When Matt Thurtell snuck into the box to score against Perth Glory on Saturday, the 18 year old striker further cemented his role as the Brisbane Roar Youth’s super sub.
With a knack for being in the right place at the right time, Thurtell has been prolific when coming off the bench, scoring three goals in the past five National Youth League games.
While the Roar Youth have a glutton of offensive talent at their disposal, including over-age players James Meyer and Rocky Visconte from the Hyundai A-League squad, Thurtell said he is happy to bide his time as an impact player off the bench.
“It has been tough to get a start with the A-League boys coming down but I just make sure I take advantage of any opportunity I get,” Thurtell said.
“If the coaches can see that I can perform when I-m called on, they will be more likely to give me opportunities.
“I-m one of the younger players in the squad so I still have a long way to go in terms of my development as a player so I-m confident I will get my chance eventually.”
While limited to mainly bench starts this season, Thurtell-s goals have helped the Roar over the line on a number of occasions and have been one of many factors in the side-s rise to the top half of the National Youth League table.
Although coming off tough defeats over the past two weeks, including a trip across the country to face off against a Perth Glory side featuring seven Hyundai A-League players, Thurtell is confident that his side can regain their early season form and continue to be a tough opponent.
“While we have been a little bit unlucky the past few weeks, we are starting to play our best football of the season,” Thurtell said.
“Last week was the first time all year that we managed to play to our best and not get the result, however I-m pretty confident if we bring the same performance next week we should get a win.
“Most of the boys are keen to end this run of losses and have been putting their all in on the training paddock.”
With a tough match this week down in Sydney, where the Roar Youth suffered their biggest loss of the season in round seven, Thurtell is adamant that the team will prove that the loss was just a one off.
“The whole side was pretty disappointed after that match in Sydney because we felt the score line didn-t really represent the match,” he said.
“We have been looking forward to getting another shot at them this week and will have more than a little bit of inspiration to give it our best performance.
“While the coach will be happy if we just play to our best, the players will be looking for nothing less than a win.”
