Having seen some of the changes occurring in teams here are my updated thoughts in no particular order.
Roar... will struggle to emulate last season given they have lost two key strikers. Will be vulnerable and not emulate last seasons success at this point.
Sydney. Dare I say it the A League needs a strong Sydney team. Unfortunately with Lavicka and the team on hand I cant see it happening at this point. The only thing that can change this is if they sign Kewell IMHO. They really need to push the rugby centric media in Sydney and get away from the SFS. Poor season.
MVFC. An unknown quantity at this point. Will be interesting to see a new coach and a team minus Muscat on the park. Great up front but I wonder about the defence and midfield. Will Muscat unsettle the team from the sideline and undermine the coach?
Wellington. Abject failures unfortunately. Obviously on a shoe string budget given the owners business problems. Cant see any thing to whet my appetite. TBH I wonder if this is the last year we see them in the comp.
Adelaide.... Assembling a very strong team with new owners determined to make a fist of it. Have recruited well in the off season and will be a major force with Van Dijk and Djite up front. The key question is how will they cope without Flores.
Heart. Unfortunately I think they may struggle. I cant put my finger on it whether it is the coach or the limited budget. It is all well and good recruiting Brazilians however will they make that much of a difference?
Perth. Have recruited strongly however I have my doubts. Burns needs to retire. Have assembled a great team on paper (not the first time) however questions remain over the coach. Will Perth be the first team to punt the coach... probably (the other will be Vant Schip IMO).
Gold Coast. Dont put it past Blieberg to pull a rabbit out of his hat with who he has on the books. Most of the players have played together for a few seasons in the youth and have won back to back titles. A few old heads (ala Mariners) mixed with youth can be a dangerous combination. Unfortunately money would be better invested in a western sydney team
Jets. Meh..... Dangerous? maybe. Consistent? maybe... bigger crowds.... lets hope. TBH I do see this team as a bit of a threat. Whether they can go all the way ... I doubt it. Still expect some great derbies with them.
Mariners. Have recruited wisely in the off season. Perez has been replaced perfectly in my opinion with Pelligrino. A lot of expectation on Bernie.. how will he cope? Baird has loads of pace and shows promise in the off season but will he remain injury free? Will season two under Arnie be a fizzer? TBH I dont think so.
I see a GF between AU and the Mariners at this point. However we know going from other seasons that each year offers something totally unexpected. All I can say is bring it on, may the best team win AND GO THE MARINERS!!!
