Oct 11, 2026 · 16 min · 9 segments
Ahead of the 2026-27 A-League Men's season, we sat down for a chat with Brisbane Roar Men's Head Coach Michael Valkanis to reflect on last year and look forward to the season ahead.
Michael ValkanisGuest
Scott OwenHost
Kurt McDonald
On the verge of the new season, when you think back to last year, what are your reflections on the way the season went? It started off so strongly, obviously, around Christmas, fighting for first place, and then it faded away a little bit.
Yeah, like I, I mentioned in the main press conference, it, it left a real bitter taste, in my mouth anyway, because we excited everyone and got everyone really up for it, and then we, we let them down.
So we've got a lot to play for this year to bring that, that energy back again and that belief again, because it, it just...
It was also just showed how if you start doing really well, you start pushing, and you start getting results, that there's a lot of people that wanna come back, and they wanna be at Suncorp, and they wanna support this team that can be so special.
Yeah, it left a bitter taste, and I think we, we sort of le- let ourselves down.
But it was also circumstances that we had to look at what we needed to do to improve in terms of not only the squad depth but also the balance within the squad to not have, um, frustratingly, um, decisions to make as a coach where you're moving people around just to, to field an 11.
So, um, I think we've looked at it well this year, and we've got a good, um, um, balanced depth I'd say.
Was the lack of goal something you looked at wanting to really improve on last year? I think you only got equal fewest goals in the competition.
Yeah, yeah, 100%, because I think we had one of the best, um, defenses in the league for a long period as well.
And even towards the end, still one of the, you know, in the, in the top four I think.
Yeah, we, like when I think of the Sydney game here in Suncorp where we dominated the whole game, and we played really well, and we missed a chance from half a meter out in the 88th minute, you know, or the game against Perth at KO where, um, it finished 1-1, but I think even their goal was our goal.
Um, the last round we were, we absolutely dominated, and we should, we should have won that game quite comfortably.
But there was a lot of games, even here against Melbourne City, we played very well towards the end.
So there was a lot of games towards the end where we needed to get those results, and we just couldn't score goals.
And it wouldn't, we wouldn't be sitting here saying it was such a, you know, disastrous season after it.
The competitiveness, the fighting spirit, the never s- never say die attitude, they were things that you were able to drive in last year.
On the verge of the new season, when you think back to last year, what are your reflections on the way the season went? It started off so strongly, obviously, around Christmas, fighting for first place, and then it faded away a little bit.
Yeah, like I, I mentioned in the main press conference, it, it left a real bitter taste, in my mouth anyway, because we excited everyone and got everyone really up for it, and then we, we let them down.
So we've got a lot to play for this year to bring that, that energy back again and that belief again, because it, it just...
It was also just showed how if you start doing really well, you start pushing, and you start getting results, that there's a lot of people that wanna come back, and they wanna be at Suncorp, and they wanna support this team that can be so special.
Yeah, it left a bitter taste, and I think we, we sort of le- let ourselves down.
But it was also circumstances that we had to look at what we needed to do to improve in terms of not only the squad depth but also the balance within the squad to not have, um, frustratingly, um, decisions to make as a coach where you're moving people around just to, to field an 11.
So, um, I think we've looked at it well this year, and we've got a good, um, um, balanced depth I'd say.
Was the lack of goal something you looked at wanting to really improve on last year? I think you only got equal fewest goals in the competition.
Yeah, yeah, 100%, because I think we had one of the best, um, defenses in the league for a long period as well.
And even towards the end, still one of the, you know, in the, in the top four I think.
Yeah, we, like when I think of the Sydney game here in Suncorp where we dominated the whole game, and we played really well, and we missed a chance from half a meter out in the 88th minute, you know, or the game against Perth at KO where, um, it finished 1-1, but I think even their goal was our goal.
Um, the last round we were, we absolutely dominated, and we should, we should have won that game quite comfortably.
But there was a lot of games, even here against Melbourne City, we played very well towards the end.
So there was a lot of games towards the end where we needed to get those results, and we just couldn't score goals.
And it wouldn't, we wouldn't be sitting here saying it was such a, you know, disastrous season after it.
The competitiveness, the fighting spirit, the never s- never say die attitude, they were things that you were able to drive in last year.
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