
But re the Nix, the season is only 4 games old, with a new coach, and lots of news players. Give it some time. The Roar game, showed what could be possible as the attack gells over the season. Given the general doom & gloom about the side being wooden spoon contenders this season, an unbeaten start is fantastic. But improving your defensive structures first is the right way to go about it, and hopefully the attack gets better as you go along even in the heat.
The kick off times are a factor. Studies looking into the impacts of circadian rhythms on athletic performance in the NBA/NHL/NFL, with so many games played is a decent data set, suggest that teams travelling from east to west (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28568314/) had more negative impact on performance due to relatively later starts to games and also possibly increased travel distance. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35980109/
I mean bio-rhythms and their affect on games were discussed in the Soccer Tribe, which was written in 1980! So I’m sure the idea of conditioning the body to have certain peak exercise points in the day that correspond to match times is nothing new.
