Round 8 Preview – League One Men’s
It’s a full weekend of Easter football festivities in round eight of the FNSW League One Men’s competition.
A lot of intriguing fixtures throughout, who will take the chocolates in our eight games spread across Friday, Saturday and Monday.
Match of the Round: Bulls FC Academy v Canterbury Bankstown; Saturday 30 March, 5pm, Sydney United Sports Centre
Our match of the round takes us to Sydney’s South-West as Bulls FC Academy host Canterbury Bankstown at Sydney United Sports Centre.
Our hosts for this one won their first game in three against Northern Tigers last weekend. While Canterbury Bankstown continue to grind out results with their victory over Inter Lions at home.
Given the age of the Bulls FC Academy side, one of the most important things is how they adjust on a game-by-game basis. And the word coming out of last weekend’s game with Northern Tigers were positive with the Bulls learning from what went wrong the week before.
Luka Sterjovski and Oliver Randazzo were the goal scorers in that one, but it really was a team performance which saw them come away from North Turramurra with three points. While Abdelelah Faisal is also a player to watch after making a difference last weekend.
Canterbury Bankstown have a similar output from their last five games with a victory last weekend snapping two games without a win leading up. Sitting six points behind their opponents here, it’s a chance to cut that gap here.
Last weekend they beat Inter Lions by a single goal scored by Joshua Mbakwe while Cian McNamara and Taiga Kawano also threatened. If the opportunity does arise, look out for their threat in transition in this one against a side who like to play with the ball at their feet.
An intriguing match ahead, you can catch this one on the Football NSW YouTube page this Saturday evening.
Other Features
Northern Tigers v Mt Druitt Town Rangers; Friday 29 March, 6:30pm, North Turramurra Recreation Area
Another week, another top three clash as Northern Tigers and Mt Druitt Town Rangers will both be aiming to bounce back from a round 7 defeat.
The Northern Tigers come into this one on the back of a round seven defeat to Bulls FC Academy which halted a five-game winning streak. While Mt Druitt Town Rangers tasted their first loss of the season against Rydalmere Lions.
We’ll start with the hosts who sit two points below their opponents. Missing captain Shervin Adeli on Futsalroos duty (make sure you check out his goal v Afghanistan), they could overtake their opponents in this one.
Keeper Elliot Carwardine could play an important role with Jakub Prajza and Lachie Lloyd also worth keeping an eye on.
It will be interesting to see how Mt Druitt Town Rangers respond after their first loss of the season against Rydalmere Lions. Facing ten men for over half of that one, they met their match in a hard-working side.
In terms of who to focus on, let’s highlight the role of a few players who aren’t often mentioned in previews/reviews in Jordan Gomez and Adrian Delmoni who have started every game so far this season.
SD Raiders v UNSW FC; Saturday 30 March, 7pm, Valentine Sports Park
After a disappointing round seven defeat, SD Raiders will be looking ahead to their fixture with UNSW FC this weekend as a chance of redemption.
Even this early in the season, this stands as an important game for SD Raiders if they want to match or even better last year’s top four finish. Consecutive defeats sees them come into this one below their opponents and hosting a game away from Ernie Smith once again will have its challenges.
They were disappointing in their round seven fixture against Hakoah with the only bright spot of the fixture being a Mario Aleksik penalty save in the first half. Safe to say coach Goran Ljuboja will be wanting better here.
UNSW FC for their part will be searching for consistency away from home as we approach the middle third of the season. All three of their victories so far this season have come at the village green while they have taken just one point away from their home venue.
Last weekend at home, they came away with a 3-0 victory over the Blacktown Spartans. Keeghan Burke continued his impressive start to the season with a goal and an assist. While the return of Claudio Fabiano has boosted them at the back.
Quickfire Previews
Nepean FC v Blacktown Spartans; Friday 29 March, 5pm, Cook Park (St Mary’s)
Nepean FC will be determined to bounce back in positive fashion this Friday night as they host Blacktown Spartans. Bonnyrigg was the first game this season where the scoreline has blown out against them and as such they will want to make a statement here.
It was a frustrating outing for Blacktown Spartans against UNSW FC last weekend. They hit the goal frame on multiple occasions and came up against a good goalkeeping performance from Nicholas Croucher. A month since their last win, they will look to get their season back on track here.
Rydalmere Lions v Hakoah FC; Friday 29 March, 7pm, Rydalmere Park
Rydalmere Lions shocked the competition last weekend with a victory over Mt Druitt Town Rangers. Down to ten players for over a half, Kyle Sande scored the two goals which gave them a result which they can build upon. They have won their last three games at this venue.
Their opponents Hakoah FC also had an important victory last weekend over SD Raiders. They got the lead after 25 minutes and were able to manage the game from there. Their second clean sheet of the season, there’s no such worries in the front third where they’ve scored three goals in their past two fixtures.
Inter Lions v Dunbar Rovers; Saturday 30 March, 7pm, Majors Bay Reserve
It’s safe to say the Inter Lions start to the season hasn’t quite gone to plan. Last weekend, they just couldn’t find a way past Canterbury Bankstown after giving away an early goal. This is a chance to gain some momentum before playing the top three in as many weeks.
It won’t be easy though as Dunbar Rovers have made a habit of frustrating sides in recent weeks. On the back of a victory over Bonnyrigg White Eagles, they took a point from their match against Bankstown City. They have struggled away from Fraser Park this season though with two away losses so far.
Macarthur Rams v Bonnyrigg White Eagles; Saturday 30 March, 7pm, Lynwood Park
Macarthur Rams were perhaps lucky to walk away from last weekend’s match of the round with a point. They took a 2-0 lead after ten minutes but were put under a lot of pressure from that point forward. Anthony Proia’s wonder goal was the highlight of another tough fixture for the Rams.
Their opponents Bonnyrigg White Eagles secured an important victory last weekend over Nepean FC. After breaking a run of four games without a win, they have a chance to carry momentum into their return home next weekend. Daniel Bittar scored a brace last weekend so keep an eye out for him.
Bankstown City v Dulwich Hill FC; Monday 1 April, 5pm, Jensen Park
Bankstown City once again host an Easter Monday clash this weekend. A big day for the club with the fixture coinciding with a Macedonian festival, there should be a big crowd on hand. Last weekend, they somehow didn’t get the 3 points against Dunbar, something they’ll want to put right here.
There were plenty of positives to take away from Dulwich Hill’s draw with Macarthur Rams last weekend. Trailing by two goals after ten minutes, they bounced back in positive fashion and could’ve well won it. Emmanuel Zervas remains their player to watch scoring for fun in recent weeks.
By Justin Smith
