Well, for me, yesterday started with a toothache and ended with a smile.
By mid morning the rain had cleared and we were buffeted by powerful westerlies which would have made football difficult, but even they subsided to a gentle breeze by kick off time.
The planned unofficial meeting of the unofficial supporters at the Irish Connection was a fizzer because, for some Irish reason, the place decided, just for this one day, to open 2 hours late at 6.00 PM. Not only that, but Crofty, his heirs and wife and my mob were the only ones who turned up anyway. Visiting outside the Caxton (a poor substitute IMO) were the Forzi and it was good, as always, to put a face to the postings. Nice to meet you Fred.
We did spend a little time at the IC, so were quite late getting into the ground and there was quite a good crowd in. The usual fireworks and a non Julie Anthony version of the innapropriately played national anthem and we were away for 1998.
It was apparent at once that the STRIKERS looked much better than last year. The long "30 degree" cross was almost eliminated and we got behind the Marconi defence towards the goal line several times more in the game than I think we did all last season! This had the natural consequence of giving the defenders quite a bit of aggrevation. Most defenders don't like having to face their own goal. Inevitably the first goal came from Harris' head and we seemed to be strolling until a horrid defensive error allowed a one on one, as our basket ball chums are wont to say, which Clint Bolton lost, getting down just too late as the ball was driven under him. 1 - 1, and Marconi undeservedly level. However, justice prevailed and the STRIKERS scored just before half time from a corner for the first time, it seems, since Big Al left. Tulamarine, arching backwards to head over the keeper. 2 - 1 at the break, and Forza, in passing, muttered, quite unjustifiably in my view, "F***ing lucky". During the half time sup I met Wade (the mad Striker) for the first time and he expressed some surprise at the reletave youth of Forza Fred - must be his old fashioned good manners that had him fooled :-).
In the second half the STRIKERS continued to look the more penetrative and more solid defensively too. Eventually the ref (who was somewhat card happy, but who should have sent Longo off in the first half for a horrid late tackle) saw an infringement that none of us did and quite correctly pointed to the spot. We were all hoping OHY (who, BTW, looked better than last season and was missing things by more like quarter of a yard) would not live up to his nickname, when up stepped Casy Wehrman (who had another good match, but doesn't quite seem up to his pre-injury form yet) and stuck it in. 3 - 1 and Casey appeared, after his signiture celebratery gymnastics ( I was terrified for his ankle), to pop over to Frankie on the Marconi bench and thank him for teaching him such good penalty taking technique - at least he made a point of giving FF some message or other..... It must be said that Marconi did press back, and it is a sad inditement to have to say that Francis A was putting more in than any other of the much vaunted Stallions and was duely rewarded with a consolation goal right at the death when a cross that should not have ben allowed found him inappropriately unmarked a couple of yards out and he dreadlocked it into an empty net. 3 - 2, and the final whistle came in time to provoke scenes of jubilation (or was it relief?) that I didn't see there all last season.
I must mention that the same old crap scoreboard remains and there has been the addition of a group of 10 to 12 prepubescent cheer girls at each end of the ground seated on little foldaway seats who piped shrilly and in unison from time to time. At our end they even had a tiny subs bench where 2 even younger kiddies sat apart and watching. How many subs in a cheer girl squad are permitted? Fred, you should know, the Stallionettes have been extant for a while now .
Kossie is off to a good start, and I'd like to believe his influence was visible on the park. I wondered if we were seeing the cold hand of FF's style on Marconi. They did seem to play an awful lot of those long and futile balls that were driving me nuts at Suncorp all last season. I know it's early days, but, as was remarked in the toilet post match, perhaps he should have taken the Oz women' job after all.