Round 4 Preview – League Two Men’s
With a wildly competitive round three of Football NSW Men’s League Two in the books, it’s time to preview the upcoming action in round four, with plenty enticing of enticing fixtures in store.
Our match of the round this week gives another fascinating clash as the winless Sydney University look to get its first points of the season against the ever-strong Rydalmere Lions.
Elsewhere around the league, Canterbury Bankstown look to make it two in a row when they face Gladesville Ryde, Macarthur Rams return home to face Dulwich Hill, meanwhile, Inner West Hawks are looking for redemption against Bankstown City.
Dunbar Rovers look to continue the good form against Central Coast United as Bankstown United entertain Inter Lions
Friday 1st April 2022
Match of the Round: Sydney University SFC vs Rydalmere Lions FC, 8pm @ Sydney University Football Ground
Rydalmere Lions head into this matchup full of confidence as they look to inflict further punishment to Sydney Uni’s disappointing start to the season.
The hosts have been unlucky in its first three matchups, looking dangerous in good portions of games, but falling off at the crucial moments.
Uni has a very talented squad on paper and will be desperate for a much needed point to rejuvenate its season on Friday night.
After conceding four goals to Dunbar Rovers last week, Uni will have to take it as a lesson and focus on holding out an equally impressive attack in Rydalmere.
The visitors are flying with limited games under their belt, one of the pre-season favourites to finish top of the league, proved their quality with a tough win over Central Coast.
Having only conceded one goal in its opening two fixtures, the Rydalmere defence should be an issue for Sydney Uni going forward.
However the hosts must remain wary of Uni’s ability to fight its way back into a game in a matter of minutes, as seen last week.
Rydalmere enter this matchup as the favourite, however with an eager Sydney Uni side on the other end we could be in for an early season upset
Saturday 2nd April 2022
Canterbury Bankstown FC vs Gladesville Ryde Magic, 7pm @ The Crest Athletic Centre
Canterbury Bankstown return home with loads of confidence after its upset win over Bankstown City last week.
The opposition this week, Gladesville Ryde will be a massive test to see if Berries are up for the fight this season.
Berries have had no issues scoring goals this year, however they’ll be up against a mighty defence led by veteran Kiriakos Tohourglou.
Gladesville struggled to make its chances count last week and considering the form of Berries shot stopper Ahmad Ismail, the Magic struggles in attack may continue.
It’ll be the battle of the keepers that may determine the result, it may also result in a low scoring affair with both shot stoppers in a purple-patch of form.
The Magic remain undefeated and have shown plenty of fight and determination in the opening rounds.
However with a new found confidence on both ends of the field, the Berries may keep the good-form rolling and push forward with another surprise victory.
Macarthur Rams FC vs Dulwich Hill FC, 7pm @ Lynwood Park
After three games on the road, Macarthur return to the south-west to face Dulwich Hill.
Both sides remain without a loss and have proven their quality in some stellar showings early on.
Dulwich Hill enter this matchup without Nathan Sampson, as he serves a suspension for a red-card.
The visitors will enter this game determined to right the wrongs of last week, in a game where they would of felt they left two points on the table against Bankstown United.
Macarthur enter this matchup with the same thought after not being able to the find the net against Gladesville Ryde and leaving Christie Park with a draw.
Dulwich Hill possess a very potent defence and have kept it very tidy at the back, whereas the Rams have proven its quality in attack and will test Dulwich’s defence to the maximum.
In a game of contrasting strengths, the result remains unpredictable and should leave us with a thrilling fixture.
Inner West Hawks FC vs Bankstown City FC, 7pm @ Arlington Oval
Inner West Hawks may stake its claim to being the unluckiest team in the league, with just one point from its first three games in some very impressive performances against quality opposition.
The fixture list doesn’t get any easier as they face Bankstown City who will be eager for redemption after slipping to Berries at home.
Inner West have led in the last two games and looked certain to walk away a minimum of a point, however with some miraculous late comebacks they come into this matchup empty handed.
Each week seems to be an improvement on the last for the Hawks, however their opposition has been clinical and fought back on several occasions.
They may have caught City on a good week as they still look set to be missing a few first-team players through injury and suspension.
Robert Di Meglio will miss the match through suspension and will be a big loss for the visitors as they look to hold out the resurgent Hawks side.
City will continue to look from strong performances from some of its younger players as they look to fill the void left by the injured players.
The Hawks have had an incredibly tough start to the season thus far and will look to get its first win of the season against a City side that will firing from the first whistle.
Dunbar Rovers FC vs Central Coast United FC, 7pm @ Fraser Park
Dunbar Rovers head back to Fraser Park as they prepare to host the ever-tough Central Coast United.
Dunbar are looking lethal in attack, with four goals against Sydney Uni last week, the hosts will look to add to its goal tally against a leaky United defence.
With a double last week, Hayden Tucker will look to continue to be the danger man in attack along with Aram Tayebi leading his sides forward press.
Central Coast enter this matchup on the back of consecutive defeats to Bankstown City and Rydalmere Lions.
Although the score line may not reflect it, they were up for the fight in both games but struggled to convert on its chances.
The lack of goals has been plaguing the side post-round one, where they managed to bag three.
With a never give up attitude, Central Coast are bound to get through this tough start and may begin its revival if they can match the potent attack of Dunbar.
However Dunbar have proven its quality this year and will see this as an opportunity to extend the gap and push further up the table.
Bankstown United FC vs Inter Lions FC, 7pm @ Jensen Park
The final game of the round sees Bankstown United battle an under-strength Inter Lions.
Bankstown United head back home with its first point of the season, after an improved performance saw them settle for a draw with Dulwich Hill.
United looked impressive in front of goals and would of considered themselves unlucky to not have all three points at the end of the game.
They now turn the focus to Inter Lions who have struggled with Covid related issues the since the beginning of round two.
With a lot of question marks still hovering over individual players fitness, United may feel confidence of handing Inter its first loss of the season.
Inter snatched a late win from Inner West last week and turned plenty of heads considering the circumstances of its roster.
This matchup promises to bring plenty of excitement with a plenty of elements factoring in for both sides, making this arguably the most unpredictable matchup of the season.
By Football NSW Men’s League Two Writer, Dominic Criniti @DominicCriniti
