Brisbane Roar Head Coach Warren Moon has welcomed the chance to test his side against the new A-League Premiers in what shapes a blockbuster battle with Melbourne City.
The Roar are in sixth place with a game in hand going into tonight’s clash at Moreton Daily Stadium and will be looking to push higher up the ladder with a positive result.
That won’t be easy against the competition leaders, who sealed the regular season silverware last time out, but it’s a challenge Moon welcomes.
“We want to test ourselves against the best team in the comp, that’s what they are, and they’ve shown that all season,” Moon said ahead of the game.
“We’ve played them twice now and come up short, and like I said a few weeks ago, we’ve learned a bit from the last time we played them.
“We want to test ourselves against the best because ultimately that’s where this squad wants to go. We want to be up there as well, be the best team in the comp, so to test ourselves on Tuesday against a very good team, a deserved champion, we can’t wait for the challenge.”
Following a narrow away win over Newcastle Jets on Friday night, Moon emphasised the importance of gaining maximum points over the remaining four matches to cement a Finals Series spot.
“Our mindset is to win every game we play home or away, and we need as many points now to finish as high up the table as we can,” he said.
“We focus on ourselves and we look up at the table and try to push as high as we can, getting as many points as we can.
“We see the results around us and what that might mean, but our mindset going into the game against Melbourne City has to be on trying to get three points.”
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The boss also offered an encouraging update on senior defender Jack Hingert, who has been sidelined by a hamstring injury in recent weeks.
“What I can say about Jack is that the positive is that we will see him again this season, and that wasn’t so likely a couple of weeks ago,” Moon explained.
“So that’s great with Jack. Josh [Brindell-South] is not far away and, again, the fixture list is what it is, there are more games to come, but it’s looking quite healthy with the squad numbers and players coming back.”
