http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news_rss.asp Allinta CMS V2.4 - www.allinta.com http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n1 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n1 The last start loss to Mitchelton was a blow which sat us on our backsides. This week against North Pine we must leave that disappointment behind and concentrate on giving a good account of ourselves.We will be going into the fray without the services of GUTTORMSEN; KUYPER; and AUSTEN, and whilst these guys will be missed I know that their replacements will give their all to the team in an effort to get us back on winning ways. Injuries are part and parcel of the game and as many coaches will agree, success in the Premier League is largely dependant on good "Squads" and players who understand the importance that they play in the "Squad". Taringa Rovers this season have had to endure the loss of key players on a regular basis and most certainly this has had an effect on our season. I think you will find that other clubs will be experiencing similar issues so I am not one to dwell on misfortune.North Pine beat us 3-0 at Jack Speare Park in the first half of the season. Many will recall the LACEY send off which left us competing with 10 men for 40 of the 45 minutes of the second half. North Pine only scored their second and third goals near the end when we threw players forward and took risks and gambled in an effort to get something from the game. The 3-0 scoreline was not a true refelection of the game and this week we have an opportunity to set the record straight and get revenge in football terms.Two points seperate us from North Pine on the league ladder so a win here will see us leap frog the Gorillas. The players are anxious to get back in the winners circle and I have no doubt that they will give all they have in an effort to reward our loyal supporters. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n2 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n2 Mitchelton have been threatening to get their first win of the season for some time now. certainly after their performance against North Pine last week a win was just around the corner. I just wish it was not against my side. We had the better of the first half and to be honest I thought we were cruising and never looked like losing the game. After we opened the scoring through good lead up play and fancy footwork by Brad Lacey who dribbled past three defenders in the box before slotting home, we created a number of other chances but failed to take the opportunities that would have sewn up the match.At the break I asked my players to keep the ball and go out and play as if they were one down. I needed them to concentrate and play with an urgency that normally comes when a team is one nil down.As it turned out that is what Mitchelton did they played with that urgency that I asked of my team, and after we missed a number of one on one's through some good movement Mitchelton started to get back into the game, and in the end deserved their win.Their second goal came out of a nothing ball which we attempted to play out and a bad bounce similar to a Shane Warne googly embarrassed our defender who missed the ball completely and Richard IWAI was there to take the simplest of goals and drive a dagger into my heart!It is at times like this where one sinks to the lowest ebb and wonders where things went wrong. I know my lads gave it their best shot and they are as devasted about this result as I am, but in the end Mitchelton deserved their win and I will need to go back to the drawing board and prepare for North Pine next week.There are simply no excuses. Well done to Mitchelton one has to admire their courage and committment to their cause and I know that my players and I will take a leaf out of their book of courage and try to emulate them in the coming weeks. Wed, 02 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n3 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n3 This match will without any question be one of our most challenging if not the most challenging for a number of reasons, not the least the fact that aside from playing well against North Pine last week Mitchelton may think that they have nothing to lose and throw caution to the wind. Teams that do that are very dangerous. Be it at our peril if we took this game lightly!Of note in this match is the recent signing we made when we brought Goalkeeper Rhys EVANS to Jack Speare Park two weeks ago. EVANS played for Mitchelton this season and I would expect a little bit of spice in the action this evening as a result. Other ex-Mitchelton players at our club include KUYPER; PASE; and NITSCHKE.Mitchelton have been very competitive this season despite their standing on the league ladder. They have been involved in some high scoring affairs having scored against every team except for Taringa, and the Strikers. We would do well to keep them scoreless tonight.Last week I watched them take on North Pine and I can honestly say that they should have probably won the game. I was impressed with the Scottish lad #13 at the back Richard DAVIDSON. He hails from Buckie Thistle in the Scottish Highland League. DAVIDSON organised the backline very well. I have it on good authority that the two English lads Korey  and Kyle NIX and John HEDGE left our shores last week and they will be missed by Mitchelton. The two lads up front were very quick and caused no end of trouble to North Pines defenders. I understand that they too may have returned to Vanuatu. All that said I am expecting a very difficult encounter tonight and one that we must win! Fri, 27 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n4 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n4 This is a match that the lads have been looking forward to ever since the drubbing that the Strikers handed us early in the season. In preparing for this match I went to my notes and realised that it was difficult to determine or even attempt to predict a Strikers probable line up because I do not know who the five players involved in the up and down rule in the QSL.Regardless of who plays, the Strikers have quality all over the Park. One thing is for sure, and that is I expect a much improved effort from my lads and with both teams line ups likely to be very different than when we last met, this encounter will be a lot closer than what many pundits are predicting.Absent from the team that took to the field against The Strikers on the 15th of March this year will be: B.KILDEY; R.LOVE; R.KAMO; S.FENN; N.McCARTHY; AJ JOHNSON;  Missing also due to suspension is the only ever present player for us this season,Jamie AUSTEN.The likes of GUTTORMSEN; KUYPER; STEVENSON; and debutant Goalkeeper Rhys EVANS, in addition to Brad LACEY, Ian KEEN; David THOMAS, and Josh PURTON will provide us with a totally different approach this time around. Michael BROWN will join regular defenders BENNETT; HANSEN; and SHEPHERD and these lads are all keen to get revenge for their team mates who are absent for this match.The Strikers have won just two of their games on the road and on both occasions they were taken to the wire by North Pine and Mt Gravatt respectively and one goal was the difference in both games. We have no doubts that we will be in for a torrid afternoon, but our form has been on the up and certainly against the teams leading the competition we have given a good account of ourselves. We are steadily learning to keep our composure and we continue to work on our ball security. Considering we are a brand new team our progress has been steady and we are starting to get it together at the right time of the season. As we have maintained all season it is not how one starts its how one finishes!RegardsJoe Fenech Fri, 20 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n5 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n5 We have played much better football and come up empty handed in a number of games this season, but despite that we most certainly deserved the three points tonight. Goals to Nick KUYPER in the 47th minute, and David THOMAS in the 76th minute were sufficient to secure us the points, but the last fifteen minutes made for an exciting finish if you were a spectator.We lost goalkeeper Sohi SHOJAEI to a suspected broken leg after a 50-50 ball resulted in a tackle which saw the brave SHOJAEI having to be carried off the field, and taken to Hospital. We had the only ever present player this season sent off in the 90th minute for swearing apparently, and whilst I do not condone this behaviour, consistency in policing has to improve. I will bet anyone London to a brick that both sides were guilty of such behaviour. This red card stemmed from a poor decision by the Referee who elected to over-ride his assistant who had flagged for an infringement on the far side line directly adjacent to the South’s 18 yard box. Now for many that know me I am one who always respects the men in the middle as they too are only human and I for one could not do the job justice, however, I always accept responsibility for my actions and tonight I am prepared to accept any repercussion that comes my way for what I am about to say. The indecision by Mr BEATH cost my team a clean sheet, and one of my key players an undeserved red card! I felt that in the main we were always in control of the game, but once again we seemed to sit much deeper than I would like after we scored our first goal. I was ever so pleased that Nick KUYPER managed the full 90 minutes after such a long absence with injury, and his performance whilst of a very high standard can still be improved and I know that Nick will agree with that knowing how high a standard he sets upon himself. Defensively we again did a good job only to again let in a soft goal, again in a goalmouth scramble! The most upsetting was the fact that Souths pulled one back with just minutes remaining just as they did to get a point off us at Wakerly Park.We had some good passages of play, but at times we made some fundamental mistakes and gave the ball away through poor decision making. To their credit the lads dug deep and fought hard for everything. We created numerous opportunities and striker Ian KEEN got himself in a number of scoring positions and perhaps should have finished a one on one with the South’s custodian just moments after the half time interval. KEEN’s pace will trouble many a defence in the coming weeks.I should be pleased with the three points and naturally I am, but I feel cheated for my boys that they did not keep a clean sheet. We must learn to keep up the concentration and accept that even Referee’s make mistakes! Sun, 15 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n6 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n6 South’s United have indeed been getting their supporters excited this season, and rightly so with the brand of football that they have been playing. If people were somewhat surprised about their form earlier in the season, those same people would be eating humble pie now because the lads from Runcorn have earned everyone’s respect on the back of a very solid first half of the season. That said I do not subscribe to the opinion of many that a win for Taringa Rovers in this fixture will be an upset.Only a few weeks ago we went to Wakerley Park at Runcorn and lead 1-0 until very late in the game, when South’s salvaged a point after a goalmouth scramble was won by the home side. The concluding minutes saw us miss two golden opportunities to get all three points. All that is gone and this time around we will need to be much more clinical as we search for our first home win of the season.Only a few points separate second bottom and fifth place on the league ladder, and one win could see a team leapfrog three or four teams. The season is far from over and that fourth place is very much still up for grabs. The lads have been very focussed especially after a below par performance in the Premier Cup last weekend at Brisbane City. I expect a very bold showing in this fixture and certainly South’s United will know that they have been in a football match.With the exception of the Strikers match early in the season, and the Cup exit against City last weekend we have actually played some very good football. Any side that takes our standing on the ladder as an indication of our performances this season will be in for a surprise.Joe Fenech Thu, 12 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n7 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n7 A goal in the 78th minute by City’s Anthony PAOLINO was enough to send Brisbane City through to the last eight in the Cup and deservedly so. We were awarded a penalty about five minutes from full time and Brad LACEY despite his very well placed shot was denied by a great save by City keeper Luke BOREAN.In recent weeks I have bemoaned the fact that we have played well and lost, but tonight we were simply well below par and at times disjointed particularly in the final third. All credit has to go to Brisbane City who fielded very few of their first team regulars and the young lads stepped up and did their club proud. They simply did not let us play.I could count on one hand the number of shots we had on goal, and when one supporter yelled out that we needed some shooting practice at training I had to acknowledge him with a nod of agreeance. Little did he know that we did indeed do plenty of work on our play in the final third leading up to this game. You would not have seen any evidence of it tonight that was for sure.The quick passing game deserted us and on very few occasions did we manage to put together a series of passes that culminated in any meaningful effort on goal.At times we were not anticipating passes and all too often we were caught waiting for the ball and even worse we were often guilty of ball watching. The number of times we coughed up possession was disgraceful, and indeed embarrassing.Much like our earlier encounter with the citizens this season we conceded a goal immediately after we had an attempt on goal which we felt ended up in a corner in our favour. The referee’s assistant pointed to the corner but the referee waved play on and three passes later we were collecting the ball from our net.Frankly we could not play any worse if we tried, and certainly from here the only way left is up. That is not to say that we lost the game rather than City winning it. Neither side set the stadium alight with any magic football. The Metro Cup game played immediately prior to ours was much more entertaining and I am sure the City fans will concur. Most certainly City deserved their win!My players were naturally disappointed with the result, but you reap what you sow and we simply could not expect a harvest when we did not plant anything!As for the penalty, to those that say Brad LACEY missed it I say Brad took a very good penalty and all the credit has to go to Luke BOREAN who pulled off a magnificent save. Tom GUTTORMSEN also had his effort from the rebound saved. It is a real shame how despite being on a hiding to nothing in a penalty situation, goalkeepers do not get the credit they deserve for such feats.I did not have to say much to the lads after the game. They all know that collectively they were very poor, and whilst the Cup exit is disappointing, it is not the end of the world and we go back to work on Tuesday and Thursday when we prepare for the visit of South’s United in the league on Saturday evening.  Sun, 08 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n8 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n8 When we play to our potential we have a capacity to play a high pressing game in an effort to win possession deep into our opponents half. We have also been working on becoming adept to closing down space by defending deep and not allowing our opponents to get in behind.Brisbane City defenders are strong in the air, but at times they have lacked the pace against the quicker forwards. Their midfielders do not like having to chase balls over the top and being turned around. This was the case in point when City lost their only game at Spencer Park this season against Pine Rivers. Only Olympic and ourselves have failed to score against City at Spencer Park, but I suspect that my lads will want to address that on Saturday evening. We all felt that our 2-0 loss in the league earlier this season was not indicative of the game we played and certainly we will be out to avenge that loss and advance into the last eight of the Cup.Our quick passing game is still not where I would like it to be, but we are improving steadily. We continue to work hard on keeping possession for longer periods, and we must become more aggressive, yet controlled. I do not intend to have my side soak up pressure and hit City on the counter, infact to the contrary I will be instructing my lads to take to the City boys from the onset and maintain that pressure throughout.I will continue to coach attractive football, and despite being beaten by some long ball merchants this season the lads know that there is no substitute for playing out from the back and through the midfield. I know Browny at City is also an exponent of the free flowing game so I expect this fixture to be action packed and certainly one for the spectators.        The team that I have selected is geared at getting the ball in the opponents defensive third  as quickly as possible. In FORSHAW (David) and PURTON we have a balance of speed and know how, and both will be working the channels of City’s 4-4-2. Off the bench we have one of the quickest lads in the league in Ian KEEN who may well make his debut for Taringa in this game.Wide out we have STEVENSON and FURUIE who are both capable of much creativity and they in turn will be supported by speedy full backs in THOMAS and HANSEN who have been given license to get forward. In the middle of midfield we have a great combination in LACEY and GUTTORMSEN. The Spencer Park surface will allow for good football through quick passing and whilst my lads and I understand how difficult a task it will be we are focused on a good showing and a reversal of our fortunes thus far this season. Fri, 06 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n9 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n9 The referee’s match report will show that Power won the game 2-1 and so will the media reports and of course the league ladder will reflect that also. It is never easy when one loses, but it is very difficult to take when the score does not reflect the effort shown by my lads tonight.We played very good football and you need not take my word for it. I am certain that Terry Kirkham and his lads will have known that they were in a football match.We started off very well and probably had the best of the opening 20 minutes, and deservedly took the lead after great work down the right flank by Kieta FURUIE who delivered a perfect cross to Josh PURTON who calmly slotted past the Power custodian. Once we went ahead we seemed to become too cautious and started to sit deep. This was a combination of Power coming out to get the equaliser and us not being smart enough in possession.  Just some 10 minutes prior to the interval Power played a long and hopeful ball from their left high over and across our back four. As the ball floated Sohi SHOJAEI left his line in an effort to collect was appeared to be a harmless cross. He was beaten to the ball by the flight and Power chipped a ball across the face of our six yard box where it was met by Powers Andrew BUTLER who volleyed into the roof of the net with SHOJAEI getting his fingertips to the effort. At half time we discussed the importance of closing our opponents down quicker, and how we needed to play higher up the park. We also needed our midfield to drop to pick up any clearances from our backline, and most importantly how we needed to show Power inside and not let them get wide and deliver crosses to their tall timber up front.The second half started much like the first half with us edging it in the first fifteen minutes or so. We created a number of opportunities through rehearsed training ground drills and we were unlucky a number of times when quick one two’s on the edge of the box were denied by desperate defence. In one instance Tom GUTTORMSEN played a delightful one-two with Brad LACEY and was very unlucky not to score when the Power keeper did what he should do and deny GUTTORMSEN the opportunity to put us ahead.GUTTORMSEN was again denied the opportunity to put us in front only this time by the Referee. GUTTORMSEN dribbled around some defenders and was brought down in the box. The Power defenders’ had already resigned themselves to the penalty, but to everyone’s amazement play was waved on. Only two weeks ago in the same spot we conceded a penalty for a shoulder to shoulder barge against Rochedale only 5 minutes into the game. Power had their chances also and from a free kick some 25 yards out from our box Steve FORSHAW struck a delightful free kick as only he can, and luckily for us his effort struck the crossbar.Just ten minutes from time we gave away a needless corner, and from that same corner one of our defenders failed to track his man and once again we failed to clear our six yard box and allowed a diving header at our near post to prevent us from at least a point for our efforts.The final ten minutes we threw everything at Power but all to no avail. The lads were naturally gutted by the result and I certainly felt that their efforts did not reflect the score, but it’s goals that count and as much as it is nice to be complimented by your opponents week in week out for the brand of football your team plays it is of little comfort when you do not collect points.I said in the match day programme that I would be over the moon if we were to collect points against a table topping side like Power. In the end I felt a little cheated that we did not get at least a point for our display. All that said lets not take anything away from Power they are not sitting in second place on the ladder by accident!Joe FenechTaringa Rovers  Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n10 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n10 When the 2008 season kicked off our first opponents for the season were Peninsula Power. I said then that getting a point at Power would be great, and we managed a 2-2 draw. This weekend we host “The Power” and we are very proud to say that we have been the only team to take any points off them at their place.  Not too many people at the beginning of the season would have predicted that Peninsula Power would be flying high and sitting comfortably in second place on the league ladder at the halfway mark. Well, Terry Kirkham has them playing an exciting brand of football. The off season recruiting and indeed the arrival of Royce Brownlie will further enhance that brand of football as the season progresses and players continue to read each other. If I was pleased to get a point at Redcliffe in the first round I will be over the moon to get anything today considering both teams’ standing on the league ladder. Having said that our lads trained well and are prepared to give the power a run for their money of that I have no doubt.We have a dedicated group of players who give their all every time they represent the club and tonight will be no different.  One of a few that will be missing from our line-up tonight is David Forshaw brother of Powers Steve Forshaw. David is Best Man at a wedding and will miss this clash. It would have been interesting watching Power’s Steve Forshaw (Defender) trying to keep out his brother David (Forward).Please make welcome everybody from Peninsula Power and cheer good football regardless of who plays it. Let’s all make football the winner through good sportsmanship, and may the best team on the night get rewarded accordingly.RegardsJoe FenechHead CoachTaringa Rovers F.C. Fri, 30 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n11 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n11 In what appeared to be a rehearsed move Brisbane FC secured a 1-0 win in the 75th minute when we failed to clear a long throw in which fell at the feet of Cadeau AOCI who tapped in after a headed nod on fell in our six yard box.AOCI was a handful particularly in the first half when he was getting the better of our right back with his turn of speed. We did not keep possession as well as I would have liked and at times gave the ball away cheaply. We did however at times play some attractive stuff and tried to play out from the back and through the midfield. It got frustrating when we kept getting turned around when the Wolves defenders played direct balls into their speedsters up front. We created some chances and twice hit the opponent’s side netting from efforts down the right channel. Wolves too had their opportunities two of which came from a few careless pass backs from us which AOCI was onto in a flash every time.  The game developed into an arm wrestle where just as one team appeared to get the upper hand the other would counter and this went on throughout the first half.At the break we discussed the importance of being patient on the ball, and decided to be a little more direct in looking for LACEY, and PURTON our two front runners. The second stanza saw us going forward a little better mainly because our two central midfielders were running onto the ball as opposed to coming back to collect from our back four. Whilst this is not the type of football I prescribe to, it was what was needed in an effort to break the deadlock. Unfortunately there were a number of occasions when our efforts were foiled immediately prior to our forwards pulling the trigger in front of goal.Fifteen minutes into the second half, we took off defender Michael BROWN and brought on an attacking player Keita FURUIE. He had an immediate impact and was given licence to take on the Wolves left back. FURUIE created a number of chances for himself but at times should have been a little greedier and have a go at goal himself rather than lay it off.In the 75th minute Wolves, for about the fifth time attempted what appeared to be a training ground move from a long throw in. We were caught ball watching, as direct from the throw the ball was headed on and fell in our six yard box where AOCI could not miss and duly put the Wolves ahead. It was a devastating blow and with fifteen minutes remaining we found ourselves having to take more and more risks in an effort to save the game.We took off another defender in Daniel SHEPHERD and put on Jeremy GOMEZ up front. We pushed Tom GUTTORMSEN up and made it a three man front line with LACEY making up the trio. PURTON was now dropped into the centre of midfield alongside the hard working STEVENSON and made it a 3-4-3 formation. This almost worked when LACEY was put through and after getting the cruellest of bounces failed to connect. He followed through but his shot was saved by Wolves custodian Ben WICKS.With just five minutes remaining, we substituted the injured THOMAS and put on Adrian NITSCHKE a big strong and tall centre back and asked him to play up front and get on the end of balls played high into the box. The formation was now 2-4-4 and in the dying moments a very unconventional 2-3-5 in an effort to get the equaliser.It was not meant to be and as the final whistle blew I felt for my lads who probably deserved a little better luck. In saying that this game could have gone either way and I most certainly cannot fault my lads for their effort and I know that they will bounce back next week against Peninsula Power.Sam SAIF; Paul EDWARDS, Alan HUNTER and their players were most humble in their victory and I would like to think that they will have felt that they were in a game of football.Joe Fenech Sun, 25 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n12 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n12 Brisbane F.C. Wolves are in my opinion by far and away the most underrated team in the Brisbane Premier League. They have lost just once at home and then it was in a close one against Mt Gravatt in an epic which ended in a 3-4 score line. On the road they have won just the once and that was last weekend at North Pine in what by all accounts was a comfortable victory. Most of their games have gone to the wire and in many they were deemed unlucky not to win the matches.With players the calibre of AOCI; FALLINI; ISAAC; CLULOW; DAVIDSON; ROWLEY; and HUDSON to name just a few that immediately come to mind is it any wonder that the Brisbane F.C. Wolves have made Carmichael park a fortress this season. In Sam SAIF the Wolves have a coach who is meticulous in his preparation and with the players at his disposal the Wolves must be one of the favourites to make a bid for a top four placing this season.Wolves are ahead of us on the league ladder by virtue of a superior goal difference, and with four teams sitting on 12 points a win here will propel one or two teams to within 2 points of a top four spot. Pine Rivers and Brisbane City are the other two teams on 12 points and with Pine Rivers travelling to league leaders Rochedale, and Brisbane City hosting the Strikers, both Wolves and us will be going out to get all three points on offer in this one.Tom GUTTORMSEN will return for us after a one week suspension for accumulating 4 yellow cards, but we lose Alistair PASE out due to an injury he sustained last week against Rochedale. Michael BROWN comes in at right back, and Schon HANSEN will start in the wide right midfield position.We have had a terrible start to the season to date due to injuries to key players, some injuries were season ending unfortunately, but it is not how one starts the season, it’s how one finishes it, and we are keen to begin the second half of the season on the back of a good performance this weekend at Brisbane F.C. Wolves.Joe FenechTaringa Rovers F.C. Thu, 22 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n13 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n13 For Those that were not present at the game a 3-0 win for the Rovers from Rochedale may seem a comprehensive victory, and as score lines go no one can deny that 3-0 is comfortable, but……In the 7th minute the Referee Mr Dean O’Hara surprised just about everyone at the ground when he awarded a penalty to Rochedale after what appeared a shoulder to shoulder barge in our penalty area. Terry HUGHES stepped up to the spot and made no mistake ensuring that Sohi SHOJAEI collected the ball from the net for the match to restart from the centre.  We carried on despite the set back and played some good phases, and kept the shape and stuck to the match plan. At times we appeared a little too anxious in our efforts to get the equaliser and a little lapse on our left side did not need any invitation for Rochedale to score their second in the 34th minute. A ball was driven into our box and not unlike the goal we let in midweek against South’s it was a little bit of a goal mouth scramble where Scott SARGENT got on the end of the gift for Rochedale’s second.At this point many may have thought that the blow out in the score from the Reserve team match was about to repeat itself, instead the boys continued to play some good passing football and in the 37th minute we were unlucky not to pull one back when Alistair PASE let fly a shot which struck Mario APARICIO’s left upright with him well and truly beaten. The rebound did not fall kindly and was cleared by Rochedale defenders.At half time we discussed our situation and made some tactical changes and two substitutions. We replaced Alistair PASE with Keita FURUIE wide out on the right, and replaced Clayton MACKENZIE-ROSS with Obed MENSAH up front. We had played fairly well in the first half, and I did not think that we were outplayed. We now had to chase the game and the changes we made had the desired effect.Just moments after the restart, KUYPER played a great delivery over the Rochedale midfield and into the left channel for David THOMAS, who controlled the ball well and got behind his marker to deliver a great ball into the middle. This set the tone and we made our intentions clear.Just moments later in the 46th minute after some good interplay between KUYPER and STEVENSON, LACEY was put clean through and found himself in a 1v1 with the Rochedale keeper Mario APARICIO. Normally that would have been a goal, but LACEY’s placed shot hit the upright and the rebound was poorly finished.We continued to press forward and we created a number of opportunities, and again played some good football. Now it could be said that Rochedale took their foot off the pedal, but certainly we played and went forward and with 25 minutes to go we took off a defender and threw more players forward in an effort to get something from the game. Try as hard as the boys did we were not able to break down Rochedale.At the end of the day, the papers will show Taringa 0 vs Rochedale 3 and if you were not there you may not be as kind to us as perhaps you would have been had you been there. As I have said on many occasions before, it matters not how well one plays if that effort does not translate into goals. The boys and I are looking forward to the re-match in the second round of the season. Tue, 20 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n14 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n14 The battle of “The Rovers” is always a much anticipated fixture on the BPL calendar, and this season will be no different. The Rovers from Rochedale remain the only unbeaten side in the Premier League and they lead the race for the championship mainly because they have a very tight defence. They have let in just 7 goals in 9 matches. Surprisingly, they have conceded goals on the road to Mitchelton, and Wolves, and both those games were very close results a 1-2 win against Mitchelton, and a 2-2 draw at Wolves.Rochedale managed to retain almost all of their squad from the previous season and this must be a huge advantage hence their “Favourites” tag to retain the Championship. In this afternoon’s match they will be “Overwhelming” favourites to get all three points. I see one of Rochedale’s strength’s as their passing game, and we will have to be very compact in our shape and must defend narrow and deep if we are to contain this formidable side.Kieran COOPER and Tim BROWN are arguably the most experienced BPL coaches and most certainly have the runs on the board. What Kieran has built at Rochedale is the envy of most clubs and Kieran and his coaching staff deserve every accolade that they get having built success from the brink of relegation just a few years ago.Here at Taringa we pride ourselves on being well prepared for matches but try as we did it is always a huge task to prepare for Rochedale. They have exceptional players all over the park and finding weaknesses in their formation was simply impossible. Nevertheless, our boys always rise to the occasion and are looking forward to test themselves against what many consider the benchmark in Brisbane Football.  We are coming into this game on the back of a five game unbeaten run and the lads are keen on maintaining that run.Unfortunately we lose Tom GUTTORMSEN through suspension for this match, but we welcome back  #4 Adam BENNETT, #13 Alistair PASE, and  #6 David THOMAS.Everyone hold on to your seats this game promises to be full of excitement and I have no doubt that the players will provide you all with much entertainment.Joe Fenech Thu, 15 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n15 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n15 Michael ROONEY scored for South’s in the 75th minute to cancel out a Nicky KUYPER header in the 6th minute of the game. It was not a score line that either side will be happy about, but I guess one point is better than none at all.The evening started with a mini crisis, with our reserve goalkeeper Duncan SHORT, and our back up forward Obed MENSAH failing to make it to the game. Only minutes prior to kick off Alistair PASE was ruled out with a toe injury, and was replaced with Josh PURTON. We were already behind the eight ball having been without centre back Adam BENNETT who was serving a one match suspension, and David THOMAS who was out injured. We got off to a flying start when a succession of one touch passes culminated with the ball coming to rest in the South’s net. It was very attractive football. Keita FURUIE received the ball wide on our right flank about halfway down the pitch. He played the ball inside to Brad LACEY who knocked back to FURUIE in a perfectly executed wall pass. FURUIE looked up and chipped a delicate pass into the path of the advancing Nick KUYPER who headed the ball over the approaching Kieran GONZALEZ the South’s keeper to open the scoring.Just five minutes later KUYPER was put clean through by GUTTORMSEN but his first touch was a tad too strong and the he was forced wide by the South’s custodian. Still KUYPER managed to get the ball to FURUIE who forced a save from GONZALEZ.It was not until the 20th minute that South’s got their first opportunity but Sohi SHOJAEI saved well. The next 25 minutes saw the ball going end to end with both teams tending to give away possession and on many occasions through unforced errors. KUYPER was awarded a yellow card for a mistimed tackle and whilst we created a few opportunities to add to the score we went to the break one to the good.I was not too pleased with our fluency and the fact that we seemed nervous on the ball. The pitch was in tip top condition and there was no reason for our constant coughing up of the ball. I felt that South’s had not really threatened our goal on too many occasions and certainly Sohi SHOJAEI was not tested. We were determined to go out hard early in the second stanza in an effort to get the buffer of a second goal. We started very well and actually created opportunities and probably had the better of the first ten minutes or so of the second half. We wanted to be a little more adventurous, but at the same time did not want to take undue risks. I expected that as the clock ticked on South’s would commit more men forward to get the equaliser. We made some adjustments to compensate and as they came forward we were hitting them on the counter and looked dangerous.In the 72nd minute we rested KUYPER who was running out of legs having been out injured for a lengthy period, and replaced him with young Clayton MACKENZIE-ROSS. He was instructed to put pressure on the South’s back line and try not to let them play the ball out. He did this well.Just three minutes after the substitution a goal mouth scramble for the ball in our box and a mix up between defenders denied us our second clean sheet of the season. The ball fell to South’s Michael ROONEY and we were now in for a very nervous last fifteen minutes.We shuffled the formation in an effort to go for the winner, but our bench was limited to one defender. We took the hard working but tiring Josh PURTON off and replaced him with Adrian NITSCHKE a young 18 year old centre back with a great temperament. We pushed Michael BROWN out to right back and pushed Schon HANSEN to right midfield.In the 85th minute Tom GUTTORMSEN put through Clayton MACKENZIE-ROSS who was denied in a one on one against South’s keeper GONZALEZ . Three minutes into added on time MACKENZIE-ROSS again found himself in a one on one and an opportunity to make a hero out of himself and net the winner, but again GONZALEZ  was there to deny the youngster his moment of glory.It was pleasing to see South’s Liam COSTA on the park he is a delightful player who I have regarded very highly for some time now, certainly since his time with me at Rocklea United.Kieran GONZALEZ was South’s “Man of The Match” in my eyes and I think that reflects the way I saw the game. In the end football is about getting the ball in the net and despite the many opportunities that we created we failed to convert and missed a great opportunity to go to 5th place on the ladder.It was disappointing to see Referee Alan MILLINER award Tom GUTTORMSEN a yellow card for what appeared to be a nothing tackle, but then again who would want to be a Referee! GUTTORMSEN now misses our next game against Rochedale, and this will be a little bit of a blow for us.All in all I thought we were taking more risks and with a little luck we could have snatched all three points but 1-1 whilst not particularly pleasing to either team was a fair result.Joe Fenech  Thu, 15 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n16 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n16 Goals to LACEY; KUYPER (2); and GUTTORMSEN were merely the icing on the cake in our 4-1 victory at Goodwin Park this afternoon. Having started the season depleted by injuries and the loss of a number of players who went about looking for greener pastures, this win was as good as they come. This win is down to not only the 14 players that took part in it but to the entire squad of players who dug deep and worked very hard to keep us in the hunt this season.  Most certainly we are not about to get carried away, the season is not quite half way through yet and this coming Wednesday we have a very important match against Souths, followed by a real challenge against Rochedale.This afternoon we played some very attractive football and it was pleasing to see the improvement in our movement off the ball, and more importantly by how we went about our task. We were patient, and calculating, and then later clinical.The first half I thought that we controlled large parts of the game, and on very few occasions were we in much danger of going behind. As the half time break approached I thought we were getting a little anxious at not converting all our possession into goals, and we discussed that during the break.15 minutes into the second stanza we introduced Nick KUYPER who has been a long term absentee due to injury. He replaced the very talented Clayton MACKENZIE-ROSS who was terrific and applied much pressure to the Olympic defence with his quick runs and even quicker closing down and defensive efforts from the front. MACKENZIE-ROSS’s work in the first half of the match laid the foundations for our win.Just three minutes after the re-start David THOMAS won a ball wide out on the left and went on a run where he beat two defenders, before drawing out Olympic’s central defenders before floating a very intelligent pass to the opposite flank where Brad LACEY brought the ball down and as cool as you like it opened the score slotting the ball past Olympic custodian Ricky KRUGER.In the 60th minute KUYPER replaced the hard working MACKENZIE-ROSS, and soon made an impact when he turned his marker inside out and struck a delightful drive which appeared to come to rest in the net. The crowd cheered and our bench all went up in unison, alas, it was not to be the shot had actually struck the safety net at the back of the goal. It did not take too much longer before KUYPER got his name on the score sheet. In fact just five minutes after his introduction, he followed through a shot from David THOMAS. Ricky KRUGER saved well from THOMAS, but only managed to parry the ball into the path of KEEPER who set an example to all strikers, by being there for the simplest of touches.Just ten minutes later after a very good run wide out on the right, Alistair PASE played an inch perfect cross to find KUYPER at the end of it . KUYPER did not need any invitation to get his second goal. What a way to make a return from a lengthy injury absence.In the 85th minute the hard working and instrumental Tom GUTTORMSEN got a most deserved goal after great lead up work by KUYPER who won a ball in the centre circle and ran at the Olympic defence before releasing GUTTORMSEN who does not often miss from that range.Our back four were tremendous and worked the ball out from the back very well. Schon HANSEN continues to impress and in the mid field John STEVENSON played his usual reliable game.Olympic scored a consolation goal in between our third and fourth goals and as often happens the goal was scored by Ex-Taringa player Blake TROY.The win moves us up the ladder a few places and provides us with a launching pad in our efforts to achieve our objectives for the first half of the season.Joe Fenech Mon, 12 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n17 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n17 I think that many clubs in Brisbane actually look forward to going to Goodwin Park to face Olympic. Why? I think it is because the atmosphere that their supporters generate, I think it’s because of the souvlaki that they make, I think it’s because of the sense of occasion. Then there is the football that they play. David Large has been in a very tough situation because he has had to build a team from scratch really. I mean with the clubs involvement in the QSL and all the debate about the legality of players playing in both competitions and whether Olympic complies with the regulations or not must make things difficult when selecting a side to compete in the Brisbane Premier League. All things considered David Large has done a tremendous job under conditions that many other coaches would consider too tough an assignment.I would like to think that coaches go about trying to study and research their opponents prior to facing them in fixtures. I certainly try to watch as many games as I can, and whilst I admit to having observed Olympic a few times, it has been difficult to determine a likely Olympic starting eleven, and as such I see the first fifteen minutes of this Sunday’s clash as most important. I will be looking at Olympics formation, style of play (that they may have selected to play us in particular) their man marking, changes of tempo, division of labour, stages of play and their most influential players.There are a number of players that I am expecting to turn out for Olympic and without any exception they are all classy players. In Goal keeper Ricky KRUGER they have a pair of very safe hands. I personally rate Ricky very highly. I expect Alex BATTLE to start and he too is very highly regarded. Jon GOUPIS, and Smilan JANKOVIC will cause any team a headache. In Jon SAN MARTIN they have an excellent striker who given half a chance will hurt any team at any level, and then put him alongside speedster Ian KEEN and they have a potent strike force. I was surprised a few weeks ago to see Aaron MacALLISTER on the bench for the BPL side, and I came to the conclusion that he must have been returning from injury and awaiting a recall into the Olympic QSL side. MacALLISTER is another who I rate very highly and he will be a handful if he turns out for the BPL side on Sunday. There will be much interest to see if two ex-Taringa boys turn out for Olympic in this fixture. I refer of course to Blake TROY, and Daniel GECIC. Both these lads have plenty to offer and will no doubt be out to make an impression against their old club should they get a start. I thought Daniel GECIC was very unlucky when he was sent off in a game against Mitchelton and I think that his suspension has been served and I expect that he will be making every effort to convince David LARGE to give him a go at us.I am looking forward to visiting Goodwin Park, and like David LARGE I will be promoting the game of football by encouraging good open football played in good spirit and in a sportsmanlike fashion. May the best team on the day get their just desserts, but regardless of the outcome lets all enjoy the hospitality that is Brisbane Olympic United F.C.Joe FenechHead CoachTaringa Rovers F.C. Fri, 09 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n18 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n18 The month of May is shaping up as a “Crucial” month for us. We have five big games starting tonight at Kippen Park in Goodna when we will be tested by Western Spirit in Round Two of the Premier Cup. On Sunday the 11th we will be engaged in a “Mother’s Day” encounter against Olympic at Goodwin Park. Just three days later we will visit Souths for our round two catch up game; and four days after that we host Rochedale. We then have a full week to prepare for our trip to Wynnum where we play Brisbane FC Wolves in the last game of round one of the season’s fixtures.At the start of the season we set a target of 17 points from our first 11 matches. This was taking into account our unfortunate injury woes. We find ourselves on 8 points with 5 matches to go, so in essence it is not beyond our ability to achieve our first objective, injuries or not!The second half of the season will see us playing 8 home games to make up for the away games that we played in the first half of the season. Many will see the home games as a plus, but you still have to get the result so to me it is more about the playing side of things rather than the location. It would make an enormous difference if we were to get a large number of supporters behind us and I know that the players will very much appreciate loud encouragement. The crowd could be worth a few goals to us.I am of the opinion that 40 points will get you a top four finish. That being the case, if we were to achieve the 17 points in the first half of the season, then we will require 23 points from 11 matches in the second half of the season. I make no bones about it, this will be a Herculean effort, but not beyond us by any stretch of imagination.As I analyse our first half of the 2008 season, I note that with the exception of the 7-0 drubbing at the hands of The Strikers we actually performed as well as can be expected under the circumstances. The North Pine 0-3 loss was a lot closer than the score line suggests and we did play that game with 10 men for all but a few minutes of the second half, and then we still attacked and made a game of it. The loss against Brisbane City was deflating because we actually did not play that badly and probably deserved a draw. In other words I am not in the least concerned about the return bouts against these opponents, and I know that the boys are actually keen to get their own back.If we can get a little bit of luck with injuries in the second half of the season we may be able to find that missing continuity that we have lacked in terms of selections thus far this season. I am very optimistic about our chances this season and if we can manage to keep the “Squad” of players in tip top shape and all working toward the common cause then we are certainly in for one hell of a ride come June-August.RegardsJoe Fenech Wed, 07 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n19 http://www.taringarovers.com.au/news.asp#n19 It was evident from the Western Spirit line up that the Cup was not a priority for Coach Chris McCabe, who fielded just a few of his first team players for our visit to Kippen Park. Nevertheless, he would have been pleased with the 0-0 score line at Half time, if not the 1-4 final score.We fielded a strong side full of youngsters who were directed around the park by the experienced Brad LACEY and Daniel SHEPHERD. The lads were sent out with very clear objectives and they executed almost everything that we had prepared for at training on Thursday to the letter. It was our intention to keep the ball for long periods and to be very patient in our build ups. The lads did this very well and whilst they were unable to break down a very stubborn Spirit defence they certainly came very close on a number of occasions. It was pleasing to see the forwards and the midfielders coming back to receive the ball to feet and even more pleasing was the support that the ball was being moved around quickly and with one and two touches. This and the movement off the ball made it very difficult for our opponents to get the ball. The constant switches and our getting the ball out wide frequently meant that Western Spirit were often stretched and we looked dangerous when we got in behind their defence. Schon HANSEN, on the right and Alistair PASE on the left were very effective.At the break we discussed the importance of being patient and made just one tactical change in moving Brad LACEY from the front into the centre of midfield and pushed Josh PURTON up front. The intention was to provide LACEY with a little more space to run at the Spirit defence. Just 2 minutes into the second half we opened the scoring through Clayton MACKENZIE – ROSS, and two minutes later doubled up through Josh PURTON. At this point we went back to LACEY up front and PURTON into the centre of midfield alongside the influential John STEVENSON. In the 57th minute a handball by a Spirit defender resulted in a penalty and Brad LACEY stepped up to convert. At this point it looked like the game was in the bag and the score line could become a blow out, but the lads appeared to take their foot off the pedal and this did not please the bench one bit.  We made substitutions bringing on Obed MENSAH for Brad LACEY; Scott FENN for Clayton MACKENZIE-ROSS; and later Corey DUNNE for Josh PURTON. This seemed to spur us on a little and we scored our 4th just moments after the substitution when on his first touch Scott FENN got on to a loose ball in the Spirit box and buried a volley.With just fifteen minutes to go we let in a goal and this was very disappointing because up until then we had allowed very few opportunities and had looked very sound and safe. Overall we were dominant, but we must learn to become much more ruthless and take our opportunities not only to score but to shut games down. I am certain that the youngsters will have benefited from their outing and will be all their better for the experience. Wed, 07 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT