Brisbane Roar striker Scott McDonald says Brisbane’s ‘perfect start’ to their important win over Western Sydney Wanderers was well overdue, but came at precisely the right time.
Brisbane had only scored three first-half goals for the season leading into Round 22, but it took McDonald just three minutes to score the first of his two goals in a fantastic opening stanza which set Brisbane up for a crucial win against a Wanderers outfit challenging for a Finals Series place.
Western Sydney came into the contest just two points behind Brisbane on a four-game unbeaten run but the Roar put an end to that with a 3-1 win at Suncorp Stadium, and McDonald says his side’s fantastic first-half display was the nerve-settler they needed to clinch the all-important victory.
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“I think that’s a first-half performance that’s been in the waiting for a very, very long time,” McDonald told FOX Sports post-match.
“We tend to start games slow and I think we caught them by surprise coming out the way we did.
“A perfect start, you get a goal within the first five minutes it really settles you down.
“I think belief, we really do believe we’re the fittest club in this league.
“Simple instructions tonight were go and get after your man, go man-to-man more or less and [be] brave all around the pitch, we certainly did that early on in the game and that’s what got us our two goals.
“It was really positive play from us all game.”
McDonald’s goals were his first in Brisbane Roar colours since his mid-season switch from Hyundai A-League club Western United.
In his six prior appearances for the Roar McDonald showed Brisbane boss Robbie Fowler his potential value as an attacking weapon as he helped his side rise into Finals Series contention but all that was lacking were the goals, which finally came against the Wanderers.
Now that he’s off the mark in orange McDonald says he feels like his old self again, and he’s determined to continue to find the back of the net and help his side on an unexpected charge to the Finals Series.
“This is a bit like the old Scott McDonald: poaching,” he said.
“It’s more instinctive play, I’m pretty comfortable in those areas.
“I’m just delighted, it was my second goal of the season.
“I need more goals; I was really delighted to get these two.”
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But those two goals could have been three if McDonald staked his claim to take Brisbane’s second-half penalty, which ultimately fell to Jay O’Shea to tuck home and give the hosts a 3-1 lead.
Despite McDonald’s hunger to score, the 36-year-old says taking the spot kick never crossed his mind as he preferred to do right by the team and give O’Shea the chance to notch a maiden Roar goal of his own; a chance he took with both hands.
“It’s more about the team now than Scott McDonald,” he said.
“Maybe five years ago I might have snatched that and probably ended up missing it.
“I’m glad Jay took it and we got alll three points, we keep moving forward and pushing for the finals.
“Western Sydney were breathing down our necks, now we get a little breathing gap between them.”
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O’Shea was quick to echo McDonald’s sentiments when reflecting on the game post-match.
The Irish midfielder claimed Brisbane’s first-half performance was their best of the campaign to date, and winning all three points against a rival as close to the Roar as Western Sydney are on the Hyundai A-League table was a massive result they are bound to savour.
“I think it was definitely our best performance in the first half all season,” O’Shea said.
“We’ve been starting fairly slow in games, that was a big thing we had to do tonight was come out, and we came out flying.
“I thought we were brilliant first half and to get the two goals it gave us a platform to go and win the game.
“We knew it was a massive game, they were creeping up on us on the table.
“It was going to be a six-pointer, we knew at home we needed to take the game to them and we started very well, and it was a great three points.”
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Round 23
Brisbane Roar v Central Coast Mariners
Friday, 13 March
Suncorp Stadium
Kick off: 6.30pm local, 7.30pm AEDT
Melbourne City v Western Sydney Wanderers
Saturday, 14 March
AAMI Park
Kick off: 7.30pm AEDT
