“Do not waste time on things you cannot control or change.”
It was a core belief for the Stoics – a group of ancient Greek and Roman philosophers who developed a philosophical framework based around inner resilience and accepting the vagaries of life – and one I reckon Michael Valkanis is probably turning to after that midweek loss to Melbourne City.
We all know how frustrating it is when things don’t go your way, and it’s safe to say little went Brisbane Roar’s way in a 1-0 defeat that saw two decent penalty shouts overlooked.
On another day, either of those handball decisions could have gone the way of the visiting side and we might be looking at a different result.
But if you can only influence the things you can control, there were at least a couple of positives that came out of the trip to AAMI Park – including A-League Men’s debuts to Mikael Evagorou-Alao and 16-year-old Brisbane local Emmett Shaw.
“We were a little bit out of the game in the first half,” a forthright Valkanis told broadcaster Paramount+ after the match.
“At times when we did win the ball, we didn’t play forward and we lost it too easily and played ourselves into trouble defending a lot more than we needed to.”
Having conceded an 11th-minute opener to a Max Caputo header, the introduction of Matthew Dench at half-time and Justin Vidic with 20 minutes remaining added more bite after the break – even if the strain of a congested fixture list was visibly beginning to show.
“I thought in the second half we were a lot better,” Valkanis said. “We brought in some young boys (with) fresh legs, energy and intensity.”
“We’ve got to be quite honest, they’re very tired as well,” he added.
“They’ve played three games in seven days and we’ve got another one – I checked the fixture list and it’s us in (three) days again.”
That third game is against current league leaders Auckland FC – a side Valkanis’ men bossed in a physical pre-season friendly at Imperial Corp Stadium in Newmarket back in July.
But with the fixtures coming thick and fast, Roar fans could be forgiven for hoping the home team can simply put a competitive team on the park against the Kiwi visitors on Friday night – particularly with goalkeeper Dean Bouzanis copping a nasty facial injury in Melbourne, while skipper Jay O’Shea will be a game time decision with a ankle complaint.
“We knew it was always going to be a difficult period,” Valkanis said of his team’s packed fixture list in the post-game coverage at AAMI Park.
“We’ve got to get through this period without injury – we’ve already got injuries from some really heavy knocks in the first half.”
Still, a visit from Steve Corica’s men gives Brisbane Roar the chance to avenge a 2-0 defeat at Suncorp Stadium last season.
Much has changed since then, with a 1-1 draw at Go Media Stadium in late November more indicative of where the two sides are currently at.
You could throw a blanket over the top six – a win on the night would see Brisbane Roar draw level on points with current league leaders and last season’s premiers Auckland – in what has been one of the most evenly-contested starts to a campaign in years.
But there’s no doubt that back-to-back defeats to Wellington Phoenix and Melbourne City hurt.
Another Friday night home fixture under the lights at Suncorp Stadium offers the chance for redemption against an opponent not averse to playing their own brand of physical football.
Mike Tuckerman
About Mike Tuckerman: Mike is a freelance football journalist and long-time Brisbane Roar watcher. He has written for the ABC, The Guardian, Australian Football Weekly, Football Australia and theroar.com.au.
