Round 28 Preview – NPL Men’s NSW

With just three rounds remaining, it’s still all to play for in the NPL Men’s NSW competition with the Premiership push, finals race and relegation battle looking more exciting than ever. 

Central Coast Mariners FC vs Marconi Stallions FC

8:00pm, Wednesday 13 August, Marconi Stadium 

On Wednesday night, the Central Coast Mariners will take on Marconi Stallions in a postponed Round 26 match.

The clash is crucial for the Mariners, who will come into this match with confidence, having lost just once in their last four matches.

However, they will be vastly disappointed with their last fixture, which saw a last-gasp equaliser turn a win into a draw, keeping them bottom of the ladder.

A point in this makeup clash would take them off the bottom of the ladder, while three would see them move out of the bottom two, but they will have difficulty against a fired-up Marconi side, who would move to second place with a victory on Wednesday night.

Sydney FC vs St George FC

7:30pm, Friday 15 August, Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre

Sydney FC will face off against St George at Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre to begin Round 28.

Both sides have equal records coming into this fixture, having taken just four points out of an available 15 in their last five games.

Sydney will head into this fixture off the back of a 4-0 defeat to Sydney FC, while St George had their Round 27 fixture postponed due to heavy rain.

With both sides mathematically safe from relegation, and all but out of finals contention, this will be a game for pride on Friday night, so expect plenty of exciting attacking football exchanged between two quality sides.

Sydney Olympic FC vs Rockdale Ilinden FC

5:00pm, Saturday 16 August, Jubilee Stadium

Continuing their push for a top-six spot, Sydney Olympic will face off against Rockdale Ilinden at Jubilee Stadium on Saturday evening.

Olympic’s last match ended in a sensational 5-1 victory over Manly United, featuring goals from Cyrus Dehmie, Adam Parkhouse and a hat-trick from Ryan Feutz.

The home side for this match currently occupy sixth on the ladder, but could be pushed into seventh if Sydney United 58 win their match against Blacktown City on Wednesday.

Rockdale, meanwhile, made it five games without a win last weekend, with a stoppage time equaliser from Ali Auglah securing a disappointing draw against the Central Coast Mariners.

Out of Premiership contention, but safe in the top six, their attention will now turn to finding a run of good form to take into the finals.

Mt Druitt Town Rangers FC vs Sydney United 58 FC

5:00pm, Saturday 16 August, Popondetta Park

Mt Druitt Town Rangers will be looking to continue their strong run of form when taking on Sydney United 58 at Popondetta Park on Saturday evening.

The home side for this match moved out of the bottom two with a gutsy 3-1 win over Wollongong Wolves last weekend, with goals from Yuto Morita and Abraham Majok supplemented by a Bilal Belkadi penalty in injury time.

They will be looking to knock down another top-six hopeful this weekend, and with just one loss in their last five matches, they’ll feel confident of picking up a positive result.

United 58 will come into this clash off the back of a Wednesday night fixture with Blacktown City, with these two games crucial in their push for a finals spot.

Winless since Round 19 in the league, they will be looking for a statement victory as they move to secure a top-six place for another year.

Wollongong Wolves FC vs NWS Spirit FC

6:00pm, Saturday 16 August, Macedonia Park

Later on Saturday evening, Wollongong Wolves will face off against the NPL Men’s NSW league leaders NWS Spirit at Macedonia Park.

Last weekend, the Wolves ended a strong run of form with a disappointing loss to Mt Druitt, which took them out of the top-six.

They will be looking to respond this weekend, but will face difficulty when taking on Spirit, who are pushing hard for the Premiership.

After having their last match rained out, they will be desperate to take the field this weekend and add another win to their tally to move a step closer to conclude a sensational season with a piece of well-deserved silverware.

Marconi Stallions FC vs Manly United FC

3:00pm, Sunday 17 August, Marconi Stadium

Marconi Stallions will take the field once more on Sunday afternoon, when hosting Manly United at The Palace.

If Spirit are to lose the night before, and Marconi win this game and their match against the Mariners, they would go three points clear at the top of the ladder, albeit having played one more game than the current league leaders.

Nevertheless, they will have to get through a motivated Manly side on Sunday afternoon, who will be keen to respond to their 5-1 drubbing last weekend with a strong performance away from home.

APIA Leichhardt FC vs Sutherland Sharks FC

3:00pm, Sunday 17 August, Lambert Park

APIA Leichhardt will take on Sutherland Sharks in an exciting fixture at Lambert Park on Sunday afternoon.

APIA’s Premiership hopes took a blow last weekend as they suffered defeat to Italian rivals Marconi Stallions.

They are still just three points off the top spot, but Spirit have a game in hand.

Nevertheless, they aren’t yet out of the fight, and a win this weekend will be crucial as they look to maintain their place in the Premiership fight.

And three points won’t be easy, as they take on a Sutherland side who won 4-0 in their most recent match, and will have plenty to play for, sitting just four points off the bottom two.

Central Coast Mariners FC vs St George City FA

3:00pm, Sunday 17 August, Pluim Park

In their second game of the week, the Mariners will play St George City at home in another Sunday afternoon fixture.

Currently three points off the top-six – although it would be four if United 58 prevail against Blacktown – they are still in the fight for a finals spot.

They will come into this match off a disappointing result, however, drawing 1-1 with Western Sydney Wanderers away from home last weekend.

Nevertheless, with just three games to go, a win here is a must for St George if they are to remain in the running for a top-six spot heading into the penultimate round.

Blacktown City FC vs Western Sydney Wanderers FC

3:00pm, Sunday 17 August, Landen Stadium

Blacktown City will jointly conclude Round 28 when taking on Western Sydney Wanderers at Landen Stadium.

The context for Blacktown in this match will depend strongly on their Wednesday fixture – while a win would take them seven points clear of the chasing pack for finals, a loss would bring them right into the mix.

But either way, the Wanderers will turn up to Landen Stadium with a point to prove, as they currently sit precariously second-last on the ladder, meaning they would currently go into a relegation playoff against the second-top side from the League One Men’s competition.

With the bottom-three all finding form at the business end of the season, Western Sydney will be determined to take a positive result from this match, and avoid being bottom heading into the last two matches of the season.