Round 24 In The A-League With Ze Phibber
Another week of footy has graced us with its ever enjoyable presence and I'll tell ya there was more ladder movement then a two hour game of snakes and ladders. Now I'm not a religious sort but oh my lord there were some absolute cracking goals this weekend, maybe some sort of divine intervention? Probably not but there were some real crackers scored. The Phoenix managed to slip all the way from 1st too 4th which managed to really dampen my already wet long weekend. But hey they are only two points behind lead leaders Melbourne Victory. Have you ever seen a top five so close? It's hectic, this year's league is tighter then Andy Keogh, apparently he doesn't pay for anything. But anyway onto the games.
The first game of the week was between the desperate Brisbane Roar and the Central Coast Mariners. The match finished in a thumping 6-1 win to the Roar. Goals to Andrija Kaluderovi (Bri), Steven Lustica (3 x Bri), Devante Clut (Bri), Daniel Bowles ( OG Bri). I'll tell you what, Brisbane were back to their former selves in this game. They played outstanding. Steven Lustica was an absolute animal and scored some classy goals. His second was an absolute ripper, he was about 25 yards out and absolutely pinged it into the bottom corner, absolute class goal. The Mariners were for lack of a better word absolute shit this week. They played like trash, it was possibly some of the worst defending I have seen in the A league, they seriously need to step it up. Brisbane will be roaring now as they have kept there slim final chances alive however they do have a tough next two games. Will be an interesting finish for them none the less.
The second game of the week was between Melbourne City FC and the Western Sydney Wanderers. He match finished with a 1-1 draw. Goals to Yojiro Takahagi (Wes) and Harry Novillo (Mel). Both goals in this game were absolute class but Harry's goal was absolute next level. This is my favourite type of goal, this kind of goal really gets me going. Harry provided some tidy footwork before absolutely thumping the shit out of the ball from around 25 yards. The ball moved in all sorts of directions before almost tearing through the back of the net. What a cracking goal, and with out doubt the Phibber's Goal Of The Week. Asides from the great goals both teams created a lot of chances and played some great football. For a wet weather game it was nice to see both teams continue to play attractive football and there weren't too many errors. Tommi Juric definitely should have done better when he was gifted the ball from Tando Velaphi, and instead of slotting the ball into the back of the net and giving his team the lead he put the ball wide.
The third game of the week was between Sydney FC and Adelaide United. The match finished in a 1-0 win to Adelaide, goal to Awer Mabil. Adelaide really stole the win here. Sydney applied all the pressure and played some great football but it was the Red's Captain and man of the match who time after time denied the blues from grabbing the 3 points. Eugene Galekovic was absolutely outstanding in this match. His reflex saves were so clutch and he is the sole reason Adelaide got the W in this match. As if continually denying Sydney wasn't enough the big number 1 decided he would like an assist and set up Adelaide's goal thanks to a quick kick, what a legend. The win has Adelaide briefly on top of the table while Sydney now has dropped down to 5th.
The fourth game of the week was between Melbourne Victory and the Wellington Phoenix. The match finished in a very convincing 3-0 to the Victory who are now sitting up on the top of the table. Goals to Gui Finkler (Mel), Andrew Durante (OG, Wel) and Archie Thompson (Mel). The Phoenix have now suffered two 3-0 home defeats in as many weeks. This kind of form is the absolute opposite to what they would want to be in, can you say CHOKERS? Any way they started the game very, very poor. It's always going to be a tough game when you concede an opener inside the opening minute but that's what you have to expect when you start poorly against a clinical Melbourne side. You can't take anything away from Melbourne they really were the better side and dominated early on. Andrew Durante scored a great goal. Only issue was it was in our freaking goal. I'm mean He had to intercept the ball but maybe you could have put it anywhere else on the pitch besides the back of our net? I love ya mate but that was pretty poor and as a result you are the Phibber's Knob Of The Week.
The final game of the week was between he Perth Glory and the Newcastle Jets. The match finished with the Glory taking out the match 2-0. Goals to Andy Keogh (Per) and Nebojsa Marinkovic (Per). Perth really didn't deserve this win, the Jets were absolutely all over them right from the get go. The only thing I can really credit Perth for is there desperate defending, they cleared the ball off the goal line a handful of times and a combination of poor finishing and excellent keeping saw them keep a clean sheet and grab the three points. Points that could prove to be useless depending on how this whole Andy Keogh saga turns out.
With three weeks left in the hunt for the plate we have seen a new leader crowned. The Victory are looking like they might be able to take this out sitting on top with a game in hand. But you never know footy can be a cruel, cruel bitch who gives you a taste of glory and then rips it away and hits you while you are down. Needless to say I'm frothing for next week's fixtures.