Brisbane snuck past the Central Coast Mariners in a tight semi with Karla Reuters 63’ 20 yard strike the difference between the two sides. The Roar can take a lot of positives out of the game and the defending champions showed that they should be not be discounted.  The defence was rock solid allowing the Mariners few sights at goal and the midfield through Butt, Burgess, Luik and Kellond-Knight was mobile and creative.  Brisbane definitely had the tougher of the semis but leading into the final, their big game experience could be the telling factor.

Defence:
For the last two seasons the Brisbane Roar have boasted the best defence in the country and their record is enviable.  Once again in the semi final they gave the Mariners forwards little space or time on the ball.  With Polkinghorne, McShea, Reuter and Beaumont, the Roar have the right balance of height, strength and mobility.  They will need all three attributes against the in form Khamis, Walsh and Sydney midfield.

Midfield:
For once in Roar midfield enter the match as the lesser experienced unit and that doesn’t happen often!  This is where the game will be won for Brisbane.  Kellond-Knight continued her breakthrough season with a solid performance in the semis, Tameka Butt once again displayed her explosive pace and willingness to challenge defences and Colthorpe and Luik were good without being outstanding.  They will need to get on top and push up to add more attacking options. 

Forward:
This will be a challenge for the Roar. Sasha McDonnell will be unavailable; Beutel didn’t get onto the park until the 75’ and Harch got barely 5 minutes of game time.  This could be a problem considering Brisbane have rarely netted more than 1 goal against a Top 4 side.  To win this one, the forwards will need to get on the board. 

Keys: Kate McShea, Tameka Butt, Jo Burgess, Lauren Colthorpe

“I think our fitness and the mental strength of the girls really showed through towards the end of the game last weekend.  We have a lot of experience in our side and I think finals football is often won and lost by our experienced players.  I think our experienced players stood up especially late on in the game when things we getting a little bit hectic.”

“I have always said that we have good senior group and right through even the younger players have real strong mental attitudes.”

“Not so happy with the quality of our play as we can play a lot better.  Even saying that knowing that we have a lot better to come is a positive for us.”

“[Lana Harch and Courtney Beutel] They didn’t get much of a run last week but they are both nice and fresh for this weekend.  That is quite a plus for a us since we are losing Sasha [McDonnell].”

“The sides are really evenly matched and it should make for a good final.  If you go through the sides, the match ups are quite exciting.  We know to win this we have to be right on our game.”

“As individuals we know we have jobs to do on the opposition.  We have to try and make the difference as individuals.”

“As a team we have gone through a bit of the lean patch midway through season.  We have come through that and we think we are in pretty good shape now.  We are really looking forward to it.”

“I am now getting a bit of buzz and getting quite excited about the game.”

“We will go into it as prepared as we can.  The team will know as much about the opposition as possible.  We will have two or three key areas we will be concentrating on as part of our game plan.”

“We will build things up slowly but we won’t make too much of the game.  We have an experienced group.  They know what it’s about and they have been there before.  The players just need to understand the role they have in the game and the jobs they have to do.”


“I have got a lot of respect for Sydney FC.  The way they play, they go about the game the right way, they look to play football the same way as we do.  I think win or lose it will be a good advert for women’s football which is really important as well.”