After switching continents in search of more playing time, Issey Nakajima-Farran couldn’t have chosen a better landing spot.
The midfielder went from AC Horsens of the Danish Superliga to Australia’s A-League, joining the Brisbane Roar in time to start the current season. Eight games later, the Roar are already runaway leaders in the league, having gone undefeated thus far in the campaign. Their latest match took place on Saturday, and, much like most of their previous fixtures, it was another blowout — 4-0 in favor of Brisbane over the Perth Glory.
After struggling with composure in front of the net in his last few games, Nakajima-Farran found his scoring touch, going 90 minutes and scoring two goals in the first half. He now has three on the season, with many more games to go.
Canadians were also filling the net in Europe, led by unlikely goalscoring hero David Edgar.
The big defender struck twice in Burnley’s come-from-behind 3-2 win over hosts Hull City in the English Championship this past weekend. Edgar led the charge, as his two late goals brought Burnley level after having fallen down 2-0. A stoppage-time marker secured the three points for the visitors.
Burnley followed the big weekend victory with an emphatic 4-0 win over Ipswich Town on Tuesday. Edgar went 90 minutes in the midweek affair, which saw Burnley climb into 14th place in the English second tier.
Up in the Premier League, Simeon Jackson earned his first start in the top flight, suiting up for Norwich in their 2-1 win over Queens Park Rangers. Jackson went 70 minutes for the Canaries.
Also in the Premiership, young attacker David “Junior” Hoilett played the full 90 on Saturday as his club Blackburn Rovers fell 3-1 at Stoke City. The loss drops Blackburn into dead last in the EPL. To add insult to injury, Blackburn also fell 2-0 at Championship side Cardiff City in the Carling Cup quarterfinals, although Hoilett was not in the squad for the Cup loss.
The news was a little brighter across the border in Scotland, as Marcus Haber notched his first goal for Premier League club St. Johnstone. Haber nodded home the winner in the Saints’ 3-1 victory over Hibernian.
Over in Germany, Kevin McKenna returned to action after a long injury layoff, although his team FC Köln dropped a 3-0 decision to visitors Borussia Mönchengladbach. McKenna played the full 90 in the loss, Köln’s third losing effort in their past four Bundesliga encounters.
Down a rung in the 2.Bundesliga, Olivier Occean’s SpVgg Greuther Fürth dropped a crucial result on Monday, losing 2-1 at Fortuna Düsseldorf. The results sees Greuther Fürth fall five points behind Düsseldorf at the top of the league table. Occean logged 90 minutes in the defeat.
In nearby Switzerland, veteran midfielder Daniel Imhof started for FC St. Gallen and scored in the 90th minute en route to a 4-2 win over FC Zürich in the Swiss Cup. St. Gallen now move on to the quarterfinal round of the competition, and a date with Winterthur next month.
To the north in Denmark, 32-year-old Patrice Bernier started and played all 90 minutes for Lyngby in a 3-1 loss at SønderjyskE. Lyngby remain second from the bottom in the Superliga.
Also in Scandinavian action was goalkeeper Lars Hirschfeld, who backstopped Vålerenga to a 2-0 victory over Stabæk on in the Norwegian Tippeligaen finale on Sunday. Vålerenga end the season in seventh place.
Chris Pozniak’s Haugesund also ended their Tippeligaen season over the weekend, dispatching Strømsgodset 5-1. Pozniak went his customary 90 minutes in the match, as Haugesund locked up sixth place on the table.
Down on the southern end of the continent, three Canadians took the field in the Turkish Süper Lig. Saturday saw Sivasspor — featuring ‘keeper Milan Borjan — fall 2-1 to Galatasaray, with Borjan picking up a yellow card near the hour mark.
On Sunday, Mike Klukowski and Josh Simpson were on the winning side of the ledger, as their club Manisisapor defeated visiting Kayserispor 1-0. Klukowski went the distance while Simpson went 77 minutes in the match, which saw Manisaspor jump into third place in the Süper Lig.
