perfectOzblue

Alex Cisak has joined Sydney FC (the reigning A-League champs) on a two-year deal. Expected to be their number one this season and being touted as a potential member of their World Cup squad (if they get there) next year.

Neil Kilkenny wins Player of the Year for Melbourne City. Good achievement, they have some decent players like Tim Cahill, Bruno Fornaroli (probably best A-League striker) and Thomas Sorensen. Ex-Latics loanee Fabio Ferreira has also left Aussie shores after departing Central Coast Mariners, probably for a team somewhere in Asia. He did okay here, scored 20-odd goals in 120 matches for the Mariners and Adelaide Reds. Always looked okay whenever I saw him. Joe Mills's Perth Glory lost their finals match against Sydney FC tonight (Oz time) so their season has finished. Mills didn't feature and has been in and out of the team for most of the season.

Wasn't it Blackburn at home on a Friday evening where it was flashing up the 'Please Joe, Don't Go' message on the scoreboard? It was when BFJ was being linked with the Everton job. We beat them 2-0 I think. I think it must have been the 'Pinch Me' season. The season after (the Championship season) we drew with them 1-all. One of the few home matches that season where we didn't steamroller the opposition.

Stoke at home I think. Penultimate match of 95/96, we beat them 2-0 in the last week of the season. They brought a load of fans as they were going for the play-offs. We stayed up, but may as well not have bothered as the next season was dreadful....

Five game ban from the looks of things...

Make that three - I'm in Ryde. The 'joys' of being a long-distance fan hey. And yet...part of me still wishes I was on the 409 to BP every other Saturday afternoon at 2pm.

Only speaking as a long distance fan but a central defensive pairing of Clarke and Gerrard at this level sounds pretty damn good. Gerrard also strikes me as someone who is good to have around the club and dressing room as well.

Hefty former Latics contingent currently involved in Melbourne City-Perth Glory. Dean Bouzanis and Neil Kilkenny starting for City alongside Tim Cahill. Joe Mills on the bench for Glory.

Paul Dickov in the frame to become boss at Central Coast Mariners here in Oz. Probably the smallest team in the A-League, did punch above their weight but have had a disastrous couple of seasons. http://theworldgame.sbs.com.au/article/2016/08/25/two-remain-race-mariners-top-job

Was Lourenco Brazilian? He was brilliant for one match against Huddersfield. Overhead kick at the Chaddy End. Beautiful day.

Yeah and all three in their own way were killers. First one was the first match back in the top division, absolutely brilliant occasion (will never forget seeing the packed Kop for the first time). Was still gutted we lost to a late goal (Dean Saunders maybe?). Second one was a dour game settled by that Rush scorcher, looked like we were relegated. Third one was absolutely gutting - Beckford (?) gave us the lead midway through the second half, looked like we were going to win until Fowler got two in the 88th and 91st minutes, both scrambled efforts blown in by the Kop. Soul destroying....

Yeah, 90 Minutes was awesome, especially around that whole era when football became 'cool' again in the mid-90s. Think it was edited at that time by Paul Hawsbee, who (I think?) presents the afternoon show on TalkSPORT. Was a great read but went completely :censored: later on. Think I stopped buying it and started spending my money on the NME during the Britpop years instead.

How good a header was that from Marshy?! Brilliant composure for the second goal too. When he came and scored for Ipswich against us in the first match of the 93/94 season at BP I was genuinely heartbroken.

No...Fox Sports don't show the Championship anymore here in Oz. Bein Sports (525) shows the Sky Championship/Football League matches. Doesn't look like it's on - I think they are showing Chile vs Argentina in the World Cup qualifies at 10.25pm on Friday night. They're picking Messi over Mike Jones FFS?!? EDIT: Sorry, looking at the wrong day! YES! It is on at 11.25pm on Saturday night on bein Sports. I'm seeing Noel Gallagher here in Sydney on Saturday night. Bit of a sing-a-long, couple of beers and then home for Latics. Get in!

When he wasn't going crazy and getting himself pointlessly yellow/red carded he was a handy player...didn't he play in the play-off heartbreaker v QPR?

One of my top 10 favourite Latics matches without a doubt. Even now the memories come flooding back: 1) Absolutely packed Rochdale Road End - par for the course when one of the 'big boys' came to town; 2) The camera going absolutely nuts for Cantona, but Jobbo and the defence barely giving him a kick apart from his first touch when he had a brilliant run; 3) Latics playing brilliantly. I mean brilliantly. God that was a good day....

Goes further back than that mate. Ever since the Ched Evans saga we have been complete crap - and I speak as someone who was in favour of giving the guy another chance. Not trying to go over old ground - what's done is done and this squad should be capable of doing much better than present - but the fact remains that ever since the CE fiasco our club has been on a downward spiral. You reap what you sow.

Not entirely sure I follow your post Magister. Pretty sure everyone here is (painfully!) aware this is the level Latics are (permanently?) at now, but equally we have to think we can beat Mansfield Town surely? Not arrogance, just a belief that we have some decent players and should be better than them even without home advantage?

Take your point but right now we need results. If they are better than the players they've replaced then that's all that matters. Plus didn't Swindon do something similar for most of last season? Relying on loanees. Didn't do them much harm.

I probably should have qualified my statement by saying, "anyone who criticises Corney for not caring about the club can do one". I definitely think there's a lot of Corney's decisions you can (at the very least) question. He's probably learned the hard way I guess that football isn't like business - :censored: happens out of nowhere that you cannot control, things change with one kick etc.

Yeah, that's got some merit ChaddySmoker. As I said, I'm not a massive Corney fan, based on some of the things he's done in his tenure here. I guess I look at this one that at least he's identified that the situation cannot go on and he's done something about it before things go even more pear-shaped.

....And David Dunn had got the job in June, I reckon most of us would be pretty happy/optimistic about his appointment. Pros: He'll be respected by the players; he knows most of them already to have formed an opinion on them; he'll likely get the best out of Winiesta; he'll know the modern player's mindset; he'll probably have decent contacts; he's worked under some decent managers and hopefully picked up a trick or two. Cons: He's not some grizzled veteran who's "been around", "knows the game" etc. Well, I don't want yet another has-been failure or nostalgia choice as the manager of Latics. I just want someone who will inspire the players, play them in the right position and have the team playing entertaining and (ultimately) winning football. Yeah okay, the way he has been appointed leaves a bad taste. I feel sorry for Darren Kelly, but ultimately he was out of his depth. I'm not a huge Corney fan but I respect him more after this decision. It was going wrong, so he's changed things. I admire that. Anyone who says Corney doesn't really care about the club can do one after this. I'm not saying Dunn will be a smash hit, I'm not saying he get us promoted, but....I'm pretty cheered up about this. Hopefully he will get a few results, get the gig full-time and get us up the table. I still believe we have a decent squad that can go for the play-offs AS LONG AS THEY ARE MANAGED RIGHT.

He should have done. I think it may have been one of John Keeley's rare appearances. Argh.....

No - they blitzed us at BP 5-2. David White ran riot and got a hat-trick after we'd taken the lead. Paul Moulden scored one of his few goals for us late on.