Smeltz Sinks Sydney with Spot-on Header
By: Michael Turner |
2 Comments
Sydney have been defeated by the Gold Coast United side on Saturday in front of 5,000 fans at Skilled Park. A Smeltz header from a great Culina cross made the difference, however Melbourne’s heavy loss keeps Sydney on top of the A-League ladder.
Bleiberg has reverted back to his original 4-2-2-2 formation that brought him great results at the start of the season. Miron also brought back Kristian Rees, Joel Porter and Zenon Caravella into the starting squad. Jason Culina has moved back into a more attacking role next to the returning Caravella. The gap left by Traore has been filled by former Flamengo player Anderson.
Moving on to Sydney, the side remains unchanged for the 5th time this season. The FoxSports commentator coined it perfectly, saying “if it aint broke, don’t fix it.” Keller is back from his knee injury, however started on the bench. Lavicka has been great offensively this last five weeks, with the Brosque and Bridge combination. Stuart Musialik has been an outstading player for the Sky Blues, crafting some great moves from the midfield and giving Sydney that lightning spark that they have been needing for years.
One of the first real attacks fell for the Gold Coast United side, with Anderson sparking it with a cross which was headed away by Musialik. Fitzsimmons then put the ball back in before Smeltz missed the header by a whisker, being put under pressure by the Sydney defence. Gold Coast fans would have felt hard done by, as the replay suggests that Cole had taken Smeltz off the ball illegally.
Soon after however (36′), Colosimo’s poor ball was intercepted, Caravella then playing it to Culina who ran at full pelt down the wing, before playing a pin-point cross to Smeltz who scored, giving Bolton no chance to save. Gold Coast 1-0.
Gold Coast were not letting off, with a pin-point ball to Porter, whos’ cross was deflected away by a sliding Ryall, before the ball fell directly in front of Caravella and the goal, with Bolton pulling off a top class save with his legs, to deny a second for Gold Coast.
At the beginning of the second, Gold Coast were still pushing forward, with a Porter forcing a good diving save from Bolton, two minutes into the half.
Gold Coast had another claim for a penalty on the 54th minute, with Sydney’s Byun handling a cross after chesting the ball down.
Still pushing forward, Culina had a freekick just outside the box on the 68th minute. His low cross was very powerful, however a simple save by Clint Bolton.
On the 71st minute, Anderson’s powerful shot was extremely awkward for Bolton, however the Blues custodian did well to keep the ball out.
A minute later, great ball work between Osman, Caravella and Thwaite, opened half a chance for Gold Coast, however Osman’s shot went just wide.
Sydney had half a chance on the 82nd minute, with a free-kick going to Kisel, who layed the ball off the Brosque, who couldn’t deliver, shooting off target.
On the 89th minute, Sydney had another chance, with Colosimo’s early cross going to Bridge, who shot his powerful shot straight at Higgins, giving Gold Coast all three points.
Gold Coast rounded off a horror fortnight, winning the the battle of the Glamour clubs.
Match Detail
Gold Coast United 1 (SMELTZ 37′)
Sydney FC 0
Gold Coast: 20.Scott HIGGINS (gk), 2.Steve PANTELIDIS, 3.Michael THWAITE, 7.Zenon CARAVELLA, 9.Shane SMELTZ, 9. Jason CULINA (c), 13.Bas VAN DEN BRINK, 14.Joel PORTER (15. Tahj MINNIECON 80′), 16. Kristian REES, 23. Steve FITZSIMMONS (17. Matthew OSMAN 71′), 24. Anderson Alves DA SILVA (28. Mitchell BEVAN 89′).
Substitutes Not Used: 30.Jerrad TYSON (gk).
Yellow Cards: 9. Jason CULINA 39′, 2.Steve PANTELIDIS 89′.
Red Cards: Nil.
Goals: Shane SMELTZ 37′.
Sydney FC: 1. Clint BOLTON (gk), 2. Sebastian RYALL, 4. Simon COLOSIMO, 6. Karol KISEL, 8. Stuart MUSIALIK, 10. Steve CORICA (c) (7. Brendan GAN 19′)(3. Stephan KELLER 85′), 12. Shannon COLE, 14. Alex BROSQUE, 15. Terry MCFLYNN (9. John ALOISI 60′), 19. Mark BRIDGE, 22. Sung Hwan BYUN.
Substitutes Not Used: 20. Ivan NECEVSKI (gk).
Yellow Cards: 15. Terry MCFLYNN 24′, 12. Shannon COLE 25′, 8. Stuart MUSIALIK 39′.
Red Cards: Nil.
Goals: Nil.
Referee: Ben Williams
Crowd: 5,364 at Skilled Park, Robina.
Category: Sydney Match Reviews
All Four Stands of Skilled Park to host Sydney FC v Gold Coast on Saturday
By: Michael Turner | 1 Comment
The picture on the left could, and may well be the future of the Gold Coast United franchise. This will not be a grudge post, but when you get someone with little heart with a million dollars to run a club, it slowly turns into a liability. This is the situation at Gold Coast. Maybe however at this rate, since they are playing top-of-the-table Sydney FC, they can boast at having the first ever A-League full house. Yes, that’s right 5,000 in a supposed 5,000 seater. Can’t wait to see Clive’s next move, selling the other sides of the ground for a major conglomerate mining group that sponsors two football teams? Surely not. However, as of today, Palmer lifted the controversial cap. There goes the meaning of my whole above paragraph.
Back onto the match, Sydney FC are currently top of the table, albeit only by one point. This game will prove to be a must win, until we can finally get some leway at the top. Basing it on form, Sydney are clear by a mile over the GCU, losing only one match in the past five. It was also a very tight match between Sydney and Adelaide, with a disallowed goal in the last few minutes proving the difference in the end. On the bright side for Sydney FC, Mark Bridge has surpassed Sydney’s top scorer from last season (Alex Brosque 5), and with around 14 matches still to play, could emerge as top goalscorer. He is currently sitting at 3rd, behind Fowler (8) and Smeltz (10).
On form, the Gold Coast have not been so lucky. They have lost two from five, and drawn on one occasion. Off the field, Gold Coast have been having terrible luck, from owner Clive Palmer’s problems, discontent in the dressing rooms and growing concerns about the side’s future, hopefully Sydney can take advantage of this dire situation at Gold Coast.
My final prediction: Sydney FC 1-0 Gold Coast
Sydney prepare to calm the storm
By: Matt Collard | 2 Comments
The party in NZ won’t be over just yet. It’ll probably still be going on until Sunday. Well at least among the fans. But why wouldn’t you be partying when you beat the new glamour team 6-0? It was a romping. It puts Wellington high on confidence as they travel over to face the original glamour team – Sydney.
But will Wellington bring their exotic play over the Tasman and to Moore Park? Wellington have been held scoreless away from home twice, and struggle to find the net any more then once if they do score. So it poses the question, is this 6-0 win a sign of a new attacking Wellington to come, or was it just ‘there day’?
To be fair, Wellington is equal 5th in most goals scored – ahead of Newcastle, Adelaide, North Queensland and Central Coast. But they struggle to hold leads and score numerous goals, and lately Sydney have been prone to scoring at least 2 goals.
Inconsistency has raddled Sydney lately. They produced arguably the best performance out of any team this season in Melbourne, but it was duly followed up by one of Sydneys worst performances this season in Adelaide. A better performance saw us beat Brisbane 2-1 at home last weekend, but it could have been better. It’s hard to claim inconsistency against Wellington though after having a run of 6 straight draws before last week. Conceding late and blowing leads is just one of their consistent characteristics. Not necessarily a tag you want though.
But when these two meet on Sunday it could be a very similar affair to when they met earlier this season. On that occasion, Sydney won 2-0, but it was a hard fought match. With Sydney and Wellingtons attack both looking strong, we could expect a few more goals.
Sydney defeated Wellington 2-0 last time
But in saying that, it could be contradicted by the fact Sydney have the 2nd best defence and Wellington the 3rd best. Sydney have scored 16, Wellington 15. Sydney have conceded 10 goals, Wellington 11. You could make the argument that these two teams would cancel each other out, and a low scoring game would be the result. But I can’t help but think that it’s going to be a free flowing game.
If good weather permits, and both squads can field fairly strong, I think the final result will be Sydney 3-1.
Category: Sydney Team NewsSydney FC hold on to Claim Top of the Table
By: Michael Turner | 3 Comments
Over 8,000 fans (plus Dwight Yorke) witnessed Sydney FC claim the top of the table this afternoon at the Sydney Football Stadium. A scoreless first half left some fans sceptical, but 2 goals in 15 minutes sealed the match. Brisbane did score on 73′, however that did little to stop Sydney in front of their smallest home crowd this season.
Despite a shaky start, Sydney had the first clear cut chance within 20 minutes, with Mark Bridge knocking Corica’s cross wide. Bridge not using all the time he had. Three minutes later, youngster Mitch Nichols’ header forced a top save from custodian Bolton. Tommy Oar’s shot soon after rattled some nerves and showed the danger that Brisbane possessed. Alex Brosque’s header at the opposite end went close soon after, flying just past McMaster’s left hand post.
With the first half coming to a close, it stayed relatively too close to call, with both sides coming close to goals. When the match kicked off again, in what seems to have become a regular fixture at games now, a beach ball took the camera’s attention. This time however it didn’t affect procedings.
On 51′, Brisbane lost Reinaldo to an injury, and to make matters worse, conceded three minutes later. Corica’s header into the box found Brosque, who beat Josh McCloughan before hitting the back of the net.
All of a sudden, Sydney were looking stronger, when Kisel scored on the 69′ minute. Alex Brosque’s through ball was latched on perfectly by Kisel, before he smashed it into the back of the net. After almost half a season, Kisel had scored his first Sky Blues goal, and celebrated with two kisses to each wrist. Hopefully we can see more of Kisel, and make that celebration a regular sight at the SFS. 
Brisbane looked to turn the match on its head, with a possible comeback, after Cernak, who replaced Reinaldo latched onto a cross with a volley going past an outstretched Clint Bolton.
With most Sydney fans biting their nails throughout the rest half hour, it wasn’t until 5 minutes into injury time where things got oh so scary for the Sky Blues. A number of shots were blocked courageously by the Sydney defenders, before Franjic’s cross went in front of an empty goal before being cleared by Ryall. In the end, the 2-1 result was the right one, as Sydney claimed their rightful spot at the top of the table.
Sydney FC: 1. Clint BOLTON (GK), 2. Sebastian RYALL, 4. Simon COLOSIMO, 6. Karol KISEL (17. Matthew JURMAN ‘90+1), 8. Stuart MUSIALIK, 10. Steve CORICA (c) (9. John Aloisi ‘61), 12. Shannon COLE, 14. Alex BROSQUE, 15. Terry MCFLYNN, 19. Mark BRIDGE (34. Rhyan GRANT ‘81), 22. Sung Hwan BYUN.
Unused Sub: 20. Ivan Necevski (GK)
Yellow Cards: Sung Hwan BYUN ‘90+5
Red Cards: Nil
Goals: 14. Alex BROSQUE ‘55, 6. Karol KISEL ‘69
Brisbane Roar: 20. Griffin MCMASTER (gk), 3. Luke DEVERE, 5. Josh MCCLOUGHAN (c), 9. Sergio van DIJK, 11. REINALDO (19. Isaka CERNAK ‘53), 12. Matt MUNDY (2. Andrew Packer ‘67), 15. Matt MCKAY, 17. Mitch NICHOLS, 21. Tommy OAR, 27. Ivan FRANJIC, 29. Mario KARLOVIC.
Unused Substitutes: 40. Verdran JANJETOVIC (gk), 6. David DODD
Yellow Cards: 2. Andrew PACKER ‘77
Red Cards: Nil
Goals: 19. Isaka CERNAK ‘73
Referee: Matthew Breeze
Officials: Ben Wilson, Scott Edeling
8,456 at the Sydney Football Stadium
Match Stats Courtesy of A-League.com and SMH.com
So much work has been put into this, and lists every match an Aussie is involved in!
Sydney had all the Big Names so that was an Amazing Experience for me: Tolgay Ozbey
By: Michael Turner | 1 Comment
In the Inaugural Sydney FC season, the side qualified for the finals series, and faced off against Adelaide. Enter: Tolgay Ozbey. He may have only played one match for the Sky Blues, but he did sit on the bench for them in the finals. The striker has been touted as the best thing to come out of Sydney Olympic in recent times, debut for Sydney United in the NSL at the age of 17 and has won numerous awards with Blacktown City. After his spell in the A-League (Newcastle and Sydney), he joined Blacktown again, Marconi and Sydney Olympic, before moving to Turkey to play for his current club. He is by far a brilliant player, and we talk to Ozbey about Turkey, NSW’s youth system, playing at Sydney FC, and his future.
THE OFFSIDE: You’ve been playing at the highest level for almost 6 years now, what has been your biggest achievement?
TOLGAY OZBEY: There is a few actually, my NSL debut with Sydney United at the age of 17, My A-League debut at the age of 19 for Sydney FC (A-League Champions inaugural year) and the Golden Boot and NSW State League Player of the Year at the age of 20 while I was playing for Blacktown City Demons.
T.OFF: Anything you wish you’d done differently?
T. O: Come to Europe at a much younger age.
T.OFF: With your current club, BURSA NİLÜFERSPOR A.Ş, you are currently sitting at 2nd (at the time of writing) in your group. Are you currently exceeding expectations, or was this the plan all along?
T.O: Believe it or not no we are not, the club has really high expectations of us and the clubs budget for this season is over 1 million dollars they expect nothing lower then 1st spot in our group.
T.OFF: Now the big question. Will you guys be gaining promotion this year?
T.O: At the moment it’s a bit hard to say, we have 11 games left in our group and the top 2 will play in the play offs for promotion, at the moment we are on track but there’s still a long way to go.
T.OFF: Being of Turkish descent, are you finding it easy to fit into your club? How well do you get along with your team mates?
T.O: The 1st couple of weeks were a bit hard but now I’m used to everything and it definitely makes it easier being of Turkish decent, I have a great relationship with my team mates, we all live together in our club facilities so we are all like 1 big family.
T.OFF: You played one match for Sydney FC, and was on the bench for two others including the grand final. What was it like being part of the Sydney setup?
T.O: I joined Sydney FC for the finals so all eyes were on Sydney FC, we had all the big names (Dwight Yorke, David Carney, Corica and many more) so that was an amazing experience for me the clubs professionalism is clearly above what I’ve seen so far.
T.OFF: Would you like to have stayed longer at the Sky Blues?
T.O: I definitely would have loved to.
T.OFF: Moving onto Newcastle, you met up with your former mentor Nick Theodorakopoulos. Were you disappointed with how things had started that season, and did you wish you could have stayed to make amends?
T.O: I had a great time with Nick Theo and really learnt a lot. He has always supported and helped me with my football, but after Nick and Newcastle parted ways I wasn’t given another chance to play so it was time for me to leave.
T.OFF: You were brought up in the Sydney Olympic youth side. Back then, what was the youth system like at the club?
T.O: I was a junior at [Sydney] Olympic from the age of 13 all the way to 1st grade training with Lee Sterry, the development I received I don’t think I could have got anywhere else.
T.OFF: With the new Project 22 being implemented, what is the future of the game?
T.O: I think the future of football in Australia is growing every year; Project 22 will definitely be a step to bring up stars for the future, what juniors in Australian football lack is the full time trainings like it is over here in Europe and Project 22 will provide that.
T.OFF: Sydney’s West is touted as the biggest playing pool in Australia. With Project 22, and a new A-League side for 2012, is this the best time to be a youth footballer?
T.O: The development of Australian football is increasing and It definitely is the best time for the juniors to step up.
T.OFF: How did you end up with the nickname Tolly? Did it eventuate from your childhood or was it one of your friends?
T.O: It started at Sydney United when I was 17 but I can’t remember who it was that 1st called me Tolly.
T.OFF: You’ve been touted as one of the most talented players to come out of Sydney Olympic in recent times. Do you think the national team is something you hope to achieve?
T.O: The national team is a dream for any footballer.
A big thank you to Tolgay Ozbey for agreeing to an interview.
EDIT: Apologies for the daggy header. In order to combat the annoying black border around pictures that Wordpress seems to add in, I rushed to add a small unobtrusive border. Unfortunately this didn’t work out and once again, my apologies.
Category: Former Sydney Player InterviewsWill Sydney be up for the Roar’s Challenge?
By: Michael Turner | Add Comments
2nd Place Sydney FC will take on Brisbane Roar on Sunday, with a chance to snare top spot from Gold Coast. Brisbane will enter the match quietly confident, with a better record against the Sky Blues. Nevertheless, the match will be a fan pleaser, with the sides looking to the finals next year, both with a chance to win the coveted ‘Golden Toilet Seat’.
Going into this match with a loss, Sydney will be very disappointed with the way things have panned out for them. They have had several chances to hold top spot away from Gold Coast, but have fallen at the last hurdle. Sydney despite some lackluster performances, come into the match with some big wins under their belt, including a slaughtering of Melbourne Victory 3-0 in front of 30,000 fans at Etihad Stadium. With a goal tally of 14 so far, the Sky Blues have shown a faint aptitude for finding the net. With 5 clean sheets also down, Sydney seem to be settling for 1-0 scorelines too often, and sometimes this has led to their demise, with a conservative mindset acting as a demon against North Queensland Fury and Brisbane Roar.
On the other side, the Roar have suffered a fair share of losses this season, and haven’t won since their last outing against Sydney back in September. The Roar however did trouble Gold Coast and Melbourne with those clashes having a very low scoreline. On the road, Brisbane have a fairly decent record, with one win, two draws and one loss. As with Sydney, they have scored 14 goals, but have conceded 18 leaving the goal difference open to opinion.
In what could be a bad omen for Sydney, they haven’t beaten Brisbane since July 2008, in the (now defunct) Pre-Season Cup, in which they won 2-1, however their last league win over Brisbane was in September 2007 in which Sydney won 1-0. In the league, Sydney have won 3 out of their last 5 games, with the Roar only winning 1.
Moving on into statistics, Sydney have scored exactly 50% of goals in the first half, with Brisbane scoring 57.14%. In more precise terms, Sydney have scored nearly 42% of their goals with 20 minutes remaining, with Brisbane scoring 50% in the first half hour. On average it takes 46.38 minutes before Sydney first score, compared to 43.22 for Brisbane. It takes Sydney on average 48.67 minutes to concede, compared with 27.75 minutes for Brisbane. Sydney have failed to score on 3 occasions, in contrast to Brisbane’s 2.
The key men for Sydney will have to be our equal top scorers, Mark Bridge and John Aloisi. Both players, have on and off days, and we are all hoping for an on day for both players. Both have 4 goals this season however Aloisi has only played 8 matches compared to Bridge’s 10. Another player to watch, is fan favourite Kofi Danning. The young attacker can play on the flanks or up-front, and has scored one this season, against North Queensland. Danning’s dazzling skills have left opponents in his tracks and we are all hoping that he can get his second season goal sometime soon.
Brisbane’s key men are Sergio van Dijk, and Henrique Andrade Silva. Van Dijk has scored 5 this season, and doesn’t look like stopping. His eye for goal could possibly be almost as great as Shane Smeltz, and can sniff out opportunities from even the dimmest circumstances. Silva is a talented midfielder and has scored 3 goals this season. He could be one of the deciding differences for the Roar on Sunday.
Category: Sydney Match PreviewsSydney outclass Central Coast
By: Matt Collard | 6 Comments
A 21st minute header from Terry McFlynn has sent Sydney to the top of the A-League after a 1-0 win against Central Coast.
A crowd of 13,887 saw Sydney outclass Central Coast in a game which was hotly contested. The game started fiercely with Alex Brosque going down in just the second minute. The resulting free kick lead to a corner which saw Sydneys first shot on goal.
Central’s coast best chance to take the lead came in the 14th minute when a good ball into the box made its way over the defence and found an unmarked man, only for Bolton to make a fantastic save to deny Central Coast the opener.
The game managed to keep up its high tempo and even start throughout the opening 20 minutes which kept the fans excited and interested. Sydney’s second corner got hearts pumping as a well rehearsed move saw Byun find Kisel deep in the box, only for Kisel to volley it over.
But a minute later, some clever play from Corica down the wing saw him able to keep possession from 2 defenders before passing it back to Musalik who played the ball in to McFlynn in the box. A well timed run and good technique saw McFlynn score the first and only goal of the match with his head. It was onlt the 6th time McFlynn has found the net for Sydney, but this was one of his most important.
Sydney had a golden opportunity to extend their lead when a CCM corner was cleared and found Bridge. Bridge played in a ball to Brosque to put him in space before a lovely ball in found Corica unmarked. Although, Coricas first time shot couldn’t find the target and a great chance went begging.
Sydney’s period of dominance continued as Brosque had a good shot well saved and from a resulting throw in, McFlynn went close with his shot.
But Central Coast were determined not to go two down, and Bojic went close twice. His first shot was from well outside the box and called on Bolton to make a good save. From that corner, Bojic managed to get another shot on goal, this time with his head, but the ball flew harmlessly over the bar.
The scoreline stayed at 1-0 as the teams went to the break, but that should of changed in the 51st minute. An elementary error from Bolton which saw his kick deflected to Mrdja who was presented with an open goal. But Mrdja only managed to tangle himself up and stood on the ball. A great chance missed.
Sydney almost made Central Coast pay for there error just 5 minutes later. Karol Kisel played a low and hard cross into the box which was only just out of reach for a sliding in Brosque.
The Mariners once again came amazingly close, when McGlinchey almost scored in spectacular fashion. A volley from some 30 yards out dipped late and almost snuck into the top corner. Bolton came to the rescue once more with a brilliant save.
With 10 minutes remaining the heavens opened and the rain didn’t hold back – nor did Central Coast. A nervous 5 minutes of injury time saw the Mariners pinning Sydney to their goal but they couldn’t find the equaliser.
A classy performance by Sydney puts them on top of the league and high on confidence.
Sydney FC 1 (Terry McFlynn 21’)
Central Coast Mariners 0
Sydney FC: 1. Clint BOLTON (gk), 2. Sebastian RYALL, 3. Stephan KELLER (13. Antony GOLEC 90’), 4. Simon COLOSIMO, 6. Karol KISEL (12. Shannon COLE 72’), 8. Stuart MUSIALIK, 10. Steve CORICA (c), 14. Alex BROSQUE, 15.Terry MCFLYNN, 19. Mark BRIDGE (16. Chris PAYNE 84’), 22. Sung Hwan BYUN.
Substitutes not used: 20. Ivan NECEVSKI (gk).
Yellow Cards: nil.
Red Cards: nil.
Goals: 15. Terry McFlynn 21’.
Central Coast Mariners: 20. Danny VUKOVIC (gk), 4. Pedj BOJIC, 7. John HUTCHINSON, 8. Dean HEFFERNAN, 9. Nik MRDJA (23. Adam KWASNICK 68’), 11. Dylan MACALLISTER, 14. Michael McGLINCHEY, 16. Nigel BOOGAARD, 17. Chris DOIG, 18. Alex WILKINSON (c), 22. Nicky TRAVIS (5. Brad PORTER 73’).
Substitutes not used: 30. Matthew RYAN (gk), 15. Andrew CLARK.
Yellow Cards: nil.
Red Cards: nil.
Referee: Matthew Breeze.
Crowd: 13,887 at the Sydney Football Stadium.
Match details from www.sydneyfc.com
Category: Sydney Team NewsThat’s well batted – Sydney FC reach 100 games
By: Matt Collard | 7 Comments
It all started against the arch rivals Melbourne on a Sunday afternoon at the SFS. A crowd of 25208 gathered for an entertaining match featuring 27 shots on goals. The crowd favourite Dwight Yorke put the home team in front before a 77th minute equaliser from Thompson crushed the fans spirits. It was Sydneys first ever A-League match.
That first season eventually ended in glory as 41689 people watched on as Steve Coricas lone goal secured the title against a deflated Central Coast at the SFS.
Stevie Corica was the decisive factor against these two teams in 05/06 Grand Final.
Now, 4 seasons later, Sydney FC have the opportunity to put The Mariners to the sword again in the clubs 100th game.
Sydney FC will be boosted by the return of central defender Stephan Keller who will undoubtedly add more stable to the back in a bid to silence Matt Simon and co. Not only that, but a big crowd is expected and would put the players on a high and hopefully encourage the free flowing football we are so used to seeing between these two teams.
A win would put Sydney in front by 1 point ahead of Melbourne which would make for an interesting clash next week down at Etihad stadium. However, a win for Central Coast will see them jump up above Sydney, Perth and Gold Coast into equal first.
It will be a big match that is hopefully played out in front of a large sea of blue – and for this reason I can’t go past a Sydney FC 2-0 win.
Category: Sydney Team NewsSydney FC fall prey to Brisbane’s Mighty Roar
By: Michael Turner | 7 Comments
Sydney FC have failed to claim top spot on the A-League ladder, after going down to Brisbane at Suncorp on Sunday. 
Sydney’s golden opportunity to claim top spot in the A-League was ruined, after a late Sergio vs Dijk goal sealed it for the home side. The game began at a lively pace, with the first on target chance falling for Mark Bridge from an acute angle outside the box, however Brisbane returned the favour through Reinaldo, who couldn’t convert his run, shooting straight at Clint Bolton. Sydney then began to attack, with Brendan Gan’s shot rolling just past Reddy’s right post, before Kisel shot straight at Reddy on the 26th minute. Bridge blasted his golden opportunity over the bar on 28 minutes. Brosque was then denied twice by Liam Reddy within a couple of minutes. Malcomn came close for the Roar in the closing minutes through a header, as did Mark Bridge, however a stalemate at the halfway stage.
Brisbane had a handball claim turned down at the restart, straight before Roar found the back of the net before play was brought back for a prior offence. On Sydney’s side of things, Mark Bridge headed just over the bar on 56 minutes. McCloughan forced a good save from Bolton, which left him slightly dazed after he hit the bar himself. A number of nail biting chances were forced for both sides, before Van Dijk scored the winner for the Roar. Van Dijk’s glancing header found the inside netting, to the delight of Frank Farina and Liam Reddy, who were celebrating their 150th game.
Sydney FC would have been kicking at each other’s heels, after not being able to find the winner here, and next week, may finally be able to take the top of the table against Central Coast.
At the top, Sydney, Gold Coast and Perth are all tied at the top with 13 points, followed by Melbourne, Brisbane and Central Coast at 12, which leaves a real bottleneck at the top of the Hyundai A-League ladder. Lets hope Sydney can clean themselves up and finally start to win some matches.
Brisbane Roar 1 (Sergio van Dijk 86’)
Sydney FC 0
Brisbane Roar: 1. Liam Reddy (gk), 4. Craig Moore (c), 5. Josh McCloughan, 6. David Dodd, 9. Sergio van Dijk, 10. Charlie Miller, 11. Reinaldo, 13. Henrique, 16. Bob Malcolm, 18. Danny Tiatto (19. Isaka Cernak 81’), 27. Ivan Franjic.
Unused substitutes: 20. Griffin McMaster (gk), 12. Matt Mundy, 23. Tim Smits.
Yellow cards: Craig Moore 43’, David Dodd 70’, Charlie Miller 74’.
Red cards: nil.
Sydney FC: 1. Clint Bolton (gk), 2.Sebastian Ryall, 4. Simon Colosimo, 6. Karol Kisel, 7. Brendan Gan, 8. Stuart Musialik, 10. Steve Corica (c) (18. Adam Casey 80’), 12. Shannon Cole (16. Christopher Payne 87’), 14. Alex Brosque, 19. Mark Bridge, 22. Sung-Hwan Byun.
Unused substitutes: 20. Ivan Necevski (gk), 13. Antony Golec.
Yellow cards: Brendan Gan 39’, Shannon Cole 76’, Sebastian Ryall 83’.
Red cards: nil.
Referee: Strebre Delovski.
Crowd: 7677 at Suncorp Stadium.
(Match Stats by Ahmed )
Category: Sydney Team NewsSYDNEY THRASH ADELAIDE
By: Liam | 2 Comments
Thrash. I dont use the term lightly. Adelaide were evidently looking forward to their Asian Champions League game on Wednesday. Travis Dodd and Lucas Pantelis, to name but a few, were rested. And it showed in the quality of Adelaide’s play.
Sydney got off to a dream start when some great passing play culminated in a fantastic finish by Terry Mcflynn into the top right corner. Sydney knocked the ball around wonderfully well all day; Brosque was everywhere winning balls and doing something with it.
The second goal came from Brosque himself. A long ball from the back found Brosque who took down the ball beautifully, rounded the keeper and smashed home. The halftime score was 2-0, and thoroughly deserved.
Yes, I am aware i havn’t mentioned John Aloisi yet. There is a reason. He did next to nothing. And thats being kind. Loose touch, slow, and poor ethic showed throuhg cleanly. Another player who didnt play well was Mark Bridge. The back 4 didnt look too convincing at times either, but they coped most of the time.
In the second half it was pretty much the same story. Adelaide gave us a lot of room to do what we want, and we just knocked it around, fashioning a few half chances. Santalab came on, as did Giraldi but he was just as ineffective as Aloisi. Santalab, however made a big impact. In the 79th minute he was given too much space in the midfield, he took a few steps forward and smased a 30 yard effort into the top corner. Absolutely brilliant.
A well deserved 3 points, and 3 great goas. Melbourne and Sydney look to be the two teams to beat this year.
Category: Sydney Team News
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