Brisbane Roar aim to secure their spot in the Bhausaheb Bandodkar Memorial Trophy Semi Finals with a win against Sporting Clube De Goa in their final Group A match at the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Friday night.
Roar sit second in their group heading into the final round of group games having taken a 5-1 win over Dempo in their opening match before suffering a 1-0 defeat against FC Goa in their second game.
Sporting Clube De Goa sit bottom of Group A having been handed defeats by both FC Goa and Dempo in their opening two matches.
Sporting, who are coached by Armando Colaco compete in the I-League 2 – the third tier of Indian football in which they finished fifth in the 2023/24 season.
Speaking ahead of Friday’s match, Brisbane Roar goalkeeper Macklin Freke said the sides pre-season tour in India had been massive for building the togetherness within the group ahead of the 2024/25 Isuzu UTE A-League season.
“So far the experience in India has been nothing but positive. Being immersed in a wildly different culture and country while getting to play competitive minutes is invaluable,” Freke said.
“Trips like this bring the squad and staff closer together and allow us to build on Ruben wants from us.”
Freke, who was crowned as the Gary Wilkins Medallist for the 2023/24 campaign added his sides sole focus was advancing to the Bandodkar Trophy Semi Finals.
“The outlook is simple, win. We need to win to secure a spot in the semi finals so without question we will be going out there on Friday night with only one thing on our mind,” Freke said.
Three points on Friday will secure Roar’s spot in the final four where they will meet one of Odisha, Chennaiyin or Defensa y Justica.
Friday’s match at PJN Stadium kicks off at 8:30pm AEST and will be broadcast live and free on FIFA+ and the SportsCast India YouTube channel.
MATCH DETAILS
Bhausaheb Bandodkar Memorial Trophy: Sporting Clube De Goa vs Brisbane Roar
Friday, August 30 (8:30pm KO)
PJN Stadium, Fatorda
