State League One Round 5 Preview
Captain coach Ben Green will be hoping for a return to form for his troops, following their surprise home reverse against UNSW last weekend, and will lead the team?s sturdy defensive line in front of the boisterous sounds of the home fans.
Gladesville Ryde Magic had their maiden victory of the 2011 season last weekend, and will draw confidence not just from the win, but from the manner of their 3-0 triumph over an Inter Lions team that are never easy to beat.
League top scorer, Nick Paradisis, will once again be out to add to his tally when Stanmore Hawks tackle Schofields Scorpions at Arlington Oval at 7-00pm on Saturday night.
Paradisis is repaying the faith Stanmore showed in grabbing his signature, having found the net seven times thus far, and he?ll be hard to stop for a Schofields side that seem to be finding the early season commitments a little tough going.
Something will have to give at Cook Park, Mt Pritchard, where the two remaining undefeated teams in the Division do battle at 7-00pm.
Home side, Mounties Wanderers, had their sails lowered a little last weekend, leaving it late to snatch a 2-1 victory over Schofields via a 90th minute winner by Greg Baldock.
But the win has them sitting proudly on top of the ladder with 12 points and a perfect 100% record, and the home fans will once again be demanding a feast of goalmouth action no doubt.
Hurstville ZFC have definitely been the surprise packet of 2011, unbeaten after four rounds with 2 wins and 2 draws, an incredible turnaround from their dreadfully poor showing in 2010.
They?ll be out to show they mean business, and there?s no better way of doing that than by knocking the wind out of the league leaders.
The remaining three matches in Round Five are all scheduled for a 3-00pm kick off on Sunday afternoon.
In the battle of the Lions, Inter will be desperate to kick start their season when they entertain the visit of Fairfield City.
Inter Lions recruited well in the off season, and despite some promising play generally, they have not been able to turn that into results with just one point from three matches.
With a game in hand against Mt Druitt to be played on the Easter weekend, Messrs Bove and Carle will be keen to coerce three points in this clash.
Apart from the one blimp against Mounties a fortnight ago, Fairfield City have had three solid wins and sit happily in second spot on the ladder, and their performances suggest there is no reason they won?t be there or thereabouts come season end.
Hajduk Stadium will host an intriguing game on Sunday between Fairfield Bulls and Balmain SC.
The Bulls have started their year steadily, with a win, a draw and a loss in their opening three matches, sneaking a spot in the top half with a game in hand against the Magic at Easter.
Balmain will no doubt be looking to Uri Kaye and Johnny Buonavoglia to continue their form of late, and hopefully snatch a victory which will catapult them away from the lower rungs of the ladder.
Having had their first win in 2011 last weekend, Mt Druitt will be confident of another three points when they greet UNSW at Popondetta Park.
The Rangers grabbed four goals in a resounding win against Balmain, but they won?t find it easy, however, against a resurgent UNSW side, who has managed to pick up four points in their last two matches.
Division One Top Goalscorers Round Four
7 : Nick PARADISIS (Stanmore Hawks)
5 : Greg BALDOCK (Mounties)
4 : Mark SYMINGTON (Mounties)
3 : Chris SULTAN (Fairfield City Lions), Paul GAGRO (Hurstville ZFC),
Daniel WILLOUGHBY (Mounties),
2 : Nathan RALPH (Mt Druitt), Matthew CROSS (Camden Tigers),
Chris TERKES (Hurstville ZFC), Neil PHILIPPOU (Stanmore Hawks),
Gonzalo GODOY (Mt Druitt), Michael POSAVAC (Hurstville ZFC),
Johnny BUONAVOGLIA (Balmain SC), Uri KAYE (Balmain SC),
Mojtaba MOHEBBEE (Fairfield City), Yavuz EKINCI (Fairfield City),
Daniel MCCANN (Mounties), Justin KIRBY (Schofields),
Sebastian BENDALL (UNSW), Henry KAMLEITNER (UNSW).
-By Frank Speranza
