Hyundai Queensland State League – Round Eleven
Sunshine Coast Fire v Brisbane Strikers
Sunday, June 6 at 4pm.
In the match of the round this weekend, two heavyweights of the Hyundai Queensland State League will head into battle once more.
The Sunshine Coast Fire have been unmatched thus far this season. With 10 wins from 10 matches, the Fire are dominant league leaders. But this week, their resolve will be tested by old foes, the Brisbane Strikers.
In second place on the ladder, the Strikers have had an up-and-down season. With six wins, two draws and two losses, the Strikers are 10 points behind the Sunshine Coast Fire on the QSL ladder, and a victory this weekend is integral to keeping their Premiership hopes alive.
The Strikers head into the match coming off back-to-back victories in the past two rounds, overcoming the North Queensland Razorbacks and Whitsunday Miners in Rounds 9 and 10.
Crucially, the Strikers kept their opponents scoreless in both of these matches. Conceding only six goals all season, the Strikers will need to maintain their impressive defensive record if they hope to get a result over the Sunshine Coast who have scored 32 times.
On paper, the Fire’s defensive record is less impressive with 12 goals conceded from 10 matches, but the team have managed clean sheets in three of their past four QSL fixtures.
Key to prolonging this record is negating the influence of Brisbane forward Matt Thurtell, who leads the Golden Boot standings with nine goals, half of his team’s total scoring output.
Goals have been more evenly distributed for the Fire, with Shaun Blackman netting six times, followed by Yuta Gonai and Tyson Holmes with five apiece.
The Fire and Strikers have maintained a healthy rivalry in the thee year history of the HQSL, with the Sunshine Coast claiming recent bragging rights in Round 4 of this season at Perry Park.
The Fire established an early 2-0 lead, before conceding twice in quick succession to let the Strikers back into the game before half time. A third goal after the restart was enough for the Fire to cling on for a 3-2 victory.
On the back of this triumph, the Fire went on to remain undefeated all season, and last weekend recorded a tough 1-0 victory over the Capricorn Cougars in trying conditions. With a number of the team recovering from the flu, the narrow victory was crucial in maintaining momentum before the Strikers match.
The importance of the win was not lost on Fire captain Shaun Blackman.
“If we had lost to the Cougars, it could have changed the momentum against us heading into this weekend’s match with Brisbane,” Blackman said.
“If we lost then, and again on the weekend, our competition lead would be only four points.”
To find out if the Fire can withstand the challenge of the Brisbane Strikers, come to Stockland Park’s Western Fields in Bokarina at 4pm on Sunday, June 6. The match will be preceded by the Under-19 Fire and Strikers doing battle at 2pm.
