Round 2 Finals Series Preview – PS4 NPL 2 NSW Men’s

One week out from the PlayStation 4 National Premier Leagues 2 NSW Men’s Grand Final, and the remaining four clubs do battle to see who will compete in the season decider next weekend.

Semi Final 1

Sydney FC v Mount Druitt Town Rangers Saturday 5pm Arlington Oval, Dulwich Hill

It is going to be an interesting time for Sydney FC this weekend with a large swathe of their squad unavailable due to Young Socceroos selection. The centre back pairing of George Timotheou and Patrick Flottman, along with William Mutch and George Blackwood were called up to the Australian squad for the AFF Under 19s Championship in Vietnam, and later the AFC Under 19s Championship in Bahrain. That will leave the Sky Blues somewhat short in the playing stakes, a problem which will also filter down to their Under 20s, playing immediately beforehand. Add in the still suspended Bai Antoniou and it will almost be down to the bare bones for the newly crowned Premiers.

Leaving all that aside though, coach Robert Stanton will no doubt have a plan in place to counteract that lack of availability. Sydney FC have been a relatively stable side throughout the year with keeper Mitchell Evans, Nicola Kuleski, Daniel Araujo, Brendan Curtis and Cristian Gonzalez to name just a few, all being regular performers. And with Charles Lokolingoy having scored all season it seems, there is still plenty of class in the young Sky Blues who will want to add a Grand Final win to their collection.

For Mount Druitt Town Rangers, they are having their best season in years. Now just one game away from the Grand Final you can be sure that they will be giving it everything they have. Once they hit the front against Bankstown City last Sunday, it was difficult to see them giving it up, such was their determination to take the victory. In front runners Kuag Reec and Abraham Majok, they have two strikers who can take players on with their pace, and score regularly with aplomb. They both did so against the Lions, and whoever may end up for Sydney FC at the centre of defence, they will have their work cut out.

It will be a dream come true for the Rangers coaching duo of Aidan Desmond and Steve Appleby should Mount Druitt Town get over the top of Sydney FC and reach the Grand Final. And having defeated their opponents the last time they met, a 3-2 win at Popondetta Park, rest assured plans are well in place to do so again.

Semi Final 2 

Western Sydney Wanderers v Mounties Wanderers Saturday 630pm Blacktown Football Park, Rooty Hill

Sydney FC aren’t alone in having players called up to the Young Socceroos. Western Sydney Wanderers have had seven players called into the squad and while some players including Lachlan Scott and Mario Shabow stopped playing NPL2 mid-season, others such as Tariq Maia and Keanu Bacchus were in action in the final round. The Wanderers will be disrupted, like Sydney FC, but they have managed to cope superbly so far this season, as players left the squad, so a couple more won’t raise Trevor Morgan’s concern.

Kyle Cimenti is the clear danger for the Wanderers, with nineteen goals to his name this season, and in the absence of Maia, expect Brenton Fox to step up to fill that void. Having finished second to Sydney FC in both the Premiership and Club Championship, the Wanderers will be throwing everything they have to take the final trophy on offer.

Firstly though, they will have to get past a Mounties side high on confidence after last Saturday’s win against Marconi. It was a tough affair with the lead changing hands on a couple of occasions before Mounties took the extra time win. Coming from behind against a classy Marconi outfit shows just hard Mounties battled, especially after going behind in that first period of extra time.

They are most likely to be without defender Tayfun Devrimol who left the field injured last weekend, but they have the vastly experienced Pat Cappuccio to link up beside Wade Oostendorp, and the drive shown by that pair, amongst many on the weekend, is certain to be replicated this Saturday.

With Matthew West, a goalscorer par excellence, now on twenty two goals for the year, and Neftali Gonzalez, one of the best players in this league, again bound to be prominent, Mounties will be looking to give this Championship series a further shake.

by Peter Rowney, PS4 National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s 2 Reporter