Sunday 5 April 2015

Farce shambles - Green Gully 0 South Melbourne 2

Never, ever a dull day for South at Gully, but even I wasn't expecting today's shenanigans. But before the usual shoddy rundown of the game, well done to Green Gully for once again offering SMFCTV no help whatsoever to find a suitable place to film, a disgrace in itself in terms of hospitality, but even more woeful when they're not even sending their own film footage to FFV for the weekly highlights video. Clowns.

Gully have been a bit all over the shop this season, while we ourselves hadn't put in anything close to resembling a cohesive 90 minute performance; yet we were still undefeated and picking up points against some good teams under difficult circumstances. Leigh Minopoulos, who got a start at the expense of Andy Brennan, scored during the first half only to have it called back for offside. My immediate gut instinct, admittedly from viewing the incident from the halfway line, was that it was offside, though others closer in line insisted it was a legitimate goal. Minopoulos had another chance though to open the scoring, but mucked up the opportunity spectacularly - either shooting or better still, passing it to his right to the unmarked Milos Lujic would have sufficed - instead his inaction saw the chance squandered and Leigh copping a barrage of abuse for the effort. What was that it that Mr Miyagi told Daniel-san about being decisive?



Speaking of South fans abusing players, I didn't hear anybody abuse Nick Epifano at the point in time when he decided to abuse the South supporters. Now whether he said 'Greek cunts' or 'spastic cunts' or 'spastic Greek cunts' is irrelevant. But more on this later. And as something completely unrelated to this (nudge, nudge, wink, wink), the call of the day outside of the farcical post-match scenes was one of our fans offering to buy Roddy Vargas' Socceroo jersey for ten bucks.

It was a very even game, with Gully also finding themselves in good positions to score, but more often than not failing to make the most of their opportunities throughout the game. This was either due to woeful finishing, overuse of the ball, or when required, the heroics of Nikola Roganovic - and before I forget, yes there was a substitute keeper on the bench yesterday!

Remember also when I was a little mystified by Chris Taylor's comments following the Community Shield win over Melbourne Knights about us playing too direct? I mean, isn't that the supposed hallmark of the Chris Taylor game plan? Well yesterday highlighted to me what he was going on about. As with with several games this season, there have been too many moments where we have coughed the ball up cheaply in completely unnecessary situations - situations which weren't down to opposition pressure, but merely poor decision making. I'm no opponent of the long ball, but when it becomes the default option even in circumstances where it's not warranted, and all you do is end up giving the ball back to the opposition under no pressure, with the opposition closer to the middle of the ground... it just sucks man, you know?

Andy Brennan dispossesses Green Gully goalkeeper Kieran Gonzalez.
Photo: Kevin Juggins.
Was Lujic's first goal offside? Again my instinct was yes, but the officials thought otherwise, and we took the lead late on and put ourselves in the best position to win this arm wrestle of a game. Dane Milovanovic's ball to Lujic was perfect, and it was great to see Dane get a start and stiffen up the spine of the the whole structure. His distribution was also very good. I'm a big Andy Brennan fan, and while I know he's got a lot to learn yet about playing in this competition - especially in learning how to pace himself - off the bench thus far this season he has been an asset. Even if not every cross goes where it should, his attitude and willingness to fight for the ball means that defenders always have to be alert, and are more prone to making a mistake from implied pressure as well as actual pressure. Brennan's dispossessing of Green Gully goalkeeper Kieran Gonzalez, which he followed up with a lay-off to Lujic who snuck it into the net, was fabulous stuff.

Quite why Tim Mala received a red card after all of that is probably only known to those who were on the field. The inference being made is that Mala abused Gonzalez for screwing up, and after Gonzalez made an issue of it the referee decided to send Mala off, a heinous overreaction akin to when Jesse Krncevic was sent off a few years back against Heidelberg. Chances are that the red card won't be overturned, and who knows how many games Mala will miss because of it. Then the game finished and another tumultuous game at Green Gully Reserve had come to end,

And then...
the farcical scenes began, or should I say probably continued on from a few weeks ago. During half time of the Bentleigh game, one of our supporters had posted a comment critical of Nick Epifano's performance during that first half (see the screenshot on the right) on the South Melbourne Facebook page. Epifano responded in a hostile manner, and tagged in Iqi Jawadi to the discussion. I only became aware of this because of anonymous person who mentioned the incident in the comments section of that post. Upon trying to find evidence of the discussion, I came up mostly empty, as apparently comments with swearing automatically don't get published on the South Facebook page. If that's true, what this means is that the person who saw the post was either an insider, or was otherwise Facebook friends with Epifano and thus able to see the comment regardless of its content. Since I don't befriend any of our players on Facebook, and follow almost none of them on Twitter - a deliberate policy of mine - I can't say for certain how the comment was seen.

Regardless, all of that is beside the point. Epifano bit back in a very offensive manner to what was fairly tame commentary, and while the club tried to keep it quiet, it did leak via the relative blog comment onto smfcboard.com where it was confirmed by Con Shomos that indeed the incident had happened. From there, I asked the club via Twitter if Epifano would be punished, to which board member Tony Margaritis replied that the matter had been dealt with, without elaborating on what the exact punishment would be. Fair enough, give the bloke a bake behind closed doors, let the internal processes try to sort the situation out,

Now I'm always reticent to try and say things like 'all supporters think this' or 'most supporters consider that'. The risks and pitfalls are too obvious. But I think I can safely say that for most of our supporters, in their minds abuse directed at our players is not personal - though I can certainly see how it would be taken personally - but almost entirely an expression of their frustration at a given passage of play, or match or even season. In that sense, it's no different to supporters from almost any sporting club around the world.

Nick Epifano heads clear during the game. Photo: Kevin Juggins.
There's also a legitimate stream of thought out there that you should never abuse any player on your team. It's not one that I subscribe to for all sorts of reasons, but it's an opinion that a lot of people hold, and I'm not going to begrudge them that. The fact of the matter though is that yesterday Epifano didn't react to abuse, but to encouragement! While I didn't hear his comments, I can categorically state that those of us on the fence near where the outburst occurred did not abuse him, but only sought to encourage him to make a follow up effort while the Gully defender was in a relatively tight spot and potentially susceptible to making an error if put under more pressure - in other words, comments directed to every one of our players. Some fans even noted on the forums yesterday that even after Epifano's outburst, that the supporters by and large kept on trying to encourage him during the second half.

South fans don't have the best reputation for abuse of their own team, but the fact that Epifano seemed to get upset at that and not abuse is kind of disturbing to me. Does he have other issues that he's dealing with? I'm struggling to figure out what his problem is. I'm also hardly the eternal optimist when it comes to pretty much anything South related, but even at the end of the match I felt that the situation could have been rescued (even if only partially or temporarily) if only he'd come over with the rest of the team and thanked the fans for turning our, and in turn receiving thanks for the team's efforts - a display of mutual respect despite whatever tantrums were had in the heat of the moment. Instead this happened.
Instead of swallowing his pride somewhat and trying to defuse the situation, his actions only served to make what was a hard fought win in a game that could have gone either, all about himself.

Then, as those of us along the fence were about to begin our exit out of the ground before having to deal with the traditional bottleneck situation in the Green Gully car park, attention turned to supporters further up on the hill getting into a blue with Nick Epifano's mum and assorted other friends and relatives of his, all while you could clearly hear the players singing the song in the change rooms with gusto. Now what exactly was being said and who started it, I have next to no idea, as I stayed near the fence watching on in amused horror at the utter farce shambles of the situation, only joining in with the childish yet appropriate Jerry! Jerry! Jerry! chant.

It was hard to make head or tail of the situation, as those on either side of the argument ended up inadvertently ganging up on those who were trying to calm the situation down, as well as somehow involving those who weren't even in the discussion at all. As stupid and unseemly as all of this was, it only got worse when Epifano came out of the dressing rooms in his club polo and track pants, crossed over to the outer side, jumped the fence and looked like he wanted to fight with some of our fans, only to be held back by his mum.

Eventually our president Leo Athanasakis came out, and people started to move on slowly, though the yelling and abuse continued out into the car park area. Thank goodness that the situtation didn't manage to escalate even further. The remaining South fans stood in the car park holding an informal debrief, trying to figure out what had happened, how it had happened, and what would happen next - as well as an inordinate amount of people asking me when it would all go on the blog.

The general though by no means unanimous consensus seemed to be that whatever actions the club had taken to punish Epifano after the initial Facebook incident, they had failed to make the situation better; that by and large, Epifano was not copping any abuse out of the ordinary, that indeed it was still mostly genuine encouragement (though word had spread of his first half outburst, and thius some fans were in mood to be conciliatory) and that he was certainly not receiving the kind of attention that Minopoulos had received when he fluffed his chance in the first half, After fan frustration at a poor cross he put in during the second half though, the abuse and frustration was more apparent, and to make matters, Epifano had another go at the supporters. Epifano is now as good as persona non grata and that the club (and certainly not the coach) has no option but to sack him; and that had he been playing for Melbourne Knights for example, the hardcore fans there would have been a lot less tolerant of his behaviour than we had been.

During this debrief, several South players emerged from the ground on their way to their cars, all of whom were applauded by the fans. I even made the (unusually for me) witty quip to those players that they shouldn't worry that we were all in the car park, as we weren't out to get them. So what happens next? There are some who are still willing to believe that the club can deal with this issue. For others, perhaps most of those who witnessed the incident, there is no option other than the most blunt and most obvious - Epifano needs to be sacked, and anyone else who wants to go with him can please themselves, In the anger of the moment, that was my opinion, too. However, on thinking about the situation overnight, it occurred to me that in some ways this is a situation I've dealt with before, and that my reaction in that case was very similar.

For those not aware, part of my non-South life includes teaching literature classes at university. A few years ago I had caught a student of mine blatantly plagiarising. What made it worse was that upon discussion with some of my colleagues, it turned out that she was a serial plagiariser. I was all ready to throw the book at this student and be done with her. However, after going through the plagiarism process with the student advocate, it turned out that there were deeper issues causing the plagiarism. It was only after the adherence to due process though that we got to that point. Now this student, who was shy and lacked confidence, was at least able to get the help she needed, and eventually she graduated.

Whether that experience of mine is entirely analogous to this situation is perhaps in the eye of the beholder. I had got upon my high horse about the matter, but what had that achieved? Likewise, it's an easy and understandable fact about those South fans that have remained loyal with regards to getting on their high horses about the matter. Part of our self-esteem as South supporters these days is in the fact that we are still supporting our club in the same way that we did when we were in the NSL instead of this horrid existence trapped under the metaphorical floorboards of Australian soccer.

We still expect excellence from our players, many of whom have no regard or understanding about what the club means to us. In some ways this is inevitable - the players are from a different generation, and their experiences are often very different to our own. We don't even have a social club to get to know them outside of South's media team, where acknowledgement of the fans may as well be part of the performance as opposed to something from the heart - a harsh thing to say when clearly there are players of ours who do appreciate the supporters.

The entire experience was light years away from the recent Dockerty Cup game against Whittlesea United, where Tansel Baser was treated like the legend of the club he is, while he wholeheartedly reciprocated after the match. All of which is a very long-winded of saying, is there truly no hope for Epifano to remain at South? Are we past the point of no return? The evidence seems to say that he's a goner one way or another, and the supporters who have spoken on the matter seem to generally be on the same page on this matter. Will the club hold the same point of view? What will be the consequences if he isn't sacked? What's the point of having a code of conduct if its not enforced? Should supporters get access to the players' code of conduct? So many questions that I'd love the answer to.

Or we could just sack the bloke and let the chips fall where they may.

Next week
Saturday afternoon on Orthodox Easter Saturday, at home against the Melbourne Knights who have an equal share of the top of the table - and doesn't that second part of the sentence just sicken you?

Pearl Jam sucks
Yesterday myself and another music fan agreed on this matter. We may have to start a support group for all those who don't get why so many people seem to rate them.

Elias Donoudis and his narrow sense of what our clubs mean
More nonsense from this chump, this time complaining about how last week's derby against the Bergers was hardly relevant to the Greek community, as there were hardly any Greeks playing in the game. Nevermind that his beloved 1984 South championship team had only one Greek starting player during both grand final legs. What a malaka.

Final thought
Later that night, after listening to Collingwood squeak home after almost coughing up a 50 point lead, I went out into the backyard with my dad so we could watch the lunar eclipse. In the background, the usual western suburbs hoons were doing their thing, passenger and freight trains rumbled past, and some fruit bats attacked my neighbour's fig tree in search of a feed. Watching the moon gradually become hidden by the Earth's shadow naturally brought out all the usual Sagan-esque clichés about how small and insignificant we are, and how stupid getting so angry and passionate about soccer is. Yet, we'll be back next week to do it all again, taking this game way too seriously relative to its cosmic importance, People are strange.

68 comments:

  1. fuck him off.
    Too much peroxide has fucked up his already small brain.
    Keep hiding behind ur old lady punk. pussy !

    ReplyDelete
  2. On another matter, three wins in a row away at Gully for us. Weird even to type those letters out and know them to be true.

    ReplyDelete
  3. This Epifano sounds like a massive clown with the initial incident seemingly not dealt with appropriately, and like a cancer his attitude will spread throughout the rest of dressing room, South must punt him

    ReplyDelete
  4. The problem with sacking him is the effect it will have on the rest of the players. Spirit and camaraderie seems very good under Taylor and is crucial in this league. Will sacking one of the 'boys' piss them off and fracture the squad derailing the season?.....No knee jerk reactions please, club must investigate properly. The kid might be dealing with other shit. His parents must realise their son isn't playing under 10's anymore and that paying fans are allowed to let off a bit of steam and make 'comments'(within reason) during games. I think most players out there understand this. I left b4 the real interesting stuff started apparently. Very good summary PUl.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Still breastfeeding hey epi ?

    ReplyDelete
  6. If I can be rational, because obviously some of the posts above are not and hypocritical given they are hiding behind their keyboard, there must be a deeper reason for Epifanos attitude towards the club.
    Maybe he's got resentment towards the club for staying on for less pay than he would have got somewhere else? Credit to him for doing that because that shows some character.
    What I think everyone needs to understand is we expect a lot from this kid. He's a creative winger which means he is going to make a lot of mistakes but he will also create great opportunities as well. We seem to forget how young he is and how much more improvement he has. The fact is, because of his role in the side, he's in the spotlight more and therefore more prone to critisism/frustration etc. And yeah OK, when he gives up too easily after losing the ball it shits everyone, which I admit is frustrating but that is just one of his traits and if it was a problem Taylor would have had a word to him already. When his flair works out on the pitch we are full of praise for him and deservidly so because he can change a game with his attributes and we all know that.
    At the end of the day and at the end of 90 minutes he is an SMFC player and win or lose he as well of the rest of the team are appreciated by the fans because they do us proud whenever they get onto the pitch and no matter what the outcome. Any frustration supporters give during a game is not personal no matter what the players may think. We know they give 100% that's all we can ask for.
    Unfortunately I don't think Epifano sees it that way which is very dissapointing. If he can't role with the punches infront of 500 people, how is he going to cope if he ends up in the A-league and cops it from 10,000 people?
    He seems to me to be the Mario Balotelli of SMFC which won't be good for him in the future. I hope Taylor can sit him down and mentor him because he's a good kid. Yeah he's brash and has an ego and all that, but I wish he knew, before these recent incidents that we are all behind him and every other player no matter how we react at a game. After all we are supporters and in my 20 years of supporting South we have been very vocal when we fuck up but equally vocal when we do good.

    Despite all of the above, personally I think Epifano doesn't want to be at South anyway which is a shame and I wound't be surprised if he goes.

    As a side note, I think the parents and WAGs of the players shouldn't probably stand near the 'vocal' supporters because the way we support will not change and things will always be said that the parents and WAGs will not like to hear.

    One more thing, I don't think it's the complete end of Epifano, he can win us over if he wants and it's the little gestures that will do it. But I guess it's up to him. I'm not as mad at him as some supporters are, just bewildered.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't buy your excuses. If you think we are keyboard warriors, make the tough call and get that shit out. At least we don't hide behind our mother like epi does.

      Delete
    2. He'll be gone. Either the Club will get rid of him or he'll go on his own accord.
      God help the club he ends up at.

      Delete
  7. "and that had he been playing for Melbourne Knights for example, the hardcore fans there would have been a lot less tolerant of his behaviour than we had been."

    Absolutely, any player would be kicked out of the club if he called supporters 'dumb Croatian cunts' on social media. No question. I'm bemused why this didn't happen here? I really don't understand the decision of the board or the rather indifference South fans showed towards the facebook comment.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It didn't happen because there are egos. No one wants to take the responsibility for moving him on. We Dont need shit like this at south.

      Delete
    2. Now we are listening to Croatians. Really!

      Delete
    3. My use of the Melbourne Knights example was not an endorsement of how they would possibly handle this situation, rather it was intended as a counterpoint to how South has handled this situation, Some people are naturally all in favour of a nuclear option (as someone else alluded to), but I don't feel so enamoured about that approach myself.

      Delete
  8. "Now I'm always reticent to try and say things like 'all supporters think this' or 'most supporters consider that'. The risks and pitfalls are too obvious. But I think I can safely say that for most of our supporters, in their minds abuse directed at our players is not personal - though I can certainly see how it would be taken personally - but almost entirely an expression of their frustration at a given passage of play, or match or even season. In that sense, it's no different to supporters from almost any sporting club around the world."

    Your justification of the abusive behaviour of your mates is truly extraordinary. Calling players "C" & "dogs" is not acceptable anywhere in the world. Try that at an AFL ground & see how long it will take to be evicted.
    Truth is some individuals (players) can deal with the abuse & others simply cannot.

    "Are we past the point of no return? The evidence seems to say that he's a goner one way or another, and the supporters who have spoken on the matter seem to generally be on the same page on this matter. Will the club hold the same point of view? What will be the consequences if he isn't sacked? What's the point of having a code of conduct if its not enforced? Should supporters get access to the players' code of conduct? "

    Should the players get access to the "members code of conduct"?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Another keyboard warrior. Why don't you leave your name?

      As for the author & moderator of this site, allowing some of the language says much about your position, defending the abuse.

      Delete
    2. Publishing those comments does not equal endorsement of those views. I would also have thought that the irony of anonymous people using this site to abuse anyone spoke volumes about their own hypocrisies..Just about no one is coming out smelling of roses from this incident, and the comments demonstrate that.

      Delete
    3. "Another keyboard warrior. Why don't you leave your name?"

      Have a load of this guy. Do you realise you are posting under the anonymous handle ffs

      Delete
    4. @MelbCro,

      How do you know that the crude language was not used? Were you there? Maybe you are a Hellas fan in disguise? :)

      Savvas Tzionis

      Delete
    5. lol, I'm only going off those original Facebook comments. Have no idea what was said at the Gully game

      Delete
  9. I liked your section about still supporting like we are in the NSL. I'm guilty of that. At least back then we had 50000 - 10000 people drowning out our shenanigans. Although the keepers used to cop an absolute barrage. A lot of us are extremely passionate at the club and we want to win. It's a lot more than a Sunday kick around for us, this shit matters a lot deep inside us and we do what we can to put the opposition of and help the team.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That thinning of the numbers is a very relevant point. It's much easier to hear each individual comment (wherever it comes from), and the smallness of the crowds makes everything more immediate and intimate. Sometimes this is a good thing, sometimes not.

      Delete
  10. I prefer the nuclear option.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Epis mum needs a good root

    ReplyDelete
  12. Moderator, how do you allow such filth during such an important discussion. Why do you bother "approving" comments? You are just as bad as them allowing this language, but then again they are your mates.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. He "approved" your comment, didn't he dickhead ?

      Delete
  13. It appears several people live in a fairy world where anybody having an alternative opinion to their own ''must be silenced'' and that somehow Paul is ''endorsing'' every comment by having them published in the comments section, unfortunately there are many of these sheltered people in the world today

    Epifano telling supporters ''fuck off you Greek cunts'' is a disgrace, and should be gone

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If you delete comments people start claiming conspiracy and bias, and I'd doubt anything said here is any filthier than was said during the shenanigans on Saturday.

      Delete
    2. Epifano's outburst is unfortunately the sort of "filth" that the anti profanity Anonymous was against, and the main reason we are having this discussion and argument. It also happens to be the only "filth" that can come out to the public without Paul's "approval"

      Delete
  14. Need to be careful not to jump to any rash decision with Epa. He's young and will make mistakes. I'm sure if he makes an effort to sincerely reconcile he'll be welcomed and supported by the fans. He will need to learn how to cope with this kind of pressure sooner or later if he is serious about his career though, and will also need to improve his conduct.

    Manny

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Spiros Economides7 April 2015 at 07:46

      "I'm sure if he makes an effort to sincerely reconcile he'll be welcomed and supported by the fans".
      Comments like that really piss me off. We dont need shit like this at the club, and he will never be forgiven.

      Delete
  15. I'm counting approx 11 posts that are potentially written by Epifano himself, Epifano's relos, a south board member or a clever croat.

    You couldnt make this stuff up. I'd be hard-pressed to come up with a more sackable incident than this. He should've been out the door after his facebook comment, now this nonsense could derail our season.

    I'm surprised there wasnt more of an uproar over his initial comment. I reckon our club is still plagued by the late-NSL 'let's assimilate and de-greek the club' attitude that has led to this rather mild reaction. are we a greek club or not? this middle limbo crap shits me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think the "dealt with internally" repsonse to the farcebook comment was more to do with winning championships than de-Greeking the club.
      We have a history of letting questionable characters get away with all sorts of shenanigans, letting their skills on the park excuse it.

      Delete
  16. Paul, I'm up for the Pearl Jam debate when you are.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jeremy's an OK song I guess, but that;s about it.

      Delete
  17. What is the record amount of comments on a post? I suspect we have a winner here!

    Savvas Tzionis

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Still a way to go until we reach the 71 comments from this post.

      http://southmelbournefc.blogspot.com.au/2014/09/a-measured-response-to-david-gallops.html

      Delete
  18. Sitting at NIKOS café in Oakleigh yesterday around 6pm when Chris Taylor walked past talking earnestly on the phone. Wonder what it was about? :)

    Savvas Tzionis

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Could have been any number of people. But not me. My phone was off and was charging at the time.

      Delete
    2. Just trying to get a mental image of CT kicking back in Eaton Mall sipping in a frap.

      Delete
  19. The famous legend of football forums Zim Zum is a massive Pearl Jam fan. He will not be pleased Paul.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ZimZum, Lucan, Gavroman. I remember the old Pearl jam threads on smfcboard. Have tried to get into them, but just zzz.

      Delete
    2. They're much so much more live than recorded. If you're going off their albums and radio play, I can appreciate your stance.

      Delete
    3. Agree, Pearl Jam is a shit band.
      Lumberjacks with guitars

      Delete
  20. Where dose epa see him self in 5 years?

    The way he is going he wont be going much further than the NPL and i think that is disappointing

    The first time i saw him play i thought he would be something.

    How wrong i was

    ReplyDelete
  21. The most disappointing part of this whole saga has been the club's silence on the matter - Imagine we were in the A-league and something like this happened - would our club's leadership just stick their head in the sand? We are a big club with a small club mindset. Case in point the club's Facebook page - no real discussion and any perceived negative commentary is censored. The club is more worried about the perception out there, the PR look of the club, rather than what its own supporters and members care about - that's really sad.
    We are a big club in a historical sense, but all these years of suburban peasantry have turned us into a larger more famous copy of the clubs we all laugh at - like Oakleigh.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That is spot on.
      Someone once said to me, "the difference between us and you guys, is that we know we are peasants, you guys are peasants dressed in suits".

      Delete
  22. Enough of the negativity .....

    I see that two of the scorers for Port Melbourne/New Hellas/Nea Ellas were ex South players. Does that make Port Melbourne Nea Palio Ellas (New Old Hellas)?

    I also love the fact that they were the same colours as the VFA team. The original Collingberg?

    Savvas Tzionis

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Umm, didn't South start off in White with a Red V, similar to the South Melbourne Swans?
      There's a lot of accusations of hypocrisy above but I think your call of 'The original Collingberg' takes the cake.

      Delete
    2. My goodness, you are right! It happened so long ago I forgot about it!

      But it's an interesting topic in itself. The motivations etc.

      Still, your comment is loaded with snideness, which is unwarranted, seeing you do not know me and my beliefs, etc.

      Savvas Tzionis

      Delete
    3. Red V needs to be adopted as the change strip permanently.

      White with blue trim, as an alternate to home blue with white trim has always been a joke.

      Delete
    4. By strange coincidence, the AFL and Soccer experiment is discussed in this Soccer newsletter. It costs $25, and since I have no interest in handing over any Soccer related money to people who watch the A League, then it will go unread by me.

      http://leopoldmethod.com.au/quarterly-edition-issue-2/

      "Vince Rugari explores at the failed experiment between football and AFL clubs in the National Soccer League."

      Savvas Tzionis

      Delete
    5. Savvas, check your inbox.

      Delete
    6. Is this the failed Carltoon and Collingwood entries into the NSL?

      Delete
  23. Stoush had nothing on Gate13 vs Mastman during CC vs OM21

    ReplyDelete
  24. Can I inadvertently offend any other 'Anonymous' posters? Just to keep the thread going and beat the record of 71 comments mentioned earlier for that post that was unfortunately hijacked by the Croats. :)

    Savvas Tzionis

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. What do you have against Croats ? We gave the world ties and Goran Ivanisevic.

      Delete
  25. Suggestion to blog writer: crowd estimates in match reports

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Wish that I could, but I'm hopeless with that kind of thing.

      Delete
    2. Follow the South tradition, just make a random guess and then add an additional thousand on top. Done

      Delete
  26. Pearl Jam is like the "fasting" for Greek Easter. The food will get you across the line, but its just nothing compared to a double meat lamb gyro (aka Iron Maiden)

    ReplyDelete
  27. And he has done it 71

    ReplyDelete
  28. Open slather now. No holding back. A disgrace ! Resign the lot of u !

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You heard the man, Paul. On your bike!

      Delete
  29. CT needs to earn his dollars here.. Epifano does offer us something on the pitch,, i reckon his biggest issue though is that the likes of Brennan are starting to show him up... do the work now CT and put his head in the right space,, if you can't then not just because its Epifano anyone really if the coach has lost them then see ya later!!!

    ReplyDelete
  30. Club eventually put out a statement about the incident. Not the punishment so folk were baying for, but is some punishment, at least.
    Hopefully the kid pulls his head in, now.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Not good enough, this would not have happened at any other ethnic club without severe consequences.

    ReplyDelete

A few notes on comments.

We've had a lot of fun over the years with my freewheeling comments policy, but all good things must come to an end. Therefore I will no longer be approving comments that contain personal abuse of any sort.

Still, if your post doesn't get approved straight away, it's probably because I haven't seen it yet.

As usual, publication of a comment does not mean endorsement of its content.