Friendships will be put on hold on Monday night when Perth Glory host A-League strugglers Gold Coast United.
The Glory will field three former Gold Coast players in their starting line-up, with striker Shane Smeltz, defender Bas van den Brink and utility Steve Pantelidis all set to play key roles as Perth attempt to extend their unbeaten run to a club-record eight games.
Van den Brink, who spent two seasons at Gold Coast, admitted it was tough to see his former club struggling at the foot of the table, especially since he remains in close contact with United captain Michael Thwaite, goalkeeper Glen Moss and defender Kristian Rees.
But with Perth (28 points) desperate to keep within striking distance of second-placed Wellington (33) and third-placed Brisbane (32), van den Brink said there would be no room for sentiment in the nib Stadium match.
“It’s definitely hard to see them not doing well. I had a good period there and still have some friends playing there or running the club,” van den Brink said.
“Because we were there for the first season, we have a special connection. It makes it a bit special to keep in touch with each other.
“But hopefully their turnaround can wait another week.”
Perth are yet to lose a game in 2012, and are in the box seat to secure a top-four finish given that five of their final eight games are at home.
The rosy situation is in stark contrast to the tail-end of 2011, when the Glory posted just one win during a miserable 11-game stretch.
Van den Brink praised the way Glory coach Ian Ferguson handled the criticism during that time, saying the Scotsman did well to keep the players shielded from the worst of it.
“He tried to keep us out of all the bad media and tried to get all the blame and the negatives directed his way,” van den Brink said.
“For us it was very good, because we didn’t have the pressure he had.
“But we felt sorry for him copping all the negatives. We were the players on the pitch.”
Gold Coast midfielder James Brown is rated just a 50-50 chance to take part in the match after injuring his ankle in last Wednesday’s 1-1 draw with Melbourne Victory.
