Completely agree with everyone on Etihad. Although, its much better at night with the roof shut. Maybe that's because I've usually got a few more under the belt for night games!
My addition to the theories on bad performance at Etihad is to do with the different light. I don't have any stats to back it up but it looked to me that most of Melbourne's disposal errors (esp. smothered kicks)happened as the team was moving from the light to the shaded area of the ground. The contrast is not so stark at the G because the top of the stadium is much more open. Also, there is an awning at the G which softens the contrast. Sylvia seemed to be particularly affected by it. He just looked disoriented when looking across to the west. Distance perception is distorted and not to mention the fact that you simply can't see players in the shade. By the time of the 3rd Quarter, the ground was more or less covered in shade and surprise, surprise we started executing with greater accuracy. The final quarter was just fatigue and psychological disintegration.
I'm still convinced by the 3rd Q though that Melbourne are a better team than North. They just got us on a bad day.
