McMahon banking on Glory fans’ backing

With the new Hyundai A-League now agonisingly close, Perth Glory’s head coach, Steve McMahon is expecting a bumper home crowd will help give his team the edge in Friday’s opening match against the Central Coast Mariners.

Throughout the club’s history, the Glory has enjoyed the biggest average attendances and loudest crowds at football matches in Australia.

McMahon has been in charge for just two games at Members Equity Stadium in his six months in charge of the Glory but he is more than aware that the passionate support in Perth can be a major factor in his team’s success.

"In the Pre-Season Cup we played five games and four of them were away from home. We reached the final and lost by the narrowest of margins. But we will have some big players coming into the team for Friday’s game and we know we can be formidable in front of our home supporters," the former Liverpool and England midfielder said.

"Everywhere I have been in Australia, people have spoken about how important the crowd is in Perth. We know what the crowds are going to be like here for the Glory games and The Shed in particular will give us a major boost this season. We have the best fans in the country here and the players know just how important that is."

While the opposition Glory will encounter in the new Hyundai A-League is sure to be much stronger than the teams they faced in the old NSL, McMahon is confident his team will be in contention for the top honours in 2005-2006.

Some pundits and commentators on the game have suggested that Glory will finish in the lower echelons of the Hyundai A-League but McMahon is not prepared to accept second best.

"Some people seem to have low expectations of us but what they base such opinions on I really don’t know," he said.

"Perth Glory won the last NSL Championship, we have kept most of the key players from that squad, added some top class footballers and we have just been in the final of the Pre-Season Cup.

"After having to deal with numerous injuries in pre-season, the only player we are likely to be missing for the first A-League game is David Tarka, so we have a squad that I believe will be highly competitive this season."

Club top scorer Bobby Despotovski and midfielder Steve McMahon (jnr) will return from suspension on Friday night while club captain Jamie Harnwell has resumed training this week after illness and star striker Brian Deane has also arrived.

"With Jamie returning to training and Brian Deane here now everyone is excited about the start of the season and we can’t wait for the kick off against Central Coast on Friday," McMahon added.

Perth Glory’s first match in the Hyundai A-League takes place on Friday night at Members Equity Stadium (8pm kick-off). Tickets are available from Ticketmaster on 136 100 or at www.ticketmaster.com.au