With the National Premier Leagues (NPL) Queensland Men’s season set to resume its first full round of fixtures after a rain-soaked start, teams will be hoping to use their Round 22 clashes as a launching pad for seasonal success.
With points coming at a premium over the opening rounds, just seven points separate the ladder leaders from the bottom half of the pack.
This round will see the top two teams bring their A-game to the mid-table sides, while those lower down on the ladder will be looking to find some form as the season gets back into full swing.
Fans can watch all First Grade NPL Men’s matches live on NPL.TV, free for Australian residents.
Feature Match: Brisbane City v Lions FC
In 1977, Brisbane City and Lions etched their names in the Australian football history books when they confirmed their place as Queensland’s only representatives in the National Soccer League.
Playing out of Perry Park, the two sides met with fire as they vied for bragging rights as Queensland’s premier club. The Brisbane Classico was born out of these flames of fervour, and even 43 years on the magnitude of the occasion will not be lost on either party as they take the fight to Corporate Travel Management Stadium.
Lions will be the more confident of the pair as they come roaring into Saturday night’s fixture on a 6-game unbeaten streak. Under the guise of Darren Sime, whose most recent tenure was as adjutant to the now departed Warren Moon, Lions have made easy prey of the competition, dominating Redlands United in an 8-0 win and halting an invigored Young Roar 3-0 away from home.
Last season’s top scorers with 89 goals over the course of the campaign, Lions have already dispatched a quarter of last year’s total, putting away 23 in their opening six fixtures while conceding a nigh impregnable five. Talisman Joe Duckworth has already matched his 2019 numbers, firing home ten while Jordan Farina and Shaun Carlos have chipped in with three respectively.
Danny Kim’s move to Brisbane Roar has them looking somewhat undermanned in the engine room, the loss of his orchestration meaning Lions will have to rely on a fast start to set the tempo.
Brisbane City have stammered and stumbled in their opening six fixtures, with moments of brilliance tarnished by a lack of cohesion and defensive frailties. A derby win over Brisbane Strikers set their season off to a flying start, with results against Magpies Crusaders and Redlands negated by a disappointing 4-2 loss to Eastern Suburbs.
Unable to shake the off-season inertia in their 3-2 restart round loss to Gold Coast United, City will have a hard task ahead of them as they look to set themselves on a finals trajectory.
Player-coach Matt Smith will have to use all his defensive nous going into the skirmish, but may be reliant on shot-stopper Bon Scott to stem the orange tide, the reigning Goalkeeper of the Year making the switch from Strikers in the break. Shannon Brady has been City’s most profitable outlet in attack, setting up four and earning a penalty in five, his workload made heavier by the departure of Jean Carlos Solorzano.
Match Details
Brisbane City v Lions FC
Saturday, 1 August, 5:30pm
Corporate Travel Management Stadium
Live Stream Link
Gold Coast Knights v Eastern Suburbs
Gold Coast Knights will be hoping to match Lions step for step as they come up against a resurgent Eastern Suburbs this weekend.
Knight have carried over their championship-winning ways into this year’s competition. Looking regal in every third, their cavalry of attackers has lanced home fifteen goals in six games and, with their palisade having been breached just three times, they’ve achieved an equilibrium that sees them rightly perched atop the table alongside Lions.
In a seemingly easy clash for Grae Piddick’s side, a Round 6 deadlock with Moreton Bay United means complacency could be their Achilles heel this season, and as such they’ll have to be at their fast-flowing best as they fight for a win.
Eastern Suburbs have suffered a stuttered start to 2020, their 2nd season in the NPL Queensland producing three defeats from their opening six games, including a disappointing 2-1 loss to Redlands United in Round 6. But a 4-2 victory over Brisbane City offered a glimmer of hope, and showed that when they clicked, they were irrepressible.
Their mid-week 2-0 defeat of former FQPL counterparts Peninsula Power is sure to boost the side’s confidence going into this weekend’s clash with the joint ladder leaders.
The Tigers’ fangs lie in their vanguard, with the combination of Youeil Shol and Abrahim Yango seeing them uncaged on the counter. Despite a soft underbelly, which has been stiffened by the addition of Jade North, Eastern Suburbs will be hoping alacrity is a chink in Knights’ armour as they look to claw their way up the table.
Match Details
Gold Coast Knights v Eastern Suburbs
Saturday, 1 August, 6:30pm
Croatian Sports Centre
Live Stream Link
Peninsula Power v Brisbane Roar Youth FC
With Brisbane Roar Youth enjoying their best start to the season since the competition’s inception, they make an intrepid expedition up the M1 to meet the mid-table might of Peninsula Power in Round 22.
The Young Roar side’s youthful verve has garnered them 11 points from six games, sitting three points adrift of the summit. Barnstorming victories over Eastern Suburbs and Sunshine Coast Wanderers were accompanied by results over the competition’s traditional heavyweights, with only Lions savaging their scintillating start to the season.
With the Brisbane Roar senior team setting up camp in the Hyundai A-League’s Sydney hub, the Youth will be without many of their intermittent icons, keeper Macklin Freke and skipper Aaron Reardon making the trip down south. A heavy impetus will be placed on the prodigious Alex Parsons, whose efforts in attacking midfield will be key to their chances.
Peninsula Power have sustained an indifferent start to the season, carrying two wins and two losses into Saturday’s clash at A.J. Kelly. They marked their return to football with a 2-0 loss to Eastern Suburbs, looking a foot off the pace as they were dominated by a vastly improved Eastern Suburbs.
Power will have to get their repository of attackers firing on all cylinders, which shouldn’t be a hard task for the side that notched 84 goals in season 2019. Sam Cronin spearheading the front third promises ample goals, while Cameron Crestani will need to have his defence will marshalled should they look to dissuade the orange attack.
Match Details
Peninsula Power v Brisbane Roar Youth
Sunday, 2 August, 3:00pm
A.J. Kelly Park
Live Stream Link
Other Round 22 Matches:
Match Details
Redlands United v Brisbane Strikers
Saturday, 1 August, 7:00pm
Compass Grounds 1
Live Stream Link
Match Details
Sunshine Coast Wanderers v Olympic FC
Sunday, 2 August, 4:00pm
Ballinger Park
Live Stream Link
Match Details
Gold Coast United v Moreton Bay United
Sunday, 2 August, 4:00pm
Coplick Family Sports Park 1
Live Stream Link
Key Players:
Daniel Leck (Olympic FC): Bagging a brace against Capalaba FC on Saturday, the former Y-League Golden Boot winner has seemed to have discovered his midas touch in the Red and White of Olympic, and will be a key figure in attack against Sunshine Coast Wanderers.
Bon Scott (Brisbane City): Having made the switch to Corporate Travel Management Stadium in the season break, the 2019 NPL QLD Goalkeeper of the Year’s efforts will be key in stemming the flow of goals from the table-topping Lions this weekend.
Jade North (Eastern Suburbs): Instrumental in Eastern Suburbs’ win over Peninsula Power, the former Socceroo is using all his experience and nous to steady the Heath Park defence, and will be an obstacle to overcome for Knights’ star-studded attack.
Words: Angus Barnes
Image: Ian Judd/Lions FC
