A must win: City v Wanderers 9th January

[Kinnibari]

32 minutes ago, jw1739 said:

Not at all. No City fan has to move anywhere. Give them (Geelong) the Level 3 on the Eastern side. Same number of seats as the northern end. we give them far too much anyway - it's not like the arrangements at Etihad suit us at all.

And who cares about their terrace and/or what they do at their home matches, it's our home matches that should concern us.

I totally agree but I think the club is like, hey let's take the visitor's money and have a better bottom line, so don't think they'd go for it. Fox would prob also be unhappy, not worth it for the club 

[hedaik]

Im more concerned about the future of test cricket rather than the ALeague. 

Not much A-League really can do or have to do to compete with the BBL. Think they'd be happy for BBL to carry the circus tag and ALeague to be known in the long term as a serious competition with prestige. I think the attendances of AFL & Storm games in the winter shows that Melbourne is capable of supporting both competitions healthily, especially when one competition is only 6 weeks long. 

It is funny that after the last two BBL derbies Ive asked two different people who won, and they both didnt know. 

Edited January 11, 2016 by hedaik

[Dezy94]

First time poster here after a while being a lurker on this forum. Have to say after years of mediocrity, Saturday's win marked a real turning point. Was particularly impressed with the atmosphere in final 15 minutes, sitting in GA it was good to see the vast bulk of ppl on their feet at Mooy's free in the 80th and in stoppage time. Credit to the Melburnians for making it happen. 

Took an AFL mate for his first A-League game with me, he loved it, particularly our attacking style of play which he credited to Mooy and Novillo. Says he'll be back for the game against the Phoenix on the 25th, hopefully that's a sign of things to come, if we keep playing the way we are with an emphasis on goals and shore up defensively then that crowd average will be pushing well past 10k at the back end of the season. Keen for a top 2 finish as I (and no doubt the big wigs at the club) want to see us playing ACL in 2017. We've negotiated our toughest stretch of matches past 4 weeks reasonably well, we should be picking up close to maximum points next few weeks. Looking forward to it.

We Gather Strength As We Go. 

[hedaik]

4 minutes ago, Dezy94 said:

First time poster here

Welcome!

[Tesla]

3 minutes ago, Kiro Kompiro said:

Legitimacy...when I saw 200 plus runs off 20 overs, balls being repeatedly slugged, 3 wickets falling I think one of two things.  All these years of 50 overs and Tests were all one big con and the batsmen did not want to bat this well OR the T20 bowlers (and pitches) are not really trying to take wickets which is the other half of what the skill in the game is.

So which one is it?

1. Scoring 100 in the last 10 overs of a one day game was hardly unheard of. And that's usually with a few wickets down. Give a full compliment of wickets it's not that crazy that it can be done for another 10 overs.

2. There are a few different rules aimed at increasing the scores.

[Kiro Kompiro]

9 minutes ago, Tesla said:

1. Scoring 100 in the last 10 overs of a one day game was hardly unheard of. And that's usually with a few wickets down. Give a full compliment of wickets it's not that crazy that it can be done for another 10 overs.

2. There are a few different rules aimed at increasing the scores.

1.  Then why bother batting out the 50 overs?  Just go out there, swing the bat, all out for 350 in 30 overs.  Win.

2.  Again.  Legitamcy?

[hedaik]

9 minutes ago, Kiro Kompiro said:

1.  Then why bother batting out the 50 overs?  Just go out there, swing the bat, all out for 350 in 30 overs.  Win.

2.  Again.  Legitamcy?

Theres a number of reasons why scoring is easier in the shorter formats, but the biggest factor is that you have a higher chance of reaching 350 over 50 overs than you do in 30 overs. 

[Tesla]

5 minutes ago, Kiro Kompiro said:

1.  Then why bother batting out the 50 overs?  Just go out there, swing the bat, all out for 350 in 30 overs.  Win.

2.  Again.  Legitamcy?

1. 200 is far from a common score, I don't watch enough t20 to tell you how often it happens, but it hasn't been hit all season in the BBL despite this apparently being a high scoring season. So it might only be a score that's reached, say 5% of the time. Then there is the fact that it's a huge difference between 200 in 20 overs and 350 in 30 overs. To have that kind of score between two teams of even remotely similar ability playing in the smallest ground and on the flattest pitch is still highly unlikely. So the reason you wouldn't "Just go out there, swing the bat, all out for 350 in 30 overs" is because 99.9% of the time you won't get 350, and in fact most the time you'd probably struggle to get 250.

2. Err, one day cricket also has different rules to test cricket to make it faster scoring. What's the problem?

[Tony999]

Cricket is shit. Next please.

[Heart of Melbourne]

Agree with Tony9999999

[Shahanga]

2 hours ago, Kiro Kompiro said:

Legitimacy...when I saw 200 plus runs off 20 overs, balls being repeatedly slugged, 3 wickets falling I think one of two things.  All these years of 50 overs and Tests were all one big con and the batsmen did not want to bat this well OR the T20 bowlers (and pitches) are not really trying to take wickets which is the other half of what the skill in the game is.

So which one is it?

Those new bats have massive sweet spots (you no longer need to "middle" it) & they've brought in the boundaries, plus field restrictions.

[jw1739]

I don't think anyone knows who the winners are in the BBL do they? I don't think anyone really cares, either. I doubt that any of the unwashed at the Coliseum knew the names of any of the slaves who were eaten or the gladiators who died, and I don't think anyone cares who wins in this cage-fighting thing just as long as they can see one poor sod get pulped by another. These "sports" appeal to a base instinct in humans, and they're a substitute for the very basic urge to kill for food.

[biancorosso7]

On the sparse nature of active, there were a few people that came down into the gaps in the first 20 mins. Security came over and told them that they couldn't stand there. The police, a back-up ACG and a AAMI Park smurf all came over and asked them to leave. They did. 

So I asked security who complained. He said "they had to go". Turns out, they were kicked out for bringing in contraband in Coca-Cola bottles, not moving to Active. 

A few more filled up after half time and no-one mentioned anything about it. It feels like outside of Derbies, most staff don't care where you sit or stand after you show them your initial ticket.

[ecguymer]

Some of the photos I took from pitch-side

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1713870708833205.1073741827.1632765633610380&type=3

[bt50]

22 minutes ago, biancorosso7 said:

On the sparse nature of active, there were a few people that came down into the gaps in the first 20 mins. Security came over and told them that they couldn't stand there. The police, a back-up ACG and a AAMI Park smurf all came over and asked them to leave. They did.

So I asked security who complained. He said "they had to go". Turns out, they were kicked out for bringing in contraband in Coca-Cola bottles, not moving to Active.

A few more filled up after half time and no-one mentioned anything about it. It feels like outside of Derbies, most staff don't care where you sit or stand after you show them your initial ticket.

There was a stadium worker at the entrance to the right side of the main bay who was being particularly nazi like on who he let into active on Saturday. They usually check a little bit, but this guy was hell bent on getting anyone. Even the seccos were laughing at him. May have affected a few non-active holders that usually stand there getting in...

[belaguttman]

I'm not worried about the Big Bore League, its going to be the child that cannibalises its parents. This has been brought into stark relief by the miserable performance of the West Indies in the Test series but if it really were cannibalising our audience then numbers would have dropped, instead our numbers, poor that they are, are still rising. The more that attend, the better the atmosphere so the attraction rises exponentially as long as we keep winning or at least play an entertaining draw or loss. We do need to address the cost of entry issue if we want to appeal to families and groups though.

[Kinnibari]

52 minutes ago, ecguymer said:

Some of the photos I took from pitch-side

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1713870708833205.1073741827.1632765633610380&type=3

I like this one of Mooy: https://m.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1713870778833198&id=1632765633610380&set=a.1713870708833205.1073741827.1632765633610380&source=43

[illeatyourheart]

So many cricket experts on this forum.

 

 

Edited January 11, 2016 by illeatyourheart
video url

[Jovan]

2 hours ago, illeatyourheart said:

So many experts on this forum. 

Fixed.

[Murfy1]

Match Analysis: Melbourne City 3-2 Western Sydney Wanderers

 

January 11, 2016

Tim Palmer

 

The league’s best attack met the best defence in an exciting, high-tempo A-League classic.

Team news

John van’t Schip made several changes from last week’s 2-2 draw with Sydney FC, with Ben Garuccio, Aaron Mooy, Erik Paartalu and Paulo Retre all returning to the starting XI.

Tony Popovic kept with the same team from their 0-0 draw with Adelaide United, with the exception of Jacob Pepper replacing the injured Scott Neville at right-back.

Melbourne City’s 3-5-2

The most significant outcome of the team news, however, was the inclusion of Jack Clisby, Patrick Kisnorbo, Aaron Hughes and Garuccio in the same side, which made it obvious City were continuing with the 3-5-2 that worked excellently against Sydney FC last week.

To give a brief recap of that game, Sydney FC dominated proceedings in the opening twenty minutes. They had particular joy creating overloads in wide areas, with the combination of Alex Gersbach and Andrew Hoole on the left causing real problems for the right-hand side of City’s defence, Matthew Millar and Hughes. Sydney were able to get in behind the fullbacks with pace and had a number of chances from cut-backs across the face of goal – only their poor finishing prevented them from taking a sizeable lead.

Van’t Schip’s reaction was to change to a 3-5-2. While on paper the lack of natural wingers in the formations theoretically meant they had less presence in wide areas defensively, it meant that the fullbacks – now wing-backs – now had the support of a centre-back able to move out and provide support, because of the balance and cover provided by having three centre-backs.

Furthermore, by virtue of having Bruno Fornaroli and Harry Novillo high up as a front two, City were able to generate counter-attacks by breaking into the spaces behind Sydney’s advanced fullbacks.

City’s 3-5-2 v Western Sydney’s 4-2-3-1

Buoyed by their much stronger performance against Sydney FC following the formation change, Van’t Schip continued with the new system for this top of the table clash. It had a significant impact on the tactical battle. With both teams looking to apply pressure high up the pitch, both teams playing with the ambition to try and build up from the back, and both teams counter-attacking smoothly, it meant the game was a classic ‘end-to-end’ affair – both teams had periods of control and dominance, creating lots of chances.

The start of the game was particularly characterised by high pressure from both sides. We know this season Western Sydney have become a proactive possession team, with Adelaide’s response to this last week to defend in medium block. Here, City were more aggressive, pushing right up onto the back four when Western Sydney had goalkicks, with Novillo and Fornaroli marking the two centre-backs when they split to the edge of the penalty box.

In spite of this, though, Andrew Redmayne still tried to play short, with Nikolai Topor-Stanley often dropping off quickly down the side of the penalty box to receive a pass from the goalkeeper before Novillo had time to react. With Mooy preventing passes into Western Sydney’s Spanish midfield duo, Topor-Stanley’s closest passing option was often Jamieson.

When this pass was made, City’s lack of natural wingers defensively in their 3-5-2 formation meant the player closest to the ball was the wing-back, Retre. Therefore, in keeping with City’s ambition to press high, Retre would often cover a distance of 20-30 metres to sprint forward and press Jamieson.

 

This became a theme of the game. The full-backs and wing-backs were direct opponents, and all four got forward throughout the game, creating dangerous opportunities. Garuccio, for example, delivered a fine cross from which Fornaroli’s header was well-saved by Redmayne. Barely a minute later, Jamieson was unpressured in a wide area and played in a dangerous ball.

City go 3v3 at the back

When City’s wing-backs moved forward to pressure the Wanderers fullbacks, it meant they were going 3v3 at the back. This was an aggressive defensive strategy and again was another key factor in the game’s openness.

The best example of this was the way in which Kisnorbo repeatedly came up the pitch to proactively defend against Mark Bridge. There was a moment on the half-hour mark where he dispossessed the left-winger deep inside Western Sydney’s half – certainly an unusual position for a centre-back to be tackling his opponent, and typifying City’s bold approach at the back.

[GIF at link]

Another example was Clisby’s yellow card, where he dives in on Dario Vidosic from behind.

While it was brave, though, it also was very vulnerable. Hughes, for example, was up against Piovaccari, and struggled sometimes in tracking the runs of the Italian – even though the striker isn’t the most overly mobile player himself.

The problem was exacerbated whenever Mitch Nichols’ made his characteristic darting runs forward. The Wanderers looked most dangerous when playing long balls in behind for their attackers to chase – Piovaccari slipped over after outpacing Hughes, Bridge had a volley that nearly chipped the goalkeeper, and then Nichols scored with a volley from a simple ball over the top that Sorenson fumbled into his own net.

City’s pressing creates chances

On the flipside, City’s pressure high up nearly created some good chances. An excellent example was in the 33rd minute, when they won the ball high up and quickly countered, with Mooy’s low shot well saved by Redmayne.

City also looked promising when able to build up past Western Sydney’s first pressing line. In the first half, the two wingers pressed on the outside centre-backs, which meant, as aforementioned, the wing-backs were often free. With Jamieson and Pepper having a lot of ground to cover, and wary of leaving space their centre-backs exposed 2v2 against Novillo and Fornaroli, Garuccio and Retre had time on the ball to progress the ball forward.

Sometimes, they looked to play passes inside to either Paartalu or Melling, who would quickly return the pass back wide. This would draw the Wanderers #6s (Andreu and Dimas) forward, creating space between the lines for the wing-back to then quickly play into Mooy between the lines.

Despite all this, City’s goals were relatively straightforward – the first from a direct free-kick, and the second from a two-pass counter-attack stemming from a Wanderers counter-attack. Nevertheless, they were still reflective of the game’s overall pattern of openness, which, generally speaking, meant their talented individuals upfront had more space to work in, and thus were extremely dangerous whenever City got the ball forward.

Second half

The major change after the half-time break was Western Sydney pressing higher up the pitch, and changing their structure slightly. Rather than having the two wingers press inwards on City’s outside centre-backs, they now sat in the space between the outside centre-backs and the wing-backs, preventing those passes into Garuccio and Retre where they had time and space. Additionally, Nichols moved forward and applied pressure to the centre-backs (rather than blocking passes into midfield), and the two Spanish #6s pushed up higher onto Paartalu and Melling.

This high press caused City significant problems, something Van’t Schip admitted post-match. It meant they were forced to hit longer balls from the back, and struggled to control possession and territory in the first fifteen minutes of the second half. Crucially, even though the two #6s were pushing up onto Paatalu and Melling and subsequently leaving Mooy free between the lines, City weren’t able to get the ball to their playmaker because of the pressure high up.

This tactical adjustment changed the complexion of the game, with the introduction of Romeo Castelen firmly shifting the momentum in Western Sydney’s favour. This wasn’t a clever tactical change, but rather simply about adding fresh, new attacking quality at a time when the Wanderers had a huge territorial advantage. Castelen’s first touch was to assist the equaliser, a dangerous low cross that Hughes put into his own net.

Following that, Castelen was consistently the most dangerous player. In the space of five minutes, he first got to the byline and played a great cutback, then had a shot well saved from which Bridge came close himself with the follow-up, before later drawing another low save from Sorenson.

Substitutes

With his side on the back foot, Van’t Schip turned to David Williams, bringing off Melling, moving Mooy deeper and shifting Fornaroli into the #10 position. This was an attack-minded move perhaps intended to get Mooy on the ball in deeper positions, where he may have perhaps been able to break past the Wanderers pressure. However, City’s best chances were on the counter, exemplified by the Novillo shot that hit the side netting – a simple 2-pass move that started from a long Sorensen kick.

Still not happy with the flow of the game, Van’t Schip then brought on Jason Trifiro for Hughes. At first, Paartalu dropped into centre-back, but it became clear City were going back to their usual 4-2-1-3. They simply seemed more comfortable in this shape because of their familiarity with it. Somewhat against the run of play, Novillo scored a typical Novillo goal, cutting inside from the left and shooting from outside the box.

End notes

City won it, but Western Sydney probably deserved it. The controversy about the disallowed goal aside, they created a large number of chances in the second half inspired by both the introduction of Castelen, and their high pressing block. This turned the game in the Wanderers favour after an even first half that City probably edged, with their 3-5-2 formation creating an interesting tactical battle in wide areas between the wing-backs and the full-backs.

An open, attack-minded game suited City better, because it meant there was more space for their attackers to work in. Their success is dependent on Novillo, Fornaroli and Mooy – three outstanding attackers who provide additional quality in attack that perhaps only one other side in the league can match. That was extremely clear in the second half, when City were on the back foot throughout and yet still scored thanks to some individual quality from Novillo.

Therefore, Van’t Schip might continue with systems of play like the 3-5-2 that fit this trio into their favourite positions with a large degree of freedom – it might leave the rest of the side more exposed, but it’s worth the gamble that Novillo, Mooy or Fornaroli does something magical, and allow City to win games by simply outscoring the opposition.

http://www.timpalmerfootball.com/match-analysis-melbourne-city-3-2-western-sydney-wanderers/

 

 

Good summary that accurately details the match phases and tactics. However IMO towards the end it is overly generous to WSW, and overly praises their tactical advantages our underplays performances (arguably on performances the result was fair. Especially given WSW's finishing; they didn't score 1 good goal). We had 14 shots to their 17, about the same, and our finishing was much better--we scored 3 good goals and they only got 1 goal from a goalkeeping howler and 1 OG. Performance factors like that are at least as significant as the fact that WSW utilised an effective high press in the second half.

[MICHAEL_MACGYVER]

^ WOW

[sheepdog]

8 minutes ago, MICHAEL_MACGYVER said:

^ WOW

You're new here.

You will get used to it. 

[possiblygeorge]

8 hours ago, ecguymer said:

Some of the photos I took from pitch-side

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1713870708833205.1073741827.1632765633610380&type=3

These are class! Awesome work, mate

[GreenSeater]

9 hours ago, ecguymer said:

Some of the photos I took from pitch-side

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1713870708833205.1073741827.1632765633610380&type=3

Some great photos in here, may I ask what you were shooting with?

[ecguymer]

23 minutes ago, GreenSeater said:

Some great photos in here, may I ask what you were shooting with?

Most of the photos where taken with a Canon 1DX and 70-200mm 2.8L combo I was loaned as part of the prize (it was the canon collective comp offered through the cityzens portal that got me the access); a couple where with my usual 60D with 18-55mm kit. With any luck, I'll get to do this again later in the season =D

[strider]

Comparing cricket to the world game. LEL

You can say what you want, do what you want. But the matter of the fact is -- the A-League (and Aussie Soccer in general) is on a vicious uprising.
No wonder kids flock to Soccer as opposed to the other codes. Skill, technique, finesse and passion. Also the appeal of being internationally recognised. 
Atmosphere is second to none (yes, AFL, you cannot manufacture it). 

The sleeping giant of Australian sport has only just opened one eye.  

[possiblygeorge]

I'm going out on a limb and saying the following. I've watched this match twice and i can safely say the quality of the A-League is starting to s**t all over that poor excuse for a Football League, Major League Soccer.

Every five minutes, or almost seems like it, you'd be told who's sponsoring the coverage and what ever other bs they can throw in. The commentary is putrid, the supporter bases are unnecseacrily cringeworthy, the venues are a joke and most of the marquee players don't even look like they want to be there, except Drogba and maybe Henry from memory. 

Watch this video and try to tell me that the MLS is better than our League. 

 

 

[possiblygeorge]

Incase you're still not convinced. Referring to the scoreline as "one-nothing" is pretty aids.

 

 

[jw1739]

Giving the score as "one-nothing", "two-nothing", etc. was actually fairly common when I watched football in England. "One-nil" etc. was more common, but the other was acceptable.

Also, I think the Americans may use that terminology in a number of their sports. Rather like their use of "fall" instead of "autumn" (and "fall" actually being the original English use) there may be a historical reason behind the usage.

[Dylan]

5 hours ago, possiblygeorge said:

I'm going out on a limb and saying the following. I've watched this match twice and i can safely say the quality of the A-League is starting to s**t all over that poor excuse for a Football League, Major League Soccer.

Every five minutes, or almost seems like it, you'd be told who's sponsoring the coverage and what ever other bs they can throw in. The commentary is putrid, the supporter bases are unnecseacrily cringeworthy, the venues are a joke and most of the marquee players don't even look like they want to be there, except Drogba and maybe Henry from memory. 

Watch this video and try to tell me that the MLS is better than our League. 

 

 

Those commentators are fucking annoying. I have always had trouble taking someone with and American accent seriously. 

Edited January 11, 2016 by Dylan

[KSK_47]

26 minutes ago, jw1739 said:

Giving the score as "one-nothing", "two-nothing", etc. was actually fairly common when I watched football in England. "One-nil" etc. was more common, but the other was acceptable.

Not that i grew up in the UK but from what i can tell by watching old games and news reels calling it soccer seemed completely fine too

[thisphantomfortress]

Just came across as an uneducated pop shot at the yanks tbh. I'd say it's a completely normal thing to say.

Further to this if anyone seriously thinks the a-league is better product than the MLS is completely delusional 

[eric forman]

https://www.facebook.com/MJMphotos/

heres some pics from the game, future games will also be covered on this page

[ecguymer]

Pics from those who shot with club; people should go like photos (preferably mine :p) as the photographer with the most liked photo gets a prize

 

 

[jeffplz]

On 1/11/2016 at 3:59 AM, possiblygeorge said:

 

 

I don't know if i'm delusional but I can say i've played better games in defence and midfield as some players in the blue team did here.. holy shit.