Round 20 Preview – NPL Men’s NSW
After an exhilarating set of mid-week games, the NPL Men’s NSW competition will return to the weekend with some major matches.
Sydney Olympic FC vs Sutherland Sharks FC
5:00pm, Saturday 15 June, Belmore Sports Ground
Fresh off the back of an emphatic victory, Sydney Olympic will be looking to build on some strong form heading into the final third of the season.
Olympic picked up a stunning 4-0 win over Marconi Stallions on Wednesday night, with Abraham Majok, Roy O’Donovan, Adam Parkhouse and Jack Symons on the scoresheet.
Prior to that, they defeated another member of the top six – Sydney United 58 – and are all of a sudden building a case for finals football, sitting eight points clear of the top six but with strong momentum.
Down the backend of the table, Sutherland Sharks have slipped into second-last on the ladder, just one point from safety but two points from the bottom.
A point or more for them here would be vital as they look to build towards survival, and the inconsistency Olympic have demonstrated throughout the season may favour them, but it will nevertheless be a tough clash with the home side suddenly seeing their campaign back on track.
NWS Spirit FC vs Western Sydney Wanderers FC
5:30pm, Saturday 15 June, Christie Park
NWS Spirit FC will take on the Western Sydney Wanderers to continue Saturday’s run of fixtures as both sides search for a return to winning ways.
The home side for this match have picked up three victories in their last five games but went down to Sydney United 58 in the mid-week Match of the Round by three goals to nil.
The Wanderers, meanwhile, suffered a highly disappointing defeat to bottom-of-the-ladder Central Coast Mariners in a chaotic 5-3 game and will be without Evangelos Kalamvokis who was red-carded late on in the match.
Western Sydney, with just one win in their last five, will be hungry to gain a necessary three points to keep their finals position calmly in-tact, while Spirit will be looking to continue to accelerate from the lower echelons of the table with a point or more here in an exciting fixture at Christie Park.
Wollongong Wolves FC vs Blacktown City FC
6:30pm, Saturday 15 June, WIN Stadium
The Wollongong Wolves will take on Blacktown City at Win Stadium in an imperative match in the race for finals.
Wollongong continued their mid-season resurgence with a 2-1 victory over Sutherland Sharks in the week, making it three victories in a row as they currently sit four points from the top six.
Their opponents, Blacktown City, moved up a place on Wednesday night, with their 2-0 win over Manly United – thanks to a Jak O’Brien goal and Grant Lynch stunner – propelling them into third on the table.
Blacktown are currently seven points clear of sixth, but have an incentive of their own in gunning for the top of the ladder, while Wollongong know another win is necessary to help take them into a finals spot.
It will be an intense, exciting clash at WIN Stadium, with both teams knowing a victory is necessary to help achieve their season aims.
Hills United FC vs Sydney United 58 FC
7:00pm, Saturday 15 June, Landen Stadium
Hills United will take on Sydney United 58 at Landen Stadium in one of two Saturday 7pm games.
The home side for this match were most recently beaten by Sydney FC, and are five points clear from potential relegation in 13th.
A win for them would be critical in keeping them clear of the fight, but they’ll be coming up against a Sydney United 58 side hungry to return to stronger form as they fend off plenty of competition for their spot in the top six.
A 3-0 win over NWS Spirit in the mid-week – featuring a stunning Carlos De Oliveira freekick and clinical goals from Alessandro Lacalandra and Patrick Antelmi – has aided their cause, but they’ll need to find more consistency to keep that consequential finals position.
Landen Stadium could be the place to see United 58’s form begin to shine once more, but they will face a tough, sturdy Hills United side searching for points of their own.
St George FC vs St George City FA
7:00pm, Saturday 15 June, Rockdale Illinden Sports Centre
In the truest of derbies, St George FC will face off against St George City FA in a vastly exciting match at Rockdale Illinden Sports Centre.
In the last edition of the St George derby, a stunning last-gasp equaliser from Aedan O’Shea in the 94th minute gave St George FC a point, stealing two away from their major rivals.
The home side for this match has been struggling for form recently, having not won in five games, but this derby could be the perfect rebound.
St George City themselves have had issues, with back-to-back defeats to Wollongong Wolves and APIA Leichhardt hurting their finals run – they currently sit three points away from the top six.
Therefore, a win in this match is vital both for their season aims and for derby delight – something they’ll have to do without the suspended Fumoto Kamada, who picked up a red card in the game against APIA.
With City searching for a route to finals and St George FC ready to spoil the party and gain some form of their own, this will be an exhilarating clash, personifying the beauty of the NPL Men’s NSW competition.
Rockdale Illinden FC vs Manly United FC
3:00pm, Sunday 16 June, Rockdale Illinden Sports Centre
Top of the table Rockdale Illinden will take on Manly United on Sunday afternoon at Rockdale Illinden Sports Centre.
The home side picked up another victory in mid-week – 4-1 to St George FC – to extend their winning run in the league to an astonishing seven games.
In that time, they’ve scored 20 goals – an average of 2.9 per game – and have conceded just six, and are sitting happily four points clear at the top of the ladder.
However, they will be coming up against a resolute Manly United side who have lost just once in their last four games, and will be hungry to take more points off a title favourite after defeating APIA Leichhardt last Friday night.
They won’t make it easy for Rockdale, and this will be another exciting NPL Men’s NSW match.
Central Coast Mariners FC vs Sydney FC
3:00pm, Sunday 16 June, Pluim Park
The Central Coast Mariners and Sydney FC will go head to head at Pluim Park in a decisive, key relegation clash.
The Mariners and Sky Blues currently sit bottom and third bottom respectively, with just three points separating the two sides.
A win for the Mariners at home would therefore – due to their superior goal difference – condemn Sydney to the bottom of the ladder, taking Central Coast out of the lone automatic relegation spot.
Sydney, on the other hand, could move six points clear of bottom with three points at Pluim Park, making this a crucial, decisive fixture for both sides in their bid to remain in the NPL Men’s NSW competition at the season’s end.
APIA Leichhardt FC vs Marconi Stallions FC
3:30pm, Sunday 16 June, Lambert Park
The latest edition of the Derby d’Italia will take place on Sunday night as APIA Leichhardt face off against Marconi Stallions in a highly exciting Match of the Round.
The sides faced off less than two weeks ago in the Australia Cup, where a goal from Sean Symons saw APIA through in extra time.
APIA will be looking to build on their strong return to Lambert Park, with their first NPL Men’s NSW match there resulting in a 4-1 victory over St George City, while opponents Marconi will be desperate for a return to form.
The away side for this match have now lost two games in a row, with a 1-0 defeat to NWS Spirit being followed by a 4-0 loss to Sydney Olympic FC.
Both sides have plenty to play for, with APIA looking to keep pressure on Rockdale and Marconi aiming to stay comfortably in the top six, and this will be a fiery, exiting fixture at Lambert Park – the perfect way to conclude the weekend.
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2024 Golden Boot Tally
18 – Alec Urosevski (Rockdale Ilinden)
16 – Jak O’Brien (Blacktown City)
15 – Ben Gibson (APIA)
13 – Nathanael Blair (WSW)
12 – Roy O’Donovan (Sydney Olympic)
10 – Luka Smyth (CCM)
10 – Takumi Ofuka (Wollongong Wolves)
9 – Patrick Antelmi (Sydney United 58)
8 – Adam Bugarija (WSW)
8 – Marko Jesic (Marconi)
7 – Carlos De Oliveira (Sydney United 58)
7 – James Temelkovski (Marconi)
7 – Brendan Cholakian (Rockdale Ilinden)
7 – Joey Gibbs (Blacktown City)
By Jack George (@JackGeorge0004)
