Saturday evening will see the fourth Queensland State League Champions decided, and once again it will be the Sunshine Coast Fire and Brisbane Strikers battling for supremacy at Perry Park.
Brisbane won hosting rights by overcoming the Fire in the Major Semi Final a fortnight ago, consigning the Sunshine Coast to a knockout final against the Whitsunday Miners last weekend. In pouring rain in Kawana, the Fire had too much class for the Miners, cruising to a 4-1 victory. Tyson Holmes made amends for his Semi Final penalty miss with a hat-trick to help the Fire book a third Grand Final against the Strikers.
The two times the Fire and Strikers have met in the Grand Final, early goals have set the course of the game, and the Sunshine Coast will be keen to strike a similar early blow on Saturday.
In 2008, a Bryan Gilfillan penalty early in the match set the Fire up for a 1-0 victory and a Premiership/Championship double, a feat that was repeated in 2010. In that Grand Final, Tyson Holmes scored from long range seconds into the match and the Fire hung on to again triumph 1-0.
The Sunshine Coast have the better record in the four matches played between the sides this year, with two wins, a loss and a draw. Each game has been decided by a single goal and there is nothing to suggest that Saturday’s final will be anything less than the usual arm-wrestle.
The Strikers have hosted all three HQSL Grand Finals but are yet to get a hold of the Championship trophy. After claiming the 2009 Premiership, Brisbane were upset by the now-defunct Redland City Devils in the Grand Final, as well as falling short against the Fire in 2008 and 2010.
On the injury front, Gareth Musson is expected to be available to play against his former club after recovering from a hamstring injury, while Judd Molea may return to the side after missing last week with a groin strain.
Kick-off is set for 7pm on Saturday August 27, At Perry Park in Albion. At 4.15pm, A-League champions Brisbane Roar will play a pre-season match against the QSL Northern All-Stars, a team composed of players from the Capricorn Cougars, FNQ Bulls, NQ Razorbacks and Whitsunday Miners. Admission is free for both games.
After last week booking a home grand-final, the time and date has been set for the Under-19 Fire’s competition decider. The Fire will face the winner of the South West Queensland v Brisbane Strikers Preliminary Final at 5pm on Saturday September 3 at One Mile Ovals in Gympie.
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