Glory dont get any recognition or coverage in our own state, AFL bias WA, let alone trying to get coverage over east

I think its understandable that we dont get enough coverage. Unless we are really successful the viewing numbers for the eastern states teams are far outweigh us over here in the West.

Maybe we need to make our own youtube show or something

Yeah, I think a few of us did say that we are missing that technical passer in the middle.

Like what has been said, De Silva off the bench, ~30 minutes, is all we can really expect. He's 16, there is no point if the club wish to develop him (which they do) to throw him on and make him play a full game every week.

And since he's a sub, he can't be the passing lynchpin at the head of a midfield triangle.

BTW, as a talking point - Am I right to suggest Glory and even Western Australia, but just sticking with Perth Glory, don't always get a 'fair deal' - in relation to their Eastern Cousins? I mean in terms of recognition, coverage and even 'sometimes' in practical ways, with the FFA or what not? I know Glory has lacked the success or what, but the 'Sydney-Melbourne bias' over there in the coverage and what not, just dominates or pervades and I know that's 'a given' generally, but just some times, I'd like to see Glory talked about a little more, or recognised, or some input via a source who ISN'T based in only Sydney or Melbourne! This is in terms of the 'A-League coverage' from Foxsports, TWG and even, dare I say, FFT?!

As someone said somewhere, Glory now have the 23+3 squad.

As Dodd is a LTI I think Glory need a replacement and a key AM is needed.

Smetlz will come back and there's plenty of speed up front to cause other teams headaches.

I don't think we will. Given that we have so many young wingers/attackers then Edwards is just going to rotate players through the right wing or #10 roles I think.

Could be a money thing as well for not using the LTIR.

It's not, or it shouldn't be.

His wages should be covered by insurance, hence his wage is available to spend on a replacement.

Where does this notion come from? There is not an insurance company in the world that would insure a football player against injury for 100% of his wage at anything close to an affordable rate.

I don't think we will. Given that we have so many young wingers/attackers then Edwards is just going to rotate players through the right wing or #10 roles I think.

Could be a money thing as well for not using the LTIR.

Yep. We have a lot of competition now for those 3 slots behind the striker.

True - but quality/experience is a lot less predictable...

Glory won 7-0 against Cockburn today.

Ljubo Milicevic, Ryo Nagai (2), Sidnei (2), Harry O'Brien (2)

Sidnei/Smeltz and Zahra/Harold also McGarry. It's not like we're completely devoid of experience in attack.

With the youngness of the squad I think having plenty of options in all positions is a good thing. Even if the first half of the season Glory will probably lack cohesiveness.

Good to see those names on the score sheet.

Brief match report?

Good to see those names on the score sheet.

Brief match report?

Either Sidnei or Ndumba (didn't catch who it was) made a run forward with the ball but was outmuscled surprisingly easily by the Cockburn defender.

New signing Harry O'Brien bagged two goals against his former club as Perth Glory secured a resounding 7-0 victory over Cockburn City on Sunday afternoon.

The 19-year-old only completed his permanent move to Glory from the Cockerels on Thursday and played the first-half for the State Premier League side.

But he donned his new colours in the second-half and found the net twice in the space of nine minutes as the A-League outfit turned on the style.

Fellow-new recruit Sidnei also bagged a brace of goals, as did Ryo Nagai, while Ljubo Milicevic got the ball rolling by heading home the opener with only a minute on the clock.

Sidnei and Nagai also featured prominently in the assists column, but Head Coach Alistair Edwards felt that the scoreline was a little harsh on a valiant Cockburn side.

"7-0 didn’t really reflect the game," he said, "because Cockburn did really well, played some good football and then put a few youngsters in to get some experience at the end.
"But they caught us on a pretty good day to be fair.
"We're getting to the stage now where we are starting to fine-tune things and the boys played some really good football."

Edwards was delighted to see O'Brien given such a fine reception from a crowd of close to 2000 at Dalmatinac Park and was also pleased with the performances of several of his other key men.

"Harry received a standing ovation from the Cockburn faithful," he said.
"It was his first game since he signed for the club so it was good to see him being appreciated in that way and great for him to mark the occasion by scoring two goals.
"Sidnei came on and scored with almost his first touch and played very, very well, while Steve Pantelidis got a full game under his belt for the first time since his operation and Jack Duncan also got the full 90 minutes in goal.
"For the last half hour or so, we had an incredibly young side out there with Jack Duncan, Josh Risdon, Jack Clisby, Cameron Edwards, Danny De Silva, Brandon O'Neill, Ryan Edwards and Harry O'Brien all aged 21 or under.
"It was a great to see those lads getting some really important game time, we also had Jacob Burns and Ljubo Milicevic playing 45 minutes and it was nice to have Michael Thwaite back with us after his exertions with the Socceroos."

The Cockburn visit proved every bit as popular as the games hosted earlier in pre-season by Kwinana and Gosnells and Edwards received plenty of positive feedback following the final whistle.

"The young Glory guys were there behind the goal with their drums," he said, "and they made it a really good atmosphere.
"The locals really appreciated Glory coming down to Cockburn to play and speaking to people after the game, they really enjoyed the quality of the game.
"So it was a really pleasing day in more ways than one."

Glory will tackle State League opposition again early next month when they visit Macedonia Park to face Stirling on Wednesday 4th September.

Perth Glory Line-Up: Jack Duncan (GK), Josh Risdon, Steve Pantelidis, Ljubo Milicevic (Michael Thwaite 46'), Scott Jamieson (Jack Clisby 70'), Cameron Edwards, Jacob Burns (Brandon O'Neill 46'), Ryan Edwards (Adrian Zahra 77'), Chris Harold (Sidnei 27'), Ndumba Makeche (Harry O'Brien 55'), Ryo Nagai

Scorers: Milicevic 1', Nagai 20', 47' , Sidnei 29', 59' , O'Brien 68', 79'

With thanks to Ante Kovacevic

Gareth Morgan

Young guns Danny De Silva, Jamie Maclaren and Ryan Edwards are vying for the key playmaking role at Perth Glory vacated by the departure of Liam Miller.

And, at the other end of the age scale, 32-year-old former Socceroos defender Ljubo Milicevic will be expected to play a important mentoring role off the field with the Glory's stack of promising youngsters, as well as a critical playing role on it.

Glory coach Alistair Edwards is in the midst of his first opportunity to properly prepare the Glory for a season after taking over from the sacked Ian Ferguson in the second half of last season and getting the team to the finals.

Edwards told TWG everything was going to plan following a recent trip to South Africa and Malaysia that included four games and another home trial against the WA State team on Thursday. The Glory conceded an early goal in that most recent match, but went on to win 3-1.

De Silva, the schoolboy sensation who made his A-league debut for the Glory as a 15-year-old late last season, scored a screaming goal from 25 metres against WA.

De Silva, now 16, the coach's son Edwards, 19, and Maclaren, 20, were all members of the Australian squad that competed in the U-20 World Cup in Turkey midway through this year.

Coach Edwards said the pre-season preparation was based on a plan to blend the club's new mix of hard-core experience and outstanding young players so that they are all on the same page when the new season begins.

"We spent 12 days in South Africa, where we played three games, and four days in Malaysia for the one game," he said.

"It was a tremendous experience, a great opportunity. We're back in full swing here now and the whole squad has played equal game-time in the trials to this point.

"We've got a lot of experienced players, but also a lot of young players who need to gain first-team experience."

Silva is still at school, although he does it via a special program in which he attends school part-time and the rest of his study is fitted in around his footballing commitments.

He didn't go on the overseas trip, instead staying at home to concentrate on his schooling.

"He's a had a bit of a whirlwind year," Edwards said.

"Making his A-League debut, playing in the World Youth Cup, and all on top of school. He needed a rest, to be honest, and some time to concentrate on his homework.

"There are days Danny has to go to school, usually on a Thursday, and also do some other things connected to his schooling. They look after him and we look after him.

“He has to make sure he finishes all of his tasks. He does a lot of his homework on the plane, to and from games."

Miller left the club at the end of last season and has since signed with Brisbane Roar.

Asked if the plan was for De Silva to become a regular starter this season, and perhaps even in Miller's old role, Edwards replied: "Liam's a good player and we offered him the same terms and conditions he was already on, for another year. I think that point needs to be made. But we couldn't agree on terms.

"We needed to get a goalscoring number 10, and if Liam had stayed at the club we would have played him more as a number eight, in a midfield role.

"We went into the market for a number 10, and because of the development of Danny De Silva and the addition of Jamie Maclaren and Ryan Edwards we have got a number of players who can play the number 10 role.

"We see it as an opportunity to develop players. If you go through the whole squad, I don't think anyone's a guaranteed starter, apart from a couple of players, and they all know that.

"Danny's got a long way to go in his development and he knows that, and we've also got Maclaren and Edwards, who were both at the World Youth Cup with Danny and who can also play that (number 10) role.

"We've got several guys who can share that role and develop during the year. Do we know who's going to be starting there in the first game? No. And because it's highly competitive everyone knows they are going to get opportunities, and they've all done very well so far.

"The way it will work out, they can all be sure they will get plenty of football."

Central defender Milicevic, 32, is a controversial type with a reputation for being outspoken off the field. But Edwards says that isn't an issue.

He says he has no doubt Milicevic will be the sort of player who helps make the younger players better.

"We have to make sure the guys who are trying to get first-team experience at the start of the A-League season are not just thrown in there and told 'good luck'," Edwards said.

"All of these young players will have had six or seven games as first-team players in the trials by then. It's different in the A-League with all the pressures that come with that, but we're giving them the best possible preparation.

"We've got a good group of very experienced players and now we've got a number of 16, 18, 19 and 20-year-olds who are at a different stage of their development and their lives, and the pleasing thing is that the dynamics within the entire group is the best I've ever worked with.

"The older guys have really taken on the leadership role and the younger guys are really benefitting from that. We've signed a lot of top-quality young players, and WA players, and they are working closely with the experienced players already at the club - people like Shane Smeltz, Jacob Burns, Steve McGarry, Steve Pantelidis, Jacob Burns, Danny Vukovic and now Ljubo. So we're getting the balance right.

"I played with Ljubo. He came into our group at the Glory when he was 18 or 19 years old. I've had many conversations with him over the last 10 days. Basically, we've got a culture, a way of doing things at the club, and we want him to remember when he was 18 and 19 years old because he benefitted from the experience of having older players around him then.

"They helped him immensely and he really appreciated that, and he understands that, and he knows that he's got not only a playing role on the park for us but he has got to make sure he looks back and remembers the culture we had before and how much it helped him.

"He'll be in a mentoring role like all of the older boys, and so far he's been fantastic."

Edwards said striker Smeltz would miss at least the first month of the A-League, returning "at the earliest" some time in November, after off-season hip surgery.

Another new signing, Brazilian Sidnei Sciola, will be among the players looking to fill that spot while Smeltz is out