Strikers
down again as McLaren Sees Red
The Brisbane Strikers suffered consecutive defeats for the first time this season when they went down by the only goal to the Marconi Stallions in Sydney
Saturday night.
Nick Carle, identified in pre-match comments by Brisbane’s player-coach Stuart McLaren as the home side’s danger man, got the decisive strike in the sixty-eighth minute.
According to match reports from various sources, it was a display not without merit from the Brisbane team, which was forced to play seventy minutes with only ten players after McLaren was red-carded for an allegedly two-footed foul on Shane Webb. Indeed, Brisbane managed to create a number of chances which went unconverted, including chances to Royce
Brownlie, Peter Grierson and Warren Moon.
Goalkeeper Scott Higgins, playing in only his second NSL game, also was credited with a strong performance which included several outstanding saves, including a double save soon after Marconi had scored.
As hinted at by McLaren on this website the day before the game, the Strikers made one change to their starting eleven, with Steve Fitzsimmons making way for Louis Brain.
The loss leaves the Strikers in eighth position. It also leaves them staring down the barrel of a third successive loss to Sydney teams next Saturday afternoon, at Pery Park at the revised kick-off time of 4.15, when they will take on glamour team Parramatta Power. The fact that they will now have to play without their player-coach, who will be
suspended, will surely not help their cause and it could be a case of having to dig very deep to remain in touch with the top six.
Marconi Stallions 1 v Brisbane Strikers 0
Scorer: N Carle (68 mins)
Marconi Stallions: Michael Turnbull (gk), Dominic Longo, Angelo Costanzo, Luke Casserly, Grant Last, Chad Gibson, (-46'), Michael Thwaite, Shane Webb, Jeromy Harris, Nick Carle, Brendan Renaud
Subs: Simon Bell (Casserly, 61), Todd Brodie (Harris, 53), Eric Anabalon (Gibson, 46), Stacy Alogdellis (gk)
Brisbane Strikers: Scott Higgins (gk), Karl Dodd, Shane Stefanutto, Josh McCloughan, Stuart McLaren, Peter Grierson, Royce Brownlie, Louis Brain, David Pilic, Warren Moon, Luke Morley
Subs: Steve Fitzsimmons (Moon, 73) Adam Webber (McCloughan, 85), Joshua Rose (Brownlie, 69) 30 Joshua Watson (gk)
