Queensland Roar played well to secure a point away against Sydney FC tonight. Sydney were disappointing and showed few signs they would be anything other than disappointing for the remainder of this season.
The warm afternoon had cooled by kick off, when the crowd size looked disappointing. Sydney have yet to convey the message they have an entertaining team … and tonight’s performance and result will not help.
Sydney started with three strikers on the field, though David Zdrilic was playing right midfield. Juninho was on the bench. Mark Milligan was at centre back in place of the suspended Tony Popovic.
Roar had Danny Tiatto on the bench, but exciting youngsters Michael Zullo and Robbie Kruse were starters.
Sydney missed a good chance in the second minute when Ruben Zadkovich was played through by Alex Brosque, who broke from the middle of the park after Roar had been robbed. Zadkovich set himself up but turned the ball wide of the left post when goalkeeper Liam Reddy came off his line to stop him.
Matt McKay looked sharp for Queensland.
Zdrilic was proving of some use heading on long clearances, usually to Michael Bridges who was using his body well, with either Craig Moore or Sasa Ognenovski in his back.
Reinaldo had a lazy turn and shot wide to the right of the Sydney goal.
The first ten minutes were very tentative from both sides.
Craig Moore headed clear a Sydney free kick and Sydney had a corner.
After 15 minutes there was nothing much in it, mainly due to Sydney's errors, and not all of those were forced by Roar's fast and close attention.
Bridges looked flat.
Stuart McLaren earned his yellow card for bringing down Steve Corica. Referee Matthew Breeze pulled play back when Sydney might have profited from the advantage.
Kruse chased back to save the day in defence when Bridges held then released the ball for Zadkovich waiting for a shooting opportunity in the left side of the Roar penalty area.
In the 23rd minute Bridges — and a lot of Sydney fans — thought he deserved a penalty when he was pulled down from behind when receiving a fine pass from the right sideline.
Then Bridges won a free kick when Reddy came out of his area and flattened him.
Brosque's kick was good, hard and low, but Reddy saved comfortably.
Queensland reacted quickly and Zullo responded with a shot of his own on target.
Bridges flicked on for Brosque on the right. Bridges collected the return, stepped his marker and hit a soft shot.
McKay was good chasing back to block Zdrilic crossing. Sydney had a corner that captain Mark Rudan headed onto the crossbar.
Great efforts then came from Bridges on the right beating two markers, Zdrilic making the cross and Brosque challenging Reddy.
Zullo was good beating Iain Fyfe. But he couldn't beat Rudan.
Sydney were looking better. But Corica was making uncharacteristic mistakes.
Kruse was good robbing Zadkovich. Then, in the 35th minute, he outsmarted Rudan and got in a cross from the goal line which was only just glanced wide by Reinaldo.
Rudan made a very decent tackle to stop Zullo and Moore finally got pulled up for his work on Bridges' back.
But in the 40th minute Bridges copped a yellow for retaliating against the disappearing heels of the niggling Ognenovski.
Andrew Packer got his yellow for chopping down Brosque.
David Beckham and his Galaxy mates were dragged out at half time so they could parade around the centre circle. There was no commentary while this happened and the American team looked nonplussed or bored. Perhaps wondering why they weren't having a kip back in their hotel rooms. Or perhaps they looked bored because they'd been watching the first half.
In the 46th minute a good ball through by Massimo Murdocca found Kruse who got in a cross from the goal line. Reinaldo shot. Probably into the back of a team mate who was falling, tangled with a Sydney defender on the edge of the goal box.
Ufuk Talay colliding with Rudan gave Queensland a break which was snuffed out by Fyfe in the type right corner of the Sydney penalty area.
Nevertheless, by this stage Bridges, Fyfe, Corica and Zdrilic all appeared to be having dud games. There were probably more, but these seemed the worst.
Zadkovich then whooped Murdocca's arse, Corica got the ball in the net but was easily offside, and Sydney were looking frustrated.
Moore floored Brosque and Corica and Bridges both had shooting chances in the Roar penalty area but didn't let fly.
In the 65th minute McKay was brought down ten metres outside the Sydney penalty area. Ognenovski had the shot, laid off by McKay, wide and high.
Moore was comfortable beating Brosque as Brosque chased a ball down the left. But Brosque then raced back to centre of the pitch, won the ball back, beat three Queenslanders on the way to the Roar penalty area, but again was stopped by Moore.
Milligan looked shot.
Moore was again too good for Brosque as the Sydney striker chased a long ball into the box.
When Juninho came on in the 75th minute the crowd was finally happy.
Sydney had some excitement in the Roar penalty area two minutes later, with Brosque crossing and Seo Hyuk-Su clearing.
Rudan stopped Marcinho, Roar shot and won a corner, and Simon Lynch lobbed a soft header to Clint Bolton.
Rudan was again good stopping Marcinho making a run into the Sydney penalty area, then, in the 83rd minute, Juninho hit a beautiful ball through for Brosque who again was brought down by Packer, earning his second yellow card and an early exit to the dressing rooms.
Talay put the free kick just over the crossbar and Stuart McLaren was good stopping Robbie Middleby making a run into the Roar penalty area.
But what a dire game!
John Kosmina and Brosque both denied it at the post match media conference, but the Sydney players seemed to have their minds on something else.
Queensland's Frank Farina thought his side had the better chances — and, apart from Sydney hitting the crossbar once, was probably correct.
He said it might not have been a pretty game to watch but his team worked hard, particularly in midfield. The onus was on Sydney to come at the visitors … if they wanted to.
"I'm sure they'll be disappointed they didn't do better," he said. "They are still five points behind us."
Kosmina thought Sydney controlled the game for long periods and that Queensland only got behind the otherwise solid Sydney defence once.
Brosque thought Sydney kept their shape well and went forward well; they just needed more work at the front. Kosmina agreed that Sydney probably were not as aware as they could have been in and around the penalty area.
He thought he made the right decision playing Zdrilic in midfield to help counter Queensland's mobility. He thought there was no need to take him off sooner. A lot of fans sitting around me and exchanging their critiques at the urinal afterwards didn't agree with him.