PS4 NPL Queensland Round 17 Review

A Harrison Sawyer hat-trick has kept Western Pride’s slim semi-finals chances alive with a 4-0 victory over Moreton Bay United in the latest round of PlayStation 4 NPL Queensland.

Sawyer stuns Jets

The result also puts a dent in the Jets top-four ambitions. The visitors would have jumped to fourth with a win but could now see themselves five points adrift of FNQ FC Heat by the end of the round.

Dylan Wenzel-Halls had the best chance of a scoreless opening half with Jordan Thurtell doing well to keep his effort out late in the first stanza.

The Jets didn’t manage a single shot on target throughout the 90 minutes as well as conceding 58% of the possession and the hosts’ dominance was evident when Hayden Mchenery pounced on a poor pass before providing the assist for Sawyer’s first goal.

Fourteen minutes later and the Pride were in dream land with a three-goal advantage as Sawyer converted from the penalty spot before Wenzel-Halls rocketed his first goal of the night past Thurtell two minutes later.

Sawyer then polished off his hat-trick, and the win, two minutes from stoppage time. The Pride could do the Jets a favour when they travel north to face the Heat next Saturday night while the Jets themselves need to bounce back away to Redlands United.

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Gold Coast stave off Redlands

A three-goal first-half has seen competition leaders Gold Coast City narrowly defeat a resolute Redlands United outfit 3-2 at Mallawa Complex on Saturday night.

Golden Boot leader Sam Smith opened the proceedings for City with a well-taken header to notch his 18th goal of the season.

City extended the leading margin in quick succession, Jarrod Kyle pounced on a parried Ben Lyvidikos shot at the back post to double the advantage, quickly followed by a Roman Hofmann curling strike that rounded off an opening thirty minutes dominated by City.

Redlands talisman Graham Fyfe toiled hard all match in the middle of the park for the Red Devils and was rewarded in added time of the first half, his free-kick clawing a goal back for his side before heading into the break.

Despite the brilliant performances of Nikola Mirkovic and Kyle, City failed to add to their goal tally in the second-half and a late header from Redlands substitute Stuart Edgar set up a tense finale for City who held on to claim all three points.

Gold Coast have now extended their gap at the top of the ladder to five points over chasers Brisbane Strikers and Brisbane Olympic, both sides yet to play in Round 17.

City will host Northern Fury in Round 18 whilst Redlands face Moreton Bay United on home turf to kick off the round next Friday night.

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Green brace lifts Fury

A Jarrod Green brace has capped off a 3-0 win for Northern Fury which sees them move clear of the bottom four.

In a contest that had little bearing on the makeup of this year’s semi-finals, the Fury consigned the Thunder to their 11th defeat of the season, opening up a six-point gap in the process.

The visitors dominated possession in the first half and made it count when Nick Figg converted on 20 minutes. Figg’s strike was the only goal of the second half, but the hosts didn’t have to wait long after the restart to have their second.

Jarrod Green took advantage of the Thunder’s inability to clear their lines, poking him from close range to give his side some breathing space.

It was a two-goal buffer they maintained until Green found the net on the cusp of stoppage time, rounding off a comfortable home victory.

Both sides have their work cut out for them next round. The Thunder remain at home and welcome the Strikers while the Fury hit the road again to play Gold Coast City.

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City overcome 10-man Roar

Brisbane City has comfortably defeated Brisbane Roar Youth 3-0 on Saturday night to claim a vital three points towards the brewing battle for fourth spot.

Owain Thomas and Sam Sibatuara were the goal scorers for City, both scoring in back-to-back matches, to lead City over Young Roar at AJ Kelly Park.

Thomas latched onto a rebound following a Tomislav Bilic save to put City in front late in the opening half.

A 59th minute second yellow to Daniel Driver resulted in an early shower and proved pivotal as free-kick specialist Sibatuara immediately punished the young Roar with a curling effort to give City a two goal buffer.

A man of the match performance from Sibatuara was capped off with a long-range strike to assure City of the away win, in an impressive rebound performance from the previous loss to Western Pride.

City host Brisbane Olympic in a much-anticipated top four clash in Round 18, the result sure to have major ramifications on all fronts of the PlayStation 4 NPL Queensland season, Roar Youth will look to end a six-game losing run when they host Sunshine Coast.

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Strikers clinical away from home

Brisbane Strikers were clinical in their delivery and finishing, overpowering Sunshine Coast FC by five goals. 

This Sunday afternoon fixture saw the Strikers visit the Sunshine Coast Stadium seeking a third consecutive win, a win that would be important in order to maintain the two-point gap from league leaders Gold Coast City. 

Jeremy Stewart was fantastic for the visitors, his finishing ability and positioning of crosses were highlighted today, ending his match on a hat-trick. 

The five goals picked up in this match will give the Strikers players plenty of confidence, with both Greig Henslee and Luke Marsh scoring their second goals of the season. 

Sunshine Coast, who remain winless in the PlayStation4 NPL weren’t without chances however, Shoichi Koshimizu was one of the better players for the Fire, but was denied twice by strikers keeper, Finn Matheson. 

Next week's fixture is another away game for the Strikers, traveling to Clive Berghofer Stadium to meet with the SWQ Thunder. Sunshine Coast will also be away next week, hoping to pick up points against tenth-placed Brisbane Roar Youth.

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