State League Division 1 Round 18 Preview

The home side have dropped off of late and will be keen to grab some much needed points if they are to salvage something from this season.
Inter Lions, on the other hand, boast the best attack in the league, and more goals will provide them with the points that will consolidate their position near the summit.
An interesting encounter commencing at 7-30pm sees the out of form Blacktown Spartans host Fairfield City Lions at Francis Park.
The Spartans are desperate to get their season back on track, and nothing short of a win will satisfy their fans in this match. Fairfield on the other hand are backing up from a midweek draw against Balmain, so their recovery will be duly tested against one of the competition?s front runners.
(Footnote ? Balmain SC and Fairfield City Lions played out an entertaining 3-3 draw on Wednesday evening in a catch up game at Lambert Park.
For Balmain, the goals came from midfielder Craig Andrews, Jake Flower, and enigmatic striker, Lorenzo Merlino, with his fifth goal of the season. The visitors hit the mark with goals to Tony Gabriel, skipper Robbie Issa ? his second in three days ? and Ertac Turk.)
Bottom placed Hills Brumbies will have their work cut out when they face UNSW, the Division?s in form team, at Second Ponds Oval on Saturday evening at 7-30pm.
Hills are really struggling, and have leaked an average of almost three goals per game in 2009. UNSW are on an absolute tidal wave of success of late, and with a sniff of the finals series within their grasp, it is difficult to see anything other than a victory to the ?students? in this match up.
The remaining three matches in Division One are all scheduled for a 3-00pm kick off on Sunday afternoon, with Schofields looking to get back on track when they welcome Stanmore Hawks to CSI Sport Ground.
The Scorpions have been affected with a massive injury toll, and a couple of suspensions have added to their woes this weekend. The Hawks are within striking distance of Schofields, and with it, a spot in the top five, so look out for a focused approach from the visitors in what looms as an interesting confrontation.
If Mounties FC can keep a close eye on Hurstville ZSC?s Stiven Kostanic, they will go a long way to grabbing all three points at Hurstville Oval.
The strong striker has been knocking in the goals consistently this season, and he will need to do so once again if the home side is to get something from this match.
Mounties FC have leapfrogged to second spot on the ladder with a couple of wins last week, and another victory here will go a long way towards securing a top three position.
In the final game of the round, coach Tommy McCulloch will need to have his Sydney Wanderers on their game as they tackle the competition leaders, Dulwich Hill, at Hajduk Stadium.
The Wanderers tend to lift when they play at home in front of their fans, but Dully are on a mission towards the winning this year?s championship, and will as focused as usual to make sure they stay on track towards doing just that.
Division One
Top Goalscorers -Week Seventeen
Not too much movement at the top of the charts following last weekend?s matches. Hurstville?s Stiven Kostanic grabbed another goal to extend his lead at the top, whilst Dully?s Neil Philippou scored a brace in the same match, which  has seen him move to equal sixth on nine goals.
14     ? Stiven Kostanic (Hurstville ZSC)
12   ? Stuart Meney (UNSW)
10     ? Steve Biviano (Mounties FC), Wissam Hijazi (Stanmore Hawks), Glenn McPherson (Schofields Scorpions)         
9   ? Todd McCrae (Schofield Scorpions), Neil Philippou (Dulwich Hill)

6   ? Daniel Borg (Sydney Wanderers), Nabil Codmani (Fairfield City), Domenic Dimento (Inter Lions), Daniel Cornett (Blacktown Spartans), Wand Jajaw (Blacktown Spartans), Adrian Vizzari (Inter Lions)
5      ? Lorenzo Merlino (Balmain SC), Chris Theodosiou (Stanmore Hawks), Ben Shrimpton (Hills Brumbies), Eddie Adam (Sydney Wanderers), Sam Messam (Dulwich Hill), Rafael Bove (Dulwich Hill), Dusan Mihajlovic (Dulwich Hill), Rocky Luca (UNSW),
4      ? Craig Andrews (Balmain SC), Semih Sozer (Fairfield City Lions), Yoshi Tachi (Inter Lions), Reece Iredale (Schofields Scorpions), George Iliopoulos (Inter Lions),  Stephen Tresoglavic (Mounties FC), Jimmy Byrne (UNSW)
-By Frank Speranza