2015-16 Futsal Premier League kicks off

Summer might be taking it’s time to gain a foothold in Sydney but this weekend’s 2015-16 Futsal Premier League season start is sure to heat things up!

South Coast Taipans rejoin the penthouse party after three highly successful state league seasons but they’ll face familiar targets in perennial club champions Inner West Magic (they’ve won nine titles in a decade) and open men trophy-holders Dural Warriors (four straight grand final victories).

Premier League newcomers the last two summers UTS Northside and Mountain Majik both look settled, while Campbelltown Quake, Mascot Vipers and Enfield Rovers have been Futsal stalwarts for years, and it’s very hard to predict how this summer will unfold.

This Saturday’s opening round features Dural against UTS Northside at Dural Sport & Leisure Centre, Enfield versus Campbelltown at Morris Iemma Indoor Sports Centre, Mascot host Mountain Majik at All Sorts Indoor Sports Centre, and Inner West Magic tackle South Coast at Valentine Sports Park. Visit the Football NSW website (Futsal tab) for full details.

Warriors host UTS

Four-time premier league champions Dural Warriors welcome UTS Northside to their Dural Sport & Leisure Centre fortress this Saturday night (7.55pm), but it’s no easy start for the home side. Coach Rob Varela’s certainly built a north-west hills dynasty and won’t be relinquishing the sceptre any time soon (win this match and they’ll equal their record nine straight top flight victories over the 2011/12-2012/13 summers). But don’t discount UTS! The Northsiders burst onto the scene last season after blitzing state league the year before (three age group wins), and after a slow start in the men’s powered home to win four of their last six games, pushing Warriors in tight 2-0 and 2-1 losses – and they’ll look to go even closer in this match.

Rovers play Quake

Enfield Rovers entertain rivals Campbelltown Quake at Morris Iemma Indoor Sports Centre on Saturday night (8.05pm), and boy don’t these two pack some history. They’ve won six each in 12 riveting premier league encounters, half of them decided by two goals or less, and Campbelltown boast the slenderest of differences in front of goal producing 55 goals to Enfield’s 54 (an average of nine goals scored per meeting). Throw in some grudge matches, Rovers pipping Quake 5-4 in the 11/12 Preliminary final followed a year later by Quake edging Rovers 7-6 in a knockout semi-final, and this Saturday’s challenge is a must-see affair. Both sides featured in three premier league grand finals each last summer, Campbelltown winning three and Enfield two.

Magic face Taipans

Inner West Magic provides Premier League returnees South Coast Taipans with a stern test at Valentine Sports Park on Saturday night (8.30pm). Inner West contested seven of nine top flight grand finals last summer (successful in three) and will be full of anticipation in the open men’s category having made two of the past three deciders. South Coast also enter the fray with strength across all age groups, Taipans winning three state league trophy matches last season, but their senior men need to lift to make a better impact on the big stage than last time round. The Coasters won just two games to finish last in a challenging 2011/12 premier league season, although they were competitive against Inner West, falling 3-0 and 5-3 to the then-named Allstars.

Vipers tackle Majik

Mascot Vipers versus Mountain Majik is an enticing match-up at All Sorts Indoor Sports Centre on Saturday night (8.20pm). Both sides finished bottom-three of last year’s comp and will look for better results this summer. Majik in particular will want to build upon their successful debut 2013/14 premier league start when it came second to Inner West in the club championship, but they found the going tougher last season and lost their last six men’s contests to trail away, while Vipers won two of their last three to snap an eight-game winless streak. Mascot beat the Mountaineers 6-4 in their most recent meeting to break three straight Majik victories, and this result is well and truly up for grabs.

-By Dan De Nardi