FNQ Bulls stage remarkable comeback
Andrew Piva
Monday, April 19, 2010
© The Cairns Post
ONLY Lazarus can lay claim to a bigger comeback than the FNQ Bulls after their Queensland State League clash against the Queensland Academy of Sport in Brisbane yesterday.
In an entertaining goal fest, the Bulls trailed 3-0 at halftime before recovering to win 7-4.
It was the Bulls’ third victory in a row and keeps the Mareeba-based side entrenched in the top four.
After witnessing yesterday’s result, Bulls coach Peter Tokesi can now say he has seen everything on the soccer field.
"It was quite bizarre, as you could imagine," Tokesi said. "To be 3-0 down at halftime and then to be leading 4-3 within 10 minutes of the restart, is quite amazing.
"It was a very unusual game."
David Ruiz (three goals), George Slefendorfas (two), Joe Rusch and Alex Plowman all found the net for the Bulls in the remarkable second half.
Tokesi said a slight adjustment in attitude and tactics was all it took for the Bulls to storm back into the contest.
"We didn’t play that badly in the first half. There wasn’t a 3-0 difference between the sides," he said. "I said to the boys at halftime that anyone who didn’t think we could win the game shouldn’t go back on the park.
"We were just preoccupied with dribbling the ball in the first half and that was most of the problem for us.
"The ball movement was so much quicker in the second half and that was the big difference.
"The goals we were able to score were genuinely good goals."
Tokesi, however, paid tribute to the QAS.
"Credit to them that they never stopped playing football," he said.
"They never lost their shape and it was actually quite even for the last 15 to 20 minutes."
The Bulls’ next game will be against the Capricorn Cougars at Mareeba’s Borzi Park on Saturday.
In an entertaining goal fest, the Bulls trailed 3-0 at halftime before recovering to win 7-4.
It was the Bulls’ third victory in a row and keeps the Mareeba-based side entrenched in the top four.
After witnessing yesterday’s result, Bulls coach Peter Tokesi can now say he has seen everything on the soccer field.
"It was quite bizarre, as you could imagine," Tokesi said. "To be 3-0 down at halftime and then to be leading 4-3 within 10 minutes of the restart, is quite amazing.
"It was a very unusual game."
David Ruiz (three goals), George Slefendorfas (two), Joe Rusch and Alex Plowman all found the net for the Bulls in the remarkable second half.
Tokesi said a slight adjustment in attitude and tactics was all it took for the Bulls to storm back into the contest.
"We didn’t play that badly in the first half. There wasn’t a 3-0 difference between the sides," he said. "I said to the boys at halftime that anyone who didn’t think we could win the game shouldn’t go back on the park.
"We were just preoccupied with dribbling the ball in the first half and that was most of the problem for us.
"The ball movement was so much quicker in the second half and that was the big difference.
"The goals we were able to score were genuinely good goals."
Tokesi, however, paid tribute to the QAS.
"Credit to them that they never stopped playing football," he said.
"They never lost their shape and it was actually quite even for the last 15 to 20 minutes."
The Bulls’ next game will be against the Capricorn Cougars at Mareeba’s Borzi Park on Saturday.
http://www.cairns.com.au/article/2010/04/19/106141_local-sport-news.html