- Brisbane City have won five of the last six NPL Queensland H2Hs, including the most recent away in March 2026 by a 2-1 scoreline.
- However, Brisbane City are now in 6th place, while 2nd-placed Lions remain ahead of them by a significant margin.
- Lions have won four of their last five league matches, keeping multiple clean sheets, but Brisbane City have been in mixed form, winning three of their last five (D1, L1).
State of the art Lions against experienced Citizens
Queensland Lions SC are in their third season in NPL Queensland and have already made a big step up to the top-two of the table, sitting second on 26 points from 12 games, four ahead of the team in 3rd and seven ahead of 4th.
Darren Sime's team are just one point behind the leaders and have built on their 2024 NPL Queensland Championship win by creating a real identity on the pitch. The Lions are a high-tempo possession side that are relentless in their pressing and have a clear goal threat in top-scorer Alex Fiechtner, who is on a current goalscoring streak.
Fiechtner is on 10 goals in 2026 for the Lions and will be their main goal threat against Brisbane City on Saturday, who have dominated the recent head-to-head, winning five of the last six meetings, including a 6-0 victory in April 2024. However, Brisbane City won the most recent matchup 6-0 back in April 2024.
Goals on the cards in Brisbane
Brisbane City have played some exciting footy under new coach Peter Gaffney, who brings an attacking, possession-based style to the club from his previous position at the Lions academy. Gaffney has also added some players through the transfer market to help them establish a new identity, with Malakai Love-Semira providing pace and directness from wide areas, while Marcus Barnes is a focal point up front.
The hosts have the potential to score multiple goals against the Lions, but they do concede them as well. Brisbane City are 1.25 favourites in the 'Over 2.5 goals' market, which is very low odds for a fixture between two attacking NPL Queensland clubs.
Lions can make it a Lions Christmas
Queensland Lions will be looking to dominate Brisbane City with their wide play and intensity, while the hosts will look to break through their press and create goals in the half-spaces. Queensland Lions are 1.49 favourites in the match result market, which I feel is a bit short given City are outsiders at 4.75 and the draw market at 4.55 also seems overpriced.
I'm going for a Lions win as they have more quality in the team and have been in the better form, but Brisbane have the better recent H2H record and a good goal threat, so this should be close and exciting match.
Sebastian Usai is a veteran goalkeeper with a big presence between the posts, who can keep his team in games despite their defensive inconsistencies. He will have to be at his best in the conditions, as rain and severe winds are forecast for Brisbane on Saturday, which could cause problems for both attacks.