A-League: five things to look out for in round nine

Perth’s big test

The current A-League ladder has developed in-built divisions: a top and bottom five separated by a five-point buffer. If the ladder can be taken as a fair indicator of form and promise —and given we’re almost a third of the way into the season, one might argue it could— then Perth Glory are in wonderful shape, sitting handsomely on top, with only a single loss besmirching their good name. Yet the vagaries of the draw may have something to do with this, and in the coming months Perth get the opportunity to illustrate that their position as frontrunners is truly representative of where they stand.

To date, Perth have played just two other teams in this breakaway top five: Adelaide, to whom they lost, and Wellington, the fifth-placed team, whom they’ve beaten twice. (Third-placed Adelaide, by contrast, have played all the other teams in the top five, including Melbourne Victory twice.) So Perth have yet to face Sydney FC or Victory, and until that’s been remedied scepticism about their position on the table will remain, however much it rankles Glory supporters. Like Perth, fourth-placed Sydney have only played two top-five rivals, for draws against both Adelaide and Victory. But the Sky Blues have also played two derbies, fixtures as tough as any in the A-League – and they’ve come from behind in both games to earn a win and a draw. On the balance of their seasons so far Sydney will start on Thursday night as favourites, but Perth have earned the right to be confident, and if they can find a way to unlock the Blues’ miserly defence they’ll continue to convert the non-believers.

Wellington’s search for consistency

Ernie Merrick’s work to convert Wellington into a fluid attacking side with the ability to deliver the killer blow has flickered into being all season but last week, against Melbourne City, it burst forth onto our screens in full HD with Dolby sound. As well as creating a nice buffer between them in fifth and the chasing pack, the impressive win should have confirmed to the playing group that the paper Merrick has been holding in his hand these past 18 months is indeed a map to the promised land —and not, say, a 10% discount voucher for BurgerFuel that he’s been saving for a special occasion. But can the Phoenix replicate it on a humid Sunday afternoon in Newcastle? Despite their competitiveness this season (the worst of their four losses has been a 2-0 defeat to Victory), Wellington have struggled to string wins together, only doing so back in rounds two and three. In the latter of these games they —and former Jet Nathan Burns— took the long handle to Newcastle, 4-1, and they’ll prove much to themselves if they can repeat the dose on Saturday, particularly since they’ve won just one of their four away games to date. You get the feeling that the Wellington have it in them to go on a bit of a run.

Mariners maroon themselves but for what end?

It hasn’t been the easiest season so far for the Central Coast and their fans, what with the Mariners not having won since the opening round of the season. And it doesn’t look like getting any easier this round when Phil Moss’s team, who’ve yet to get their land legs, come up against an inform Melbourne Victory. To make matters worse for Mariners fans their club has forgone home ground advantage in order to play the game at North Sydney Oval, an hour and quarter’s drive south of Central Coast Stadium. NSO is a gorgeous cricket ground but its geometrics keeps the fans and atmospherics at bay and, with its hard cricket square, it’s not a ground that’s kind on falling bodies. Trainers overseeing Friday night’s fixture best have their magic sponges at the ready, as well as a bucket of Mercurochrome. Central Coast chairman and owner Mike Charlesworth has said the decision to play at North Sydney Oval on Friday night (and more often next season) is a necessary move to “expand our geographic presence.” You can’t blame a business from wanting a greater catchment of customers (how’s that for stripping the romance out of football?) but of course the worry is that you’ll alienate the customers you’ve already got. Will football fans on the Central Coast be more —or less— inclined to follow a team that, by stealth, seeks to become the Northern Sydney Mariners?

Can City plug the holes?

It’s only four weeks since Melbourne City played Brisbane Roar away and, with some panache, won their first game of the season. Since then, however, both teams – who’ll face each other again on Sunday in Melbourne – have turned something of a corner: the Roar from the goat-track on which they were travelling onto a tarred avenue heading north; City from a roundabout into a cul-de-sac where all the cars are on blocks and locals with pronounced underbites come out with lines like “You done took yerself a wronnng turn!” With just one point from their past three games, which includes last week’s 5-1 humiliation against Wellington, Melbourne City’s coronation as a big player on Australia’s football scene appears well and truly on hold. Hardly surprising considering how little the squad has changed from last year, but fans would have hoped for better nonetheless, as if the wealth of their backers alone would have been enough to spur their team on. But, no. Chances are still being spurned, as per Heart tradition, and now Rob Wielaert and co. are gifting goals. It may help City that Brisbane played on Wednesday night (although Brisbane won and their confidence is rising), and Thomas Broich’s absence can’t hurt either. But after shipping nine goals in their past three games Brisbane seem the least of City’s concerns.

Will the Wanderers’ woes ever end?

It’s not as if Tony Popovic’s team are playing badly —although they seemed to forget where the goal was on Wednesday night— but still, here we are, eight games into the season and they don’t have a win to their name. Worse, the Wanderers’ past four matches have all been at the home ground, an erstwhile fortress, yet they’ve generated just three points from them and, for the first time in their short and gilded history, a grumble of discontent from their fan base who are not accustomed to the drawn-out suffering of the football fan. Popovic is stretching things with his claim that his team have been the better team in the past four matches, but they certainly haven’t been outplayed in any of those fixtures. Popovic has argued that the ball is just not dropping their way. That’s football, that’s life, but they simply have to find a way to make their own luck here or else the top six will move so far out of sight that however much they rally they won’t catch up.

Fortunately for them, they are not the only strugglers, and sixth spot (occupied now by Brisbane) is just four points adrift. Unfortunately, however, their next match is against Adelaide at Coopers Stadium on Saturday night. The dynamic Reds will be smarting after shooting themselves in the foot against Victory last start and they should be up for it like kites on a windy day.

Fixtures

Thursday:

Sydney FC v Perth Glory, Sydney Football Stadium, 7.30pm

Friday:

Central Coast Mariners v Melbourne Victory, North Sydney Oval, 7.40pm

Saturday:

Newcastle Jets v Wellington Phoenix, Hunter Stadium, Newcastle, 5pm

Adelaide United v Western Sydney Wanderers, Coopers Stadium, 7pm

Sunday:

Melbourne City v Brisbane Roar, AAMI Park, 5pm