Leading into his side’s Unite Round fixture against Brisbane Roar, Carl Veart spoke to the media about his side’s form coming off the international break and his plan to continue an undefeated start to the season.
Carl on his side’s form leading into the international break…
“The boys have been excellent. Since the beginning of the season, the training and intensity has been very good and the last two weeks has been no different. We’re fortunate; at the moment other than Jordan Elsey, we’ve got pretty much a full squad to select from. So, there’s a lot of competition for those positions and the boys that aren’t in the team at the moment are pushing really hard to get a spot in the team. That’s what you need to have success.”
Carl on the second annual Unite Round…
“It’s a good concept, but being away from Sydney we haven’t really seen too much of it. It’s a good concept but whether Sydney is the right spot for it, I’m not sure. But, we will go there and play Brisbane, and hopefully get the three points.
I don’t think Adelaide is the right spot for it, I don’t think we’ve got the venues that can hold that. I think in the long term it might be beneficial to move it around the country to give more fans access to our great game. It’s something I suppose the League will keep working with.”
Carl on the late squad change that sees Max Vartuli come in for Ethan Cox…
“Ethan picked up a late injury in training where he just sort of stretched for the ball and tweaked his hip flexor. We don’t really know the full details of it just yet, so we’ll send him off for a scan and then wait and see what happens.”
Carl on his squad balance…
“I think it’s important to get good balance in the squad. We’ve got a lot of younger players waiting to get their opportunities, and we’ve got some good experienced players in the team. We’re very happy with where the squad is travelling at the moment and we just have to keep winning games.
Carl on facing some former Reds this weekend v Brisbane Roar…
“It’s across the whole League, you become quite familiar with a lot of the players that have been around for a while and we’re no different. There’s three or four boys there that have played under me at the club. We’ll treat it like every other game. Brisbane are a good side, they’ve been a little unlucky in the start of the season, but they play good football. They’re quite aggressive with their pressing. So, if we’re not at the top of our game, it can be a difficult game.
“All players when they play against their former club want to try and show a little bit more. We know Ben’s [Halloran] quality and the same as all the other players like Harry [Van Der Saag] as well. We’re aware that their players know how we play as well. We know the ins and outs and what we need to do to limit their games.
Carl on the upcoming fixtures against Brisbane Roar, Newcastle Jets and Perth Glory…
“You know they’re going to be desperate to get the three points as well, so they’re going to have a little bit more desperation. It’s important for us that we just focus on ourselves one game at a time. We focus on Brisbane tomorrow night. We know it’s going to be a tough game and we go there with a good plan to interrupt their season and keep our season going along.”
Carl on the potential of Reds players being called up for international duty under Tony Popovic…
“Tony has been very confident with his squad selections and picking players that are playing well. That’s what you want the national team to be doing; having players that are playing games and are playing well, because we need the national team to have success and the best way to have success is have the best players there.”
