Roar brace for Sydney FC backlash

First there was his messy departure from North Queensland - now Socceroo Shane
Stefanutto reckons the Fury hasn't done his new A-League side Brisbane Roar any
favours.
The Roar vice-captain is bracing himself for the backlash from a wounded Sydney FC
after the defending A-League champions suffered a shock 2-1 last round loss to early
wooden spoon favourites North Queensland.
Brisbane had plenty of momentum following their encouraging 0-0 draw against nemesis
Gold Coast United in the season opener but were forced to cool their heels due to a
second round bye.
That time was spent watching Saturday night's opponents Sydney FC take on the Fury
in Townsville - and Stefanutto wasn't happy with the result.
"Of course I was hoping for a draw (in Townsville) - unfortunately North Queensland
snuck it," Stefanutto said on Tuesday.
"But it is a tough trip to Townsville, (and) it is not as hard a trip to Brisbane.
"They will be motivated but we are pretty confident." Especially after
encouraging reports on the fitness of Brisbane striker Reinaldo (hamstring).
"We have a settled line-up but there could be some selection headaches - Reinaldo
trained today so there's no dramas there for him," Stefanutto said.
Stefanutto signed a three-year deal with the Roar in April.
It was the same month Football Federation Australia were forced to take over the
cash-strapped Fury following owner Don Matheson's decision to walk away following
losses reportedly up to $4.5 million.
Now he is bracing for the fallout over Sydney FC's shock loss to the Fury.
It ensured the Sydney glamour club only have a point to show for the first two
rounds, following a high-scoring draw with Melbourne Victory.
The Roar looked chuffed after finally ending a three game losing streak against
United in the season opener, but Stefanutto believes there is plenty of room for
improvement against Sydney FC.
After butchering 10 shots on target against United, Stefanutto said the Roar had to
learn how to finish teams off.
"We have, let's be honest," he said.
"That's the part of the match we weren't happy with.
"We had enough chances to win that match, we didn't take them - hopefully we will
this weekend." Brisbane have lost only once to Sydney in the past 10 encounters
between the clubs - but new Roar keeper Michael Theoklitos was more than wary.
"They are the champions. They obviously have not got off to a good start, but they
are going to come out firing and we are going to have to be ready for that - we are
not going to take them lightly," he said.