As Adelaide United prepare to take on Olympic FC in the FFA Cup 2019 Round of 16, we take a closer look at the Queensland National Premier League outfit.
The Reds will return to Perry Park, the same venue which saw them defeat a resilient Lions FC side 1-0 at the identical stage last season.
History
Olympic FC was established by Greek immigrants in 1967 as Pan Rhodian Soccer Club, before changing their name to Brisbane Olympic United a year later as a stipulation of joining the Queensland federation. The club’s colours were blue and white for the first 40 years of their existence, but moved to red and white stripes in the mid 2000s. Olympic FC left the Queensland State League after it was included in the inaugural season of the National Premier League in 2013. The team incidentally completed an impressive premiership and championship double in the competition’s maiden campaign.
Current season
Olympic currently occupy fourth spot in the table with 57 points, but are the highest-scoring team in the NPL with a prolific 83 goals. In their most recent outing they suffered a 4-1 loss to Brisbane Strikers.
FFA Cup Record
This is the club’s third appearance in the tournament, having previously featured in 2014 and 2018. In the inaugural campaign they reached the Round of 16 after beating Melbourne Knights before losing 3-1 to Central Coast Mariners, while in 2018 they endured a first-round exit to fellow Queenslanders Lions FC. This season, Olympic thrashed Bayswater City 5-2 in the Round of 32 last month to progress to the last 16 for a second time.
Key players
Striker, Chris Lucas, has been on fire since moving to the club from Victorian squad Bentleigh Greens at the end of last season. The former Gold Coast United man has bagged 28 league goals in 24 matches and also scored a hat-trick in the cup win against Bayswater. Former Wellington Phoenix and Gold Coast midfielder, Alex Smith, is also an integral cog in the centre of the park. The 34-year-old has found the net on 16 occasions in just 23 games. Midfielder Steve Whyte and forward Jez Lofthouse, are also influential players in the Brisbane-based team managed by Ben Cahn.
Adelaide United face Olympic FC in the Round of 16 of the FFA Cup 2019 on Wednesday, 21 August at Perry Park. Kick-off is at 7.00pm ACST. Live and Exclusive on Foxsports.com.au.
