FNQ FC Heat came from behind to defeat Redlands United 3-1 in the grand final re-match in Cairns on Saturday evening.
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Coach Matt Chandler believed his side was strong for the opening hour of the match but not for the full 90 minutes.
“We need to fully concentrate on game plans,” he said. “Individuals need to concentrate on their jobs to gain more momentum in our performances.”
The last time Redlands and Heat met was in the PlayStation 4 NPL Queensland 2016 Grand Final where Redlands United came from behind to score in injury time be crowned champions.
However, much has changed in the past seven months especially for the Red Devils who have had to rebuild their squad after only four of the championship team remained.
It was a wet night in Cairns and it caused problems for both teams.
Redlands was also without seasoned defender Jake Sherwood who did not make the trip up north but they welcomed back midfielder Sam Roper who had been sidelined with a knee injury since the Kappa Silver Boot in February.
Despite Redlands being lower placed than Heat, they went ahead inside the opening 10 minutes when defender Michael Ryan headed into the goal from a free kick outside the 18-yard box.
It did not take long for Heat to hit back after Joshua Pin was brought down in the box and they were rewarded with a penalty. Charlie Beverley converted from the spot to level the scores before halftime.
Heat came out for the second half looking for the win as they broke open the centre of the field through Carroll but his shot was wide.
Their dominance did not take long to convert as Beverley doubled Heat’s score as he headed home the ball into an open goal from a cross into the 6-yard box.
As the rain eased, Heat remained strong as they looked for a goal to seal the victory.
Christopher Sullivan did just that as he hit the ball from 25 yards out and watched it sail into the back of the net.
Redlands has failed to win a game since their Round 3 clash against SWQ Thunder and has only picked up two points in the past five matches.
It was also the fourth consecutive match where Redlands had gone ahead early only to concede later in the half.
They will be hoping for a better outcome on Friday against Brisbane Strikers at the Cleveland Showgrounds as Graham Fyfe is set to make his 200th senior appearance for the club.