Sunshine Coast Fire prepare for Japan trip

Next Monday, the Sunshine Coast Fire’s younger squad members will be jetting off to the Land of the Rising Sun, for a fortnight of football with some of the Asian nation’s most prolific teams.

From November 29 to December 12, travelling players will experience Japan, along the way playing friendly fixtures with local J-League and university football clubs.

The Fire will take on teams from the Yokohama Marinos, Kashiwa Reysol and Shonan Bellmare, as well as university teams from Kanagawa and Tsukuba. The team will be based in Kamakura for much of the trip, on the coastline south-west of Yokohama.

Four of the Fire’s youth players in Alex Henderson, Josh Taylor, James Stinson and Ryan Delahunty got the opportunity to experience Japanese football when they trialled for Shonan Bellmare earlier this year. Next week is a chance for many more of the Fire’s young stars to have a similar experience.

Although the trip will be an opportunity for the Fire to partake in tough, exciting football, it will also be a good chance to experience local culture and the popularity of football in Japan. Sunshine Coast FC hope that all the players and staff involved have a great experience.

Two new teams for 2011 Hyundai Queensland State League

An announcement was made last week regarding the makeup of the 2011 Queensland State League, with two new teams set to take to the field next year.

Gold Coast Institute of Sports and Southern Cross United will enter the fray in 2011, boosting the number of teams in the competition to ten.

With teams based as far north as Cairns and as far south as the Gold Coast, the QSL in 2011 will be a truly statewide competition.

The inaugural QSL season in 2008 featured 10 teams, and increased to 11 for the 2009 season with the introduction of the Far North Queensland Bulls. However, the departure of Redland City Devils, Logan United and Olympic FC at the end of 2009 resulted in a shortfall of teams in South-East Queensland for 2010.

The introduction of the Gold Coast and Southern Cross teams will fix this deficiency, and will also lead to a bigger talent pool to recruit from for local A-League clubs Gold Coast United and Brisbane Roar.

Also, the South Brisbane based Southern Cross United will likely enter into a cross-town rivalry with the Bowen Hills based Brisbane Strikers in 2011. QSL rivalries prove popular with fans, as evidenced by the high interest surrounding the North Queensland derby when the Razorbacks and Bulls take to the field.

Fixtures for the 2011 season will be announced on the 27^th and 28^th of November, when representatives from the 10 clubs will meet up in Brisbane.

2011 HQSL Teams

Brisbane Strikers

Bundaberg Spirit

Capricorn Cougars

Far North Queensland Bulls

Gold Coast Stars

North Queensland Razorbacks

Queensland Academy of Sport

Southern Cross United

Sunshine Coast Fire

Whitsunday Miners

 

Under-19 Player Brad Wallace given Queensland Award

Sunshine Coast FC would like to congratulate youth player Brad Wallace, who this month was recognised for his efforts with the 2010 Epilepsy Queensland Youth Award.

After spending periods of 2009 in hospital, sometimes suffering multiple seizures a day, Brad’s condition improved to the extent that he was able to play competitive football this year, and he was signed by Sunshine Coast FC for the 2010 season.

Brad has gone on to play an important role in defence and midfield this season, helping the Fire’s Under-19 side win the Queensland State Youth League Championship in September.

After the success of his 2010 season, Brad is setting his targets on a senior-team berth with the Fire in the future and hopes to pursue a professional career in football.

Brad’s father Steve is pleased that his son has remained mostly seizure-free in 2010, and been given the opportunity to perform on the field.

“Considering Brad spent a lot of last year in hospital, this year has been a big improvement. The amount of medication he is on is quite high, even when he is playing. He needs medication day and night.”

“But he’s got a great attitude, and is willing to put in the extra yards to make the best of it,” Steve said.

Steve credits the Sunshine Coast Fire for giving his son the opportunity to play, despite the extra responsibilities involved.

“The Fire is more than a football club – it’s more like a family. Several people put their hand up to accommodate Brad in the team, when other clubs wouldn’t have gone to the effort.”

Sunshine Coast Regional Stadium to be unveiled in June 2011

Construction is well underway on the Sunshine Coast Regional Stadium, the long delayed $10 million development of the Stockland Park sporting ground.

After years of trials and tribulations, the proposal has finally received the go-ahead. Major construction of the grandstand commenced earlier this week, and all accounts suggest that the project is on target for its proposed completion in June 2011, despite setbacks caused by weather.

The SCRS will boast 1000 undercover seats, with room for extension in the future. Facilities will include state league standard changing and medical rooms, as well as coaching rooms, a media box, permanent bar and canteen facilities and general amenities.

With home games split between Stockland Park, Milieu Place and One Mile Ovals in Gympie this past season, Fire fans can look forward to consistent fixtures at the Sunshine Coast Regional Stadium in the latter part of the 2011 season.

The Stockland Park ground will still be usable in the meantime with temporary facilities, although the Fire will likely play early season home games at the Western Fields in Milieu Place while the SCRS is still under construction.

With an expanded 10 team competition expected next year, these new facilities will make the Sunshine Coast Fire better equipped than ever to take out the 2011 title, and will hopefully attract new fans to the club’s home fixtures.