CRAIG FOSTER
February 21, 2010
The symmetry of the A-League awards could hardly have been more perfect, a mirror image of Australian football as it stands.
Carlos Hernandez was a worthy winner of the Johnny Warren Medal, but it was the announcement of coach of the year, Melbourne Victory's Ernie Merrick, that took many by surprise. To my mind, however, even this was perfectly fitting.
Vitezslav Lavicka comes to a new country, inherits a squad not of his making that missed the finals last year, one considerably weaker than that of both the Victory and Gold Coast, speaks scant English, has not worked with Australian players before, and yet proceeds to win the Premiers' Plate. And Merrick is coach of the year.
Ridiculous. Until we ask who voted for the award. The answer? The A-League coaches.
Now it makes perfect sense, because none of them understands the football of Lavicka, nor the way he works. The A-League coaches voted for another who represents what they see as coaching. Recruit well, manage the group, select the team, change when necessary. It is coaching by personnel. Whoever has the best players, wins - like a high-stakes game of Fantasy Football.
Lavicka coaches by system. Educate the players, work daily on the principles of a system of play, expect the team to express the work done in matches, and fix problem areas where the message is not getting through. This is modern football; coaching by personnel went out in the '50s.
A good example would be the current Real Madrid, or the former ''Galacticos'' who, despite having a fantastic array of stars, cannot win unless they are also a highly organised, and automated, team. This is why they need Manuel Pellegrini, not a salesman or media coach. Every player must react to every situation, in tandem with the group, otherwise weaknesses are exposed.
Australian coaches send a team out with a basic plan, and when it doesn't work, they turn to the media to justify their roles.
Newcastle's Branko Culina, who clearly could not interpret Lavicka's football and publicly questioned the Czech after losing to Sydney FC, recently talked about the limited squads and lack of player motivation, and the Roar's Ange Postecoglou bemoaned a lack of experience after losing to Perth, and threatened his rookie group with their toughest pre-season ever.
Translation: it's not my fault, it's the players - they're just not ''up for it'' enough.
Gold Coast coach Miron Bleiberg recruited well and let Jason Culina run the team. ''Miron lets me do what I want,'' said Jason. Try that in European football, where every single role, at every precise moment on the field, is defined and coached, and the player is expected to deliver to the team system, because a disorganised team is very quickly exposed. Here, they very nearly win the title.
And all the while, Lavicka nursed an ageing Steve Corica through the year, got the best from John Aloisi by forming a team around him, not expecting him to work miracles, and produced the best season yet from Simon Colosimo, Alex Brosque and Stuart Musialik, all without a single excuse being necessary.
No players blamed, no moaning in the press - total public protection of his players, a humility rare in our coaching ranks where everyone tries to coach through the press, not on the training ground, and where egos overshadow methodology.
If Lavicka had a 19-goal-a-season striker, he would have won the league by 20 points. If he had the Victory, at least by 15, the Gold Coast by the same, the Jets would have pushed for the title, so too the Roar.
This is the difference between system and personnel, and to my mind, although it took five seasons and should have happened in one, the heartening news is that our league has now taken a major step forward, and the age of media coaches, and success by personnel, is dead at last.
In our recent history, a team with enough talent wins, because no one was organised enough to expose the others - the only exception being Zoran Matic at Adelaide City in the NSL, who was decades ahead of local A-League coaches around today.
I did say there was perfect symmetry here, and it lies in the most important award of the season. Lavicka is set to be named as coach when the players' association announces its A-League team of the year this week.
Appropriate, don't you think? The coaches choose what they understand, but every player wants a coach like Lavicka, because they are tired of being given nothing but motivational talks and media blame.
Today's footballers want to be educated and supported with a sophisticated team system, and for this, we need more Lavickas.
................................
Saying branko is far less of a coach by pointing out a game where the jets were all over sydney and poor finishing stopped them romping home by a large margin.
Saying culina having free reign is something that would not happen anywhere in the world? eg Messi or ronaldinho or kaka being dictated by the coach?
Nursing Corica through the year? To have him f**ked 8 minutes into the biggest game of the year and retire pre finals? Is that really an achievement?
Getting the best out of aloisi by forming the team around him? What? Just like Craigs favourite pinata Mr Mckinna did 2 years ago?
If Larry had a 10 goal a season stiker?
Didnt aloisi end up with 10? And he played about half the season? Would make him pretty much a 19 goal a season striker.
I know i know, pulling apart Fozzies everything overseas is better than anything australian is a never ending and hardly worth task. But either he has no memory at all, he certainly has no coaching ability at all, or he would be coaching, or he just isnt trying anymore.
February 21, 2010
The symmetry of the A-League awards could hardly have been more perfect, a mirror image of Australian football as it stands.
Carlos Hernandez was a worthy winner of the Johnny Warren Medal, but it was the announcement of coach of the year, Melbourne Victory's Ernie Merrick, that took many by surprise. To my mind, however, even this was perfectly fitting.
Vitezslav Lavicka comes to a new country, inherits a squad not of his making that missed the finals last year, one considerably weaker than that of both the Victory and Gold Coast, speaks scant English, has not worked with Australian players before, and yet proceeds to win the Premiers' Plate. And Merrick is coach of the year.
Ridiculous. Until we ask who voted for the award. The answer? The A-League coaches.
Now it makes perfect sense, because none of them understands the football of Lavicka, nor the way he works. The A-League coaches voted for another who represents what they see as coaching. Recruit well, manage the group, select the team, change when necessary. It is coaching by personnel. Whoever has the best players, wins - like a high-stakes game of Fantasy Football.
Lavicka coaches by system. Educate the players, work daily on the principles of a system of play, expect the team to express the work done in matches, and fix problem areas where the message is not getting through. This is modern football; coaching by personnel went out in the '50s.
A good example would be the current Real Madrid, or the former ''Galacticos'' who, despite having a fantastic array of stars, cannot win unless they are also a highly organised, and automated, team. This is why they need Manuel Pellegrini, not a salesman or media coach. Every player must react to every situation, in tandem with the group, otherwise weaknesses are exposed.
Australian coaches send a team out with a basic plan, and when it doesn't work, they turn to the media to justify their roles.
Newcastle's Branko Culina, who clearly could not interpret Lavicka's football and publicly questioned the Czech after losing to Sydney FC, recently talked about the limited squads and lack of player motivation, and the Roar's Ange Postecoglou bemoaned a lack of experience after losing to Perth, and threatened his rookie group with their toughest pre-season ever.
Translation: it's not my fault, it's the players - they're just not ''up for it'' enough.
Gold Coast coach Miron Bleiberg recruited well and let Jason Culina run the team. ''Miron lets me do what I want,'' said Jason. Try that in European football, where every single role, at every precise moment on the field, is defined and coached, and the player is expected to deliver to the team system, because a disorganised team is very quickly exposed. Here, they very nearly win the title.
And all the while, Lavicka nursed an ageing Steve Corica through the year, got the best from John Aloisi by forming a team around him, not expecting him to work miracles, and produced the best season yet from Simon Colosimo, Alex Brosque and Stuart Musialik, all without a single excuse being necessary.
No players blamed, no moaning in the press - total public protection of his players, a humility rare in our coaching ranks where everyone tries to coach through the press, not on the training ground, and where egos overshadow methodology.
If Lavicka had a 19-goal-a-season striker, he would have won the league by 20 points. If he had the Victory, at least by 15, the Gold Coast by the same, the Jets would have pushed for the title, so too the Roar.
This is the difference between system and personnel, and to my mind, although it took five seasons and should have happened in one, the heartening news is that our league has now taken a major step forward, and the age of media coaches, and success by personnel, is dead at last.
In our recent history, a team with enough talent wins, because no one was organised enough to expose the others - the only exception being Zoran Matic at Adelaide City in the NSL, who was decades ahead of local A-League coaches around today.
I did say there was perfect symmetry here, and it lies in the most important award of the season. Lavicka is set to be named as coach when the players' association announces its A-League team of the year this week.
Appropriate, don't you think? The coaches choose what they understand, but every player wants a coach like Lavicka, because they are tired of being given nothing but motivational talks and media blame.
Today's footballers want to be educated and supported with a sophisticated team system, and for this, we need more Lavickas.
................................
Saying branko is far less of a coach by pointing out a game where the jets were all over sydney and poor finishing stopped them romping home by a large margin.
Saying culina having free reign is something that would not happen anywhere in the world? eg Messi or ronaldinho or kaka being dictated by the coach?
Nursing Corica through the year? To have him f**ked 8 minutes into the biggest game of the year and retire pre finals? Is that really an achievement?
Getting the best out of aloisi by forming the team around him? What? Just like Craigs favourite pinata Mr Mckinna did 2 years ago?
If Larry had a 10 goal a season stiker?
Didnt aloisi end up with 10? And he played about half the season? Would make him pretty much a 19 goal a season striker.
I know i know, pulling apart Fozzies everything overseas is better than anything australian is a never ending and hardly worth task. But either he has no memory at all, he certainly has no coaching ability at all, or he would be coaching, or he just isnt trying anymore.
