State League 2 Round 12 Preview

2013 State League 2 second half kicks off with a journey south for Western Condors to face Southern Branch in a top-five stoush at Ison Park on Sunday afternoon (3pm kickoff).
The winner keeps their lofty position at the end of the weekend with the loser vulnerable to several teams laying in wait behind them, and this should be an interesting match-up between a free-flowing Condors and a solid Branch unit. The southern coasters have taken four 1-0 victories this year (including Condors in round one) to offset three losses and be equal-second despite their negative-3 goal difference. Their opponents have scored twice in three matches to make this a worrying fixture for the Sydneysiders.
Stanmore Hawks have waited an eternity for a rematch with Hurstville City Minotaurs and their Sunday afternoon rumble at Punchbowl Oval should be well worth the wait. Only struggling Minotaurs have toppled the runaway leaders this year, a 3-1 opening round ambush stunning the former State League giants and giving Hurstville a dream season start. But they didn’t win for another seven games and only head win-less Enfield and Schofields at the bottom of the table while Stanmore have won every game since to open up an eight point competition lead at the top. The Minotaurs need points, particularly with their next seven games against teams above them on the ladder.
Belmore United and Hurstville FC battle it out at Blick Oval on Sunday afternoon in an important game for both sides. Hurstville are in a three-way tie for second with Lions and Branch and have Condors and Bulls barking at the gate just two points behind. Belmore sit one point outside the top-five and hoping to replicate their first round 2-1 victory over Hurstville and stake their own finals case ahead of crunch meetings with Bulls, Lions and Condors. FC take on the competition’s bottom four sides following this weekend with the opportunity to make a huge statement of their own.
Enfield Rovers host a momentum-building University NSW at Pratten Park on Sunday afternoon. Successive victories and a couple of catch-up games still to play have given Uni a springboard to launch their top-five attack, and standing in their way is an improved Enfield. Funnily, these two sides are yet to play their round one postponement and have hardly set the world alight in front of goal – a combined 14 goals in 14 outings way below the league average of four goals per game. Both teams are on the rise.
Demoralised Schofields Scorpions tackle an itchy Southern Bulls at the CSI Ground on Sunday afternoon. The Scorpions were squashed 16-0 by Stanmore last week to underline a dismal winter that’s conceded 57 goals in nine games with only have two celebrations of their own at the other end. Some Southern fans are still a little dirty that an unprepared Schofields was allowed to forfeit their opening round meeting, particularly in lieu of some of the cricket-sized scorelines against them. If it comes down to goal-difference at the end of the season, the Bulls will be braying for blood and out to make up for it this weekend. History is on Schofields side, however, with three straight wins against Bulls.
-By Dan De Nardi