Round 12 Preview – PS4 NPL 2 NSW Women’s
A bumper preview this week in the PlayStation® 4 National Premier Leagues 2 NSW Women’s 2016, with fixtures piling up there’s a couple of midweek games to get to before the preview for round 12.
Firstly, Bankstown play host to the Northern Tigers in their round 10 fixture, rescheduled to Thursday night because of Sydney’s torrential downpour a few weeks ago.
And we also have the small matter of the Mariners/Nepean catch up match from Monday night to go through.
Round 4 catch up result:
Central Coast Mariners FC vs Nepean FC, 2.05pm Monday June 13th at Pluim Park NO.3
The sides met Monday afternoon in a catch up match from round 4, and it was heartbreak for Central Coast as they were moments away from their first win of the season before Nepean pulled back a 91st minute equaliser. Natalie Waddell put the home side in front after 73 minutes, but they couldn’t quite hold on for those elusive three points. So close, but after the draw earlier in the weekend there are great signs that the Mariners aren’t for from breaking their duck for season 2016.
Kaitlin Harms spared Nepean’s blushes with her injury time equaliser, but they will still be immensely disappointed with their weekend’s work after this made it successive draws against the league’s last placed side. Nepean has a 3 point break on fifth place at the moment, but they may come to rue dropping 4 points over the Queen’s birthday weekend.
Round 10:
Bankstown City FC vs Northern Tigers FC, 8.30pm Thursday June 16th at Jensen Park
The two sides meet tomorrow night in a rescheduled fixture from round 10, in what now shapes as a huge game with both sides locked on 13 points.
Bankstown are coming off of that outstanding victory against pace setters Sutherland, and will have a lot of momentum going into this fixture. Not to be outdone though, the Tigers will be full of confidence here as well after they overcame Olympic at the weekend.
There was real steel about Bankstown last weekend though, and they’ll make things very difficult indeed for the Tigers if they can find some more of that in this one.
Round 12 Preview:
After the upsets of round 11, round 12 has the potential to deliver much of the same with momentum shifts and intriguing match ups across the competition.
Bankstown head north to face Central Coast, Nepean travel eastwards to face Inter, Sutherland host the Northern Tigers at Harrie Denning, and Olympic head down to Nowra to face Southern Branch.
Central Coast Mariners FC vs Bankstown City FC, 2.05pm Sunday June 19th at Pluim Park NO.3
Central Coast goes into this on the back of a high point for their season after the two draws against Nepean, and they must feel that a win is around the corner. This might represent their best chance to accomplish that given that Bankstown have to back up from Thursday night, after having already played a brute of a game the weekend before. It’ll be no easy task, but really going for it may just be the best option here for the home side.
This fixture could cap off an almost season defining week for Bankstown City, as they have the chance to be pushing the top sides after this round of matches. They secured a comfortable victory last time out against Central Coast, and another performance like that will be the ideal scenario after three games in a week.
Inter Lions SC vs Nepean FC, 3pm Sunday June 19th at Fraser Park
Inter Lions take their home fixture to Fraser Park in the inner west this weekend, but don’t think that will make things any easier for Nepean. Inter know Nepean will be smarting after last weekend, and while they’ll be prepared for a reaction, if none is forthcoming they’ll go at Nepean early to try and keep them under the boot. Inter have an edge to them this year, and this could be a good time to really send a message to the chasing pack.
Nepean have done well to find themselves in a decent position on the table despite a few setbacks this season. They’ll need to definitely show some fight in this one as nothing ever comes easy against the Lions. Anything less than a high quality team performance and their chances here become very slim indeed.
Sutherland Shire FA vs Northern Tigers FC, 3pm Sunday June 19th at Harrie Denning Centre
Sutherland weren’t up to their usual standards last weekend, and there’ll be no doubting that they’ll be out to rectify that performance here. Bankstown smothered them whenever they crossed halfway, and they couldn’t find a way to deal with the pressure they were put under. The belief in their way of playing is clearly still there, but some more ways of picking the lock are now required if they are to hold onto first position.
The Tigers play a similar way to Sutherland in many ways. They play out from the back, and the ball does most of the work – they just lack a little bit of the structure that keeps Sutherland together. Being a little more free form has its advantages in an attacking sense though, and they’ll hope that unpredictability will be enough to break down Sutherland and get the job done here.
Southern Branch FA vs Sydney Olympic FC, 3pm Sunday June 19th at South Nowra Football Complex
Southern and Olympic may both be coming off the back of a loss, but they’re in far different positions on the ladder. Olympic have dealt well with the couple of poor performances they’ve had this season, which is why they’re up the top in a position to challenge. Southern haven’t handled their adversity quite so well in this campaign, and it really is a must win game here for the home side.
Defending has been the main area separating the top sides from those at the bottom, and a clean sheet against the potent attack of Olympic will give Southern all the belief they need to repeat it against weaker sides than they face here. By the same token – and despite being equal top scorers – Olympic haven’t fired the way many would expect. They’ll want goals on Sunday just as much as they want the points.
By Eamonn Warner, PS4 National Premier Leagues 2 NSW Women’s Reporter
