State League Men’s Grand Final Preview
The time has come, the big State League Men’s Grand Final is before us as a titanic battle is set to take centre stage this Saturday at Valentine Sports Park No 2 (5:30pm) when Bankstown United tackle Central Coast United.
Once again, the two best sides in this years State League Men’s competition will face off but this time there is a twist.
There will be no chance for revenge as this is the grand final.
So, saddle up and get ready for one last grand battle.
Bankstown United come into the fixture having played only one game in the past three weeks having earned the week off twice during the finals series. Their last match was against this week’s challengers if you will. On that occasion, we were treated to quite the roller coaster ride in which they came from behind on three separate occasions across one hundred and twenty minutes before sealing their place in this week’s decider via a penalty shootout.
In terms of this weekend, Bankstown United have the luxury of a fully fit squad and no suspensions to boot. Starting with David Hamilton who was a standout in net in their semi right through to young Sean Robertson who caused the Central Coast defence all kinds of issues in their last meeting. Add to the mix, Andreas Kartsioulis who has subdued many a right winger throughout the season, the ever experienced Shane Webb marshaling the middle and Toshi Saikawa who might be the best player in the league. Yeah, they’re are dangerous and that’s leaving out centre back Steve Wright and the league’s top goal scorer Mitch Cross.
Central Coast United on the other hand have showed a resilient spirit in bouncing back from a few setbacks. They come into the grand final in free scoring form having found the net ten times across their three finals (four against UNSW, three against both Bankstown and Nepean). Their grand final spot was sealed through a preliminary final victory over Nepean FC last week in a textbook counter attacking performance.
At the best of health, Central Coast United have a first eleven to match that of their opponents however for this one we are happy to give them the underdogs tag. They will be missing prolific attacker Josh Swadling as well as multiple others. That’s not to say they are not capable of causing an upset. Central to such hope is inspirational captain Daniel McFarlane who just lifts the squad when he is in the side and can score goals, notching up twenty this campaign mostly from midfield. In attacking positions, much of their threat will come from young prospects Thomas Lyons and Oscar Torres who caused Nepean all sorts of headaches last weekend being supplied by Alex Arbelo as well as Cade Mapu. In more positive news, Nathan Blunden will come back into the fray this weekend to strengthen the league’s most stringent back line which includes Geordie Howe and Graham Toope.
The last couple of times these two sides have met, the game has been decided in the final minutes or seconds.
Make no mistake, there is nothing between these two sides and you wouldn’t bet against this one going all the way to penalties once again.
Tale of the Tape
Central Coast United 4-1 Bankstown United, Round 9.
Bankstown United 2-1 Central Coast United, Round 20.
Bankstown United 3-3 (4-2) Central Coast United, Semi Final 2.
2018 State League Men’s Grand Final
Saturday 15th September
Bankstown United v Central Coast United
Valentine Sports Park No 2 – 5:30pm
-By Justin Smith
