Queensland State League – Round 2
Queensland Academy of Sport vs. Sunshine Coast Fire
Sunday April 4, 2010
Kane Frampton – Staff Reporter
A spirited fightback by the Sunshine Coast Fire has propelled them to the summit of the QSL ladder, as they recorded a 5-3 victory over the Queensland Academy of Sport at Stockland Park.
First half strikes from Shaun Blackman and Tyson Holmes, and a second-half hat-trick by substitute Yuta Gonai, were enough for the Fire to overcome QAS in an entertaining display.
QAS were playing their first QSL match of the season, after their first fixture against the Whitsunday Miners was postponed last week. Despite this, the match had barely kicked off before QAS found the back of the net. Elliott Ronto controlled the ball well inside the penalty area before beating Antony Hall from close range.
Keen to atone for their horror start, the Sunshine Coast manufactured a host of attacking opportunities in the following minutes. Mark Riley controlled a long ball well before spooning a shot over the bar, and Greig Henslee connected nicely with a header that missed high of goal.
On seven minutes the Fire were handed a clear-cut opportunity, earning a free-kick just outside the penalty area. Tyson Holmes stepped up and delivered a direct shot, missing the left upright by inches.
The Fire were happy to exploit their height advantage over QAS early, and were usually first to head the ball in attack.
It was end-to-end football as both sides created early chances, despite sometimes struggling to hold the ball in midfield. QAS looked certain to make the score 2-0 after 16 minutes, when a loose ball in the Fire’s penalty area failed to be immediately cleared.
The Fire continued to find attacking momentum as the first half wore on. Aaron Brazendale bulldozed his way down the right wing, eventually forcing a corner.
Against the run of play, QAS doubled their advantage on 34 minutes. After some neat interplay in the QAS attacking half, Kenneth Dougall found the net with a well-placed volley from close range.
Perhaps this second goal was the wake-up call that the Fire needed, because they scored almost immediately after the restart. Brazendale delivered a pinpoint cross from the right wing to Shaun Blackman, who beat his marker at the far post and headed home past the keeper.
The flood of goals continued as the Fire equalised in the 38th minute. After losing the ball outside the QAS penalty area, Holmes fought hard to regain the ball and was eventually fouled metres from goal, earning a penalty. Holmes made no mistake with the spot-kick, letting keeper Tim Anderson make the first move before guiding the ball into the bottom corner.
With parity restored, the quality of the game improved. The half ended 2-2 with both teams looking comfortable on the ball.
The Fire looked the hungrier of the two teams after the restart, and earned more of the early possession. On 54 minutes however, the Fire’s chances of securing three points took a serious blow as Mark Riley was issued a red card after a heavy slide-tackle.
Riley’s early bath seemed to dishearten the Sunshine Coast, as the crowd tried to gee up the team for the final 30 minutes.
Despite their numerical disadvantage, the Fire almost took the lead when Henslee and Corey Towle combined well, with Henslee unlucky not to beat keeper Anderson.
The Fire went behind for the second time after 60 minutes, against the run of play. After Hall parried a shot, the rebound was not immediately dealt with and QAS smashed home their third goal of the night to make the score 3-2.
As the match entered the final 30 minutes, the Sunshine Coast were desparate to salvage at least a draw and continued to flood forward. A well delivered corner kick found Holmes, who headed into the crossbar. After earning a free-kick on 20 yards, Sam Knight missed wide with a direct shot.
After being tightly marked all match, Shaun Blackman was substitued for Yuta Gonai late in the second half, in a decision that would change the face of the game. After almost scoring on debut for the Fire last week, Gonai’s speed proved a handful for the QAS defence.
After 79 minutes, Holmes slipped a neat through-pass to Gonai who had beaten his marker with pace. Gonai found himself one-on-one with the QAS keeper, and showed great composure as he placed a low shot past the keeper to level the scores at 3-3.
In a match with so many goalscoring opportunities, both teams felt they could go home victorious. Hall made a strong save for the Fire after a shot by Koh Satake, as injury time drew ever closer.
For the Fire, Sam Knight rode a challenge down the right wing, before cutting back along the byline and looking for a pass into the penalty area. He delivered a low ball to Gonai, who produced a clinical finish from ten yards for a 4-3 Sunshine Coast Fire lead, much to the delight of fans.
The issue was put beyond any doubt on 89 minutes in an almost carbon copy of the fourth Fire goal. Knight again moved down the right wing before slipping the ball to Gonai, who beat the keeper with the outside of his boot, securing a second-half hat-trick and an against the odds victory for the Sunshine Coast Fire.
Coach Aston Bell was thrilled with the result and the application of his players.
“The team showed some character. After going down early it was all about getting back to what we needed to do, and we were able to do that,” Bell said.
“Credit to QAS, they are a talented football team if you let them play, and we certainly saw that early on.”
Even after being reduced to ten men and going a goal behind in the second half, Bell always believed the Fire could secure a result.
“We had most of the possession in the second half. It was just a case of being patient, and doing our best to exploit the flanks.”
As for the efforts of Japanese import Yuta Gonai, Bell was full of praise.
“He’s a talented footballer with the ball at his feet, and very elusive. He just tore them apart.”
The Sunshine Coast Fire will be full of confidence going into the third match of the season against the Capricorn Cougars on Sunday April 11. Kickoff is at Stockland Park at 1.30pm.
Final Score: Sunshine Coast Fire – 5(Blackman, 35, Holmes, 38, Gonai, 79, 86, 89)
Queensland Academy of Sport – 3
