Blacktown City has stretched their lead at the top of the National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s competition after this weekend’s thrilling round 17 action.
Blacktown now has a four-point advantage ahead of Sydney United 58 who dropped two points after a costly draw against Northbridge Bulls.
Rockdale City closed the gap with their first win in weeks on Sunday, while Mt Druitt Town Rangers revived their finals hopes.
The battle for the top five is set to go down to the wire with only four points separating fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth.
Remember you can catch up with all the weekend’s match action on NPL.tv.
Wollongong Wolves 0 – Marconi Stallions 1 at Albert Butler Memorial Park
Marconi Stallions secured their third victory of the season edging past Wollongong Wolves 1-0 at Albert Butler Memorial Park on Sunday afternoon.
A second-half strike from Marko Jesic was the difference as the Stallions claimed a valuable three points which keep their slim finals hopes alive.
The Wolves started strong but failed to make the most of their early dominance going into the interval still locked scoreless.
However, it was a different story in the second half with the Stallions leading the charge and claiming a penalty which Jesic would net in the narrow victory.
Blacktown City 3 – Sutherland Sharks 2 at Lily Homes Stadium
A late Travis Major stunner has helped Blacktown City FC to a 3-2 victory against a resilient Sutherland Sharks at Lily’s Football Centre on Sunday.
Blacktown was in cruise control, leading 2-0 at the break after goals to Travis Major and Jackson Bandiera had them on course to extend their lead at the top.
But Sutherland refused to quit with a peter Simonoski brace levelling the scores heading into the final moments of the match.
With the game headed for a draw, Major delivered a cruel blow to the Sharks as he curled in a dramatic late winner that keeps Blacktown on top of the table for another week.
Northbridge Bulls 1 – Sydney United 58 1 at Sydney United Sports Centre
Sydney United 58’s premiership hopes have taken a major hit after they were held to a 1-1 draw with Northbridge Bulls at Edensor Park on Sunday.
It was a heartbreaking result for United 58 who drop to four points behind league leaders Blacktown City with only five games left in the regular season.
Patrick Antelmi opened the scoring for United in the 36th minute but the Bulls finished strongly with Moudi Najjar netting a 76th-minute equaliser on what was his 21st birthday.
United 58 had plenty of chances to snatch a winner but they couldn’t get it done having o settle for a costly draw.
APIA Leichhardt 0 – Rockdale Ilinden 1 at Lambert Park
Rockdale Ilinden FC has returned to winning ways after securing a 1-0 victory over APIA Leichardt at Lambert Park on Sunday afternoon.
Alec Urosevski’s 87th-minute strike was the difference as Rockdale kept their slim premiership hopes alive with a valuable three points.
A missed penalty just moments before halftime will haunt APIA as they spurned a brilliant chance to take the lead.
It came back to bite the home side with Urosevski’s late strike stealing the win and condemning APIA to another frustrating loss.
Sydney Olympic 0 – Mt Druitt Town Rangers 1 at Belmore Sports Ground
Mt Druitt Town Rangers have kept their finals hopes alive with a narrow 1-0 win against Sydney Olympic at Belmore Sports Ground on Sunday.
A first-half strike from Jack Stewart was all it took as the Rangers claimed a vital three points.
It was a frustrating performance from Olympic who never found their stride during the contest.
The win keeps Mt Druitt in contention for finals football closing the gap to the top five.
Sydney FC 2 – Manly United 2 at Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre.
A dramatic Scott Balderson equaliser deep in added time has helped Manly United snatch a thrilling 2-2 draw with Sydney FC at Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre on Sunday.
Balderson’s 94th-minute goal completed an incredible second-half fightback from Manly as they kept their finals hopes alive with a valuable competition point.
Sydney FC made a fast start to the contest with Corey Hollman and Jake Girdwood-Reich’s goals giving the Young Sky Blues a two-goal advantage inside the hour mark.
However, it wasn’t to be for the home side with Dejan Pandurevic and Balderson’s late goals spoiling the party for Sydney FC as Manly snatched a thrilling draw.