Brisbane Roar have recorded their first win of the season by totally outclassing Sydney FC on their way to a 1-0 win at Suncorp Stadium.
Brisbane had 18 shots at goal to Sydney’s three, and goal-front concerns aside, the Roar’s classy performance has coach Ange Postecoglou full of praise for his side, particularly skipper Matt McKay who broke the deadlock with a right-foot strike in the 53rd minute.
“I was really pleased with the performance. I thought we were good against the Gold Coast and we were even better tonight,” said Postecoglou.
“Matt has the ability to become an elite player. It was great for the skipper to step up and get the goal.”
Sydney were playing without key front-men Alex Brosque and Mark Bridge and had almost none of the possession, but coach Vitezslav Lavicka was typically gracious in defeat and gave the Roar full credit for their classy showing.
“We had a difficult position before the game, but we can’t complain,” he said.
“I have to say the home team played very well tonight, particularly in attack, and they put us under pressure.”
“The Roar played very well. Full credit for the home team, they created a lot of chances.”
Brisbane’s hold on Sydney was established from the opening minutes, with live-wire forward Henrique creating space at will and threatening the goal on numerous occasions.
McKay and German import Thomas Broich controlled the match from the midfield, holding the ball with confidence and laying off multiple opportunities for the Roar front men.
Shane Stefanutto and Erik Paartalu both had chances in the opening 45, but it was Mitch Nichols who would have been most disappointed after missing two unmarked efforts from inside the area.
Sydney responded to the Roar’s momentum with a physical brand of defence, and for their enthusiasm picked up three yellow cards within the first half.
The deadlock finally broke in the 53rd minute when Roar skipper McKay was on the end of a nice build-up and drove the ball past Sky Blues keeper Liam Reddy into the net from the edge of the 18-yard box, sending the 10,339 Roar fans into raptures and sparking a passionate celebration from his team-mates.
Chasing, and perhaps deserving, more than a one-goal lead, Brisbane continued to torment their rivals and there was no reprieve for the under-siege Sydney gloveman.
With almost the entire match played on the fringes of the Sky Blues’ 18-yard box, Brisbane were relentless, but could not find a second.
Broich and Henrique had more wayward attempts, but the best chance of the second half went to Kosta Barbarouses after the ball fell to him from a goal-mouth scramble, only for the Roar forward to fire the ball into Reddy’s chest from point-blank range.
Taking some of the shine off the impressive win were injuries to key players with Ivan Franjic falling to a quad strain in the opening half and Henrique limping off in the final minutes with a hamstring complaint.
Brisbane Roar 1 (McKay 53)
Sydney FC 0
