Brisbane Roar aim to make it an unhappy Christmas for Melbourne City

CHRISTMAS is over, so Melbourne City can forget about Brisbane Roar showing them any goodwill in the next two days.

PLEASE HOLD TO RUN IN SUNDAY MAIL Brisbane Roar players Alisha Foote and Daniel Bowles. Both men and women's teams will play in-form team Melbourne City on the Weekend, and there will be no post Christmas goodwill. Pic Jono Searle.

CHRISTMAS is over, so Melbourne City can forget about Brisbane Roar showing them any goodwill in the next two days.

The Roar host City in a big double header, kicking off with Sunday’s A-League showdown at Suncorp Stadium, followed by the W-League at Broadbeach.

City are in hot form in both competitions, with their men aiming for a fifth successive win and their top-of-the table women gunning for a 10th-straight victory.

But if the Roar have their way, both City teams will leave Queensland as losers.

“Christmas will be done and so will the Boxing Day sales so there’ll be no presents from us and no cheap giveaways either,” Roar defender Daniel Bowles said.

Roar W-League utility Alisha Foote, whose side returned to winning ways last Sunday against Sydney FC after five consecutive defeats, echoed Bowles’s sentiments.

“It’s about time they lost,” Foote said of the Melbourne City women. “We’re all up for the challenge. We love being underdogs.”

In the A-League battle, the second-placed Roar will start as favourites at home but there is no doubting the form of City.

Since drawing 1-1 with the Roar at Suncorp Stadium on November 20, City have a 100 per cent record and have scored 16 goals, with star striker Bruno Fornaroli and majestic midfielder Aaron Mooy running rampant.

“They have some talented players right across the park, but we have some great players ourselves, and ones who have won a lot of things in their career,” said Bowles in predicting an epic battle.

“We’re going out there very confident and ready to put on a good show for the home supporters.”

Originally published as Brisbane Roar aim to make it an unhappy Christmas for Melbourne City