Rik Bland still on top in Brisbane

Sunday April 23rd - Flick Off 9am.
Venue: Woody Point (Redcliffe) Club house

Six Brisbane flickers turned up on a rather more pleasant morning to last month’s scorcher. Derek and Shane returned after a long absence Derek with a beaming smile after seeing his beloved Brighton secure promotion into the Premier League for the first time.
In the first round Wil fought back after slipping 2 nil behind in the first half to 2-1 against his Dad. Gus became worried but hung in and eventually scored late on to secure a win, the best goal though was scored by the younger Gillespie. Rik welcomed back Derek with a same score line, 3-1.
Round 2 had last months finalists Rik and Gus go toe to toe. Rik got off to a good start and enjoyed the better of the first half and was approaching the half time whistle 2 up, but Gus broke through and got one back just before the 15 minutes were up. Encouraged Gus came out determined in the second half but as much as he tried Rik’s solid defence denied a comeback, the game finishing 2-1 to Rik. In the other game, Wil fought well but came off second best to Giuseppe losing a credible 3-0.
Round 3 witnessed Wil & Derek get their first point of the day, drawing 1-1. In the other game, Giuseppe won a hard fought game 3-1 with Gus, Giuseppe getting back to top form.
Round 4 finished with the big guns winning, Giuseppe beating Derek 3-0 and Rik beating Wil 3-1.
Round 5 enabled the Newcastle v Brighton match up, with Gus’s Newcastle coming out on top 4-0. The other match-up was a full dress rehearsal of the final, as the top two players faced up. A very tight and thrilling encounter ended 3-3, so giving no clues to who might just win the final.
The Final as expected was extremely tight. Giuseppe really was hitting his straps but Rik’s solid defence kept him out. At the other end it was similar, and it was no surprise when half time came around and the scores were level 0-0. The breakthrough almost came against the run of play, with Giuseppe having the majority of attacks, but Rick tucked the first goal under Giuseppe’s keeper. The lead however was only maintained for about 3 minutes, when Giuseppe on the break scored a cracker in the bottom corner 1-1. Again no surprise when the final whistle went, it was stalemate 1-1, ten minutes of further action was required. Four minutes into extra time Rik again tucked a nice shot under Giuseppe’s keeper. Giuseppe fought back without relent, however it would be Rik who scored the all-important next goal, with just two minutes left. Giuseppe had a mountain to climb being 3-1 down, and that was the way it finished. Another great final between these two, and the speed and skill on show was a pleasure to watch.
So another great day at Woody Point, the home of the Brisbane Subbuteo Club. Good to see Shane, Derek and the cooler weather back. A big thanks to Giuseppe for hosting, and to all the players who contribute to make it such an enjoyable competition.