1A Mid Season Report - Bottom to Top

[chelsea]

My mid season report - Bottom to top.

Grads Blue: 10th - 0W - 0D - 9L - 0Pts
Promoted into Div 1A from 2014 it was always going to be a hard tusk for the club to get results. The club lost a few good players before the season started for whatever reason which has made the task of avoiding relegation even harder. I expected them to be in the bottom end of the table but I thought they would of picked up a few points at the half way mark. I have got to know a few people at the cub over the years and they are some of the best people that I know in the CSL. Unfortunately for them things are not working out and I think it will be very difficult for the club to avoid relegation but I hope their 2nd half of the season improves and they keep fighting to the end. One positive is that they are one of 2 clubs that have scored against Rostrevor in the league.

Pulteney: 9th - 1W - 2D - 6L - 5pts
2nd club that was promoted into Div 1A. They had a very positive start to 2015. After 5 league/cup games they had 5 points in the league from 3 games and had won both their cup games and even claimed a big scalp along the way in beating Grads Red 1A in the 2nd round of the cup. After this it all went down hill for them in the league as they have not won a point since. Their positive is that they are still in the cup after winning their round 3 game and are in the last 8. I believe injuries to a few key players have effected the team and their aim will be to survive the drop. Only 1 team to be relegated in 2015 which should see them remain in 1A in 2016 if they can beat Grads Blue in the reverse fixture.

Sacred Heart: 8th - 2W - 2D - 5L - 8pts
They remind me of the Brisbane Lions. They were back to back champions in 2011-2012. Since those glory years its gone backwards for them but they will be back sooner or later. All good clubs have these patches. The focus for the club will be to recruit good young players. In the past they had good players come across from Premier League clubs and they need to attract the next bunch. I didn't expect them to be in the running for the title but I expected them to have maybe 4 wins on the board at this point.

Unley: 7th - 3W - 0D - 6L - 9pts
I expected their results in 2015 to read the opposite of what is written above. I expected 6W / 3L at least. The team was runner ups in 2014 and I thought that they would be one of the title contenders in 2015. They do have a new coach in 2015 and I strongly believe that all coaches need 2 years before they can be judged. Things take time with new ideas and tactics. Positive is that the team is still competing for the cup.

Mercedes: 6th - 4W - 1D - 4L - 13pts
My dark horse team for 2015. Sitting ok but I was hoping they would have 5/6 wins by now. They are on a roller coaster ride. Last 9 league games. LLWWLLWDW. These guys are climbing though and it will only get better for them if they stick together and pick a few players along the way.

Uni White: 5th - 5W - 0D - 4L - 15pts
One of my favourites in 2015 after their success in 2014. They were knocked out of the cup in Rd 1 and started the season very slowly. New coach with new ideas. They have conceded 23 goals in 9 games. In 2014 they conceded 25 goals in 18 games and finished 3rd. Gone backwards defensively. Positive for them is that they have won their last 4 games and things might be clicking in for the 2nd half of the season so don't under estimate them.

Pembroke: 4th - 5W - 0D - 4L - 15pts
They have met my expectations. I expected them to be around this mark. They hold the 3rd best defensive record but the 5th best attacking record. They need more attacking players to make them a force. Michael Case is their top goal scorer on 6 but I suspect this is all from set pieces as he has always been a defensive player. Maybe they are playing him up front as options are limited.

Mt Barker: 3rd - 5W - 1D - 3L - 16pts
The highest goal scoring team in the league. 33 goals scored and 17 conceded. They can score but defensively need improving. Should of only conceded 8-9 goals to be a title contender. The best thing about this team is Mr Stubbing, their striker. 16 goals in 8 starts. The next best scorer in the league is on 8 goals. He has scored nearly 50% of their goals. Both the top 2 teams need to add their 3 top goal scorers to be on the mark with Stubbing. It goes to show the top teams don't rely on 1 goal scorer. Still in the cup and Mr Stubbing is well on his way on picking up some individual awards in 2015.

Grads Red 2nd - 8W - 0D - 1L 24pts
A very good season by the cub so far. Only dropped points to the champions of 2014 in which the game could of ended 1-1. I like to refer to them as Grads Black. They have a new black kit and I believe that the coach has increased discipline into his team. Discipline goes a long way into being title contenders and Grads Red have turned it around from a few years ago. They have a few talented guys at the club and I think they have the most multi cultural list going around when you look at their A squad. This team is title contenders. 30 goals scored / 6 against after 9 rounds. Out of the cup but that can bring positives as well.

Rostrevor 1st - 9W - 0D - 0L - 27pts
Perfect score at the mid way mark. After 2014 I wasn't sure where this would go. Would the team have a premiership hangover or would the hunger be there for back to back. The results so far say everything. 9 wins. 31 GS / 2 GA. Scoring 3.5 goals a game. Conceding a goal every 4.5 games. These stats are a great achievement. Every player has done their job on what the coach has expected of them. Before I continue, just read those stats above, They are truly great to read and the Rostrevor players / coaches should be proud, but at the same time must realise that Grads Red is waiting and are just behind you and its only the half way mark. To the Rostrevor players that read this, the job is only half done and if you repeat the 2nd half of the season as you did the 1st then you will be champions. Plenty of hard work ahead. Make it happen but it wont just fall for you, as every team whether they are in the running or not will want to knock you off.

In conclusion, Well done to the Croydon Kings. Cup winners in SA and will represent SA in the FFA cup. Only 32 teams left. The best result of the weekend. A club I spent 10 years at. Looking forward to the FFA cup draw on Wednesday,

[INTERISTA]

Great read Chelsea -

Its interesting how its gone from a top 5 situation of last year to a two horse race this season.

I am surprised at Unley and Uni White but you're right the Whites seem to getting their season back on track.
Been a roller coaster for Unley, did the CSL proud in the FFA Cup by reaching the second round but have had little success in the CSL itself. So these two predictions haven't worked out!

Championships aren't won in round 9 - I'm sure the second half of the season will heat things up a bit as injuries, holidays etc always take their toll on squad numbers. I expect, like last year, the championship will come down to the final round!

[chelsea]

It is slightly strange seeing a 2 horse race so early in the season. In one way I was expecting this to come maybe from Rd 14.

Both the top teams are out of the cup so they will have an equal run home and players can take advantage of the weekend offs to recover over injuries and freshen up. Those are the positives of not being in the cup.

European summer season has started and in the past many players from both clubs have traveled during this time. Not sure how many intend to travel this year as maybe a few spent their money last year on world cup travels.

My understanding is that weddings will also effect these clubs.

I still dont understand why people get married during the soccer / footy season.

Plenty of twists and turns ahead.

[Squeezy Cheesey Peas]

Good review Chelsea!
My take on the Div1A league is that the top 2 have improved on last years teams BUT the general standard seems to have tailed off slightly from last season maybe?
I can only use what I have seen to date but a number of the clubs have not hit the highs of last season for whatever reason.
Its the next 4 games that will be telling as the middle of the year has historically thrown up a few curve balls against the form guide when squad depths are tested but I really don't see the gap to between the top 2 and the rest being closed significant amount.. It will be a 2 horse run to the line and I think Rostrevor's depth may just prove to be the difference.
Sacred Heart, Mercs and Uni Whites and Unley have all under performed versus expectation (mine anyway!) although Sacred Heart did start to tail off last season with a few late results in the season making the final standings look more respectable.

The game will always go in cycles and that's what keeps it interesting.. nothing worse than a predictable league but the last 4 years+ have always been anything but predictable.
The race for title starts right here for the top 2 but there is a second race on for 3rd place which will be tighter and is potentially between 4 teams

[Ross30]

I felt that the standard in 1A last year was actually the lowest it had been for a few years. The title was there for the taking as several clubs were heavily affected by player turnover or unavailability, particularly with World Cup related travel high on the agenda for many people. Rostrevor made a good start last year but when they had a mid-season blip other teams that had a chance to capitalise then shot themselves in the foot. Regency looked set to blitz everyone, until Elvis left the building.

I think a number of 1A teams are stronger this season and the overall standard has gone back up again. But Rostrevor and Grads Red have improved the most and that's reflected in the table. The title will surely be won by one of those two and I agree with Squeezy that the race for 3rd spot will be less clear-cut.

[chelsea]

In the past finals have been mentioned for the league. Say top 4 playoff at the end of the year like all the other leagues in Australia.

We basically dont have time for it and we like to stick with tradition as 1st past the post but the one thing that should be introduced into the 1A comp is Prize money for the top 4.

That will keep teams motivated to the end to try and claim the top 4 spots.

Maybe $5000 broken up to the top 4 teams.

[INTERISTA]

In the past finals have been mentioned for the league. Say top 4 playoff at the end of the year like all the other leagues in Australia.

We basically dont have time for it and we like to stick with tradition as 1st past the post but the one thing that should be introduced into the 1A comp is Prize money for the top 4.

That will keep teams motivated to the end to try and claim the top 4 spots.

Maybe $5000 broken up to the top 4 teams.

Prize money would be welcomed. Running a 6 team club is expensive & every little bit helps so that would be a big incentive.
Even if it were a rebate of an affiliation fee.
But would CSL increase costs to cover prize money?

[crusader_]

Prize money? Not so sure that's a good idea. We have enough dodgy linesmen already without creating any extra incentive for them.

Maybe the winning team could receive a bit of money to help towards stuff like medals or t-shirts. But nothing more than that, especially if clubs would be asked to pay more money to the league to fund the prize money.

The league should get sponsored by Coopers and award cartons of beer as prizes.