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Brisbane Roar started the season with four straight losses and left many wondering where they were headed. In Round 6 they faced a Newcastle Jets side who should have held Melbourne Victory out the week before.
To make matters worse, the Jets were the only team Brisbane were unable to gain a point against in the previous season.
But what a difference a week in football can make.
Despite all the rumours, pressure and criticism thrown the way of Brisbane Roar, they were able to answer in emphatic fashion, defeating Newcastle 4-0.
The Jets’ performance was described as the worst of the season, but heading into the break locked at 0-0, Roar still had to apply the correct tactics to break down their defence.
Henrique came on early for an injured Jean Carlos Solorzano and took the match ball easily after scoring a quality hat-trick.
It was the result needed to ease the pressure on Mike Mulvey, but their task to continue this dramatic form reversal isn’t made any easier this week. They’re set to face Victory in Melbourne, a team they struggle to defeat away from home, with just four wins in nine seasons.
There were four other fixtures played in Round 6 but first we’ll look at the burning questions from the last round.
“Can Wellington Phoenix continue their good start to the season by upsetting a red hot Adelaide United?”
Wellington Phoenix were unfortunate not to walk away with at least a point from their away clash with Adelaide United, but they can easily hold their heads high for they continued to play good football in what was a tough contest.
They now head West to face Perth Glory for the second time in only seven matches, before ultimately heading home.
Adelaide coach Josep Gombau, whether a genius or lucky, has played his cards well to begin the season. The 2-1 win continued their best start to an A-League season.
With the match all but heading for a draw, it came down to a 94th minute winner for Cirio which sent United faithful in raptures. The only dampener on this match was the rain which kept the crowd to a modest 9726.
“Sydney versus Victory is shaping up as the match of the round, but who will come out on top?”
Both sides went into the match missing a host of key players but given the quality still at hand, you may not have even been able to tell the difference.
Despite finishing 0-0, both sides threw everything at one another in what some may view as the match of the season, thus far.
I awarded Vedran Janjetovic player of the round last week and given his performance against Victory, he’ll go close again this week. Another key player in the match was Victory’s Nathan Coe, but I believe Janjetovic pips him, just.
“Can Perth Glory’s near perfect start to the season begin to transpire into crowds that’ll exceed 10,000?”
For the first time in a fair while and without the assistance of free tickets, Perth Glory were able to attract more than 10,000 fans to NIB Stadium.
With a total of 12,166 fans cheering Perth on to more glory, they were treated to a very dominant performance, especially in the first half.
Wanderers, with the addition of Vitor Saba in the 54th minute, were able to reverse Glory’s dominance and despite fielding a near new 11, they were able to impress.
With key players now having been rested and a string of four home matches commencing, Wanderers are in the perfect position turn around their season.
Team of the round
After the trashing Brisbane Roar handed Newcastle, the rest of the round resulted in highly competitive, quality football.
Adelaide scored a last-minute winner, Sydney and Victory played out perhaps the match of the season, Perth continued their winning ways and the Mariners managed to clinch a last minute equaliser, as City were once again left to rue missed opportunities.
But despite the competitive games that ensued, you can’t look past Brisbane Roar.
Supporters of the round
Call them bandwagoners, call them fans deprived of quality football, Perth Glory supporters showed that support remains in the city and the only ingredient required was good, quality and consistent football.
Their attendance may not have resulted in the highest of the round, but it builds more hope that we could see the fans return like the good old Glory days of the National Soccer League.
Kenny Lowe understands perfectly that all it takes is three poor performances and you’re in a crisis, but their is attitude and mindset this season appears different to previous campaigns.
Player of the round
Once again this season I have gone with the choice of two players, those two being Vedran Janjetovic and Henrique.
Vedran Janjetovic and Nathan Coe may have kept both of their respective sides in the clash but if it wasn’t Janjetovic, I believe Victory would have won.
Henrique in the other hand was emphatic as he played the best match of his Roar career. Involved in all four goals, his touch, movement and precision was spot on as Roar may have found the perfect position for the slippery fish.
With Mensur Kurtishi set to be given more time by Mulvey, here’s to hoping that Henrique can create time and space for Kurtishi to show his worth.
Burning questions ahead of Round 7
Will Melbourne Victory bring Brisbane Roar crashing back down to earth?
Money buys interest but wins and culture attract fans. So with that said, when will City be able to attract a good fan-base that doesn’t rely on money to attract short time interest?
Will Adelaide remain hot on the heels of Perth Glory as Mariners appear to have rediscovered their ticker?
What are your thoughts for this round’s A-League wrap: Was Brisbane that emphatic or Newcastle extremely poor? Can the Glory days return? Who was your player of the round?
Once again, thank you for joining me, I look forward to bringing you next week’s A-League Round 7 wrap.
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