Flight Centre Brisbane Premier League Season Preview
The new era of the Flight Centre Premier League is upon us and it's set to be a closely run contest in 2018. Only two of last season's sides remain, in Albany Creek and Grange Thistle, following the introduction of the expanded NPL and FQPL competitions. They are joined by the top eight sides from last season's Capital League 1 ladder exlcuding the two sides that joined the FQPL and the competition is completed by the two promoted sides from Capital League 2 in Centenary Stormers and Virginia Utd. So let's take a quick look at each side and what the season ahead might hold for them.
***And of course, as is typical of the start of the season, the heaven's have opened so we may well succumb to the Mother Nature for the opening round and the games mentioned below may be postponed."""
Acacia Ridge Ridge have profited more than most from the competition restructure by effectively earning back to back to back to back promotions over the last four seasons, all the way up from Capital League 4 to the top flight. With much of that same team still at the Ron Proud Field club, it may prove to be stiff challenge in 2018. Much will rest at the feet of key striker Juan Jaimes exploits in front of goal which will be pivotal to whether Ridge can finish in the top four or will face a relegation battle. Despite Jaimes netting twice in last weekend's FFA Cup RD2 tie against North Star, Ridge suffered defeat at home to the Zillmere club and will have to put that loss behind them when they face Bayside Utd in their opening round game. 2017 v Bayside Utd: W1-0 / L1-3. 2017 Standing: 5th - CL1. 2018 Prediction: 8th Albany Creek Steve Glockner has taken on the coaching role at ACE after spending a number of years at Eastern Suburbs and admits to a season of rebuilding for the Wolter Park outfit following former coach Pouria Nabi shifting across to NPL side Moreton Bay Jets, as well as the departure of 16 players from last season's roster. Likely to consist of a fairly youthful side, Creek will hope to achieve a top half finish in 2018, with a finals berth likely to be a major achievement given the major changes in personnel.
Glockner has however secured the services of experienced midfielder Toru Amano from his former club Easts and he'll likely play a key role in Glockner's plans. Creek finished just outside the finals placings last season. Should they repeat that outcome, Glockner will have done well in his first season in charge there. Creek face Grange Thistle on Sunday to kick-off their 2018 campaign with each side recording a win apiece last season. 2017 v Grange Thistle: W2-1 / L1-3. 2017 Standing: 5th - FCPL. 2018 Prediction: 5th Bayside United Possibly one of the dark horses for 2018. A mid-table finish in 2017's Capital League 1 belied a mixed season but one they finished strongly, including a final day victory over this weekend's opponents Acacia Ridge. Not many sides will relish the trip to Don Randall Oval this season and it could become a bit of a fortress for the side from Lota. Not much is know about United and having earned a bye in RD2 of the FFA Cup, we are yet to see them in action, although a less than impressive pre-season showing in the Zoo Cup at Jimboomba United may not be much to go on. Bayside open their account at Acacia Ridge this weekend. 2017 v Acacia Ridge: L0-1 / W3-1 2017 Standing: 6th - CL1. Prediction: 7th Brisbane Knights Knights have already fallen to their first defeat of the season with a surprise RD2 loss in last weekend's FFA Cup to Viva Capital League 1 side Annerley. Coach Dave McEvoy will be looking to get their Flight Centre Brisbane Premier League campaign off to a better start when they face Mt Gravatt in the opening round. Knights enjoyed a good pre-season hit out in the Kappa Silver Boot which provided McEvoy plenty of opportunity to fine tune his side. The departure of Jacob Davidge and Jay Reid is a loss for Knights who combined for 25 goals in 2017. Knights have recruited across the park with the arrival of Peter Gaffney from Lions FC and Drew Jeskey, plus goalkeeper Matt Carr. Perhaps the only question mark could be the relative age of the side with a large number of players being at the senior end of their careers. 2017 v Mt Gravatt: L3-4 / D1-1 2017 Standing: 3rd - CL1. Prediction: 6th Centenary Stormers Stormers come up as Champions of Capital League 2 having bounced back from relegation the previous season. It could be a testing season ahead for the Atthows Park side but a solid showing in the pre-season Kappa Silver Boot tournament offered a glimpse of what they're capable of, just missing out on a semi-final showing by a hairs breadth when nearly defeating a strong NPL side in Moreton Bay Utd. They will need to repeat that sort of performance week in, week out and will be looking to strikers Shoheel Khan and rising star Jason Le to keep the goals coming. Their opening round fixture sees a repeat of the Capital League 2 Grand Final against Virginia Utd. It will be interesting to see how that game pans out as it could provide a good indication of where both teams are at. 2017 v Virginia Utd: L1-5 / W3-0 / SF W2-1 / GF L1-2 2017 Standing: Champions - CL2. Prediction: 9th Grange Thistle Thistle come into the new season on the back of a late showing in 2017 when surviving relegation that had looked destined for much of the season. They have kept a little to themselves in the build up to the 2018 Flight Centre Premier League and much will hinge on the replacements for those players that have departed. Captain and last season's top scorer, Matt Hornby, will play a pivotal role for Thistle. Scott Higgins continuing on this season with the coaching team will also provide some valuable experience and it was his arrival midway through 2017 that sparked a turnaround for the Lanham Park side. For many, Thistle are tipped to feature at the top end of the ladder come September and it wouldn't be a surprise if they were to go on and lift the championship trophy. They face Albany Creek in the opening round and will likely provide a stern test for the visitors. 2017 v Albany Creek: L1-2 / W3-1. 2017 Standing: 10th - FCPL. Prediction: 1st Mt Gravatt The Hawks avoided relegation on the final game of the season in 2017 and it's perhaps likely that survival will be their mantra for 2018. Again it's difficult to assess with so many player movements amongst clubs following the introduction of the FQPL, but Hawks look to be pinning their season on a handful of additions to last season's squad along with the promotion of a number of players from their 2017 reserves. They open their campaign at Brisbane Knights and having proved a bogey team for the Rocklea outfit, it will be a good test of where they are at. A result in their favour would raise eyebrows and go some way to them avoiding a relegation battle. 2017 v Brisbane Knights: W4-3 / D1-1 2017 Standing: 10th - CL1. Prediction: 12th North Pine Last season's Capital League 1 runners-up, make a return to the top flight following a 2016 tenure that was short lived. Pine have seen a number of last season's personnel move on, most notably top scorer Shuto Kuboyama who netted 24 goals for the Gorillas last season. There was talk of Michael Baird joining the club. If that were to happen it would provide a possible replacement for Kuboyama. Whether they can feature in the top four will remain to be seen but goals could be an issue. A tricky away trip to The Gap greets their season start. 2017 v The Gap: L2-3, W3-0 2017 Standing: Runners-up - CL1. Prediction: 4th Taringa Rovers Rovers were the standout side of Capital League 1 in 2017 and raced to the title comfortably. Many expect Adam Bennet's side to feature come finals time and with much of the same side still at Jack Speare Park, they should be there or there abouts. That said, a shock RD2 FFA Cup defeat to Viva Capital League 2 side Samford Rangers is not the start to the year they would have wanted and it may give their league rivals some thoughts of defensive frailties being present. Rovers head to nearby local rivals UQFC for their opening league fixture and will be looking to make a swift response to last week's FFA Cup exit. 2017 v UQFC: W1-0 / W5-0 2017 Standing: Champions - CL1. Prediction: 3rd The Gap The Gators could well be the surprise packet for 2018. Coach Trevor Rohdmann has assembled a good balanced looking side and with a refreshed Ryuhei Nose raring to go, Gap could well feature in the top four at season's end. There are also a couple of overseas signings heading to Walton Bridge Reserve including Colombian Damiano Nocera who arrives from a couple of season's in Malta and who'll take up defensive duties for his new side. It's been a long time since Gap featured in the top flight, having a brief stint in the Brisbane Premier League in the early 2000s so this sees a return that they will want to cling on to. North Pine will be the opening round visitors to Walton Bridge Reserve and the hosts will be looking to get their season off to a good start. 2017 v North Pine: W3-2, L0-3 2017 Standing: 8th - CL1. Prediction: 2nd UQFC UQ make a return to the Flight Centre Premier League where their previous tenancy had seen them finish bottom in 2013, 2014 and 2015, surviving only under the previous club championship points system, and second bottom in 2016 which did see them relegated after the club championship model for relegation had been scrapped. Can they enjoy a more fruitful time in the top flight this time? That remains to be seen. The Students have maintained those players from 2017 that they feel will suit their 2018 campaign. Whether they can be competitive remains to be seen but they will need to improve on last season's form to avoid another year in the league's basement. UQ open their campaign with a local derby against Taringa Rovers. 2017 v Taringa Rovers: L0-1 / L0-5 2017 Standing: 9th - CL1. Prediction: 11th Virginia United The lowest ranked side from 2017 to earn a Flight Centre Premier League berth after gaining promotion from Capital League 2 and back to back promotions over the last two seasons. It's an historic rise for the Albert Bishop Park side and as well as having brought in a handful of new players, there will also be some youngsters coming through who have been developed through the club. It's an exciting time for all concerned with Virginia with both their men's and women's sides playing their respective premier league competitions for the first time ever. A tough opening round encounter at Centenary Stormers, who they toppled in last season Capital League 2 grand final, will be the litmus test for them and should they achieve a top half finish come season end, they will have done themselves proud. 2017 v Centenary Stormers: W5-1 / L0-3 / SF L1-2 / GF W2-1 2017 Standing: Runners-up - CL2. Prediction: 10th
