Griffin McMaster will appreciate the importance of making first impressions count when he takes he takes the field against the Central Coast Mariners at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday night.
Commissioned to replace injured goalkeeper Liam Reddy for up to six weeks, McMaster’s promotion coincides with the arrival at the club of new coach Ange Postecoglou
Having proven himself a dependable understudy over the past two seasons, the 26-year-old is keen to stake his claim for the Roar’s No.1 jersey.
“I know I’ve got a point to prove and I know 110 percent that I can achieve that,” McMaster said.
“I haven’t missed a beat in training (but) with no games you can’t make any judgements because the pressure situation of a game is the ultimate test for a goalkeeper, but I’m confident.”
“I was in the same position last year when I came in and only played a handful of games, but I’m going to make the most of it.”
McMaster expects that even the Roar’s established players will be out to impress Postecoglou, named as the replacement for Frank Farina who parted company with the club on Wednesday.
“Everyone-s keen to go and looking forward to the game on the weekend,” he said. “It-s a must-win three points for us.”
“When a new coach arrives there’s definitely going to be everything to prove, so there are no excuses for us this week in terms of preparation.”
“We want to go out there and prove to the new coach that we can play.”
McMaster said the return of captain Craig Moore from Qantas Socceroos duty would help to settle the side.
“Craig went away with the Australian team and he kept two clean sheets, so I suppose we want to try to add another one,” McMaster said.
