Round 18 Preview – League One Men’s
Round 18 and some crucial fixtures awaits us in the FNSW League One Men’s competition this weekend as we enter the month of June.
Our match of the round takes us to Sydney’s South for second against third while we have plenty to play for including a six pointer at the bottom end as well.
Let’s look at the weekend of action.
Match of the round: St George FC v SD Raiders FC; Saturday 3 June, 7pm, Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre
Last Meeting: SD Raiders FC 2-2 St George FC
This one should be good! The leagues two top scorers meet as second placed St George FC host SD Raiders at Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre.
St George FC come into this having secured their first clean sheet since round seven and they capitalized on it with a victory. A run of form which has included two victories, two draws and a loss, they will be wanting back-to-back victories for the first time in over a month.
However back to recent matters, they overcame Bankstown City last weekend holding onto a half-time lead. Jay Mcgowan was the scorer of that one but expect Shunta Nakamura and Anthony Morabito to also provide a threat in this one. Victory here would certainly help in the race for second with their opponents and Bonnyrigg White Eagles right on their tail.
Speaking of their opponents, SD Raiders are in fine form with four victories in a row. Sitting a point behind the Saints, they have scored the same amount of goals this season but conceded a couple less.
Last weekend saw them overcome Blacktown Spartans with a valuable away victory. Scoring in the opening ten minutes through Scott Cusick, Goran Ljuboja’s side showcased their discipline to come away with the narrow victory. And to their credit, they didn’t really look threatened. With a game against Hills awaiting them on their return home, a result here would inspire confidence and potentially take them to second.
On paper, this looks like perhaps the best streamed game we’ve had this season, make sure you catch the action on NPL.TV this Saturday night.
Mounties Wanderers FC v Northern Tigers FC; Saturday 3 June, 4pm, Cook Park (Mt Pritchard)
Last Meeting: Northern Tigers FC 3-1 Mounties Wanderers FC
Mounties Wanderers host Northern Tigers in a cross-city matchup with both sides looking to capitalise on some positive results recently.
It’s just the second time this season that Mounties Wanderers have picked up consecutive positive results. The other coincidentally happening in the same two fixtures the first time out. Sitting in 15th, they are three points behind a couple of sides above them.
Last weekend, they took their fifth point on the road at Majors Bay Reserve. Matthew Self finding the back of the net just seconds after going behind in the second half. They will be hoping to avoid defeat here which would mean a feat of three-point scoring results in a row for the first time in 2023.
It won’t be easy though as Northern Tigers stand in their way. The Tigers ended a winless run stretching back till April last weekend. Now sitting in 9th position on 23 points, they will be looking to place a cat amongst the pigeons in the second half of the season.
Anyway back to last weekend, it was an impressive three goal margin over Canterbury Bankstown above them with goals coming from four different goal scorers in Kai Denton, Ahmed Sweedan, Lachlan Lloyd and Travis Oughtred. While the weekend also saw Ethan Oliver make his first-grade debut. Lucky charm?
Bankstown City FC v Blacktown Spartans FC; Saturday 3 June, 7pm, Jensen Park
Last Meeting: Blacktown Spartans FC 1-1 Bankstown City FC
Needing to keep pace with the top four, Blacktown Spartans travel south to take on Bankstown City at Jensen Park.
After facing two of the top sides in the division, Bankstown City will be able to take some confidence into this one at Jensen Park. Sitting in midtable on 21 points, a victory here could see them jump above Northern Tigers.
As mentioned above, they’re perhaps a bit unlucky to not get something from clashes with Hills United and St George FC. Going down to the latter last weekend in a game of two halves. No one is doubting their fight or potential quality but they do have to show more consistency across the 90 minutes.
Not the only side in this position as the top four threaten to break away, a victory here is important for Ben Rollison’s Blacktown Spartans side who sit four points behind Bonnyrigg in fourth. Taking just one point from their last three, they’ll be looking to return to winning ways as soon as possible.
Last weekend was a frustrating one for Blacktown Spartans who went behind early in an even match up, unable to break through a stubborn SD Raiders defense despite dominating field position in the second half. A win here could see them jump up to as high as fifth.
Bonnyrigg White Eagles FC v Dunbar Rovers FC; Saturday 3 June, 7pm, Bonnyrigg Sports Club
Last Meeting: Dunbar Rovers FC 0-6 Bonnyrigg White Eagles FC
It’s a chance of redemption for visitors Dunbar Rovers as they travel South-west to face Bonnyrigg White Eagles.
Make it five! Bonnyrigg White Eagles are in a hot spell of form not dropping a point in their five most recent league fixtures. Sitting in fourth position, a win here and in their game against Hills United could see them break into the top two.
Definitely a positive to take out of this run is their ability to bounce back after conceding first. Shown last week against Macarthur Rams. Emmanuel Gonzalez continues to provide goals in this division while Mark Rodic maintained his composure from the spot. They’ll be favourites to make it six in a row here.
Ten points in their last five fixtures, visitors Dunbar Rovers are in season best form coming into this one. In 14th position, avoiding defeat here will be another boost in confidence that they belong in the competition.
Last week, they triumphed in a feisty affair over Dulwich Hill in our match of the round. A goal three minutes into added time from Daniel Goni proved the difference after Reece Berelowitz scored from the spot earlier. While another player worth keeping an eye on is Jonny Rees, particularly in taking set pieces.
Rydalmere Lions FC v Canterbury Bankstown FC; Saturday 3 June, 7pm, Rydalmere Park
Last Meeting: Canterbury Bankstown FC 3-2 Rydalmere Lions FC
Two sides struggling for consistency in recent times face off as Rydalmere Lions host Canterbury Bankstown at Rydalmere Park.
With the midtable spreading out as the season goes on, these two sides find themselves right in the centre of it coming into this one.
For Rydalmere Lions, they broke a winless streak with victory over Hakoah FC away from home, the result taking them to 25 points in 8th position on the table. They were patient with a large share of possession last weekend eventually finding the back of the net through Jake Chidiac from the spot.
While Kyle Sande and Mitchell Gibbs played their part in midfield gaining their coaches plaudits in the fixture.
Their visitors Canterbury Bankstown tasted defeat in round seventeen against Northern Tigers away from home. One of the tougher venues to travel too, they were punished for their mistakes conceding four on the night and three in quick fashion in the second half.
Gino Cerasoli did find the back of the net late in the contest in style, so his worth keeping an eye on as they look to return to winning ways here.
Dulwich Hill FC v Central Coast United FC; Saturday 3 June, 7pm, Arlington Oval
Last Meeting: Central Coast United FC 4-1 Dulwich Hill FC
Another six pointer at the bottom end of the table takes place as Dulwich Hill host Central Coast United at Arlington Oval.
Two defeats in their past two games has brought the momentum to a halt for Dulwich Hill. Sitting on 17 points in 13th place, this is a chance at revenge for Dulwich after a hefty round three defeat at Pluim Park in round three.
However, last weekend was a result which would have been tough to take having equalized in second half stoppage time courtesy of a Daniel Fornito goal. Fornito a clear threat for their opponents in this one. They will be missing Jamie Dib and Liam Spiropoulos through suspension in this one however.
Three defeats in a row, Central Coast United are beginning to lose the group above towards the wrong end of the table. And when things aren’t going your way, they really don’t go your way, perhaps unlucky to not get something from their fixture with Hills United last weekend.
With a couple of players returning to the fray, the really fought hard against the competition leaders with Zac Pezzutto bringing them back level in the second half before conceding soon after. Don’t count them out yet, but this stands as a big opportunity to take some points.
Macarthur Rams FC v Hakoah FC; Saturday 3 June, 7pm, Lynwood Park
Last Meeting: Hakoah FC 2-2 Macarthur Rams FC
Macarthur Rams will be hoping to build on an impressive round 17 showing when they return home to face Hakoah FC.
Another step closer to where Darren Jones wants his side to be, Macarthur Rams will want to turn a good performance into a good result in this one. Sitting in 11th position in lower mid-table, last week showed they can definitely throw a spanner in the works in the remainder of the season.
So what was so impressive against Bonnyrigg then? Well if not for a couple of good saves from the opposition keeper, the game would’ve been beyond doubt in the first half with Christian Torrelli and others looking threatening. While Matthew Barkho was denied an equalizer by both posts in the final stages.
Opposed to the fortunes of the Rams, it’s getting a little hard to write about Hakoah FC at the moment. Five straight defeats see them just below their opponents this weekend but perhaps more worryingly only four points above Mounties Wanderers in 15th position.
Last weekend, they went down to Rydalmere Lions by the solitary goal. If we’re looking for positives, it’s that they only conceded the one goal after letting in three goals in their three fixtures leading in. Hopefully a sign of improvement to come, a result will lift morale at the club.
Hills United FC v Inter Lions FC; Saturday 3 June, 7pm, Landen Stadium
Last Meeting: Inter Lions FC 2-1 Hills United FC
Don’t sleep on this one either, Hills United host Inter Lions at Landen Stadium as Inter look to keep pace with the top four.
Four victories in their past five fixtures, competition leaders Hill United just keep finding a way to emerge victorious in 2023. Losing just one game so far this season (against this weeks opponents), they have a rare chance of getting revenge.
And to quote a fellow fnsw media personality and former competition writer before the season, “If you have Mitchell Smith, you’re going to win games in this league.” And it’s becoming harder to disagree with such an ego as the season is going on, last week being the prime example.
It’s the kind of week you look forward to as a football club, two big fixtures await Inter Lions in the space of four days. Firstly, a cup tie against Rockdale tonight at the time of publishing which you can catch on NPL.TV or at the ground. Good luck guys!
And then backing up against Hills United this weekend, a team who they and they only have beaten in 2023. If there’s one thing we know about them, we know they have the strength of character to meet such a challenge.
By Justin Smith
