Brisbane Roar take on the Western Sydney Wanderers in a highly anticipated semi-final clash at Pirtek this weekend.
Both teams will feel like they have a strong chance of winning, but the Queenslanders will have to climb over a tough mental hurdle, their away form.
Brisbane’s season can be broken up into two distinct sections, the home form and the away form. At home they are unbeatable. Across 15 games at Suncorp this season, Brisbane have won 12, drawn two and only lost once, this includes last week’s last gasp win against the Melbourne Victory, typifying the ability of the side to win in all circumstances at home.
In stark contrast though, their form when on the road is not so pretty. Across 13 away games, Brisbane have only won three, losing six and drawing the other four. This points at a central fault of the team and a trend that will need to be reversed, if they are to have any chance of reaching another A-League Grand Final.
Such poor away form can be blamed on so many different factors, but for Brisbane it boils down to two.
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Firstly, John Aloisi’s side has a very attacking mindset when it comes to their footballing philosophy, and this continues no matter where they are playing. At home it works to their advantage, often pinning teams in their own half and dictating the play. However, when away from Suncorp Stadium, playing such an open, attacking style has its pitfalls.
Teams feel more comfortable in a home setting, often creating a more willing attacking structure. Against Brisbane, opposition has realised that due to all the attacks, holes are left across the ground, in particular out wide as the left and right sided defenders are caught by themselves. Against a strong counter-attacking team, this can spell trouble for the Roar.
That is what makes Western Sydney so dangerous this weekend.
The Wanderers are a renowned counter-attacking team, with Romeo Castelen, Dario Vidosic, Mark Bridge and Mitch Nichols all able to pick a defence apart in a matter of seconds. For Brisbane, they will have to stay aware of this threat and make sure no wide defender is outnumbered.
This leads to the second reason Brisbane struggle away from home, their defence is not as strong as it could be. This is due to many reasons, not least the season-ending injury to star centre-back Luke DeVere and the ever changing goalkeeper-defence partnerships. This lack of cohesion has led to a frail defence that has been propped up by an attack that was almost untouchable at times throughout the season. Brisbane conceded 24 goals in 13 away games, outlining the difficulties they face when trying to implement their style on an opposition team away from home.
But all hope is not lost for the Roar, as they have a surprisingly good record against the Wanderers this season. In round one Brisbane beat Western Sydney 3-1 at Pirtek Stadium, although in round nine they lost 2-1 at the same venue. Most recently, a typical Brisbane performance saw the Queensland side win 3-2 at Suncorp Stadium, thanks to two goals from Jamie Maclaren and a late winner to Dimitri Petratos.
And that is where the key lies if Brisbane are to beat Western Sydney, Jamie Maclaren and Dimitri Petratos.
In the three fixtures between these two teams this season, Maclaren and Petratos have scored a combined six of the Roar’s seven goals. Against such a physically imposing team with such strength in the air, it is the more nimble, smart and agile footballers that have the real impact.
Maclaren’s ability to run between defenders and beat them over a 30-metre foot race will be key, while Petratos’ ever increasing ability to play the perfect ball in-behind, or run at defenders with pace will combine with the other attacking threats in the team and form the backbone of Brisbane’s attacking threat.
In round one, it was this exact style that caused so many issues with Maclaren’s lovely chip of the goalkeeper rounding off a marvellous performance. At Suncorp in round 22, Petratos’ willingness to run at defenders and play smart balls in and around the box caused the most issues.
Overall, in order to win this do-or-die semi-final, Brisbane will have to tighten up at the back. Defences win titles and against such an intelligent team, John Aloisi will be forced to setup deep and look to counter when possible. Macalren’s effectiveness against the Wanderers will be key as he looks to break his scoring drought of only one goal in his past five games.
This game stands as the biggest challenge for Brisbane’s A-League title challenge. Yes meeting a team such as Adelaide in the Grand Final may be a more difficult challenge, but in that type of fixture it feels like a clean slate, a one off game where anyone can win. Against the Wanderers they have to jump the mental hurdle of their away form, still lingering from the regular season. Should they manage to combine a solid defence with their typically incisive attack, then who knows, Brisbane’s struggling away form may be a thing of the past.
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