Brisbane coach Farina ready for Sydney test

History counts for nothing when Sydney comes to Suncorp Stadium on Sunday according to Brisbane Roar coach Frank Farina.

The men from south of the border travel to the Queensland capital on Sunday have not beaten the Roar in seven attempts.

Brisbane’s traditional rivals haven’t tasted victory since Round 5 of the Hyundai A-League 2007-08 season – a 1-0 win at Suncorp Stadium.

However Farina – coaching his 150th game at national league level on Sunday – believes every match this season is a blockbuster clash and track records count for nothing.

“Sydney’s always been difficult, but then everyone’s difficult,” Farina said.

“There’s no team in this competition where you think: ‘That’s going to be three points.’

“The beauty of the A-League at the moment is that it is so very tight.”

Farina will welcome back Danny Tiatto into his match day squad for the State of Origin-style clash with Sydney.

The veteran trained strongly this morning to underline he has overcome a groin niggle which kept him out of last weekend’s match against Perth.

While Tiatto’s return will no doubt bring some greater resolve to the Roar defence this weekend, Farina refused to hide behind injuries and international duty for any of the Roar’s results.

“Danny should be back, so that’s a bit of a boost for us,” the Roar coach said.

“We can’t use it as an excuse because that’s all you’ll be saying all the time.

“It’s a great opportunity for the other players in the squad to show what they can do and push their claims for a spot.

“Every team is going to have its issues and problems, unfortunately we’re going through that at the moment.

“The important thing is we’re still very much in the mix.”

A key to success at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday will be the strengthening partnership between Brisbane’s four key attacking players.

Sergio van Dijk, Reinaldo, Henrique and Charlie Miller are striking up a potent combination moving forward for the Roar, something Farina believes the fans can savour.

“We will score goals, there’s no doubt about that,” he said. “Our money men, the ones who will get us goals, they will do that.

“We’ve just got to cut out the mistakes we made last week.”

Brisbane Roar’s match against Sydney FC kicks off at 3pm, this Sunday at Suncorp Stadium. Tickets are available through Ticketek.