Goalkeeper Jamie Young has credited Brisbane Roar head coach Robbie Fowler for bringing a winning mentality to the club as they prepare to hit their peak at the business end of the Hyundai A-League season.
The 34-year-old has seen a transformation in the Queensland outfit since Fowler’s arrival 11 month ago and Young remains one of only four senior players left from the side that finished ninth in the table in 2018/19 – alongside Daniel Bowles, Jack Hingert and Dylan Wenzel-Halls.
After a slow start for the Premiers League legend’s much-changed roster, Brisbane have climbed from 10th to fifth place following a run of six wins, three draws and two defeats across their last 11 games.
Roar welcome Central Coast Mariners to Suncorp Stadium on Friday aiming to inflict a eighth-straight loss on the basement boys and continue their own upward curve.
Young had to regain his place in the Roar line-up after being benched for the first six games of the season, and he cites the competitive nature of Fowler’s background as a key factor behind the club’s resurgence.
“I think the thing about playing in Europe is, you can never rest on your laurels,” Young said. “There is always somebody to take your spot.
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“I think, the manager being a scouser, he’s got that working-class mentality.
“He’s not just happy, and he doesn’t always think he’s right, he’s willing to change things if he feels like he needs to.
“You’ve seen that in games, like when Melbourne Victory probably sat back too much [in Roar’s 1-0 defeat in Round 2] and we changed our tactics.
“He’s somebody that’s not afraid to learn and say that he wants to evolve.
“The mentality from that point of view – I think a lot of people can get stuck in their ways and he’s very adaptable.
“It’s been really encouraging as a player to see that and you can see the players buy into it.
”I think that’s really important that the players are always stimulated and they are willing to change depending on who we play.”
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Although Brisbane have closed the gap on the top four to a single point, they also sit only two points within the Hyundai A-League Finals Series berths.
With only six games remaining, four of which are at home, Young believes the Roar are perfectly poised to make their mark on the 2019/20 campaign.
“We’re quietly confident, we’re not arrogant about what we’re going to do in the games,” Young added.
“We know there’s more to come and I think if you are going to have a good run, you want to have it at the back end of the season.
“We’re hopefully peaking at that sort of time and I think there’s a positive, quiet confident about us.”
Round 23
Brisbane Roar v Central Coast Mariners
Friday, 13 March 2020
Kick-off: 6.30pm local, 7.30pm AEDT
Venue: Suncorp Stadium
