Pain provides Cup weapon for Coast
THE scars from Gold Coast City’s loss to Moreton Bay days earlier may prove to be their biggest weapon against the same side in tonight’s Westfield FFA Cup clash.
The 3-0 loss on Saturday ripped away Gold Coast’s hopes of securing a second NPL premiership but it has made the FFA Cup an even bigger focus going into a game where brothers and coaches Grae (City) and Adam (Moreton Bay) Piddick will play for a spot in the quarter-finals.
Adam said striking the most recent blow provided a slight edge but it had also made the side wary of a burning City team that he predicts will bring the heat in the Round of 16 game at Wolter Park in Albany Creek.
“The weekend was a good result for us and it gave the boys a bit of belief going into such a big game,” Adam Piddick said.
“But we are under no illusion it’s going to be tougher than it was on Saturday. The Gold Coast boys have something to prove.”
Grae is the older of the two brothers and his side also carries an edge in experience.
“We’ve made the quarter-finals once before and we’re the only team in Queensland that has done that,” Grae said.
“We are very proud of that. We want to emulate that and hopefully kick on even further.”
It will be the first time the two have faced-off on the national stage and Grae said the fact he was playing his brother added even more feeling to a high pressure game for the passionate coaches.
“It’s an extra dimension when you play against your brother,” Grae said.
“There is always banter before the game, after the game and during the game. But most of the time it is tongue-incheek and we don’t take it personally.”
But no matter what the result, Adam said both clubs had ensured Queensland will have a presence in the quarter-finals for the first time since City’s success in 2014.
“We’re both trying to be the best and get our teams to be the best so there will always be that bit of friction there,” he said.
“But after the 90 minutes has gone we’re back to being best of mates again.”
Gold Coast will be boosted by the return of stiker Jarrod Kyle who is a confirmed starter after passing his fitness test on Monday night.
Kyle suffered a third career shoulder dislocation playing against Western Pride on August 12 and missed last weekend’s loss to Moreton Bay.