Round 21 Preview – PS4 NPL 3 NSW Men’s
Just two scheduled rounds of football remaining, and there is still quite a bit to play for, including the make-up and final positioning of the top five.
Round Twenty One of the PlayStation®4 National Premier Leagues 3 NSW Men’s competition is split with three fixtures on Saturday and three on Sunday, and starts with bottom meeting top on Saturday afternoon at Proctor Park in Bathurst, when the Western NSW Mariners welcome the travelling Hills Brumbies at 5pm.
Hills will be smarting from a 0-2 reverse last weekend at the hands of Hawkesbury, and will no doubt look to bounce back with a win and set up some momentum heading in to the finals series.
Even though the Mariners have been confirmed in last position on the ladder with two rounds remaining, they will be keen to finish the season on a high, and what better way than to grab the scalp of the high flying Brumbies.
On paper all points to a comfortable Hills victory, but given the Mariners lost their first round match against the Brumbies to the tune of 0-8, seeking retribution will be foremost on the mind of the home side.
Two teams who have been in steady form during the second round meet at Arlington Oval on Saturday night, with Stanmore Hawks welcoming the visit of Hawkesbury City for a 7pm kick off.
It’s definitely been a testing week for Hawkesbury, meeting three of the top four in a congested seven day period.
First up, Hawkesbury accounted for league leaders, Hills Brumbies, 2-0 last Saturday, and backed that up by drawing with Rydalmere Lions on Wednesday night in a midweek catch up – so what odds they will hit a trifecta and grab something against Stanmore on Saturday?
Stanmore have been one of the most consistent teams in the league this season, and very difficult to score against, let alone defeat, especially on their home patch. Expect a flurry of feathers in a tense Hawks’ derby come Saturday evening.
Dunbar Rovers entertain Granville Rage at Hensley Athletic Field on Saturday night hoping to continue their recent winning form.
An obvious message for Granville could be to make sure they focus on stopping David Desmond, the Dunbar striker having scored 11 goals, no less, in his team’s most recent four matches. But do that at your peril, because the Rovers have plenty of other attacking weapons at their disposal, so Rage may have to spread their focus across their own defensive third in its entirety in order to avoid defeat.
Granville Rage themselves are coming off the back of a loss to Inter Lions last weekend – where they showed plenty of intensity in a frantic final twenty minutes – as well as a midweek defeat to Sydney University. Given the space, Granville have enough midfield creativity in Dylan Stivala and Kushaba Kushaba to hurt the Rovers, so Dunbar will need to close down the centre of the park if they are to take all three points.
The first of three 3pm games on Sunday, August 21, will be at Concord Oval, where Inter Lions tackle Rydalmere Lions in an intriguing clash.
Inter have given themselves some chance of finals football with their recent results, so will be keen to finish on a high after a somewhat inconsistent campaign. Daniel Fogarty’s hatrick last week sees him move to an impressive 22 goals for the season, second only to Hills’ Peter Cejkaa, and with Eric Tomesek and Daniel Fornito providing the service from the flanks, Rydalmere will have to be at their best to avoid defeat.
Rydalmere themselves are finishing the season very strongly, and have picked up four points over the past few days courtesy of a win over Sydney University (Sat) and a draw at Hawkesbury City (Wed). Revenge could be on the Rydalmere menu given Inter Lions won 4-2 at Rydalmere Park the first time these teams met, so look out for more goals and plenty of growl in this Lions derby on Sunday afternoon.
Fifth spot is up for grabs at Sydney University Football Ground on Sunday afternoon, with Sydney University meeting Gladesville Ryde Magic at 3pm.
The ‘students’ are currently in 5th spot on the ladder, and took a huge step towards consolidating their place in the finals with a midweek victory over Granville Rage.
The gap between the clubs is now four points, so nothing less than a win for Magic is required to keep them in the hunt for a finals spot.
With plenty on offer, a real arm wrestle looks on the cards, but you can expect desperation amidst some sturdy defensive work from both teams as a finals berth beckons.
The final match of the round is between Balmain Tigers and Dulwich Hill, kicking off at 3pm at Wentworth Park.
Separated by three points near the foot of the ladder, pride will take precedence as both sides will look for the three points to finish their season brightly.
Balmain won 3-0 on the road against the Mariners last weekend, and the three points took them to 17 and equal with Granville Rage. Striker, Marcelo Turdera, grabbed a brace to take his season tally to 10 goals, and he has been a shining light in a somewhat disappointing season for the Tigers.
Dulwich Hill put on a solid showing against the high flying Dunbar Rovers last weekend, leading 1-0 at the break before succumbing to a second half brace from the in form David Desmond, so expect Dully to carry that effort in to this match and pull themselves level with their match day opponents.
MIDWEEK RESCHEDULED MATCHES
Round 17
Hawkesbury City – Rydalmere Lions 2-2 Wednesday, August 17, at David Bertenshaw Field @ 7-30pm
Hawkesbury City almost picked up their second big scalp in five days when they drew 2-2 against Rydalmere Lions on Wednesday night.
Backing up after their 2-0 victory over the league leaders, Hills Brumbies, on Saturday, Hawkesbury took a commanding lead within the opening twenty minutes, racing in front 2-0 with a brace of goals to Rodney Cormack.
Shane Webb pulled a goal back for the visitors on the half hour mark, and Rydalmere left it late to snatch a point, with Amaury Gauthier equalising in the second minute of injury time.
Round 19
Sydney University – Granville Rage 5-1 Wednesday, August 17, at Sydney University Football Ground @ 7-30pm
Sydney University put one foot firmly in to the end of season finals when they handed Granville Rage a 5-1 drubbing on Wednesday night.
It was actually the Rage that edged themselves in front early on, when Daiki Sadahisa tapped in a rebound after Sydney Uni goalkeeper, Carl McMahon, spilled a long range effort against his former club.
But the ‘students’ replied almost immediately when Scott Tonkin worked the ball to Johnny Gowdy, and he drilled home the equaliser.
Sydney University took the lead minutes before the break when Tonkin again played the assist, this time finding Rosario Occhipinti with an excellent through ball, and the experienced marksman tucked it home for a 2-1 half time lead.
Sydney University came out after the break with a real intensity about their play, eager to take the game to the visitors, and were rewarded when Scott Tonkin converted a Johnny Gowdy cross for 3-1.
Rosario Occhipinti repaid the favour to his strike partner shortly afterwards, playing a delightful through ball for Tonkin to run on to before he netted with a neat chip over the advancing keeper for his brace and 17th goal of the season.
Scott Tonkin was having an influential evening, and finished the match with 2 goals and 3 assists by setting up goal number five. Tonkin found tricky winger, Domenic Di Mento, towards the end of the match, and he rounded the keeper before slotting home goal number five.
Sydney University retain their fifth spot on the competition ladder, but now move to 33 points, four points in front of sixth placed Gladesville Ryde Magic, whom they meet on Sunday in the penultimate round.
