Grand Final Preview – PS4 NPL 2 NSW Men’s
It should come as no surprise that the PlayStation 4 National Premier Leagues 2 NSW Men’s Grand Final decider will be contested between the two best teams of the season this Saturday afternoon.
Despite their youth, Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers have simply proven to be too good for what might be termed the “regular” PlayStation 4 NPL2 sides and deservedly take their place in the Grand Final this weekend, after finishing the home and away season in first and second position respectively.
Sydney FC may have been the standout, claiming the Premiership and Club Championship, and earning the right for promotion to the PlayStation 4 NPL1 for next season, but they were pushed every step of the way by the Wanderers, who only finished three points behind the Sky Blues after 26 rounds, and who were in the title race right up until the final week.
The changed format for this year’s Championship has meant that each team has played only one game to reach this weekend’s Grand Final, with Sydney FC despatching Mount Druitt Town Rangers 3-0 while Western Sydney Wanderers were ultimately too good for Mounties Wanderers 2-1.
The Robert Stanton coached Sky Blues had plenty to be proud of during the season, essentially continuing on where they left off, after winning the National Youth League last summer. Sydney FC were the league’s top scorers with a massive 84 goals to their credit, while, with Bankstown City, they claimed the mantle of having the best defence with 41 conceded. An unusually high number perhaps for a title winner, but when the team can seemingly score at will, a few conceded at the back doesn’t really matter, as the season ultimately showed.
Charles Lokolingoy and Bai Antoniou led the way up front with forty-four league goals between them while Mitchell Evans played a huge part in keeping opponent’s attacks at bay. George Timotheou earned himself an A-League contract which shows just what a successful year in this league can do.
Trevor Morgan’s Western Sydney Wanderers suffer little by comparison. They have excelled to a similar degree, being the league’s second top scorers with 75 while only conceding a goal more than Sydney FC over the season. If anything, the Wanderers have finished exceedingly well bearing in mind the huge change in squad over the course of the season.
Kyle Cimenti with 19 and Lachlan Scott with 15 were the Wanderers top scorers, even with Scott being rewarded with an A-League contract and finishing NPL 2 back in May. But what has been most impressive about the Wanderers this season is the way in which they were able to maintain their challenge at the top, despite the release of players midseason, the recruitment of others to the A-League squad, and quite simply, the young age of the players themselves.
Last weekend’s semi-final win over Mounties saw three debutants in the side, an amazing statistic, considering it was the 27th competitive game of the year, and over forty players have played PlayStation 4 NPL2 for the Wanderers this season. One who has been there for much of the year has been Abdelrahman Kuku, who impressed last weekend against Mounties, while Matthew Lecce has also caught the eye in recent weeks with his impressive pace and control.
The Wanderers were undefeated against Sydney FC in the two regular season matches, a 3-1 victory at Lambert Park in round 13 and a final round 4-4 draw at Popondetta Park. But circumstances will mean that few who took part for the Wanderers on either of those days are likely to be in action on Saturday. That aside, there will be nothing the Wanderers will like more than to maintain that recent record.
It stands to be a grand day in every sense of the word for Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers with all three grades’ Grand Finals featuring the two clubs.
It should be a day to remember.
1st Grade – Sydney FC vs Western Sydney Wanderers Saturday 2pm Leichhardt Oval, Leichhardt
U20 kick off at 11:30am
U18 kick off at 9am
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– by Peter Rowney, PS4 National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s 2 Reporter
