Words: Michael Flynn
Image: Paul Smith/SWQ Thunder FC

Brisbane Strikers moved level with Moreton Bay United on the weekend as the PlayStation® 4 NPL Queensland 2015 Premiership race heats up.

 

Redlands United FC 5 (Elliott RONTO 48’ Lyndon DYKES 50’ Graham FYFE p.54’, 88’ Igor SAO JOSE 66’)
Olympic FC 2 (Michael LEE 15’ Tim SMITS 40’)

Redlands United ran riot after half-time to overcome a two-goal deficit and emerge 5-2 winners over Olympic FC at Cleveland Showgrounds on Friday night.

The hosts trailed 2-0 at the break but stunned the competition’s third-placed side with three goals within 10 minutes of the restart to move into ninth in the standings.

Olympic captain Danny Byrne believed the visitors became too impatient in trying to kill the contest.

“We lost a bit of shape, we tried to chase the game when all we really needed to do was keep possession and let them come at us,” Byrne said.

Match report and post-match interviews - http://bit.ly/1I1N43S

SWQ Thunder FC  1 (Thomas FANNING 71’
FNQ FC Heat  5 (Jamie CARROLL 44’, Joshua PIN 45’ 53’, own goal 60’, Mqondisi Nkiwane 89’)

FNQ Heat made it four straight wins in all competitions after cruising to a 5-1 victory over SWQ Thunder at Clive Berghofer Stadium on Saturday evening.

Joshua Pin delivered a brace for the visitors to add to an own goal and strikes from Jamie Carroll and Mqondisi Nkiwane, while Thomas Fanning netted Thunder’s consolation.

The result leaves Thunder still searching for their first win of the 2015 PlayStation 4 NPL Queensland campaign.

Thunder coach Chris Wilkes praised his team’s continued resilience in the face of poor results.

“Games like last week were very, very hard and tonight they showed a lot of heart and a lot of character,” Wilkes said.

Match report and post-match interviews - http://bit.ly/1H63jOy

Northern Fury FC  0
Palm Beach SC  3 (Roman HOFMANN 6’, Ethan GRIMLEY 86’, own goal 88’)

Palm Beach SC struck two goals in the final five minutes to see off Northern Fury 3-0 at Ingham Showgrounds on Saturday night.

Roman Hofmann delivered the opener for Sharks only six minutes into the match but the visitors had to wait until the dying stages to seal the victory as substitute Ethan Grimley added to an own goal.

The win extends Sharks’ unbeaten run to four straight Playstation 4 NPL Queensland matches.

Match report - http://bit.ly/1SzQdLo

Western Pride FC  0
Brisbane Strikers FC  3 (Jheison MACUACE 10’ 30’ 73’)

A hat-trick from Jheison Macauce guided Brisbane Strikers to a 3-0 win over Western Pride at Briggs Road Complex on Saturday night.

Macauce’s haul lifts him to the top of the PlayStation 4 NPL Queensland Golden Boot tally with 12 goals for the 2015 campaign.

The win also moves Strikers level on points with league-leaders Moreton Bay United, while Pride drop to eighth - their lowest position so far this season.

Pride coach Karl Dodd said his side “couldn’t buy a goal” on the night.

“The second half was good but unfortunately we couldn’t hit the net but the goals we conceded, I think we should’ve done better,” he said.

Match report and post-match interviews - http://bit.ly/1FtWtek

Brisbane Roar FC Youth  2 (Connor O’NEILL 17’, Sam SIBATUARA 73’)
Brisbane City FC  1 (Antonio MURRAY 21’)

Brisbane Roar Youth overcame a second-half send-off to defeat Brisbane City 2-1 at Perry Park on Sunday afternoon.

Sam Sibatuara struck the winning goal for Young Roar midway through the second half soon after the dismissal of teammate Logan Grillo for a second bookable offence.

The win extends Young Roar’s unbeaten run in PlayStation 4 NPL Queensland to seven matches, while consigning City to a second straight loss.

Young Roar coach John Sime said his side’s response to Grillo’s sending off had been exemplary.

“It’s not easy going a man down, especially against a side like Brisbane City, and at the end of the day I think we deserved what we achieved,” he said.

Match report and post-match interviews - http://bit.ly/1Is2Xwg

Sunshine Coast FC  1 (Jacob FULLUCK 48’)
Moreton Bay United FC  1(Jordan FARINA 70’)

Sunshine Coast FC became only the third team this season to take points off league-leaders Moreton Bay United following a 1-1 draw at Sunshine Coast Stadium.

Fire leading goalscorer Jacob Fulluck netted the opener early in the second half for the hosts before Jets’ Jordan Farina delivered the equaliser with 20 minutes remaining.

The draw marks the end of a five game losing streak for Fire across all competitions in their first home game for over a month.

Jets coach Adam Piddick credited Fire with making life difficult for the league-leaders.

“You could say it’s a good point but at the end of the day the boys are disappointed in there - which is a good sign, they don’t accept second-best,” he said.

Match report and post-match interviews - http://bit.ly/1d99000