Men’s State League 2 Round 9 Preview

Round 8 provided exciting football from all matches with many goals being scored across the suburbs.

The average almost reached five goals per game.

As a whole, this week will feature closer match ups, which will no doubt see defence playing a bigger factor. 

All matches will be played on Saturday 6 June and will start at David Phillips Field for our Match of the Round.

University of NSW vs FC Gazy Lansvale, 3pm Saturday 6 June, David Phillips Field (Match of the Round)

We get our first look at University of NSW this season when they come up against FC Gazy Lansvale, on Saturday.

University of NSW are coming off a 1-0 grind-out win against the Wagga City Wanderers, while FC Gazy Lansvale will be looking to bounce back from their 6-1 defeat against Hurstville FC.

Carl Bishop and Sam Zouroudis both performed well for University of NSW last week and were big factors behind their win, while FC Gazy Lansvale’s attacking weapon, Ozcan Cetinay, provided one of the goals of the season.

Both teams are tied on eight competition points so they will be looking at this match as a great opportunity to move up a spot on the ladder.

Dunbar Rovers vs Western Condors FC, 3pm Saturday 6 June, Hensley Athletic Field

The Dunbar Rovers will host the Western Condors on Saturday, only a few hundred metres down the road from this week’s Match of the Round.

Dunbar now have a comfortable two-win lead at the top of the table and according to head coach William Cullen, they have no intention of slowing down.

The Condors will be disappointed that a goal in injury time was the difference between a draw and a loss last week against the Camden Tigers.  A win this week however, will see them leapfrog the Tigers on the ladder and edge them back into the top four.

They welcome back from suspension, Mauricio Navarrete who has an unbelievable strike rate of seven goals in six matches played this season.

Prospect United vs Wagga City Wanderers, 5pm Saturday 6 June, William Lawson Park

Prospect United are coming off a big 7-0 win against the Hurstville City Minotaurs last week, courtesy of a Wiltar Jajaw hat-trick.

Despite this, the Wanderers are not rattled and are confident that if they continue to stick to their game plan and take the chances that are on offer, they will pick up their debut club win.

The Wanderers have been under an injury plague with head coach, Blaise Fagan, seeing this period as a good opportunity to give game time to their young crop of players.

As a result, the Wanderers will bring a lot of enthusiasm to this match and a ‘nothing to lose’ attitude, while Prospect also have the chance to sneak their way into the top four from sixth spot.

Southern Districts SFA vs Hurstville FC, 7pm Saturday 6 June, Ernie Smith Reserve

Southern Districts will be looking to bounce back from their 3-1 loss to Dunbar last week when they come up against second-placed Hurstville FC at home.

Despite the loss, Southern Districts would have taken a lot of positives out of their second half performance but head coach, Ramson Shamon, has stressed the importance of getting off to a good start.

Hurstville FC have won each match they have played since their Round 1 upset to University of NSW and have found a lot of their success through counter attacks.

It will shape up to be a very entertaining match with a lot on the line for both clubs.

Camden Tigers vs Hurstville City Minotaurs, 7pm Saturday 6 June, Ron Dine Reserve

The Camden Tigers find themselves back in the winning circle after a gutsy 3-2 win over the Western Condors last week.

Daniel Martinez played exceptionally and has scored three goals in their last two games.

He has linked well with Jayden Russell, who leads the competition in goal scoring (on eight goals).

The Minotaurs will move on from last week and turn their attention to the job at hand.  Paolo Paras has been their best player this season, however, he will need more support from his teammates if they are to pick up the three points, in what will be freezing conditions at Camden on Saturday night.
-By Lars Roy, Men’s State League 2 Reporter