Phew! After six games in 25 days for the Heart it's time to take a break, as brief as it may be! When we look back it has been a difficult period for the club - three straight losses littered with bad luck and poor finishing, and the continued poor discipline of players on the pitch. And yet the Melbourne Heart still sit in fifth on the A-League table, albeit having played more games than five of the six teams below them on the table. Coming up the Heart have another tough run of three games in seven days, starting with Sunday's clash with an in-form Gold Coast United.

The biggest problem for the Heart seems to be an inability to keep a settled starting line-up, week-in week-out. Although Melbourne hasn't quite reached the depths of the Perth Glory, changing up to seven players in the starting side from one week to another, it's important for a new club to establish continuity.

During the Heart's most successful stretch in their inaugural season the line-up was indeed settled, barring the odd swap up front or in midfield, and they must look to lock-in their first choice line-up for a sustained run of games. With the return of Matt Thompson from suspension it would be expected that he will return to his favoured role in the centre of midfield, with Josip Skoko out injured and Simon Colosimo putting in a man-of-the-match performance on his return to the heart of defence.

The most frustrating aspect of the club's past two matches has been the quality, or lack thereof, when it comes to putting away chances. Alex Terra was the main culprit last week against the Phoenix, infuriating team-mates and supporters alike with his lack of composure in front of goal. With Gerald Sibon playing the role of trequartista in recent weeks, Terra needs to pull his finger out and break his goal drought, one that dates back to the inaugural Melbourne Derby nearly two months ago!

In a little over a week's time the focus will turn to AAMI Park for the second edition of the Melbourne Derby, and after what was witnessed the first time around it should be a cracker. What a week it could potentially be for football in this country, with the World Cup announcement in the early hours of Friday morning followed by the biggest clash on the A-League calendar a week later.

The whole nation will have their fingers crossed hoping for good news on Friday morning, which would provide a much needed boost to football in Australia; good luck to everyone involved with the bid process!