Queensland Roar’s versatile defender Andrew Packer is confident his team has the scoring firepower and defensive nous to hold off the ‘desperate’ Mariners in the second leg of the Minor-Semi final on Friday night.
The Queenslanders have a 2-0 advantage following the first leg in Gosford, but Packer said the team would look for an even better performance on a smooth Suncorp Stadium surface.
“We’ll start off with a strong defensive base and work from there,” he said.
“We’ve scored about 10 goals in the last few games or something so we’re confident of scoring goals at home, that’s for sure.”
The one-time Hyundai A-League Champion knows what is required to win on the big stage and said the team would look to extend their lead, rather than set out to defend it.
“But at the same time we’ve got to make sure we stick to our strengths as well,” he said.
“We’re a hardworking team, we close things down and work hard in the midfield. As long as we have that sort of attitude it shouldn’t be a problem.”
Packer and captain Craig Moore will be joined by two new faces in the defensive line-up, with last Friday’s starters Danny Tiatto (suspended) and Josh McCloughan (groin strain) likely to be replaced with Hyuk-Su Seo and Luke DeVere.
Football Federation Australia confirmed this morning that Tiatto will be available for the following match, but McCloughan has been ruled out for the remainder of the season.
“Sure, we’re missing a couple of guys at the back but we’ve got guys like Luke and Hyuk that can step in and do a really good job for us,” he said.
“They (the Mariners) play a very direct style but that’s worked for them so they’re not going to change that.”
“We’re used to playing against them, we’ve got a good record against them and we know how to deal with it. We’ve just got to make sure we’re switched on.”
