Round 12 Preview – League One Men’s
After a long weekend of action, the FNSW League One Men’s competition returns to Saturday as round twelve approaches us.
Headlined by a top six battle at Ernie Smith Reserve, there’s plenty to go through in our preview below.
Match of the Round: SD Raiders v Bulls FC Academy; Saturday 26 April, 7pm, Ernie Smith Reserve
Our match of the round sees SD Raiders host Bulls FC Academy in a much anticipated clash at Ernie Smith Reserve.
Both these sides featured relatively recently, SD Raiders winning against Wollongong Wolves in the Australia cup while Bulls FC Academy drew with Dulwich Hill in a rare Monday night League One Men’s game.
Still with a game in hand at the top of the table, SD Raiders would have gained quite a bit of self belief in both their fixtures since our last preview. A round eleven win against Mounties Wanderers wasn’t easy by any means. Before their cup win against Wolves featured a lot of their fringe players demonstrating some depth.
Bulls FC Academy on the other hand are looking for a return to winning ways after gaining just one point in their last two. On the back of a 2-0 defeat at the hands of UNSW FC, they were pegged back twice by Dulwich Hill from winning positions. A loss here could see them fall ten points behind the SD Raiders above them.
One player who has broken through in the SD Raiders ranks is Oliver Velnic who both scored against Mounties and featured in their cup win. Goran Ljuboja showing his not afraid to give youth their chance with Bradley Marszal and Brayden Mcpherson also featuring. They complement the usual suspects who we’ll see once again on show.
For Bulls FC Academy, it’s an academy side so you know there will be good young talent. Zane Helweh is their go to for goals while we’ve seen Henrique Oliveira begin to start some games in recent times. This is a big chance for these players to prove a point.
You can catch this one on the Football NSW YouTube page under the live tab and as a bonus, you can add a voice to my writing.
Elsewhere
UNSW FC v Canterbury Bankstown; Friday 25 April, 3pm, The Village Green
A short turnaround could well be a positive for UNSW FC who were left disappointed by a draw with Macarthur Rams last weekend. Sitting in fourth, the top two are threatening to break away from them seven points behind.
Against the Rams, they created an eye watering amount of shots without converting apart from a Kevin Lopes goal. We’ve also seen Cassius Flavell step up in goal in the absence of Charles Samushonga in recent weeks.
Canterbury Bankstown on the other hand claimed an impressive victory against Rydalmere Lions last weekend. In doing so, they returned to a top six position after securing eight points in four games.
Patrick Savor was a crucial element in that win with two assists there while Cian McNamara and James Ralston both scored. There will be an effort to tighten up there defence here however after conceding five in their last two.
Hakoah FC v Bonnyrigg White Eagles; Saturday 26 April, 4:30pm, Hensley Athletic Field
Last weekend saw Hakoah FC pick up a valuable point away from home to the Newcastle Jets. Three consecutive draws has seen them steadily pick up points but they still are averaging less than a point per game.
Probably the most positive thing about that result was on the defensive side, keeping their opposition to just the one goal for the first time in over a month, while Jordan Mikhael popped up with a goal. Something to build upon as their home time slot changes?
This game seems as good an opportunity as any for Bonnyrigg White Eagles to break their losing run. Four games in a row, they badly need a result to change the momentum before they get into further trouble further down the table.
Last weekend they went down to a hefty defeat at the hands of league leaders Northern Tigers away from home. Indeed their away form is where they are struggling with just one point in their six games on the road.
Macarthur Rams v Blacktown Spartans; Saturday 26 April, 5pm, Lynwood Park
Macarthur Rams have started to pick up results in recent times with consecutive draws against Canterbury Bankstown and UNSW FC. Now their focus will be turning one point into three as they host the Spartans this weekend.
Last weekend against UNSW, they equalised with around ten minutes left through Carlos Ruiz Cantillo before goalkeeper Jerome Narayan made a couple of crucial saves late on. Also keep an eye out for Jayden Tran who was one of their best.
Blacktown Spartans will be eying this one as a potential game to return to form after a tough run in the league. Losing their last three, they have slipped down to eighth with eleven games played.
Last weekend, they went down to Inter Lions by a narrow margin. Despite controlling possession well in spells of the game, they couldn’t break through a tough Inter Lions defensive unit. On paper their next couple of games look winnable, can they turnaround things here?
Dulwich Hill v Hills United; Saturday 26 April, 5pm, Arlington Oval
Eight points in their last four, we’re seeing a strength of character in Dulwich Hill after a turbulent start to the season. Sitting in 11th with a game in hand next week, they could be set to climb further up the table in the near future.
In round eleven action last Monday, they came from behind twice to take a point from their game against Bulls FC Academy. The highlight being a Jack Mitsoulas strike with minutes to go.
Hills United showed signs that they might be turning a corner in last week’s match of the round. Yes, it was only a draw against Bankstown City but there were definitely some positives on show for the 13th placed side.
And they only went and bettered it in the Australia Cup midweek against Manly United with a surprise 4-0 win. In that, Wade Giovenali made a return to the starting side and scored a brace alongside goals for Marcus Lal and Walid Moutaoukkil.
Rydalmere Lions v Northern Tigers; Saturday 26 April, 5pm, Rydalmere Park
Rydalmere Lions paid a high price for ill discipline last week which brought to an end their winning streak. Sitting in 10th position after as many games, they have created a buffer between them and teams in the danger zone.
However one or two bad results could change that. Last weekend they took a two-goal lead before two red cards ended up costing them dearly. As such they will be missing attacking weapon Robert Eremugo for this one.
Our competition leaders Northern Tigers are going from strength to strength as the weeks go by. With a league best tally of 26 goals so far this season while conceding just 8 goals, they certainly deserve to be there.
Last weekend, they comfortably dispatched of Bonnyrigg White Eagles on Good Friday. Kai Denton continued his remarkable scoring form bringing his season tally to twelve goals, while also getting plenty of support from the likes of Olivier Beltran-Woodward.
Bankstown City v Newcastle Jets; Saturday 26 April, 5pm, Jensen Park
Bankstown City are still chasing back-to-back wins in 2025. An inconsistent run of games has seen them win two, draw one and lose another two in their last five games as they sit in ninth.
Last weekend, they shared the points with Hills United in our match of the round. They started the game well but conceded after fifteen minutes, before scoring an equaliser through their best on the field in Shun Maeta. Against a tough opponent, is this the weekend they get a crucial result?
They face a Newcastle Jets side who have been imperious away from home so far this season. A total of 13 points on the road win four draws and a win, they will be confident heading into this.
Last weekend at home however, they had a tough time against Hakoah FC with Ethan Debono producing a moment of quality to save face. They have a deep squad at their disposable so keep an eye out for their bench usage.
Mounties Wanderers v Inter Lions; Saturday 26 April, 7pm, Wanderers Football Park
So close yet so far, Mounties Wanderers suffered another little bit of heartbreak last weekend against SD Raiders. Sitting in 14th, they’ve now lost three of their last four games by a single goal margin.
In fact, you could trace that pattern all the way back to round three after which Brett Hewit took over as head coach. They will need to find more goals in the attacking third to pick up wins and home games present that chance.
This is a tough ask though against an Inter Lions side who are gaining confidence by the week. On the back of a win against SD Raiders, they secured another one against Blacktown Spartans at home last weekend.
Defensively, they have seemingly turned a corner with back-to-back clean sheets, while they have more than enough in attack to score in transition at the other end. This young group is starting to find it’s potential.
By Justin Smith
