Please no.

Club is a club, not a state. Colours are purple, white, bit of orange. Definitely not black and gold, leave that to the warriors.

A club that is located in the capital city of a state.

A club whose colours were created for a specific purpose, to break with the long-held traditional football colours in Aus and herald a new dawn.

Capital city of a state or not, I think the WA colours should be left to a third kit and a third kit only... Let's leave this as a club league, not a state of origin contest...

If you're talking about the kits I think you are, they were black and white with a Powerade logo, and awesome.

But black and gold they weren't :)

A-League 2013-14 club preview: Perth Glory

By Michael Huguenin0



29/09/2013 9:00:00 AM
Goal Australia brings you expert analysis of each club's situation as they prepare for the new campaign, including player movement, expectations and worst-case scenarios

Club

Perth Glory

Last season

Finished sixth, lost in the elimination finals to Melbourne Victory, 2-1 in extra-time

Players in

Jamie Maclaren [Blackburn Rovers], Ryan Edwards [Reading - on loan], Cameron Edwards [Melbourne Heart], Isaka Cernak [Wellington Phoenix], Jack Duncan [Newcastle Jets], Ljubo Milicevic [Melbourne Knights], Sidnei Sciola [Alki Larnaca], Matthew Davies [Perth Glory NYL], Riley Woodcock [Perth Glory NYL], Daniel De Silva [Perth Glory NYL]

Players out

Liam Miller [Brisbane Roar], Dean Heffernan [Western Sydney Wanderers], Storm Roux [Central Coast Mariners], Lewis Italiano [Wellington Phoenix], Evan Berger [Marconi Stallions], Neil Young [retired], Nick Ward, Matias Cordoba [both released]

Coach

Alistair Edwards

Captain

Jacob Burns

Expectations

Perth Glory owner Tony Sage is not usually one who accepts second best, with the 53-year-old businessman having sacked two coaches since he became sole owner of the club in 2008. Sage has also clashed with Football Federation Australia over a myriad of issues but heading into the 2013-14 season he is showing some uncharacteristic patience.

With eight players having left Glory since last season, Perth's head coach Alistair Edwards has brought in a bunch of talented youngsters to mould into a top side. Sage has already put it on record that while he hopes for finals in 2013-14, it is the 2014-15 campaign which will be the main focus for Glory.

Edwards, who took over from Ian Ferguson in February, is former head coach of the Young Socceroos. The 45-year-old ex-Socceroos striker brought through precocious 16-year-old midfield Daniel De Silva last season and Edwards will be expected to build a formidable team with the likes of his two sons, Ryan and Cameron, plus Jamie Maclaren, Chris Harold and Josh Risdon. Edwards' plan will be heavily reliant on how his experienced spine, comprising the likes of Shane Smeltz, Jacob Burns and Michael Thwaite, holds together.

What has to go right

Perth Glory scored the least goals of any team in the 2012-13 A-League campaign and with Shane Smeltz set to miss the opening few games due to hip surgery in pre-season, Edwards desperately needs the likes of Ryo Nagai, Maclaren, Harold and Brazilian winger Sidnei Sciola to hit the back of the net regularly if they are to push for the finals.

Worst-case scenario

Edwards' youth brigade gets bullied on the pitch and a chunk of them end the season with serious injuries, setting Glory back ahead of the 2014-15 season. Smeltz, who at 31 is steadily getting more injury prone, struggles with his hip until the new year and Perth remain toothless in attack.

Nightmare Headline

"Milicevic party passion infecting Glory's young brigade"

We think

There is a sense of boom or bust for Perth this season. With so much young talent, if Edwards can get them to click early in the season, they could ride a wave of momentum all the way to the finals. But the worry for Glory fans will be that a full season of senior football might be too much for the likes of De Silva, Maclaren and Harold. Sage may need to be more patient than he planned and believe in the process as Perth remain around the bottom of the table.

Prediction

Ninth [writer's prediction]

Perth Glory owner Tony Sage is not usually one who accepts second best

Sage may need to be more patient than he planned and believe in the process as Perth remain around the bottom of the table.

Prediction

Ninth

Stadium: NIB Stadium. The new Eastern stand has now been completed and will bump the capacity up to 20,500. However, it’s not quite the fortress it was for the Glory back in the days of the old NSL.

Finish Last Season: Despite predictions they would challenge for the title after losing the previous grand-final in controversial circumstance, Glory struggled for most of the season. After increasing anger from the fans, Ian Ferguson was dumped with the Glory languishing in 9th place. In came former fan favourite Alistair Edwards, whose guidance helped the club scrape into the top six and book a finals berth. There, they were arguably the better team in an entertaining match-up with Melbourne Victory, before a Shane Smeltz penalty miss and another controversial penalty decision against them allowed the home team to take the match 2-1 in extra time.

This Season Prediction: With a younger team than most years, it will be struggle for the Glory and it will be up to the older heads to provide leadership. Regardless of the squad age, there is definite talent amongst the Glory’s ranks. Whilst the team is in a transitional phase, there is enough quality for the Glory to finish in the top six.



Inclusions: In his first pre-season in charge, Edwards has set about rebuilding the squad. The older, more experienced team Ferguson had built has given away to a number of exciting younger players.

In: Ryan Edwards (Reading, loan), Cameron Edwards (Melbourne Heart), Isaka Cernak (Wellington Phoenix), Sidnei Sciola Moraes (Alki Larnaca), Jack Duncan (Newcastle Jets), Ljubo Milecevic (Melbourne Knights, Victorian State League), Jamie McLaren (Free Agent), Harry O’Brien (Cockburn, WA State League), Dean Evans (Stirling Lions, WA State League)

Star Signing: There is no one player who stands head and shoulders above the rest. Ljubo Milecevic has the potential to be one of the signings of the year, if he can focus solely on football and avoid courting the controversy he did during his stint with the Newcastle Jets. Brazilian winger Sidnei has shown promise in pre-season, whilst Young Socceroo Jamie McLaren was the leading scorer for Blackburn Rover’s academy team last season and ignored offers from European teams to sign with the Glory.

Departure Lounge: Liam Miller (Brisbane Roar), Dean Heffernan (Western Sydney), Travis Dodd (Long-term injury. Will not feature this season), Nick Ward (Released), Evan Berger (Released), Matias Cordoba (Free Agent)

Key Losses: The departure of Liam Miller to Brisbane is one that hurt Glory fans, not least because it is to the team they lost the Grand Final to two seasons ago. Miller was an integral part of their surge to the final under Edwards. Under-appreciated outside of Western Australia, Glory fans know his distribution is excellent and technique above-par. Whilst they do have cover at central midfield, Miller is still a big loss.

What to watch for: Edward’s possession based game. Gone is the long ball lumping and the hit and hope Ferguson preached. Upon his arrival, Edwards wasted no time implementing an emphasis on keeping the ball and short passing. With a full pre-season under the system, expect the team to continue to improve on the side we saw towards the end of last year.



Key Player: Shane Smeltz. The league’s all-time leading scorer had a torrid season last year, plagued by injuries, goal droughts and missed chances. In spite of this, he still finished as the Glory’s top scorer. The team needs him to rediscover his shooting boots again this year around, especially with a lack of experience and depth upfront (Young guns McLaren and Ndumba Makeche are back-up). He’ll miss the start of the season with a hip injury, but if he can find form, he’ll be amongst the top scorers come end of year.

Club X Factor: (A bold player prediction) Daniel Da Silva. Making his debut just a few days short of his 16th birthday, the young attacking midfielder played a bit part role towards the end of the year and not once looked out of place amongst the big boys. He then became the youngest ever goal-scorer ever at the Under 20 World Cup in the off-season for the Young Socceroos, raising expectations about this up-coming season. However, it is important to remember he’s just 16 years old, and it would be wrong for people to expect heroics out of him so soon. it would not be a surprise to see Edwards hold back his young charge and use him in an impact role off the bench. However, if he does start to dominate games, expect to see him starting more and more often.

Why is he still on the list?: Steve Pantelidis was great as a stand-in centre back in the Glory’s run to the grand final a couple of years ago. However, last year he regressed and committed a few costly mistakes that cost Perth points. His most famous offence was conceding a penalty for holding Andrew Nabbout in the elimination final last season (despite widespread criticism Nabbout milked the contact) and then getting sent off for dissent. With the arrival of Milecevic and the rise of Jack Clisby, ‘Panta’ may find his opportunities numbered this year.
Extra Time (Your chance to add anything) If the older heads lead from the front and the youngsters can step up, Edwards could easily lead the club to a third successive final experience. Whilst it would be naïve to expect the team to challenge for the toilet seat, this is a team on the up, so it would be no surprise to see them up there with the big boys come May.

Follow Ben on twitter @BenSmith94

Clisby took the set pieces when he came on. They were pretty decent too.

The Sky Blues fans thought Sydney had equalised on 38 minutes when Del Piero played a 1-2 with Nicky Carle on the edge of the box and the Italian curled a right foot shot just wide of the post. From the angle of the main stand the ball appeared to have gone in but in reality had hit the pole behind the goal and rolled into the netting.

FMD, that is some strong Sydney bias. It's like we're a foreign team touring Australia and so the FFA assume the readers will be more interested in the Australian team.

FMD, that is some strong Sydney bias. It's like we're a foreign team touring Australia and so the FFA assume the readers will be more interested in the Australian team.

I am cautiously optimistic of finals, 4th is probably a best-case scenario... but I would be very surprised and disappointed if this team finished 9th. We're not experienced, but we're not lacking in quality - plus as pointed out we have a pretty solid defence.

ATE - That's too limiting of a player of Neville's talents. I know adaptive players hate being moved around and like a regular start/possie like others, but same time, the likes of Mark Milligan, Rhys Williams, Chris Herd and others have also capably played multiple positions and are similar to Neville or vice versa. It's natural really and reflects the quality of the player.

He has the attributes, qualities, to play some of these other possies.

A club whose colours were created for a specific purpose, to break with the long-held traditional football colours in Aus and herald a new dawn.

Capital city of a state or not, I think the WA colours should be left to a third kit and a third kit only... Let's leave this as a club league, not a state of origin contest...

I am cautiously optimistic of finals, 4th is probably a best-case scenario... but I would be very surprised and disappointed if this team finished 9th. We're not experienced, but we're not lacking in quality - plus as pointed out we have a pretty solid defence.

McGarry is no Miller.