A-League Season Predictions - 2021/22

[JohnnyRico]

1: City
2: SFC
3: WSW
4: Perth
5: Vic
6: WU
7: Macarthur
8: Adelaide
9: Mariners
10: Jets
11: Roar
12: Nux

Grand final winner: City

Grand final runner-up: Vic

FFA Cup winner: Adleaide

Player of the season: Leckie

Player of the grand final: Leckie

Golden boot: Hemed

Best new signing: Burgess, Petratos, Miranda

Best young player (U23): Tillio

Biggest flop signing: Juric & Mutch

SFC player of the season: Burgess

SFC golden boot: Le Fondre

First coach sacked: None, but Moon & Talay moon on end of season

Random predictions for this season:
Jets actually look good & well managed but just dont have the squad to make it work
Burgess takes a little while to get going but destroys it from half way through the season onward
Huge logjam between for spots between 6 & 11 - decided by only a couple points
Nux stink up the joint (unfortunately)

[eddie]

End of season standings:

1: City
2: SFC
3: WSW
4: Melbourne
5: Adelaide
6: Perth
7: Brisbane
8: Macarthur
9: WU
10: CCM
11: Newcastle
12: Wellington

Grand final winner: City

Grand final runner-up: SFC

FFA Cup winner: SFC

Player of the season: Dimi Petratos

Player of the grand final: Aiden O’Neill

Golden boot: Jamie MacLaren

Best new signing: Dimi Petratos

Best young player (U23): Conor Metcalfe

Biggest flop signing: Adrian Sardinero

SFC player of the season: Anthony Caceres

SFC golden boot: Adam Le Fondre

First coach sacked: Milicic prior to season start, Ufuk Talay during the season

Random predictions for this season:

Wellington to be NZ Knights level bad. Uffy leaves by mutual consent and takes the job at Macarthur.

The referee contract saga sees the “professional” referees sit out the season. No VAR for the season as there are no qualified referees to operate it. “Amateur” referees prove to be more than competent.

League wide active support sees a resurgence due to relaxed restrictions, positive media coverage, all of the “big clubs” doing well and large travelling contingents.

Expansion to 14 teams announced for 2024/25 with Canberra and Gold Coast added.

Cup holders announced for new stadium however the dimensions prove to be too small for the cups sold in the stadium.

[CountArach]

1: City
2: Perth
3: Sydney
4: Melbourne
5: Adelaide
6: WSW
7: Macarthur
8: Brisbane
9: CCM
10: Western
11: Newcastle
12: Wellington

Grand final winner: City

Grand final runner-up: Melbourne

FFA Cup winner: Adelaide

Player of the season: Leckie maybe?

Player of the grand final: Maclaren gets a brace

Golden boot: Maclaren

Best new signing: Leckie

Best young player (U23): I’ve got a good feeling about Dukuly this season.

Biggest flop signing: One of the new Melbourne recruits, let’s go with Marchan as he has a CV that looks similar to other previous flops.

SFC player of the season: Caceres

SFC golden boot: ALF

First coach sacked: Aloisi but not until fairly late in the season. I just don’t think there’s a lot of appetite to sack coaches right now.

Random predictions for this season:

• As others have said, I’m really optimistic that we can see crowds come back and a bit of a revival of active support. Regardless, the RBB still can’t get any numbers and fall out with their club on three separate occasions.
• We get an announcement that bidding for expansion teams will commence, with the new clubs due to join in 2023-24.
• Western United actually begin proper construction.
• There is a new buyer for Newcastle, who makes all the right noises about investing but really doesn’t.
• Carl Robinson to lose the dressing room after a series of spats with players but the club doesn’t fire him. A number of their players leave in January and some Robinson favourites are brought in.
• Ninkovic announces his retirement to take up modelling.

[shabby]

I told myself I’d wait to do this, so I could get my head around what changed this season, but I think I’m come to terms with the fact that that’s not going to happen.
Therefore I will be basing this on preconceived notions from last year and a vague gut feeling.

End of season standings:

1: Melbourne City
2: MacArthur Rams
3: Perth
4: Western Sydney Wanderers
5: Sydney
6: Melbourne Victory
7: Wellington Phoenix
8: Adelaide Utd
9: Brisbane Roar
10: Central Coast Mariners
11: Western United
12: Newcastle Jets

Grand final winner: Melbourne City

Grand final runner-up: Perth

FFA Cup winner: Sydney

Player of the season: Brandon Oneill

Player of the grand final: Jamie Maclaren

Golden boot: Jamie Maclaren

Best new signing: Brandon O’Neill

Best young player (U23): Id love it to be Calem Nieuenhof, please.

Biggest flop signing: Terrence Antonis

SFC player of the season: Adam LeFondre

SFC golden boot: Adam LeFondre

First coach sacked: Ante Milicic

Random predictions for this season: After a disastrous start to the season Ante Milicic is sacked and Alen Stajic is brought in - leading to the Bulls storming up the ladder, but narrowly missing a place in the GF.

[denmil]

I can’t be bothered doing a whole thing, but I fully expect biggest flop to be Leckie, and the downgrade from Noone to Leckie to mean MC don’t do better than like 3rd.

[eddie]

I’m going to throw in one more random prediction.
B-League announced for 2023.

[Viska]

It’s harder defending a title than winning one.All teams want to prove they are worthy by beating last year’s winners.Players from the previous winning year also don’t have that exact desire to win as they had in the season they achieved it

Obviously City will be competitive but there’s plenty of challengers.

[Clovis]

Another bump for this thread, predictions need be in by COB on Friday to be counted in the end of year competition.

I have added the new entries into my spreadsheet and the current collective wisdom of the SFCU has the following end of season prediction.

[Utility]

Melbourne City
Perth
Melbourne victory
Sydney fc
Macarthur
Central coast
Western Sydney
Wellington
Brisbane
Newcastle
Western United
Adelaide

[JohnnyRico]

If the Nix get out of the bottom 2 id be amazed and Talay is a football genius

[phoiuy]

Melbourne City
Sydney fc
Macarthur
Brisbane
Central coast
Perth
Western Sydney
Melbourne victory
Newcastle
Western United
Adelaide
Wellington

[Belldiouf]

1: Melbourne City
2: Melbourne Victory
3: Perth Glory
4: Western Sydney Wanderers
5: Sydney FC
6: Adelaide United
7: Macarthur Bulls
8: Newcastle Jets
9: Brisbane Roar
10: Central Coast Mariners
11: Wellington Phoenix
12: Western United

Grand final winner: Melbourne City

Grand final runner-up: Melbourne Victory

FFA Cup winner: Adelaide United

Player of the season: Jamie MacLaren

Player of the grand final: Nathaniel Atkinson

Golden boot: Jamie MacLaren

Best new signing: Davilla

Best young player (U23): Nathaniel Atkinson

Biggest flop signing: Matthew Leckie

SFC player of the season: Adam Le Fondre

SFC golden boot: Adam Le Fondre

First coach sacked: Ante Milicic

Random predictions for this season:

1. Melbourne City to storm the league, but less than 6 points separates 2nd through 7th.
2. Jamie Maclaren will have a late season move to Asia, but still wins the golden boot.
3. 2 expansions clubs will be announced. Canberra will get one of those and another from an underwhelming area like Western United. Im guessing some outer suburban Brisbane team.
4. Bobo retires halfway through the season after an ACL injury

[Clovis]

Entries close COB Friday

https://keepup.com.au/news/all-players-signed-for-2021-22-isuzu-ute-a-league-season

[BlueSky]

End of season standings:

1: Melbourne City
2: Sydney FC
3: Wellington Phoenix
4: Central Coast Mariners
5: Adelaide United
6: Melbourne Victory
7: Brisbane Roar
8: Western Sydney Wanderers
9: Newcastle Jets
10: Perth Glory
11: Macarthur Bulls
12: Western United

Grand final winner: Sydney FC

Grand final runner-up: Melbourne City

FFA Cup winner: Adelaide United

Player of the season: Maclaren

Player of the grand final: Rhyan Grant

Golden boot: Maclaren

Best new signing: Nico Muller (random, but reckon he will thrive at a club that values him and uses him properly)

Best young player (U23): Mohamed Toure

Biggest flop signing: Manuel Pucciarelli (who the fuck is he and why do City need a foreign forward?)

SFC player of the season: Rhyan Grant

SFC golden boot: Le Fondre

First coach sacked: Aloisi

Random predictions for this season:

• Nix to get their shit together and go on a strong run
• At least four coaches to resign/be sacked from their club this season (bottom three plus Robinson)
• City to go undefeated until the Grand Final, when we beat them on their own turf
• Victory to start strongly but fade away in the final third of the season and get done 6-1 by the Nix in the first semi
• Popovic to blame referee for above 6-1 loss
• Then Popovic fucks off overseas for another very tenuous and short-lived stint at a European club
• Elvis to score more goals than Kosta this season
• Wanderers to more or less run 8th all season

[Hybrid]

End of season standings:

1: Melbourne City
2: Sydney FC

3: Macarthur FC*
4: Perth Glory
5: Adelaide United
6: WSW
7: Western United
8: Melbourne Victory

9: Brisbane Roar
10: Wellington Phoenix
11: CCM (hope I’m wrong)
12: Newcastle Jets

Grand final winner: Sydney FC

Grand final runner-up: Melbourne City

FFA Cup winner: Sydney FC

Player of the season: Ulises Davila (again)

Player of the grand final: Luke Brattan’s redemption

Golden boot: Jamie Maclaren

Best new signing: Branners for Perth, Sturridge to go alright and have a few sick highlights but generally struggle to gel with those around him (ala ADP)

Best young player (U23): Nathaniel Atkinson (still 22)

Biggest flop signing: Mathew Leckie

SFC player of the season: Milos the Great

SFC golden boot: Glenville Adam James Le Fondre

First coach sacked: Carlo Robinson

Random predictions for this season: Super close and competitive, but still think there’s a top 2 duking it out for the plate, the next 6 jostling for finals and a bottom 4 that you could throw a blanket over. Macarthur could maybe bridge the gap to challenge if they had a proper #9, that’s up to Tomi’s vax status.

Adelaide and Wellington to fair better than expected on paper due to excellent structure and coaching, Brisbane to do the same but can’t see where the goals are going to come from for them. Western United the opposite because Aloisi. And hope I’m wrong about Mariners reverting to type, but they already tailed off under Staj at the end of last season and looks a tall order for Monty & co to replicate that start.

Leckie to offer as many goals / assists as Robbie Kruse did last season, but he’ll run a lot so will still be in the side and hamper Tilio’s development (his minutes to come every time Nabbout does his hammy).

Robbie Kruse to contract syphilis. Again.

Robinson to get sacked as a result of some off-field indiscretion that reveals his proper ethical persona as a complete fraud. They’ll do OK on the field up until then, decent squad but it’s spread too thick to have enough quality in the first XI to challenge.

[Clovis]

The deadline has passed and there are 21 entries in the A-League Season Predictions thread competition. The collective wisdom of SFCU predicts the following end of season table.

Below are all the entries as I have entered them into my spreadsheet, if you can see any errors please let me know.

[RedKat]

Had meant to update to bump Perth up a bit but oh well. I dont normally tip us so highly so apologies in advance of a poor season

[Hybrid]

First year ever that no one jinxed Victory by picking them to do the double?

[CountArach]

Brosquey has us covered

[Clovis]

This is an update of the current standings in the predictions competition, @shabby is currently leading with most other competitors less than 11 points away

The table below compares the collective wisdom of SFCU with the cold hard reality of football at the end of the third round. The first column shows the current ALM Table , the second column is the median ranking of all 21 SFCU prediction participants and the last column shows how far off the mark we all were (the bigger the number the worse our collective judgement). And it should come as no surprise that the team with which we are all most delusional is Sydney FC.