Round 8 Preview – PS4 NPL 3 NSW Men’s

The 2017 PlayStation®4 National Premier Leagues 3 NSW Men’s competition ladder is commencing to spread out a little as we eagerly approach Round Eight this weekend, with points gathered over the next few rounds going a long way to determining whether teams end up fighting for a finals berth, or indeed battling in the bottom half of the ladder.
Round Eight has five matches scheduled for Saturday evening at 7-00pm, whilst the two remaining fixtures will take place at 3-00pm and 7-00pm respectively on Sunday.
Fraser Park will look to keep up their momentum at the summit when they entertain SD Raiders in an intriguing clash at their artificial ground.
Fraser picked up a point in last week’s big clash against Rydalmere Lions, but lost shot stopper, Anthony Costa, in the process, whose ankle injury will see him sidelined for a few weeks at least.
As if Fraser Park wasn’t already riding on the crest of a wave in the NPL 3 – midweek they dumped PlayStation NPL 1 side, Sutherland Sharks, out of the Westfield FFA Cup, to the tune of 4-1, no less, at Seymour Shaw Park, so their confidence will be sky high going in to Saturday’s match in front of their own supporters.
The Raiders themselves have shown plenty of spirit and attacking prowess since their elevation in to the PlayStation NPL 3, but did come unstuck last weekend at home against Dunbar. This is a great opportunity for the Raiders to show that they are indeed the real deal, so look out for an improved showing by the visitors.
Dulwich Hill will be desperate to drag themselves out of their recent down turn in form when they travel to Hensley Athletic Field to meet the Dunbar Rovers. Discipline and defensive lapses have cost Dully big time over the past three matches, but they have too much quality for their dip in form to last much longer, so look out for more intensity from Mark Strachan’s troops.
Dunbar Rovers had been promising to get back in the winner’s circle with their efforts of late, and they did just that with a 2-0 away triumph last weekend, so who’s willing to bet the Rovers can’t make it two wins on the bounce for the first time this season?
Two sides in good form go head to head at Garside Park, with Granville Rage welcoming the visit of St George City FA. Both teams have had back to back wins of late, with Granville pushing up to 9^th spot whilst St George are sitting pretty in 3^rd position, so with confidence riding high in both camps, expect an exciting 90 minutes come Saturday night.
Stanmore Hawks looked to have finally turned the corner, and will be difficult to stop on Sunday when they welcome the visit of Balmain Tigers to Arlington Oval.
The Hawks had a great win last weekend over Dulwich Hill, on the back of a Michael Toscano double, and picked up a point in a derby midweek versus Gladesville Ryde Magic, where Petros Stefadouros snatched an injury time equaliser.
Balmain Tigers cannot take a trick of late, and it doesn’t get any easier as this match will be less than 48 hours after their Thursday night loss to Hawkesbury City. But the Tigers have shown signs of steady improvement, which means their debut win of the season cannot be too far away.
Rydalmere Lions make the trek to Proctor Park in Bathurst, where only a win will do against the Western NSW Mariners in order to keep them at the top of the ladder.
The Mariners have had four losses in a row as they struggle to replicate their promising form early in the season, and they will have to be up for this match as a collective unit if they are to stand any chance of stopping the Rydalmere juggernaut.
On Sunday, both Gladesville Ryde Magic and Hawkesbury City will be fighting the fatigue of midweek matches when they face off at Magdala Park at 3-00pm. Magic grabbed a point in a 1-1 draw against Stanmore on Wednesday, whilst Hawkesbury climbed to 6^th on the back of third successive win on Thursday, a 3-1 triumph over Balmain, which included a brace from the league’s 9 goal, top marksman, Santiago Pallares Palomeque.
In the final match of the round, Inter Lions will be desperate to return to winning ways when they entertain Sydney University at Fraser Park in the late 7-00pm kick off at Fraser Park.