(James Paterson is a Senior Associate of Anzarut & Holm Lawyers, and BPL contributor. He can be followed on twitter: @patersonlaw or http://twitter.com/patersonlaw)

It was a pleasant Sunday morning in front of ABC's Offsiders program this weekend just gone. It wasn't just that there was precious little discussion of Brendan Fevola and Ricky Nixon - although that certainly helped. It was more the attitude of Brisbane Roar's coach, and frequent guest commentator, Ange Postecoglou.

I admit I am, at best, a very casual observer of the A-League and its fortunes. I'll check the scores on a Sunday morning, will follow the fortunes of the clubs in the Asian Champions League, and even listened to last year's A-League grand final live on radio. My time is more readily devoted to matters AFL and cricket, as well as North American pastimes of the NFL and Major League Baseball.

Within that sporting sphere, it appears that much less candour is expected of our coaches. When posed with broader macro questions regarding the strategic direction of the code, or matters relating to off field behaviour and community expectations, it seems that we are more likely to receive typical mundane soundbites.

"I'm just here to coach the players" ...

"I'm only concerned about the game ahead" ...

"I think the board and the CEO are better placed to address those matters"

... and so on.

With the prospect of a sudden death grand final only a week away, Ange was refreshingly forthcoming and candid on all manner of topics relating to the A-League. The discussion ranged from player behaviour, to the operations of the club, as well as considering some of the more macro level questions surrounding the future of the league itself. Ange mentioned:

- That on the topic of off-field issues, the Roar had introduced a nominal, but not compulsory, 1:30am curfew - as very rarely do good things happen at that time of night, accident or otherwise

- That over the past two years the A-League had embarked upon a flawed expansion policy at a time when stabilisation was instead required.

- That a core component of a successful club model was meaningfully engaging with the community, using the example of the large sums of money spent by North Queensland in signing of Robbie Fowler - despite his undisputed talent - would have be better spent being used for community programs.

- That he would have loved to debate the merits of an A-League television promotional versus the AFL and the NRL's promo versions - except that there had been no significant A-League promotional activities of note to speak of over the past two years, which he saw as a key failure.

Ange didn't adopt a siege mentality against the panel's questions, as if he was worried about stepping into a trap. Rather, the tone adopted was conversational, and the answers candid rather than scripted Kevin Rudd-esque "nothings". I found it a welcome change to the Footy Classified style of "on the hot seat" grilling with a manufactured drama promising "hard hitting questions".

Indeed watching Ange I felt it was reminiscent of a much lamented departure from the AFL coaching scene for season 2011, Paul Roos.

Perhaps it's easy to adopt this stance when your team has not lost a game in the last 27 or so encounters.

Perhaps this self assuredness, this ability to treat players and others he encounters as rational adults, and this lack of a siege mentality is a key reason why the Roar have had that sort of success ...

If they continue to put forward characters like Ange, I'll be sure to take a longer look at the A-League.

(James Paterson is a Senior Associate of Anzarut & Holm Lawyers. He can be followed on twitter: @patersonlaw or http://twitter.com/patersonlaw)