The Race for 3rd & the Elusive ACL Spot (probably)

[Dylan]

Im still a little nervous about making the ACL (even the qual play off) and it having an effect on next season with all the travel and such. Although I dare say the owners we have have plenty of experience and I doubt they would be flying cattle class

[jw1739]

48 minutes ago, Dylan said:

Im still a little nervous about making the ACL (even the qual play off) and it having an effect on next season with all the travel and such. Although I dare say the owners we have have plenty of experience and I doubt they would be flying cattle class

It doesn't impact until the last third of the season does it? If you have a good and balanced squad, and get good results from the first two-thirds of the season then you should be able to handle it. We wouldn't be worrying about making third if we hadn't thrown stupidly thrown away points earlier on.

Am I right in thinking that although there are restrictions on the number of visa players that can be in the ACL squad, you can actually have a larger squad and also more substitutes are allowed?

IMO it's a matter of having the right management in place. Clubs overseas have to manage congested fixture lists, and we just have to face it too.

[Embee]

8 hours ago, playmaker said:

Something seriously wrong with that bloke, he is just not right.

They're both proper psychopaths to be fair, pretty much have two modes:

1. Complaining

2. Raging

[bt50]

43 minutes ago, jw1739 said:

It doesn't impact until the last third of the season does it? If you have a good and balanced squad, and get good results from the first two-thirds of the season then you should be able to handle it. We wouldn't be worrying about making third if we hadn't thrown stupidly thrown away points earlier on.

Am I right in thinking that although there are restrictions on the number of visa players that can be in the ACL squad, you can actually have a larger squad and also more substitutes are allowed?

IMO it's a matter of having the right management in place. Clubs overseas have to manage congested fixture lists, and we just have to face it too.

Pretty much. A deep squad can do well in both; see Victory a couple years ago. We'll be better placed than any other team in the comp when it come to ACL with our depth, I dont think it will be too big of an issue.

[Dylan]

1 hour ago, jw1739 said:

It doesn't impact until the last third of the season does it? If you have a good and balanced squad, and get good results from the first two-thirds of the season then you should be able to handle it. We wouldn't be worrying about making third if we hadn't thrown stupidly thrown away points earlier on.

Am I right in thinking that although there are restrictions on the number of visa players that can be in the ACL squad, you can actually have a larger squad and also more substitutes are allowed?

IMO it's a matter of having the right management in place. Clubs overseas have to manage congested fixture lists, and we just have to face it too.

ACL has 3+1. If I were the club I'd throw a tonne of money at Honda for next year

[Torn Asunder]

Currently the team seems galvanized and the group's belief is growing, with a clear focus on the impending finals series.

If they can continue to build in confidence, if Bruno can improve his general touch and if Jacobson can get back on the field to lead the defence along with Sorenson, we are a good chance to do well in the finals.

I think the recent formation and tactic tweak has worked and it will be interesting to see how teams try to counter against us ... hopefully there are no obvious weaknesses in our current tactics that can be easily exploited, like what happened after we played Perth early in the season.

[Jovan]

1 hour ago, Torn Asunder said:

Currently the team seems galvanized and the group's belief is growing, with a clear focus on the impending finals series.

If they can continue to build in confidence, if Bruno can improve his general touch and if Jacobson can get back on the field to lead the defence along with Sorenson, we are a good chance to do well in the finals.

I think the recent formation and tactic tweak has worked and it will be interesting to see how teams try to counter against us ... hopefully there are no obvious weaknesses in our current tactics that can be easily exploited, like what happened after we played Perth early in the season.

Great post.

I'm leaning with you. It was clearly a new structure and plan that was not only successful but was executed to a T.

Valkanis (I'm assuming) showed that he has the ability to develop a system then at some point during the game change. This in itself is interesting as that it now puts doubts in the opposition. 

Wanderers and Popovic away after they have had a couple goods wins in the ACL and League will be a totally different scenario to a weak Newcastle. So it will be intriguing as to how we approach this game. 

If he tries the same tactic with a lopsided overloaded midfield he will get found out pretty quick. I'm hoping he has another tweak in store.

Edited March 20, 2017 by Jovan

[NewConvert]

9 hours ago, jw1739 said:

It doesn't impact until the last third of the season does it? If you have a good and balanced squad, and get good results from the first two-thirds of the season then you should be able to handle it. We wouldn't be worrying about making third if we hadn't thrown stupidly thrown away points earlier on.

Am I right in thinking that although there are restrictions on the number of visa players that can be in the ACL squad, you can actually have a larger squad and also more substitutes are allowed?

IMO it's a matter of having the right management in place. Clubs overseas have to manage congested fixture lists, and we just have to face it too.

What you are saying is true but I can't recall Haeart/City ever having a balanced squad.

[jw1739]

On 3/19/2017 at 7:40 PM, haz said:

I think 5 points (draw or win against Perth) will be enough for us.

I'm afraid I'm not confident about that. Arithmetically WSW are still in the mix as well as City, Brisbane and Perth. IMO it's going to be very, very close for 3rd, 4th and 5th.

[haz]

7 minutes ago, jw1739 said:

I'm afraid I'm not confident about that. Arithmetically WSW are still in the mix as well as City, Brisbane and Perth. IMO it's going to be very, very close for 3rd, 4th and 5th.

Having a rethink we would need more, in any case we have to get a result against Perth. Imo they have the most control of their ladder placing rather then relying on other results as they play both us and Brisbane.

[bt50]

3 hours ago, jw1739 said:

I'm afraid I'm not confident about that. Arithmetically WSW are still in the mix as well as City, Brisbane and Perth. IMO it's going to be very, very close for 3rd, 4th and 5th.

As i mentioned in the other thread, 6 points will all but guarantee it.

[mattyh001]

4 games left = max 12 points on offer for each side.

However thanks to Perth hosting Brisbane during the last four games, a loss for either side means the losing team is capped at a maximum of 9 points on offer for the rest of the season (leaving Perth able to reach a maximum of 41 points and Brisbane on 42 points for whoever losses).

A draw on the other hand will see both Perth and Brisbane capped with a maximum of 10 points on offer for the rest of the season (leaving them on 42 and 43 points respectively).

So long story summed up; 7 points / 2 wins 1 draw is enough for us to be guaranteed a home final, and quite possibly enough to get third since Perth / Brisbane would have to win all four games to sneak past.

What happens between now and our game in Perth is way too hard to call, but certainly not doom and gloom. 

[Dylan]

Let's just pay someone to take out Castro and Perth will collapse

[IssySG]

4 hours ago, Dylan said:

Let's just pay someone to take out Castro and Perth will collapse

Please link the kickstarter

[jw1739]

8 hours ago, Dylan said:

Let's just pay someone to take out Castro and Perth will collapse

Wow, this is a bit of a signal from Perth that they mean business.

http://www.a-league.com.au/article/transfer-news-perth-glory-signs-romanian-international/6z1e45n2adoy18fxdzjwev6pf

I guess that if you're complying with FFA rules than any A-League club can do the same.

[Jovan]

26 minutes ago, jw1739 said:

Wow, this is a bit of a signal from Perth that they mean business.

http://www.a-league.com.au/article/transfer-news-perth-glory-signs-romanian-international/6z1e45n2adoy18fxdzjwev6pf

I guess that if you're complying with FFA rules than any A-League club can do the same.

The article implies that he is an injury replacement for Lowry and Grant. I was always under the impression it was 1 for 1 player and therefore like for like. And what about Visa places. Have Perth not been using all their visa spots?

[Shahanga]

1 hour ago, jw1739 said:

Wow, this is a bit of a signal from Perth that they mean business.

http://www.a-league.com.au/article/transfer-news-perth-glory-signs-romanian-international/6z1e45n2adoy18fxdzjwev6pf

I guess that if you're complying with FFA rules than any A-League club can do the same.

I wasn't that impressed with his playing CV. Romania, China and India, plus Romania U21s. Had to boost it up by saying who he'd "rubbed shoulders with". Big Fing Deal. Might as well have mentioned him "catching a bus past Old Trafford"

[jw1739]

1 hour ago, Jovan said:

The article implies that he is an injury replacement for Lowry and Grant. I was always under the impression it was 1 for 1 player and therefore like for like. And what about Visa places. Have Perth not been using all their visa spots?

It seems that Perth have been running on 4 visa players - Castro, Marinkovic, Keogh and Mills. But I didn't read far enough into the article - a visa signing to replace an Australian certainly doesn't meet the "like-for-like" test. But I'm struggling to find the FFA regulations that pertain to this.

[malloy]

Just now, jw1739 said:

It seems that Perth have been running on 4 visa players - Castro, Marinkovic, Keogh and Mills. But I didn't read far enough into the article - a visa signing to replace an Australian certainly doesn't meet the "like-for-like" test. But I'm struggling to find the FFA regulations that pertain to this.

I believe like for like is purely on a positional basis. 

[SF33]

Even though this season has been overall, incredibly disappointing, if we can make it to third from here and make the grand final (which would also ensure that we have a better year than Victory, which I think is absolutely vital to continue to attract new supporters to choose City: to consistently be the best team in the city), that's a good result overall. If we win the grand final from here, it's a fantastic season.

After so many false dawns and let-downs (the most recent, obviously being the post-Cup win opportunity to make a league-wide statement with a tough schedule in December, which started well enough with a 1-1 draw against Brisbane on a short turnaround, then pissing away four consecutive games against Sydney, Victory, Perth and Central Coast, for three points - which should have been unquestionably been twelve), I strongly believe that the turning point will be like the Boston Red Sox ending their championship drought: down 3-0 to the hated Yankees in a best of 7 series and somehow pulling it out 4-3, then sweeping the championship series. It's going to happen eventually.

[SF33]

Brisbane won't be helped by the suspension of Michael Theo for two games (at home to Victory and Central Coast) and by a mid-week game in the ACL, prior to the final round of the season.

[jw1739]

12 hours ago, SF33 said:

Brisbane won't be helped by the suspension of Michael Theo for two games (at home to Victory and Central Coast) and by a mid-week game in the ACL, prior to the final round of the season.

I find it incredibly annoying that we are probably going have to rely on other factors and results working to our favour for us to finish top four, let alone in third. Just highlights for me the insane attitude that JvS always showed that there was always plenty of time left in the season for us to gel and improve, and we were working on it, in a good place, showing improvements, blah, blah, blah. He never seemed to get the message that there are only 27 matches, and that every match is a six-pointer and just as important as any other match.

The prediction of where we might finish is going to change as each result involving a top 6 team comes in, but it really pisses me off that we are in this situation.

 

[thisphantomfortress]

12 minutes ago, jw1739 said:

I find it incredibly annoying that we are probably going have to rely on other factors and results working to our favour for us to finish top four, let alone in third. Just highlights for me the insane attitude that JvS always showed that there was always plenty of time left in the season for us to gel and improve, and we were working on it, in a good place, showing improvements, blah, blah, blah. He never seemed to get the message that there are only 27 matches, and that every match is a six-pointer and just as important as any other match.

The prediction of where we might finish is going to change as each result involving a top 6 team comes in, but it really pisses me off that we are in this situation.

 

I disagree, our fate is in our own hands at this point. We are 3 clear and have a superior GD, we make our own luck at this stage

[thisphantomfortress]

I must also add, our two direct rivals are facing each other which means at least one will drop points

[SF33]

Both fair points. At the end of the day, we should be at least fighting for 1-2, not 3. It's baffling, but with the constant upbeat themes coming out of the club following disappointing results, you'd think it was an AFL team, just trying to lock in a top four spot and go from there once the finals start. So many of our losses and draws this year have been tremendously disappointing and it's only compounded when the players and coaches don't seem to grasp the importance of every game.

Having said that, I think it's only a matter of time before we become a similar team to Sydney this year, getting one point when we should have lost, getting three when we should have drawn (rather than doing the opposite, as we pretty much do currently) and going months without a loss. It's just testing our collective patience in the meantime.

[Embee]

On 3/21/2017 at 8:35 AM, Dylan said:

Let's just pay someone to take out Castro and Perth will collapse

 

[Dylan]

Well there goes that idea

[jw1739]

14 hours ago, Dylan said:

Well there goes that idea

It was a good thread to start though. Brings a lot of the threads together. The astonishing thing is that unless Brisbane beat Victory by six clear goals tonight we will still be in third place at the end of this round.

I suspect that we will finish the season 5th. This will be our lowest position for the whole season. Up to now we have never been lower than 4th at the end of a round.

[Dylan]

3 minutes ago, jw1739 said:

It was a good thread to start though. Brings a lot of the threads together. The astonishing thing is that unless Brisbane beat Victory by six clear goals tonight we will still be in third place at the end of this round.

I suspect that we will finish the season 5th. This will be our lowest position for the whole season. Up to now we have never been lower than 4th at the end of a round.

Nah it will be a typical city thing to finish third and lose the first final

[haz]

Please change thread title to "The drop to 6th and likely preliminary final exit"

Edited March 25, 2017 by haz

[playmaker]

Reopen this thread as it's more relevant 

 

[KSK_47]

Yeah we're fucked

[xXCiTyZeNXx]

[fidrildid6]

We mathematically cannot miss finals now, which is a shame because the misery will be dragged out for at least another week.

[Jovan]

4 hours ago, fidrildid6 said:

We mathematically cannot miss finals now, which is a shame because the misery will be dragged out for at least another week.

Or 2 max.

[Baka1]

Inb4 6th place, lose first final, Valkanis 2 year extension.  Ahhhhhh fuck sakes

[bt50]

Perth's draw last night means we need just one win from our last three matches, or a draw against Perth to guarantee a home final.

The race against Brisbane for 3rd is much tighter now though; we probably need 6 or 7 points to book that in, although that depends on Brisbane's form as much as ours. CCM or Welly taking points from Brisbane in the run home would help our cause considerably.

[haz]

Change thread Title to "5th" rather then 3rd. If Perth find form in the last two games it could be 6th

[fensaddler]

44 minutes ago, haz said:

Change thread Title to "5th" rather then 3rd. If Perth find form in the last two games it could be 6th

I'm on record as being an optimist on this issue only a couple of weeks ago, and unfortunately I think you're right.  We've fallen apart just as we needed to keep it together, and credit to WSW and Brisbane,  they've done the opposite.  I'm at the point of wishing this season over and consigned to history, with the hope that the close season brings some serious reflection (perhaps even public acknowledgement?) and some structured response to address obvious problems in tactics, squad structure and leadership.

[playmaker]

16 minutes ago, fensaddler said:

I'm on record as being an optimist on this issue only a couple of weeks ago, and unfortunately I think you're right.  We've fallen apart just as we needed to keep it together, and credit to WSW and Brisbane,  they've done the opposite.  I'm at the point of wishing this season over and consigned to history, with the hope that the close season brings some serious reflection (perhaps even public acknowledgement?) and some structured response to address obvious problems in tactics, squad structure and leadership.

According to Timmy we are fine, Valkanis is a great manager, the youth are good, the processes are fantastic, and they are all professionals, squad rotation and not having a stable team on the pitch is really good.

In the mean time Ned, Kosmina and Bosnich fell asleep.

Have faith in Timmy, we will win the final because the processes are good and they are all professionals.

Just remember we are professionals and the processes are good. Valkanis is good.

 

 

 

 

 

PS: we are professionals and the processes are good, Valkanis is good.