He's still got it, Ernie Merrick. At 62 he's the old pro with the advantage young coaches have no choice but to wait to get - experience.
Melbourne Victory should have put the Merrick-coached Wellington Phoenix away in the first half, so many chances did it have to score. But it didn't, and as the game wore on Wellington got more into it.
Victory coach Kevin Muscat decided it would be Gui Finkler to make way for Archie Thompson in the 73rd minute.
Merrick said afterwards he was surprised Finkler was replaced. Muscat said Finkler had "one or two (injury) issues" and that he took him off as a precaution with the rest of the season in mind rather than leave him out there for the closing stages of an intense, fast-paced match.
Muscat is a terrific young coach. You've got to admire his attacking philosophy and his move could have easily paid off for Victory with the winning goal, but there was always going to be a risk involved. Thompson was obviously always going to get further forward than Finkler.
Merrick banked on Phoenix continuing to counter-attack strongly and with the extra space opening up behind the Victory attackers it was able to do this more and more. Eventually, Phoenix got the winning goal on a fast break.
How did that feel?
Coming off the bench midway through the second half with a brief to make something happen and scoring the winning goal in a pulsating, seven-goal derby thriller? How do you think it feels? Fantastic, that's how.
Sydney FC midfielder Terry Antonis is only 21, but he can already tick that box. The game was locked up at 3-3 when Antonis replaced Chris Naumoff in the 69th minute and six minutes later he came up with the winner.
It was no simple goal either.
Western Sydney Wanderers central defender Brendan Hamill wasn't able to clear the ball properly and instead knocked it several metres into the path of Antonis, on the edge of the penalty box. Antonis blew past Hamill and then shot across goalkeeper Ante Covic with his left foot for the goal.
"It was just instinct, you know, just hit it on the target and that was it," Antonis told The World Game. "It was an exciting feeling, but to get the three points away from home was even bigger - especially in the derby. It was a huge win.
"I was just pumped to get on the field in a big game like that. I was ready to come on whenever the coach wanted - you've got to be. I wanted to get the three points four our team, so I gave it all I could and it came off. It was a great night for all of the boys."
Man of the hour (and a half)
Wellington attacker Nathan Burns bamboozled the Victory defence all day with his trademark dangerous dribbling before finally being rewarded with a tap-in for the winning goal.
It wasn't the way Burns normally gets his goals. He was caught way down the field in an offside position before waiting for Michael Boxall, who had broken down the right on a quick counter-attack, to play him onside with a square ball inside the penalty box.
But it will no doubt still do Burns's confidence enormous good after he had gone five straight games without scoring a goal and lost his co-position as the competition's leading scorer to Sydney FC's Mark Janko the night before.
Burns had begun looking shy to shoot and had started taking one too many touches instead of pulling the trigger when the time was right. Look for him to return to the Burns of pre-Christmas now that he has experienced the feeling of putting the ball in the back of the net again.
Merrick was understandably thrilled with the performance of his most dynamic player.
"I thought Nathan Burns was just outstanding," Merrick said. "He just had a brilliant game. One on one he could take anyone on. At the end he was taking two or three on, he was overdoing it, but he was just outstanding."
The double "nutty"
False 9 loves a good nutmeg almost as much as he likes referring to himself in the third person, so when you get a double nutty that results in a goal it is celebrated as a momentous occasion within these walls.
Victory's first goal against Phoenix, scored by Scott Galloway, saw the ball rocket between the legs of, at first, central defender Ben Sigmund, and then goalkeeper Glen Moss on its way to the back of the net.
How often do you see that happen? Classic stuff.
Things that happened on the weekend that shouldn't surprise you
Neither Newcastle Jets nor Central Coast Mariners was good enough to beat the other, or score a goal.
Some fans - Western Sydney Wanderers supporters from the Red and Black Bloc on this occasion - produced flares at a Sydney derby. (False 9 is old enough to remember having worn flares, which may not be as fashionable these days but are certainly less dangerous than the other type of flares).
Referee Ben Williams red-carded someone - Brisbane Roar defender Corey Brown, who deserved it, by the way.
To mark the latest occasion when Williams sent a player packing, let's head back to 1978 and the Split Enz classic I See Red, with Tim Finn on lead vocals and a very young Neil Finn in there as well.
When my baby's walking down the street, I see red, I see red, I see red . . .
Try to set the night on fire
False 9 thought referee Chris Beath should have stopped the Sydney derby for few moments to let the smoke clear from the flares during the second half.
The smoke had engulfed the Sydney FC penalty box area just as the Wanderers began an attack that finished with Kerem Bulut scoring from just outside the box to make it 3-3.
Sydney FC goalkeeper Vedran Janjetovic admitted the smoke was annoying, but didn't blame it for his being beaten from a distance by what was a very well-placed shot - low and just inside the post.
"The smoke definitely didn't help, but it didn't get in the way of my vision," Janjetovic told False 9. "I guess that's what you have to deal with in games like that."
Flares must be the easiest thing to smuggle into games. How does False 9 know this? Because fans keep smuggling them in!
Anyway, at times like these False 9 thinks it is best to bring in Jim Morrison, with The Doors. The "Lizard King" wasn't afraid of fire - or anything else, for that matter. Mainly because he was drunk most of the time.
Tweet, tweet
Victory veteran Archie Thompson may have not have picked up a win to go with his 200th A-League appearance, but his achievement was enthusiastically received by fellow players as well as coaches, officials and fans.
Power rankings (last week in brackets)
1 Sydney FC (2) Form in five games since the AFC Asian Cup break has been phenomenal - four wins and a draw. Had to win it twice against Wanderers and did so.
2 Melbourne Victory (1) Blew it against Wellington. Missed a heap of chances, including a penalty, before a goal was scored and was over-run in the end.
3 Perth Glory (3) Four draws and a loss since Asian Cup break has been enough for it to hang on to first place, but not enough to convince people.
4 Brisbane Roar (4) The only other team unbeaten since the Asian Cup break, with three wins, a draw and a postponement. Good away point against Glory.
5 Melbourne City (6) After three straight scoreless weeks, got back among the goals with a win over Glory. Josh Kennedy scoring was a great sign for this team.
6 Wellington Phoenix (7) Took five games to finally get a win after the Asian Cup break and what a way to do it - for the first time in Melbourne against Victory.
7 Adelaide United (4) Recent form has been mixed, with two wins, two losses and a draw. Disappointing in loss to City. Something missing at the moment.
8 Central Coast Mariners (8) The bottom three teams on the table are also the three lowest-scoring teams. Yes, I know, shocking but true. Mariners - 17 goals in 19 games
9 Newcastle Jets (9) The lowest-scoring team on average, with 16 goals in 19 games at 0.84 per game. Also easily the worst defensive side, having conceded 40.
10 Western Sydney Wanderers (10) Three goals not enough to get it a win, but with 15 goals in 17 games at 0.88 it is at least scoring at a better rate than Newcastle - just!
Can't wait for ...
The moment of truth between Victory and Glory at AAMI Park on Saturday night.
Glory - still clinging to top spot despite not winning any of its last six games (four draws and two losses). Victory - had the chance to overtake Glory by beating Phoenix, but butchered a heap of early chances and ended up paying the ultimate price.
Victory is bound to come out aggressively, but it can't afford to be over-aggressive and leave gaping holes through which Glory can quickly counter-attack off turnovers.
It promises to be quite the tactical battle and fascinating to watch.
