Bruce Djite is back

Once labelled the "New Viduka" Bruce Djite produced a Viduka style bit of magic for his second goal of the night in Gold Coast's 3-1 win over a hard working Wellington Phoenix who can just not win in Australia.

A quick flick was all it took to stun Andrew Durrante and Danny Vukovic and Djite's team were back in the lead

And the Gold Coast with Djite already starting to work his way to the top of the scoring charts are looking as though they are in with a shake for the title.

Early days but is a case of Shane who for the Gold Coast?

And just maybe Djite will give the team more off the ball than Smeltz did and after last nights couple of goals, that's three in two games now, his confidence and sharpness can only improve.

Welcome back Bruce.

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A-League Record Transfer Fee?

Newspaper talk reports Bruce Djite's transfer has netted Adelaide United $850,000 plus a sell-on clause.
With the minuscule amounts received for David Carney and others, this is surely good news for Australian clubs.

While we don't want to see these guys go, when they do, it should be for a reasonable fee.

Nice to see some extra funds flowing into Australian football.

With all the doom and gloom surrounding the revenue problems with Basketball, NRL Club's and Rugby Union in the last few days good to see some good financial news for Aussie sporting teams.

Surely players like James Holland, Stuart Musialik, Nathan Burns, Nikolai Topor-Stanley will all add to club revenues if and when they head overseas in coming years.

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12 flights 12 days.

Bruce Djite has signed for Turkish side Genclerbirligi. Everyone knows that. Good luck to Bruce. Surely a future 2010 Socceroo striker.

To seal the deal. He undertook 12 flights in 12 days. Four to China with Adelaide United, then back part way and across to Turkey for medicals and then back to Adelaide to clearout; and then up to Brisbane for Socceroos duty.

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United to win again?

Yes I know Man United won the European Champions League this morning. Don't really know how. And I know John Terry could have won it for the Chelsea fans with the very last penalty, but he didn't did he!

So for all you followers of the two teams with the most money. Well done. Exciting game as well, surprisingly.

Now; Adelaide to win tonight, or a draw will be enough against Chanhgchun. 5.30pm on Fox. Can they become the first Aussie side to make it through to the Quarter Final of the Asian Champions League?

Bruce Djite is back to play his last game for a while in an A-League side. Should be a good game.

And can Scott McDonald pick up his first Scottish Championship medal tomorrow morn our time. If his Celtic side win their last game of the season, barring a freak result elsewhere, Scott will be a champ.

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A-League Awards

Joel Griffith was player of the year and Referee of the year was Mark Shield.

Alex Brosque was second. Honest:)

Danny Vukovic has been sent-off twice so he couldn't win anything. Bruce Djite was young player of the year.

JOHNNY WARREN MEDAL WINNER NAMED

The prestigious Johnny Warren Medal, which is a peer award, has been presented to Newcastle Jets’ striker, Joel Griffiths, at the Hyundai A-League 2008 Awards Lunch held in Sydney today.

Griffiths received an overwhelming 394 votes from his playing peers, 140 votes ahead of his nearest rivals Alex Brosque of Sydney FC (254 votes) and Shane Smeltz from the Wellington Phoenix (157).

The Johnny Warren Medal was Griffiths’ second award of the day having earlier picked up the Reebok Golden Boot Award for the 12 goals he scored during the Hyundai A-League 2007-08 season.

Having claimed their first Hyundai A-League Championship Trophy, the Newcastle Jets also picked up two other awards with Gary Van Egmond named the Hyundai A-League Coach of the Year Award, while his team collected the Hyundai A-League Fair Play Award.

Adelaide United’s Bruce Djite received the Rising Star Award for the most outstanding Under-20 player in the Hyundai A-League, and Melbourne Victory’s Michael Theoklitos took out the inaugural Hyundai A-League Goalkeeper of the year award.

Sydney FC’s Brendon Sanatalab won the FOXTEL Goal of the Season award, as voted online by the fans, for his memorable strike against Adelaide United in round 18 at the Adelaide Oval.

Mark Shield was named the Zurich Referee of the Year for the third time in the past three seasons of the Hyundai A-League.

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2007: Top Ten Australian Football moments

Favourite moments of the Year?

Thought it was time to review the year. Australian football had the Asia Cup, the A-League 6-0 Grand Final, Matilda's World Cup and release of the Technical Report. New Players broke through, and the game kicked on to a new level.

Here are my top ten football moments in descending order.

Coming in at:
10. John Howard handing over $16 million to the FFA. Finally we can have the Technical Report released, a Coach for the Socceroos, A Women's A-League expected, A Youth League to come, and Christmas still to come:)

9.Collette McCallum bends it like, you know who, to score against Canada in the World Cup.

8. David Carney surprising us all by stepping up to Socceroo level, at left back. The A-League rose a notch with Carney's performances in Asia.

7. Football on Channel Ten. Sydney beat Beckham 5-3. We purists weren't sure but 80,000 at a friendly, pumped on FTA Television. A highlight of sorts.

6. Bruce Djite. Watching Bruce at work is absolutely joyous. coupled with the rise of the young players in the A-League. Robbie Kruse Michael Zullo Nathan Burns and Nikita Rukavystya to name a few. Great to see.

5. Steve Corica's goal away to Shanghai Shenhua in the opening game of Sydney FC's Asian Champions League campaign. The first Australian goal in the ACL. That it was away from home in China was special. That it was a superb goal and a great goal for Australian football merely added to the sense of history.

4. The Olyroos defeating Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and others to reach the Olympics. Well done to Graham Arnold, and Robert Baan. A great achievement, even in the crucial goal in the last game was the hand of Leijer!

3. Lisa De Vanna scores that vital goal against Norway in the World Cup. A breath-taking piece of football, and at such a crucial part of the game.

2. Archie Thompson leaving the field in the Grand Final after having scored 5 for Melbourne Victory in their 6-0 thrashing of Adelaide United. The crowd roared his name as he walked around the stadium with the game still in play. It was amazing to see in the Dome, in the city of AFL. Pinched myself!

1. Cheryl Salisbury stroking the ball home in the last minutes of the crucial World Cup game against Canada. With the score at 2-1 Australia were out. History was made as Lisa De Vanna tricked her way into the box. Salisbury scored. The Matilda's went to the World Cup Quarter Finals for the first time ever.

and joint first...Live on FTA The Matilda's brought the women's game into mainstream Australian sport for the first time. People didn't just talk football, they talked women's football.

Missed any, I'm sure I have..feel free to tell me what I missed and add your favourite moment.

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Bruce Djite rules ok!

What a fantastic game.

Adelaide United 2 Central Coast Mariners 1

The crowd, the colour, the pace, the skill the A-League rocked at Hindmarsh tonight.

The young guys once again did their thing for Adelaide and it was a joy to watch.


Adelaide fans decked out in red at a packed Hindmarsh Stadium warms any Aussie football fans heart.

With the table topping Mariners in town a big game was on.

For the Mariners Mori, Petrovski, Hutchison and Kwasnik showed why they are top of the league Quick, creative and direct with the ability to create chances at pace.

And if Damien Brown had matched the work of his team-mates the Mariners may well have won again.

But United were gorgeous. People talking about the boring A-League. Leave it out. Sydney with Juninho, Newcastle in full flow, Wellington on the rise, the leaders the Mariners and of course the awesome Nathan Burns led Adelaide United are keeping me entertained.

Burns show Heffernan a clean pair of heels with a delightful piece of skill. A match for Juninho? A World Cup winner against a young Aussie on the rise.

I'm loving the Nathan Burns development show. And he's developed. Again making an increasing number of crucial interventions. He set up the opener for Bruce Djite. Another Aussie on the rise.

And any young Aussie who dominates in the Aussie league can clearly perform overseas at a high level.

Remember Jason Culina and Brett Emerton in the old NSL, and I would suggest those two lack the skill of a Djite of Burns.

Dodds inspired, Diego worked hard and Adelaide were on the run.

But from somewhere the Coast worked their openings and their fitness began to tell. And eventually the goal came and Sasho Petrovski scambled home.

The ref, Matthew Breeze, must have been watching Craig Zetter at Sydney the night before. The standard was the same. Dismal.

A clear Djite second goal just had to be allowed. But Breeze standing right in line of the Burns foul, Djite goal called play back.

And would it impact on this game, this great A-League game.

End to end they went. Probing and challenging.

Diego was fouled by Tony Vidmar. Second yellow and Vidmar was off.

And then Bruce Djite scored. A man who plays his football with honesty and integrity scored. And I was delighted.

Djite has been criticised by many, but he's young and he's scoring and he tops the charts.

Time to recognise his talents and progression. He can only get better.

The Mariners were outstanding and contributed to this great game.

If anyone is the Manchester United of this league it is Adelaide. Over three seasons they have consistently played the football, the intricate but flowing football.

Like United they have the ball players and the flair to do it. And that is the difference.

Creative players all over the park. And this with Bobby Petta, Jason Spagnuola and Paul Agostino out of the side.

Agostino was injured. How many of our ageing returnees continue to miss games in this league? Makes you question their value but that's for another day.

Today Hindmarsh was red. When Vidmar was sent-off the camera's showed two women in the crowd dressed in red. they cheered with a joy and a passion.

It was a real football moment, in a 90 minutes of excellence in Adelaide, and I loved it.

Whenever Adelaide are in town. If you are a football fan do not miss it.

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