Men’s State League 2 Round 11 Preview

Round 11 of the Men’s State League 2 kicks off this weekend with two matches scheduled for Saturday, one of which will be held in Wagga Wagga. 

The remaining three will take place on Sunday, spreading across Sydney’s northern and western suburbs.

Our Match of the Round takes us to David Phillips Field when sixth-placed University of NSW host Prospect United in their third of four straight home games.

University of NSW vs Prospect United, 3pm Saturday 20 June, David Phillips Fields (Match of the Round) – WASHED OUT

For our Match of the Round we will get our second looks at both University of NSW and Prospect United who have turned heads with their recent form.  Both teams are undefeated in their last four matches and have created momentum at the right time of the season.

Wiltar Jajaw and David Mavisa have been Prospect’s key to success, combining for a total of nine of the club’s 15 goals scored this season.

For University of NSW, they have had issues finding the back of the net but have proven that defence is just as important, by achieving two consecutive cleansheets.

They will be looking to make it three in a row this weekend, however, Prospect’s attack is one of the hardest to contain in the competition, which is proven by their 7-0 victory against the Minotaurs in round eight.

Wagga City Wanderers vs Dunbar Rovers, 3pm Saturday 20 June, Gissing Oval

The Wagga City Wanderers will host the Dunbar Rovers after coming off a narrow 4-3 defeat to the Camden Tigers last week.

They continue to improve as a team and have started each of their games well, but fall into a habit of switching off at crucial periods of the match.

They have shown that they can be competitive with the best teams of the competition and produced a brilliant first half performance the last time these two teams met.

Head coach, Blaise Fagan will be stressing the importance of playing for the full 90 minutes while, Rovers head coach, William Cullen will be looking to capitalise more on the chances that present themselves.

The Rovers only just got out of jail against the Western Condors in round nine and have admittedly fallen to mid-season rust, despite having a number of injuries.  So just long can this streak continue?

Western Condors FC vs Hurstville FC, 3pm Sunday 21 June, Calabria Sports Ground

The Western Condors will be looking to break their three game losing streak when they host Hurstville FC at home on Sunday.

Their poor form over the last month has seen them drop from fourth spot to seventh on the ladder.

Despite this, only two wins separate them with fourth placed Hurstville FC, who will be looking to capitalise on all three competition points after their draw to University of NSW last week.

Hurstville FC have had a solid season so far, backing up from a successful 2014 campaign.  Denis Cutura has been one of their most consistent players and finds himself third on the goal-scoring list with seven for the season.  His teammate, Henry Kamleitner is not far behind with five goals.

Look for these two to combine this week if Hurstville FC are to pick up the three points away.

Hurstville City Minotaurs vs Southern Districts SFA, 3pm Sunday 21 June, Sydney United Sports Centre

The Hurstville City Minotaurs return to Magdala Park after going down to the Dunbar Rovers 2-0 last week.

Despite the loss, the Minotaurs can take a lot of positives out of the match especially with their defence, led by Leon Sansone.  They also showed resilience when down a player in the second half.

For Southern Districts, they are coming off a 2-1 win against the Western Condors and have put back-to-back victories together since their 3-1 defeat to Dunbar in round nine.

They will be especially eager to pick up another three points this weekend in order to contribute to their club championship tally, which is an accumulation of both 20s and first grade competition points.

Similar to the first grade ladder, they lie in second spot behind Dunbar.  Head coach, Ramson Shamon has expressed the importance of playing consistent football “week-in, week- out,” so they will be looking to continue this into the second half of the season, when every point counts.

FC Gazy Lansvale vs Camden Tigers, 3pm Sunday 21 June, Progress Park – WASHED OUT

FC Gazy Lansvale will be looking to get themselves back in the winning circle after two draws and a loss have seen them lose touch with the middle of the pack 

Prior to that, they were on a two-game winning streak when they defeated the Hurstville City Minotaurs and the Wagga City Wanderers in rounds six and seven.

The Camden Tigers on the other hand are in red-hot form and will look to make it four wins on the trot, which can bump them back into the top four.

None more impressive than their 4-3 win against the Wagga City Wanderers at home last week.

Camden were down 2-0 at the break and fought back with a brilliant four-goal second half performance.

Head coach, Dean Mackechnie was mostly impressed by their never-say-die attitude and ability to work as a team.

-By Lars Roy, Men’s State League 2 Reporter