Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Round 4 Preview - Fire v Southern Cross United


After recording three away wins to start the season, the Sunshine Coast Fire find themselves at home for the first time this week as they meet new Brisbane side Southern Cross United on Sunday.

Alongside the Gold Coast Stars, Southern Cross United have proven themselves to be capable outfits early in 2011, with strong performances suggesting that both sides will be in finals contention at the end of the season. Southern Cross United claimed the Clem Jones Shield during the pre-season, a result which will leave them confident of immediate success in the QSL.

The new outfit have had mixed fortunes early on in the QSL season, winning a rain-affected Round 1 encounter with the Capricorn Cougars 4-2, and suffering a 1-0 defeat at the hands of the North Queensland Razorbacks in Round 3.

A greater challenge will be posed by the Sunshine Coast Fire, who have strung together three wins to start the season, and will be playing on home soil for the first time on Sunday.

The Fire survived a scare against QAS last week, going down 1-0 at half time before burying the academy side with three second-half goals. The Fire’s ability to score goals in quick succession will be a concern for Southern Cross, with 90 minutes of concerted effort needed if the Brisbane team is to get something out of the game.

After being outplayed for much of the first half against QAS, the Fire will be looking to find their mark immediately against Southern Cross on the weekend, and avoid going behind on the scoreboard.

Kick-off for the Round 4 match will be at 2pm on Sunday April 3, at Stockland Park’s Western Fields on Milieu Place, Bokarina. The match will be followed by the Under-19 Fire, who take on their Southern Cross United counterparts at 4pm.

The Under-19 Fire notched their first win last week with a strong 4-2 victory over QAS, with the side twice going behind on the scoreboard before wrestling a win. The boys will have taken heart from their slick work in attack against QAS, and will be confident of more goals against Southern Cross United.

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