Captain Matt McKay has called for all Brisbane Roar supporters to get behind their side ahead of Saturday night’s blockbuster clash with Sydney FC at Suncorp Stadium (6:50pm KO Qld time).
The Roar will debut their maroon event kit on Saturday and McKay says support from the stands will play a huge role on game day.
“Whether our supporters are in maroon or orange it doesn’t matter as long as they’re supporting Brisbane Roar because it’s a big game for us,” McKay said.
“It doesn’t matter who it is we just want to win and Sydney FC are in our way this weekend so we’ll do our best to get the right result.”
Brisbane are in the middle of a four-match unbeaten streak as well as a ten-match undefeated run at Suncorp Stadium.
Saturday night’s match will see two of the Hyundai A-League’s top sides going head-to-head. Tickets are available to purchase HERE.
McKay says while the Roar are wary of the threat the Sky Blues pose, he believes the Roar squad are capable of ending their winning streak.
“They’ve had a great start to the season and they have some great players,” McKay said.
“We’ll enjoy the challenge. I’ll back our squad any day of the week and whoever’s out on the park for us will do a great job.
“We identify strengths and weaknesses of theirs and hopefully we’re good enough to take the three points on Saturday night.”
The return of striker Jamie Maclaren from international duty will add potency to an already strong Roar attack. Maclaren has scored in his past two Hyundai A-League matches and scored three goals in as many matches against the Sky Blues last season.
As a former Sydney FC player, Head Coach John Aloisi says he understands the difficulty of playing against Brisbane Roar, especially at Suncorp Stadium.
“I know what it’s like to play against Brisbane Roar and somehow the Roar always seem to find that little extra bit of energy,” he said.
“For Brisbane it is a rivalry. It doesn’t matter what colour we wear, we’re going to be ready and we can’t wait for the game.
“Brisbane Roar is orange but as the sole Hyundai A-League side in Queensland, when we wear maroon we’re representing the state.
“When you talk to Queensland boys like Matt McKay, Jade North (above) and Daniel Bowles, they’re all excited because they feel like they’re representing their state.”
Brisbane are undefeated in the past three Hyundai A-League matches against the Sky Blues and Aloisi believes his side are capable of extending that run.
“Our last game against them at Suncorp Stadium looked destined for a draw but we found a way to win because our players don’t know how to give up, we always play to the end,” he said.
“They have a lot of good players but we look at ourselves and if we can perform to the levels that we know we can, we can beat any side.”’
Brisbane Roar FC v Sydney FC
Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Saturday, 19 November 2016, Kick-Off: 6:50PM (Local) (7:50PM (AEDT))
Brisbane Roar FC squad: 1.Michael THEO (gk), 3.Luke DEVERE, 4.Daniel BOWLES, 5.Corey BROWN, 7.Thomas KRISTENSEN, 8.Jacob PEPPER, 9.Jamie MACLAREN (pictured below) , 10.Brett HOLMAN, 11.Tommy OAR, 13.Jade NORTH, 15.ARANA, 17.Matt MCKAY (c), 19.Jack HINGERT, 21.Jamie YOUNG (gk), 22.Thomas BROICH, 23.Dimitri PETRATOS, 25.Kye ROWLES, 26.Nick D’AGOSTINO **two to be omitted**
Ins: 8.Jacob PEPPER (promoted), 9.Jamie MACLAREN (returns from international duty), 25.Kye ROWLES (promoted), 26.Nick D’AGOSTINO (promoted)
Outs: 28.Brandon BORRELLO (hamstring – 2 weeks), 33.Joey KATEBIAN (not selected)
Unavailable: Nil
Sydney FC squad: 4.Alex WILKINSON, 5.Matt JURMAN, 6.Joshua BRILLANTE, 7.Michael ZULLO, 8.Milos DIMITRIJEVIC, 9.BOBÔ, 10.Milos NINKOVIC, 11.Bernie IBINI, 13.Brandon O’NEILL, 14.Alex BROSQUE (c), 17.David CARNEY, 18.Matt SIMON, 19.George BLACKWOOD, 20.Danny VUKOVIC (gk), 21.Filip HOLOSKO, 22.Sebastian RYALL, 23.Rhyan GRANT, 30.Mitchell EVANS (gk) **two to be omitted**
Ins :11.Bernie IBINI (promoted), 19.George BLACKWOOD (promoted)
Outs: Nil
Unavailable: 20.Vedran JANJETOVIC (illness – 1 week)
Referee: Alan Milliner; Assistant Referee 1: Ryan Gallagher; Assistant Referee 2 : Andrew Lindsay; Fourth Official : Kurt Ams
