State League 2 – Round 22 Preview

The State League 2 final round-22 is an all-Sunday affair (3pm kickoff) as Southern Branch tackle Fairfield City Lions at Rydalmere Park, Southern Bulls host Belmore United at Ernie Smith Reserve, Hurstville FC play Western Condors at Seven Hills Sports Centre, University of NSW face Hurstville City Minotaurs at David Phillips Field, and Stanmore Hawks meet Schofields Scorpions at Arlington Oval. Enfield Rovers have the bye.
Southern Bulls face off with Belmore United in the gladiator pit at Ernie Smith Reserve on Sunday afternoon (3pm). Bulls can’t finish lower than fourth and victory only gives them a speculative hold on third spot – Uni are two points ahead with a three-goal better for-against record. Seventh-placed Belmore must look to the skies for help: First they have to overpower Bulls no matter what and then hope Lions defeat or draw with Branch and FC also do them a favour by beating or drawing with Condors in the final round. It’s a long hop but well worth fighting for. The Bulls-Belmore round-11 clash finished 1-1 and expect this one to be just as close.
Hurstville FC play Western Condors in a big game at Seven Hills Sports Centre on Sunday afternoon (3pm). FC conceded their 2013 campaign with a 4-1 loss to Belmore midweek but that mightn’t end their impact on the top-five make-up. A win against Condors will finish Western’s finals flight and pep the cause of Southern Branch and Belmore, even a draw will make things lively. Condors have a different story in mind however: If Fairfield beat Branch and Bulls beat Belmore a Western win or draw with Hurstville is good enough for Condors; a Fairfield-Branch draw and/or Belmore win means Condors must beat FC. Condors grabbed a late 1-1 draw with Hurstville in round 11 to underline how tight this contest will be with more at stake.
This is the moment for Southern Branch as they travel to Sydney to take on second-placed Fairfield City Lions at Rydalmere Park on Sunday afternoon (3pm). The state league debutants have destiny in their own hands: If they topple Fairfield a second time (they won 1-0 in round-11) they make the finals in their first competitive season. A draw with the Lions may be good enough if Belmore and Condors both lose, but a defeat leaves Branch also open to a Condors draw with Hurstville FC and/or Belmore win over Bulls. Fairfield won’t have any of it and will be out to defend a prestigious home record of just one defeat (2-0 to Hawks) in nine fixtures.
Finals-bound University of NSW face Hurstville City Minotaurs at David Phillips Field on Sunday afternoon (3pm) looking to snare a top-three position. Uni beat Rovers 3-0 midweek and if they topple Minotaurs they’ll finish above Southern Bulls, even a draw may be good enough for third if Southern beat Hurstville FC by less than three goals – but a Uni loss leaves them completely open to a belated Bulls charge. A Joel Silvestre double lifted Uni to a fine 2-0 win over Minotaurs back at the competition’s halfway mark and it will be interesting to see what sort of opposition they’ll provide in a pressure cooker situation.
If ever David and Goliath met on a football pitch it’d be this Sunday afternoon (3pm) when newly crowned premiers Stanmore Hawks meet win-less Schofields Scorpions at Arlington Oval. The Hawks wrapped up the first piece of silverware with a tough 1-0 win over Minotaurs on Thursday night and can put the sweetest icing on a delicious 2013 cake that included a humiliating 16-0 victory over hapless Schofields in round 11. The stats couldn’t be more contrast but the most darning is Schofields netting twice to Stanmore’s 58 season goals. Golden Boot supremo Neil Philippou scored seven times in the last clash, the sixth Hawks win over Scorpions in nine meetings.
In grade-20 nothing can knock Fairfield City off their lofty minor premiership perch, the Lions (49) six points ahead of an under siege Minotaurs (43). Hurstville City battle third-placed Uni (41) in a winner-takes-second clash on Sunday, while fourth-placed Stanmore (39) could sneak up a position when they meet Schofields. The fight for fifth is just as tenacious with Condors (24) clinging to a one point edge over Southern Branch and Belmore United. Branch face leaders Fairfield on Sunday while Belmore and Condors play out-of-contention Bulls and Hurstville FC to create a plethora of possible outcomes from several do-or-die battles.