Round 5 Preview – PS4 NPL 3 NSW Men’s
The PlayStation®4 National Premier Leagues 3 NSW Men’s competition continues on this weekend with five matches on Saturday evening and the solitary remaining game on Sunday afternoon.
Saturday’s matches are spread across three different kick off times, with the action for Round Five getting underway at Dean Bertenshaw Field where Hawkesbury City welcome the visit of Granville Rage.
The Hawks have had an uncharacteristic start to the season, having lost their opening four matches of the competition. The games themselves have been close enough, but City just haven’t had the bounce of the ball, and despite some close score lines, they prop up the ladder at the moment without a point and will be eager to change that on Saturday.
Granville themselves had a solid start to the season, but lost two matches in quick succession over a few days, coming unstuck against Gladesville at home on Saturday night, before losing their rescheduled match against Rydalmere Lions on Tuesday evening.
Both sides will be desperate to grab the spoils in this one and commence their ascent up the ladder, so expect some frenzied activity come Saturday afternoon.
Western NSW Mariners meet Inter Lions at Glen Willow Stadium on Saturday evening with the match kicking off at 6-00pm.
Much has been made of the rotten fortunes for the Mariners of late, with the side involved in some high scoring matches, without picking up any points. Two hard fought matches against Sydney University and Rydalmere Lions resulted in 3-4 losses, so goals are clearly not an issue for the Mariners, but they simply have to stop leaking goals in order to turn these performances into points. Having said that, young goal keeper, Adam Brackenridge has been a standout performer between the sticks for the Mariners, and without his heroics the damage could’ve been a lot worse.
Inter Lions got their season back on track last weekend with a closely fought 1-0 win over Sydney University, goal scorer Daniel Fogarty one of a few players who could stem the tide in Inter’s favour. The Lions will be keen to keep their season on track with another win, hoping to make sure the bus trip home is not a quiet one.
Arlington Oval will host a match between two teams coming off losses last weekend as Stanmore Hawks entertain Balmain Tigers at 7-00pm.
Two of five teams who currently sit on six points on the ladder with two wins and two losses, goal difference the only divider which sees Stanmore in 4th spot ahead of Balmain in 8th position.
The Hawks gave a good account of themselves in a narrow loss to Dunbar last weekend, eventually losing to a double sucker punch, conceding two goals in quick succession in the middle of the second half. Each of their matches this season have been very tight affairs – they do not give away much in defence, but struggle to put teams away also.
Balmain’s resurgence up the ladder has been in no small means due to Marcelo Turdera’s form in front of goal, and the ace marksman is one player Stanmore need to keep an eye on – he is currently one of seven NPL3 players who have scored three goals this season.
Hills Brumbies tackle Dulwich Hill at Lilys football Centre on Saturday night, the match scheduled to commence at 7-00pm.
Hills Brumbies are doing well to stay an arm’s length from the undefeated top two in the league, with three wins from their opening four matches. Striker Peter Cejkaa was back on the scoresheet last week in their 3-1 away triumph over Balmain, netting his sixth goal of the season to lead the division’s scoring charts.
After a somewhat spluttering start to their campaign, Dully finally cracked it for their maiden win last weekend over Hawkesbury, and will look to build on that momentum in what promises to be a tight affair at Lilys.
Gladesville Ryde Magic hope to keep their winning mentality going on Saturday night when they travel to meet Rydalmere Lions at Rydalmere Park, the clash kicking off at 7-00pm.
The Lions are sitting pretty in first place, with a perfect 4 wins from 4 matches, even though they have had a couple of close shaves. They had to travel to Mudgee last Saturday before they pulled off a Houdini-like escape act against the Mariners, and backed that up with a win on Tuesday against Granville, so their fitness will be tested with their third game in seven days. Joey Steenbergen (5) and Lloyd Owusu (4) both netted last week and are now in 2nd and equal 3rd spots respectively on the top goal scorers charts.
The timing for this match could not be better for Gladesville Ryde Magic, having won three matches within the past week, the latter two with some conviction indeed.
They don’t come much better than the experienced Kyriakou Tohouroglou between the sticks, and with Chris Tomaras starting to find his rhythm in attack, Magic could well spring a surprise come Saturday night.
Sydney University and Dunbar Rovers do battle on Sunday afternoon in the final match of Round Five, the encounter kicking off at 3-00pm at the recently opened Sydney University Football Ground.
Uni have had a hot and cold start to their season, one of those teams I referred to earlier that are sitting on six points with 2 wins and 2 losses. Consistency is obviously a focus moving forward for the ‘students’, and they have a real chance to stamp their mark with a positive result against Dunbar here, being an opportunity to keep close to the leaders by bridging that six point gap between the sides.
Dunbar will be hard to stop, their physical pressing style difficult to combat as they deliver it over 90 minutes. They have had the most number players out of any team in the league who have scored goals – eight in total, with Andrew Green leading the pack on three – which is an ominous warning for Sydney Uni shot stopper, Daniel Conway, and his defensive line.
RESCHEDULED MATCH – Tuesday, April 26
Rydalmere Lions – Granville Chile 2-0
The Round Three match between Rydalmere and Granville was postponed after ten minutes due to floodlight failure a week and a half ago, the Lions 1-0 up after a goal by Seiji Tarutani, his third of the campaign.
The two teams literally picked up where they left off, with the same players on the team sheet continuing on from the 10th minute, as per Football NSW regulations.
Granville put up a better fight than they did on Saturday against Gladesville, but couldn’t break through with an equaliser. A flurry of yellow cards during the second half reflected the increased intensity culminating in a second and decisive goal for the home side.
Rydalmere were awarded a free kick outside the Granville penalty area on 75 minutes. Miguel Lopez stepped up and curled the ball around the wall and in to the bottom corner of the net to extend Rydalmere’s lead to 2-0, one that they held on to until the end of the match.
The win gave Rydalmere another 3 points and has taken them to 12, equal with Dunbar Rovers, but the Lions hold top spot courtesy of a two goal better goal differential.
