Lawrence Thomas’ end of level boss performance for Melbourne Victory against Brisbane Roar in the final round of the home and away season was instrumental in determining the destination of the Premiers’ Plate and could prove decisive in the crowing of the A-League champions.
Had Roar left AAMI Park with two extra points, not only would they have topped the ladder but they would also face only home matches during the finals. This matters because Brisbane are near unstoppable at Suncorp Stadium. They claimed 35 of the 42 ladder points on offer there, losing only once, in January, when Jamie Maclaren and Brandon Borrello were on Olyroos duty.
By contrast only Central Coast Mariners have fewer than Roar’s three wins on the road. The first came on the opening night of the season, before Western Sydney Wanderers had got their act together. The second a virtual free-hit against the Mariners. The third, against Sydney FC, arrived two-games into the Sky Blues’ horror run of 11 matches without a win, and that was back in January. During the three away matches sandwiching that victory in Sydney and stalemate in Melbourne, Roar conceded 12 goals.
Such away day blues are far from unique in a season that has bucked the trend of a long-term decline in home ground advantage. Only the top two – Adelaide United and Wanderers – ended the season with positive records in enemy territory. Even then, Western Sydney’s six away wins includes two gimmes in Gosford and three further victories against sides outside the finals. The 3-0 thrashing of Melbourne City back in November stands apart.
Adelaide have defeated both Melbourne representatives, Brisbane and Perth on the road, and shared the points twice in Wanderland. That sequence alone makes them worthy premiers in such a lopsided campaign.
Australian football’s custodian of numbers, Andrew Howe, analysed this topic in depth last year, for the opposite reason. 2014-15 was a poor season for home ground advantage with a ratio of home wins (54) to away wins (48) of 1.13. This season’s equivalent is 65 to 40, or a ratio of 1.63.
Why the unlikely reverse? Championship-winning goalkeeper with Sydney FC, Clint Bolton, suggests not enough sides have adapted their tactics away from home.
“Adelaide have been the one side willing to adapt their playing style away from home, absorb a lot of pressure and play a more defensive game,” he said. “They’ve been willing to concede possession, drop back in numbers and be patient winning back the ball. It reminds me of how we played under Vitezslav Lavicka at times. Not for entire games but for certain periods when we needed to adapt. Adelaide have been smart enough to adapt before and during games.”
“In the past most teams used to go away with a defensive attitude. Now more teams seem to throw caution to the wind and stick to their primary playing style”.
Grant Brebner, a championship winner with Melbourne Victory, thinks as the season has gone on and away results have become hard to come by attitude has become a factor. “I think some clubs are beaten before they start,” he said. “They don’t go in with the right attitude. At Melbourne Victory we went into every game expecting to win. I remember in 2009 we went to Adelaide for a final and we didn’t go trying for a draw thinking we could take them back home and finish off the job there. We went there to win.”
“Belief in your team is important, especially when it comes to the finals. You saw it from Kevin Muscat last weekend up in Brisbane. Victory didn’t win in the end but they tried to, and probably should have done, and you could see the belief they had in each other from so much recent success and how that asked difficult questions of Brisbane”.
Of the other notable variables at play, both former players agree the burden of travel and dislocation is not what it used to be.
As Bolton pointed out: “Often when I see teams underperform away from home it’s because they seem lethargic. It’s about doing enough to keep active before a game but not too much. One example at Sydney was how we used to fly. We would be encouraged to get up and move around in airports and on flights. Tony Popovic would take us for stretching sessions, making sure we were never static for too long. Under Lavicka everything was so well structured it felt like a continuation of what we were doing at home. It’s a fine art to reach that point and have so little disruption. It’s that balance from keeping players relaxed but not too lethargic”.
Which is a far cry from the Socceroo’s championship winning days in the NSL. “Look at getting to Morwell from Sydney or Brisbane for example – a plane journey followed by a couple of hours bus ride. Now there’s priority at airports, exit row seats, diet management. I remember having pancakes for breakfast once, there was that little understanding”.
Both Brebner and Bolton agree some A-League venues and supporter bases provide an edge to their teams, although nothing on the scale of the Old Firm or John Beck’s dark arts. “The only time I ever felt like I was playing in a league game back in the UK was Sydney or Adelaide away,” recalled Brebner. “That’s because of the fans. Being up close and personal and feeling the passion so close to the pitch really adds something. Also, at Victory we always had a travelling support to those grounds which adds to the heated atmosphere”.
According to Bolton, “Wanderland is really intimidating when you lose momentum or go behind. Brisbane it’s the opposite, they almost seem to get their team back in it when they’re struggling. Adelaide is as tough as anywhere to go to because the crowd is right on top of you. Especially as a goalkeeper, compared to somewhere like Etihad Stadium. It’s more claustrophobic and imposing.”
“The NSL was definitely more intimidating. Somers Street, Bob Jane Stadium, Adelaide City Park and the like were tribal atmospheres”.
One of the great advantages of playing at home that has long been suspected, and more recently proven, is additional help from referees, although that too is on the decline. “That’s something I was used to a lot more in Scotland than over here,” commented Brebner. “There isn’t the same scale or noise that you get at somewhere like Rangers or Celtic. Nor is there the same pressure on referees to make decisions”.
Logic then points to Adelaide hosting Western Sydney in the grand final, but is there any hope for the outsiders? Brisbane have a 2-1 winning record over Wanderers this season, including that opening round victory in Parramatta. They were also unlucky to lose at Pirtek Stadium in December when John Aloisi’s side fell behind to a Mitch Nichols wonder goal and failed to receive a penalty for a confident handball appeal against Jacob Pepper.
Brebner also hasn’t written off Roar’s chances. “The mentality we had in the senior group carried us through games and you can see in Brisbane they have players, leaders, who have won trophies and know what to do at this stage of the season”.
Bolton’s not giving up on his former side either. “The attacking players at City are big game players, they don’t seem daunted by atmosphere or the type of game. I believe they can cause some damage. The question is whether they can hold out Adelaide at the other end.”
“They did it as recently as round 23. That performance at Coopers Stadium was one of the most complete professional performances I’ve ever seen from a Melbourne City team home or away. My gut says that’s the way they should go again but they have such attacking qualities, can they, or should they, stifle those?”
