Futsal Premier/State League Round 3 Preview
Football NSW previews this weekend’s round 3 action in the Futsal Premier and State League competition as the competition continues to heat up across NSW.
Quake rumbles in Premier League round 3
Premier League round three stars a grand final rematch with Campbelltown against Dural, it’s the Magic v Majik show, top dog Rovers tackle crestfallen Phoenix, and Mascot meet UTS Northside in a match with huge ramifications for Vipers.
It’s a top-of-the-table grand final rematch blockbuster between Campbelltown Quake and Dural Warriors at Minto Indoor Sports Centre this weekend, and their history book reads like a Stephen King novel.
There’s been a couple of blow-outs, including last summer’s 6-0 whitewash grand final win to Dural, but nothing much has separated them over the years. Warriors have three wins, Quake two, with two draws in their past seven clashes (and only two margins crept past two goals), BUT you can’t ignore the first spark thrown in the dynamite box – a 2-0 grand final win to Campbelltown way back in the 2008 Winter State League decider. Batten down the hatches!
Fireworks at Valentine Sports Park as Inner West Magic battle Mountain Majik in a salivating contest.
This will be a very interesting meeting as successive Inner West draws has them stuck in first gear, while the Mountaineers crashed 5-1 to Campbelltown last weekend. Magic won both of last summer’s meetings (3-1 and then 6-3) but Majik struck back in last month’s pre-season Magician’s Cup tournament held between the clubs to indicate this game is well and truly up for grabs.
It’s chalk and cheese as unbeaten Enfield Rovers face win-less Phoenix Futsal Club at Morris Iemma Indoor Sports Centre.
Enfield are on a five game unbeaten run in premier league (they won their last three last summer) and in good form early on this season. Phoenix are already showing signs of struggle and have now gone 14 league games without victory, so now would be a great time to replicate a bombshell 4-3 win over Rovers in their debut premier league run (2012/13) – Enfield have won the three encounters since then.
Mascot meet UTS Northside at All Sorts Indoor Sports Centre with the Vipers backs against the wall.
First a correction: The round two report mentioned Mascot losing 15 straight open men’s matches; this is incorrect [Ed: sorry]. Vipers are without a win in 15 league runs with it all on the line this weekend to avoid a grinding Sydney City Eagles 16-game win-less sequence (over 2011/12-2012/13), and Phoenix are just one defeat/draw behind Vipers.
Eagles lost 11 straight during their horror run, while Mascot and Phoenix currently sit on eight successive league losses to add extra venom to the Vipers mission this weekend. UTS are riding high after a breakthrough 3-2 win over Phoenix in round two to immediately snap their heartbreaking opening weekend 4-5 loss to Enfield, but they’ll need to be on their game as they prepare to face a charged-up Mascot.
State League Round 3
State league round three sizzles with a top-of-the-table clash between former premier leaguers Sydney City Eagles and Boomerangs at Dural Sport & Leisure Centre.
The Eagles were flying high after claiming the 2010/11 top flight trophy and only last summer Boomerangs celebrated being the first non-Sydney team to make the premier league finals. This will be a fantastic battle between two of Futsal’s iconic clubs.
Joint leaders Western Wolves meet a fired-up West City Crusaders at Emerton Leisure Centre, win-less Parramatta Pumas play Botany Bay Pirates at Dural Sport & Leisure Centre, Mount Druitt Town Rangers tackle South Coast Taipans at Kevin Butts Stadium, Sutherland Shire face Raiders at Menai Sports, Sydney Futsal Club welcomes International Football School Futsal, while Eastern Suburbs Hakoah sits out with the bye.
-By Dan De Nardi
