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Over the coming days and weeks there will be a few Brisbane vs Sydney battles that should keep football viewers in both cities engaged, involving a potential player move, a grand final re-match in the W-League, a battle for a finals spots in the youth league, and the right to play host to the A-League’s showpiece occasion on March 12.
The first battle appears likely to go the way of the Sunshine state, with my sources suggesting that Matt Jurman will this week accept an offer to join the Brisbane Roar from next season as a replacement for now-departed Luke DeVere.
With Sydney FC said to be chasing Nikolai Topor-Stanley hard, the word is there is no room left in the salary cap to match the Roar offer.
So it looks like the in-form left-sided stopper will be off to join the Premiers, where he would re-unite with Ange Postecoglou, who coached him at national team youth level.
No doubt Postecoglou has been impressed with Jurman’s recent work for the Sky Blues, and the move would be in keeping with the manager’s want to bring in youngsters on the rise.
And speaking of kids on the rise, what a bevy of talent will be on display at Campbelltown, in south-western Sydney, on Saturday afternoon for the W-League’s decider between Sydney FC and Brisbane.
Catching the ABC’s highlights of both semi finals over the weekend, it was obvious just how quickly the women’s game in Australia is evolving.
With pace, quality technique, great mobility, good organisation and accurate shooting, there’s no doubt to this observer that the W-League, like the A-League, goes from strength to strength.
Looking at the Roar side on Saturday, it was apparent just how experienced some of youngsters are, with the likes Elise Kellond-Knight, Tameka Butt, Kim Carroll and Clare Polkinghorne all now regulars in the Matildas squad or starting 11.
Even 19 year old goalkeeper Casey Dumont, who was the semi final penalty shoot-out hero, denying Elise Perry before slotting home the winner, was a part of Tom Sermanni’s Asian Cup squad last year.
Mix this youth with the experience of the likes of Lisa De Vanna, Joanne Burgess, Lana Harch and Lauren Colthorpe, and it’s a nice little blend at Jeff Hopkins’s disposal.
The fact he could bring De Vanna off the bench speaks volumes not only about the depth at Brisbane, but the growing quality across the league.
Whether the Roar are able to keep up with the exceptional pace and fitness of the young Sydney FC side will make for interesting viewing.
After getting over Brisbane in the grand final last season, Alen Stajcic has developed this team even further, introducing a few more teenagers, with the right sided flier Caitlin Foord catching the eye against the Melbourne Victory on Sunday.
Her combination with Teigen Allen, and their subsequent battle with Brisbane’s dynamic left back Kellond-Knight, such a star during the Asian Cup success, promises to be something special on Saturday.
Elsewhere, I was impressed by the midfield pair Teresa Polias and Renee Rollason, the former buzzing about the midfield in the holding role, the latter neat on the ball either centrally or out wide.
Servet Uzunlar, as I’ve said before, is all class, our female version of Paul Okon and Ned Zelic. Her battle with De Vanna, when she gets on, should be world class.
But it is the front pair of Kyah Simon and Leena Khamis that make this Sydney side so potent; Simon with her ability to drift all over the pitch, get her talented feet on the ball and burst forward, and Khamis with her power, determination and eye for goal.
With their collective pace and pressing, Stajcic’s side will take some beating, even minus the injured left-sided veteran Heather Garriock.
But Brisbane took the honours the last time these two sides met, at this same venue, on New Year’s Day, so they’ll take plenty of confidence into the decider.
If the Roar girls manage to win the silverware, it will be a busy night for the Herston based club, with their male counterparts due to show-off their Premier’s Plate at Suncorp a few hours later.
For Postecoglou and his men, the hope is that winning the first-past-the-post prize will be a prelude to their latest goal, winning the right to host the competition’s decider at Suncorp Stadium.
There’s little doubt a big-ticket Brisbane Grand Final would be the preferred outcome for the FFA.
But with the Central Coast most likely to be their opponent in the two-legged major semi, Sydney still has a chance of hosting the big one if Graham Arnold’s men are first through.
An SFS grand final was the outcome the last time the Mariners hosted the decider, in season 3, but that was against another NSW based side in the Newcastle Jets.
Perhaps this time, if the Mariners do get hosting rights and with the opponent bound to be an interstate (or overseas) based side, thought might even be given to hosting it at the 20,000 capacity Bluetongue Stadium.
Either way, over the coming days and weeks, the battle between Brisbane and Sydney is looming large on a few fronts.
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