Round 12 Preview – League Two Men’s
With more mid-week Australia Cup action amidst the regular season matches, the action keeps coming thick and fast for teams ahead of Round 12 of the 2025 Football NSW League Two Men’s season.
The Match of the Round this week sees Hurstville Zagreb FC look to extend their lead at the top of the table when they host an Inner West Hawks FC side looking to cause an upset.
Sunday, 27th April 2025
Match of the Round: Hurstville Zagreb FC vs Inner West Hawks FC, 5pm at Penshurst Park
Last season: Hurstville Zagreb FC 1-0 Inner West Hawks FC, Inner West Hawks FC 1-1 Hurstville Zagreb FC
The league leaders headline the Round 12 action when they look to extend their seven-match winning streak and pick up another clean sheet against Inner West Hawks FC, who will look to cause a big upset.
Last season, Hurstville picked up a 1-0 home win before the two teams drew 1-1 in the reverse fixture; Hurstville are unbeaten in four head-to-head matches against the Hawks and will hope to extend that, while Inner West will be out to end that streak.
1st-placed Hurstville picked up their seventh win in a row and their sixth clean sheet of the season after their 3-0 home win over Bankstown United FC last week and will hope to continue in that vein.
Michael Neill will be on the hunt to score for a third match in a row after his goal in Round 11 as he looks to add to his seven goals for the season, while a host of other contributors will look to add to Hurstville’s 26 goals for the season, the third-best tally in the league.
On the defensive end, Hurstville have kept three clean sheets from their past four matches and will hope to continue to be defensively strong against the Hawks, who they have only conceded two goals to from their past four matches head-to-head – expect Hurstville to start strongly in their pursuit of another win.
12th-placed Inner West Hawks, meanwhile, went a fifth-straight match without a win after their 3-1 home loss to Dunbar Rovers FC in Round 11 but will be hopeful of causing an upset in this clash.
The Hawks will know their work will be cut out for them against Hurstville and may need to utilise their counterattacks well to break down Hurstville, while they will hope to make the most of any set piece substitutions.
Expect Inner West to put up a fight, especially given they have not lost any of their last four away matches, as they look to pick up a confidence-building three points.
With Hurstville firing at the top and Inner West proving difficult to beat away from home, both sides will look to play to their strengths as they hunt down the win.
Saturday, 26th April 2025
Central Coast United FC vs Hawkesbury City FC, 3pm at Pluim Park
Last season: Central Coast United FC 0-2 Hawkesbury City FC, Hawkesbury City FC 2-5 Central Coast United FC
Two teams in contrasting form kick off Round 12 when Central Coast United FC and Hawkesbury City FC meet, the former hunting a second win of the season and the latter chasing a fifth win from their past six matches.
Last season, both away sides picked up the respective wins, with Hawkesbury 2-0 victors away before Central Coast won 5-2 in the reverse fixture; goals can also be expected this time around.
14th-placed Central Coast United went a tenth match without a win after their 3-1 away loss to Nepean FC last week but will hope to show fight back at home back at home for the first time since Round Seven.
Having scored in back-to-back weeks for the first time this season, the Pirates will hope to use that as they look to continue to improve in attack, though they will be without Harry McCalmont after his red card last week.
Expect the Pirates to set up to defend well in an early kick-off as they look to stop the best attacking side in the league in terms of goals scored.
3rd-placed Hawkesbury, meanwhile, responded from their Round 10 defeat with a 6-2 home win over Fraser Park FC last week and will hope to continue to fire away from home.
Vincent Dermilio scored in both head-to-head matches against the Pirates last season and having scored nine goals in eleven matches, including one against Fraser Park in Round 11, will hope to continue his strong run.
Expect Hawkesbury to continue to play without fear as they look to keep up with the teams near the top of the ladder.
With rain a possibility in the match, both sides will have to be prepared for anything as they look to pick up a big win in contrasting forms.
Sydney University SFC vs South Coast Flame FC, 5pm at Sydney University Football Ground
Last season: South Coast Flame FC 4-0 Sydney University SFC, Sydney University SFC 3-5 South Coast Flame FC
Sydney University SFC will hope to grab their first win of the season when they return home for the first time since Round Six as they host a South Coast Flame FC side coming off a big five-goal margin win.
Last season, the Flame completed the league double in high-scoring affairs, but the season before the students grabbed both wins; this match-up has provided 22 goals combined from its past four instances at an average of 5.5 goals per game, which means this season could provide something similar.
Last-placed Sydney University lost 3-1 away to Granville Rage in last week’s Match of the Round but playing just their fourth home match of the season will hope to put in a spirited performance in pursuit of their first win.
The students took the lead against the Rage but for the fourth time this season failed to hold onto it; in matches where they have taken the lead, they have gone on to lose three and draw one, but will hope to rectify that as they look to take a lead and hold it this week.
Having scored for the first time in four matches last week, expect the students to continue to improve and especially turn up at home against a side they have had success scoring against frequently in the past.
6th-placed South Coast Flame, meanwhile, won a first match in four after their 6-1 win over Camden Tigers FC last week and will hope to build off that big victory.
Jyden Harb scored a hat-trick last week which took him to 11 goals for the season from ten matches; he will hope to score in an eighth different match this season when he takes to the field against the students.
Expect the Flame to continue their strong attack, having scored the second-most goals so far this season with 28, as they look to win a first away match from their past three.
With University looking to be strong in their hunt for their first win of the season and the Flame hoping to build off a big victory, both sides will have a game plan ready to tackle the other in the search for three points.
Prospect United SC vs Gladesville Ryde Magic, 7pm at Blacktown Exercise Sports and Technology Hub
Last season: Prospect United SC 4-1 Gladesville Ryde Magic, Gladesville Ryde Magic 2-4 Prospect United SC
Prospect United SC will hope to win a fifth match from their past six when they welcome a Gladesville Ryde Magic side coming off a bye and hoping to end a three-match losing streak.
Last season, Prospect completed the league double over the Magic, while the season before the Magic did the double; both sides will hope to pick up the three points in this match-up which is usually unpredictable.
2nd-placed Prospect United SC continued to fire near the top after their comeback 2-1 win away over Parramatta FC in the western Sydney derby last week, their second derby win in two weeks.
Anthony Idehen scored for a fifth-straight match after his goal against Parramatta last week and will hope to continue his strong run of form alongside Praneet Singh, who will hope to score for a third week running.
With the equal-best defensive record in the league with only eight goals conceded from ten matches, the young Prospect side will hope to grab their fifth clean sheet of the season when the Magic visit.
Prospect did, however, crash out of the Australia Cup mid-week after a 4-1 away loss to NPL side Marconi Stallions in the fifth preliminary round, Jason Saliba with the consolation goal for Prospect in the match.
11th-placed Gladesville Ryde Magic return from the Round 11 bye and will hope to snap a three-match losing streak when they travel to face Prospect.
Winless away from home so far this season, the Magic will hope to conjure up a strong performance after their week off with any injury concerns dealt with.
Expect the Magic to set up strong defensively as they look to grab their first away win of the season and win a first match in three against Prospect.
Gladesville also progressed to the next round of the Australia Cup after a 3-0 home win over Blacktown District Soccer Football Association side Eastern Creek Pioneer SC in the fifth preliminary round thanks to two goals from Genki Kohyama and a goal to Aaron Nordstrom.
With Prospect firing and the Magic coming off a rest, both sides will be raring to hit the field in their hunt for the three points.
Bankstown United FC vs Nepean FC, 7pm at Padstow Park
These two teams did not meet last season.
A battle between two sides in contrasting form sees Bankstown United FC looking to return to the winners’ list when they host a high-flying Nepean FC.
Having not met since the 2023 season, where Nepean completed the perfect league double with back-to-back 2-0 victories, both sides will hope to come into this clash fresh and ready to take on the challenge.
7th-placed Bankstown United FC went a fourth-straight match without a win after their 3-0 away loss to Hurstville Zagreb FC last week but will hope to find a positive result with the return of some missing personnel in recent weeks.
Bankstown welcomed back Anthony Proia last week but are still without Mitchell Cross among others; they will hope others in their squad can step up in their absence as they look to snap their winless streak.
After they did not a shot on target last week, expect Bankstown to prioritise their attack at home as they look to continue their streak of scoring in every home match in 2025.
Bankstown also crashed out of the Australia Cup in the fifth preliminary round mid-week after their 3-2 away loss to Illawarra Premier League side Wollongong Olympic FC, with a goal each to Mitchell Edmunds and Sean Robertson not enough for Bankstown to progress.
9th-placed Nepean FC, meanwhile, won back-to-back matches for the second time in 2025 after their 3-1 home win over Central Coast United FC last week and will hope to continue their good form as they hunt a fourth-straight match without defeat.
Jack Hoban has scored goals in back-to-back matches which will help bring confidence, while a fully fit Nepean squad will hope to continue to stick to their principles to bring them another positive result.
Expect Nepean to start this match with confidence as they look to win a third-straight match and their first away from home in 2025.
With the Bankstown squad injured, looking to end a winless run and Nepean fit and firing, this match should provide plenty of fireworks as both sides chase the win.
Dunbar Rovers FC vs Granville Rage, 7pm at Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre
These two teams did not meet last season.
Dunbar Rovers FC will hope to build off a big last start win when they host a Granville Rage side hoping to do the same at Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre.
Having not met last season, both teams will hope to get off to a strong start against the other in this head-to-head matchup.
10th-placed Dunbar won their first match in five after their 3-1 away win over Inner West Hawks FC last week and will hope to build off not only that win but that performance in search of back-to-back victories.
Having scored three goals in a match for the first time this season, Dunbar will hope to build some confidence from that as they hunt their third home win of the season.
Expect Dunbar to start this match with confidence, especially after they created 17 chances last week, as they hunt down back-to-back wins.
5th-placed Granville, meanwhile, responded to a loss with a 3-1 home win over Sydney University SFC in Round 11’s Match of the Round and will look to continue in that vein as they travel to face Dunbar.
They will hope to have a competitive match against Dunbar given their battles with them over the years and will hope to have a positive result, especially if the Rage’s top scorer for the season, Timothy Borg-Williams, can add to his eight goals for the season.
Expect the Rage to come out with an attacking gameplan as they look to take the match to Dunbar in what should be a tight contest.
Granville is also in Australia Cup action mid-week when they host Macarthur Football Association side Gunners at Garside Park in the fifth preliminary round on Wednesday, 23rd April at 7:30pm.
With Dunbar and Granville both enjoying wins in Round 11, both teams will be raring to take the other down in this contest.
Fraser Park FC vs Parramatta FC, 7:30pm at Valentine Sports Park
Last season: Parramatta FC 3-3 Fraser Park FC, Fraser Park FC 5-1 Parramatta FC
A big match ends Round 12 with Fraser Park FC and Parramatta FC taking to Valentine Sports Park with plenty of talking points and stats to be shared.
Last season, Fraser Park went undefeated against Parramatta; that was Fraser Park’s sixth head-to-head match in a row undefeated against Parramatta, a streak they will hope to continue, and Parramatta will hope to break.
8th-placed Fraser Park had their three-match winning streak end abruptly after their 6-2 away loss to Hawkesbury City FC last week but will hope to respond quickly when the Eagles come to visit.
Fraser Park will be without their top scorer for the season in Francis Mcalpine after his red card last week and will hope others can step up in his absence as they look to return to the winners’ list.
Having not lost at their temporary home so far in the 2025 season, Fraser Park will hope to continue that trend when they take to the field in this match.
4th-placed Parramatta FC, meanwhile, lost back-to-back matches and went three matches without a win after their 2-1 home loss to Prospect United SC last week and will hope to turn around their form against Fraser Park.
Having created plenty of chances against Prospect, the Eagles will hope to convert their chances as they look to get back to their strong scoring ways from earlier in the season.
Expect a spirited performance from the Eagles as they look to win a fourth-straight away match and break their hoodoo against Fraser Park.
Parramatta also went out of the Australia Cup mid-week after a 4-0 away loss to League One Men’s side Northern Tigers FC in the fifth preliminary round.
With both sides coming off losses, both Fraser Park and Parramatta will be eager to put in a strong performance to grab the three points in this match.
13th-placed Camden Tigers FC have a bye in Round 12.
By Football NSW League Two Men’s Reporter, Dylan Costa
