Someone in the know heard it from the man himself at the awards night last night...very sad to see him go if true. Never stopped running.

Edited by stabilo: 27/4/2013 11:23:21 AM

Please don't be true.

Only has a right foot, directionless when he shoots, no threat to defenders, best when in short passing areas and as a ball stealer.

Has been a good servant to the club and teamed up with MacKay rather well, but really, he has run his little legs to the ground, Melbourne Heart can have him.

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

:lol: insert racist and very accurately hateful comment here.

I agree. I don't mind either way, he is more of a marathon runner then a footballer, can't shoot, passes no more then 15m.

I'm sure a young guy in the youth team would be better off is he was getting 15 minutes a game rather then Murdocca.

You trying to stir me up? :lol: I'm sure you've seen me say this before, but the only reason he has been at Sydney so long is that they are the only team stupid enough to pay him to do what he does and if there is money on the table, he is not going to turn it down. :)

But he is number 1 in the ugly department.

he wants more game time, smart move for him and heart could use a player like him.

Only reason why he'd want to leave is family reasons...He's originally from Melbourne if I remember right?

Is the 'family rule' they use in the AwFuL now being used in the A-League?

Only reason why he'd want to leave is family reasons...He's originally from Melbourne if I remember right?

Is the 'family rule' they use in the AwFuL now being used in the A-League?

[youtube]8eSaFAsEPWw[/youtube]
Respect for him has grown, didn't realise he also hated Terry McFlynn

At first I wasn't so keen, i thought he was about two or three years older than he actually is. He's also a Victorian and Heart really do need to have a stronger number of Victorian players. I guess it's a good signing if it happens, he will certainly be an improvement on what our midfield was this year i believe.

We don't need him - not interested in this signing at all.

That said, you watch Aloisi make the deal and take us back to where we were last year.

He doesn't solve the issue looking for a DM.

Completely disagree here.

I'm very happy with this signing tbh.

It doesn't solve the DM issue as you say, but gives us a very good option in the midfield. Murdocca is a very busy player and his passing is very good. Adds good depth to the midfield, I hope it's true.

Depth at midfield is not and has never been the issue at Heart. We have depth, and if the sky falls in and 5 midfielders are injured - there are youth players who can do the job.

As it is (after Fred, Thompson moving on) we have 7 midfielders - Gerhardt, Garcia, Germano (my preferred 3), Garuccio, Kalmar, Mauk, Ramsay. Even if Gerhardt plays in defence - and we get in another DM, 7 options are more than enough in a team which plays with 3 midfielders. I highly doubt that Kalmar, Ramsay and Garuccio would be pleased being options 4-6 and having limited game time as is, but its great depth as far as we're concerned with them pushing the first choice midfielders. Drop them to options 5-7, I think you will find them trying to leave the club pretty quickly.

We don't need an 8th, who is 28 years old and hasn't played outside of the Australian national competition. That is the type of player who occupies a position where a young player could be developing and accordingly I have no interest in him.

If any other midfielder is required, a creative attacking midfielder could be useful. However, unless we are getting rid of one of the options (or Mauk is happy playing in the Youth League) there is no space for one.

@canehdrian13

looking at currently signed players for next season, we have only 3 midfielders. We play a 4-3-3 formation and for us, the midfielders are the middle "3" in that formation. So ramsay and garrucio are considered forwards/wingers in the final "3" of that formation, they are not central midfielders.

Gerhardt plays CB and looks likely he will continue playing there next season. Garcia has not been re-signed, and even if he does, he was utilized as a forward on the wing, so again he does not play midfield for us.

The only midfielders we have signed for next season are Germano, Kalmar and Mauk. Germano deserves to be starting, Mauk is still very young so i doubt he will get more than a handful of appearances next season, while Kalmar is good but is very off and on.

You say we have a lot of depth already in the midfield, but do we have 'quality' depth? Murdocca is very much capable of being a starting 11 player in any a-league team. He was a key player for the powerhouse brisbane roar side that won back to back championships, and would be very handy for us.

I'm not sure if you have watched him closely to see what sort of player he is but i can tell you this,

He doesn't muck around with the ball, and a very simple, but effective player. He always tries to keep the ball moving, and has a sense of urgency the way he plays which is what we need. I'm not expecting him to score goals, because that's not what his role is, he is the crucial link between defence and attack. Always looking to play forward, always looking to play quick, positive football. A big tick for me.

There aren't many like him in the a-league. I think if we do sign Murdocca you'll change your thoughts on him by the end of the season.


Edited by heart_fan10: 28/4/2013 07:31:10 PM

thats the rumour... but regardless Mass>Ramsey

Not actually a rumour, Aloisi has actually said that he will be playing Ramsay as a LB so the comparison is unnecessary.

Gutted. Will always be a legend.

If this is true I'd be happy with this signing.

He adds movement and will run all day for the midfield. It's something we have lacked overall for our time in the HAL.

Btw, this Ramsey LB experiment will be interesting to see. If Behich could do it, lets hope Ramsey can excel there too. He will give us added pace but defending will be something that will need some work.

If you call Del Piero a defender, then that doesn't mean he is a defender...

Ramsay is a midfielder, he is not an LB. Aloisi can do whatever he wants and play players out of position, but that doesn't make a winning team - we saw that most of this season.

Garcia played in several positions this last season, however Aloisi preferred having him in the midfield. Garruccio can play wing or in the midfield, considering the options at wing (Dugandzic, Williams, Mehbratu - or as you suggest, Garcia) he won't be getting a run there.

Regardless of the insistence of this forum to remind me that Gerhardt played at CB last season, he is still a natural DM, was caught out of position several times last year (despite being our best defender - evidence of what rubbish we had in defense) He kept coming forward when he saw an opportunity, leaving the defense exposed and leading to goals against.

Heart's biggest problem last season was playing players out of position, we were completely destroyed on several occasions when this happened.

As far as i'm concerned, i'd prefer to see a great DM (Gerhardt) and not a make shift CB. I'd prefer to see a great midfield (Garcia, Germano Gerhardt) than average players who aspire to play a career in the A League filling gaps (Murdocca). I'd also prefer to see young players like Garuccio and Vrankovic being developed with game time along side quality, international experienced players and not mediocrity. Thats what makes a successful winning team - not playing players out of positions, and signing makeshift players to fill gaps because of their 'experience' playing average in a mediocre league.

That said, yes I have seen Murdocca. Sure I haven't followed his career closely, but I have seen him from the perspective of a fan of another team. He is a serviceable, average player who plays as a CM. He's not great, but he's not horrible either. That said, he is 29 years old (when the season starts) and we have other players who are of a similar/better potential who need the game time.

Edited by canehdrian13: 28/4/2013 11:27:12 PM

Edited by canehdrian13: 28/4/2013 11:30:51 PM

One problem which always exists with fast - attacking LB/RB's are that they often get caught out of position, and defensively they leave you exposed. They aren't natural defenders, they don't look to defend - which is the biggest criticism people have always had with Behich. While he may be serviceable, he is a lot more dangerous in midfield or on the wing.

Heart have always had a weak defense (other than when Madaschi, a natural CB, was here on a guest stint in season 2). Season 1 we had a deficit of 10 goals, and this season a deficit of 9 goals. Do we really need more converted midfielders playing as defenders, when they haven't done the job defensively up to this point? I think not.

That said - Aloisi will go and sign Murdocca, and claim he is the solution at CB.

:lol: wouldn't surprise me.

But yes i agree with your above point. I would also prefer to see gerhardt at DM playing next to germano and another visa attacking midfielder. IMO we need to be signing 2 experienced australian defenders, 2 attacking visa midfielders, and 1 visa striker.

I still think murdocca is a very handy player to have though, providing we are not relying on him to solve our midfield problems.

He's the type who i would like to see competing for a spot with Germano, and like i said before he is capable of being starting 11 quality in pretty much any a-league team.

I would be more than happy to have him coming in and out of the squad because he would bring a different element to our squad. As i said before, depth is not just about having the numbers there to fill in, it's about having quality players who all bring something different and unique to the table.

If we want to have a successful season we're going to need players like murdocca. We saw it with western sydney this season where whenever they had injuries or suspensions to players they were able to bring in a player who was able to do what is expected of them. That's what we should be aiming for

At least we're on the same page with the first point. If you want to build a winning team, you need players who can play in position and doing this will make the world of difference.

Murdocca is the sort of player i'd only consider signing if I were in Western Sydney's position this year - new team, good depth player who is reliable enough to step in and do a job. Purely because you wouldn't have any youth players who are capable of doing that job. That said, we have a youth team - and if nobody there is capable of playing midfield, we have a problem and our youth team midfield needs to be replaced.

If Heart changed the formation - the only thing they haven't really changed all that much to deviate from their original plans, then there could be space for a Murdocca type player - without a doubt. But in a 4-3-3, I struggle to think you need more than 7 midfielders - especially one who sits as a CM. They need to have an attacking or defensive incline, which will shape the strategy of that game. For this reason, I also wouldn't want him to be replacing Germano in the squad. Germano is a DM, and when deployed as a DM - Heart looked much more dangerous going forward. He controlled the game, had the speed and made attacking passes to set the team off. Murdocca also has these capabilities, but isn't as responsible defensively (from what I have seen). That said, if he could be defensively responsible, he would be serviceable as a DM. I could see him fitting a 4-2-3-1 if we played that way, or 3-4-1-2 as I prefer teams play.

Western Sydney is an interesting case. Firstly - their captain...our biggest mistake, getting rid of a capable Aussie CB. One who Can't Coach criticized for making silly errors, when he had limited game time (which correlated with positive results, similarly to Madaschi), while continued playing Colosimo who constantly gave away goals.

But I do believe Western Sydney does have many things which I look for in a team. Competitive on the field, depth in the squad. (which you are referring to)
Beyond the 6 imports, they have decent experienced defensive players - Covic, Beauchamp & Topor Stanley, Elrich, D'Apuzzo (very solid options with La Rocca), then many younger players in midfield and forward providing the depth.

For me - Heart needs at a minimum 2 CB's, one of them who can also play LB/RB as required, 1 AM - import, 1 ST - import. Once those pieces are in place, re-evaluate which positions need further depth - possibly another young LB/RB.

I like how all the players we are selling are seen as quality players :D (Except for Jurman). It makes me feel like were doing something good. \:d/ =d>

Edited by Mfrendin_Roar: 29/4/2013 05:38:08 PM

You can't have your cake and eat it .It's up to the coach to have a good defensive structure that covers a back when he goes forward.

You're not selling anyone mate, they're all free agents ;)

Yes, but you don't have that if you have midfielders playing as defenders. (which is my point) I like Behich, enjoyed having him in the team - however the facts show how painful it was watching goals be scored due to players being out of position, not just when he went forward. Ramsay will look dangerous going forward as a LB/RB, no question - however the current combination of Vrankovic, Gerhardt and Walker/Mitchinson is not what i'd like to see behind him on the counter attack. Put Gerhardt in midfield and have him drop back when Ramsay goes forward, and having a natural CB along side Vrankovic and all of a sudden you have the depth to defend a counter attack. This is what needs to happen, and I hope Aloisi wakes up to it.