Brisbane Roar players deserve huge credit for seizing a place the A-League finals with a 3-1 victory over Sydney FC at Suncorp Stadium on Thursday night, according to coach Mike Mulvey.
Brisbane Roar players deserve huge credit for seizing a place the A-League finals with a 3-1 victory over Sydney FC at Suncorp Stadium on Thursday night, according to coach Mike Mulvey. Brisbane secured fifth spot in the table with the crucial win, and Mulvey says his side are now focused and ready for finals football.
Sydney must now wait for other results to go their way over the Easter weekend if they are to qualify for the finals series, a situation the Roar would have found themselves in had they failed to take three points from the clash.
Besart Berisha, Steven Lustica and Ivan Franjc all got on the scoresheet for the Roar, while Alessandro Del Piero slotted home a late penalty to save some of Sydney's blushes.
Mulvey said after the match he was greatly satisfied Brisbane had achieved finals qualification after what has been a season full of ups and downs.
"I'm very proud of the boys," he said.
"We've had our moments, but tonight is something they can take great credit for, the players, because they deserve it, and they've earned it.
"We've just been having a little chat in there, and we're focused now, we're ready."
When asked if Roar would claim a third straight A-League crown, Mulvey was optimistic.
"Certainly," he said.
However the Brisbane manager, who took over from Rado Vidosic in December last year, said his side still needs to improve.
"What we've shown is that we still have our fallibilities, we still have our moments where we don't keep to the structure and we don't keep to the game plan and that's when we invite opposition into the game.
"I thought that at 3-0 we should have just been keeping possession, just keeping the ball, because moments would have come because they would have had to try and press, and we didn't do it as well as I would have liked.
"To me that's a real positive, because that's something that I can drive home between now and the next game.
"What we don't want to do is start thinking that it's cigars and champagne, because it certainly isn't."
"The big thing that has returned now over the last number of weeks is focus.
"We're all focused, very focused and that gives me great confidence."