A rampant first-half from the Far North Queensland Bulls has consigned the Sunshine Coast Fire to their first loss of the season, with the visitors recording a 3-2 victory.
Goals to Victor Madrid, Josiah Rusch and Steven Cater got the Bulls off to a flying start, before a double from Gareth Musson gave the Fire hope of a comeback in the second half.
With the Brisbane Strikers winning on Saturday, the pressure was on the Fire to take all three points and regain a share of the QSL lead. From the start against Far North Queensland, the Fire seemed to be a little off the pace and the opening exchanges were scrappy from both sides.
One of the Fire’s first chances came after 15 minutes when a cross from Kaine Frew on the right flank was controlled by James Stinson, who neatly laid off a pass for Jason Hicks on the edge of the area, with the forward forcing a save out of Bulls keeper Jack Richards
Almost immediately after, FNQ scored with one of their first attacks of the match. A corner was cleared by the Fire’s defence, but only as far as Victor Madrid who collected the ball in space 30 yards out from goal. With the Sunshine Coast slow to rush out and make a block, Madrid moved forward and curled a shot into the top corner to set the Bulls on their way.
Only five minutes after the opening goal, FNQ added to the Fire’s misery with another quality strike to double their lead. This time, Josiah Rusch connected sweetly with a free-kick from 20 yards out that curled inside the right upright, with Antony Hall getting a hand to the shot but unable to keep it out.
Shell-shocked to be two goals behind in a game that seemed to be on an even keel, the Sunshine Coast looked to settle on the ball and build the play patiently. Jason Hicks had a good opportunity to halve the deficit when he shook his defender to run onto a long ball and speed in on goal. One-on-one with Richards, the FNQ keeper produced a fine block to deny Hicks.
Soon after, Tyson Holmes had a chance of his own when he was picked out at the near post with a corner kick, but the skipper headed over the bar from a few yards out.
With half-time approaching and the Fire looking content to head off to the dressing rooms and refocus for the second half, Far North Queensland managed to hit the scoreboard yet again. As the Bulls launched an attack, an early cross was swung in towards forward Steven Cater, who caught Antony Hall off his line with a header that fell just under the crossbar and extended the Bulls lead to three goals.
Finding themselves in the unfamiliar position of facing a large deficit, the Fire came out in the second half showing plenty of intent early on. In one of the Fire’s first attacks of the half, James Stinson sent a low pass into the penalty area from the left flank that failed to be cleared, and Gareth Musson smashed the ball home to make the score 3-1.
As the game restarted, the pace of the game was becoming frenetic and the Bulls were increasingly on the back foot as the Sunshine Coast flooded forward. On 52 minutes, the contest was well and truly ignited when Gareth Musson was adjudged to have been impeded in the box and was awarded a penalty. Musson stepped up to the spot and sent Bulls keeper Richards the wrong way to score his second and reduce the margin to a single goal.
With Far North Queensland’s lead beginning to slip away, the Sunshine Coast kept their foot on the pedal in the search for an equaliser. Kaine Frew anticipated a flicked header well and moved in on goal, but shot well over the goal under pressure. James Stinson had a chance soon after, but couldn’t quite control a long header from just inside the penalty area.
For the Bulls, Rusch had a chance to add to his tally with fifteen minutes to play, but Antony Hall did well to block his goal-bound header and keep the Fire’s hopes alive.
With time ticking away, Sam Knight produced a strong move down the left wing before slipping a pass inside to Tyson Holmes who made the keeper work with a shot from close range. Holmes had another chance to tie it up minutes later when a powerful shot from 18 yards was parried away to safety.
After three minutes of injury time, the Sunshine Coast could not raise another effort and the Far North Queensland Bulls clung on to record a 3-2 victory against the odds. For the Fire, the side’s first loss of the season means they relinquish top spot on the ladder, and will need to find another gear if they wish to stay in the running for a third Premiership.
Richard Hudson admitted his side had too big a mountain to climb to recover from 3-0 down.
“I thought our first half was very poor, probably our worst performance of the season. Obviously we turned it around in the second half, but couldn’t finish it off. Our second half was good, but the hole was too big at the end of the day. It’s back to the drawing board now – we’ve lost one game, it’s not the end of the world, but it’s a wake-up call and a reminder that your reputation doesn’t count for anything, and we need to perform week in week out.”
Next week will provide a stern test of the Fire’s Premiership credentials, with the team facing a trip south to take on the Gold Coast Stars. Kick-off for the vital Round 15 clash is set for 2pm on Sunday July 3.
FINAL SCORE – Sunshine Coast Fire – 2 (Musson, 48, 52)
Far North Queensland Bulls – 3 (Madrid, 17, Rusch, 23, Cater, 45)
LINEUP - Hall, Knight, Sato, Dwyer, Smith, Stinson, Holmes, Roberts, Frew, Hicks, Musson. SUBS - Henderson, Brazendale, Shibahashi
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