If the last time Brisbane Roar and Sydney FC met in the National Youth League is anything to go by, Cleveland Showgrounds is the place to be this Sunday afternoon.
If the last time Brisbane Roar and Sydney FC met in the National Youth League is anything to go by, Cleveland Showgrounds is the place to be this Sunday afternoon.
Barely six weeks ago, the two sides played out an action-packed 4-4 draw in which Brisbane came from behind three times to take a share of the points at Leichhardt Oval in Sydney.
A brace from Rocky Visconte, including an early second-half penalty, and lone goals to Nick Fitzgerald and Tommy Cirjak were the highlights for the Roar.
With the teams set to do battle again on Sunday, Head Coach John Sime expected a similar free-flowing attacking contest.
“It could-ve been 22-all the last time we went down there!” Sime joked.
“It was a good game of football and I think football won on the day because both teams tried to play and that-s what it-s all about.
“That-s the most exciting thing about the youth league, every weekend you go out to play.”
Last weekend-s game, a 1-1 draw with Adelaide United, marked the first for Brisbane-s National Youth League side since December 11 but while the fixture list has been bare, Sime has not held back – still putting his squad through the paces during the festive season.
He did, however, allow for a short disruption to the training schedule over the few days of Christmas.
“Having a break can work for you or work against you,” he said.
“I think it was good that they trained really hard during the break – even though we didn-t have games, the momentum was still there.
“It was also good for the individuals to go home for a little bit over Christmas and spend some time with their families, now they-ve come back ready to prepare for the rest of the season.”
The Sky Blues sit one place below the Roar on the competition ladder in fourth, just a point adrift, with Sime and his youngsters looking to overtake Melbourne Heart, who are level on points and close the gap on league leaders Perth Glory who are three points clear at the top.
