Hard to believe that we are halfway through the 2015 NPL Victoria season, with most teams now having played each other at least once. Here is your guide to how each club has travelled so far this campaign:
Avondale FC
Position: 9th, 15 points
The Good: Mid table for a promoted side is no easy feat, but one wouldn’t put it past an Anthony Barbieri coached side. They’ve generally gone about their football in the Avondale way, grinding out wins and frustrating their opponents. Oleksiy Khrapko has been one of the standouts, leading the club’s scoring charts with six.
The Bad: The recent 4-1 drubbing against strugglers Green Gully was a shock to the system. For a coach that has previously thrived on his team being hard to break down, Barbieri would be disappointed to know his side are one of five teams to have conceded over 20 goals so far this season.
Verdict: Mid-table for a newly promoted side is a great start to life in the NPL, and a solid foundation for future success, especially now with the arrival of some high-profile signings. B-
Bentleigh Greens
Position: 2nd (with a game in hand), 33 points
The Good: The last unbeaten team, playing some of the most attractive football in the league with the second most goals scored and the least conceded. Good transfer dealings have seen Queenslanders Matt Thurtell, Chris Lucas and Troy Ruthven shine, whilst Tyson Holmes and Steven Topalovic have also been in top form for the Greens.
The Bad: Whilst league results have predominantly been positive, the Greens would perhaps be disappointed with a home draw against Werribee, and another one against South Melbourne after relinquishing a 2-0 lead. Away from the NPL, Bentleigh’s FFA Cup exit was also a huge let down. But worst of all has been the news that top-scorer Matt Thurtell is out for the season with an ACL injury.
Verdict: With no Cup progression to play for, everything is now resting on league success. And at the moment, the Greens certainly look like they can go all the way despite Thurtell’s absence, with 2015 being a top season to date. A+
Dandenong Thunder
Position: 13th, 11 points
The Good: The unearthing of youngsters such Yusuf Ahmed – who has nine goals – and Jarod Blackbourn has been pleasing. A win over a free-scoring Port Melbourne at the time – the early days of a long Sharks winless streak – along with a 6-1 rout over Northcote City have been the undoubted league highlights for a club with a budget much smaller than most.
The Bad: Somewhat predictably, the Stuart Munro’s fledglings have struggled at times to cope with the intensity of the league especially without Yusuf, only winning three games and losing nine, the worst of which was a 5-0 defeat against South Melbourne.
Verdict: Despite showing glimpses of what they can achieve, it may not be enough for Dandenong to guarantee survival in a highly competitive league, with the battle for survival to go right down to the wire. They’ll need their new signings to hit the ground running and gel immediately. D
Green Gully
Position: 11th, 14 points
The Good: It seemed like the turning of a new leaf for Gully, making amends for a disappointing 2014 by starting off well in 2015, including a Round 1 thrashing of Northcote, a surprise victory over Oakleigh, and a 5-2 win over Dandenong Thunder. They were sitting as high as 5th after five rounds.
The Bad: Then it all unravelled, more recently sliding to six consecutive losses and one win from 10 games overall. The side were completely lost without Roddy Vargas, slumping to 6-1 and 8-2 defeats to North Geelong and Heidelberg. There’s also been some seemingly poor list management regarding Visa players, with Gully cycling through four foreigners this season: Vitaka Rodriguez and Nikola Markovski have come and gone, Hakeem Al Oraibi is finally getting a go, while Matt Breeze seems to be the one mainstay.
Verdict: It’s all about trying to rectify a stumbling season once again, and not all is lost, as new signing Liam Boland showed, leading Gully to a welcome 4-1 win over Avondale. Still, as the departure of club legend Matt Sanders indicates, not all has been well at Keilor Downs this campaign, with loyal servant and head coach Bob Stojcevski paying with his job. C-
Heidelberg United
Position: 1st, 33 points
The Good: Heidelberg possess the league’s biggest goal difference, being the first team to score 30 goals this season while conceding only nine (second best), with eight clean sheets to boot. Whether using a flat four in defence or Katsakis’ more preferred back three with wingbacks, the Bergers have been an incredibly difficult team to break down, going up the other end and punishing teams through the likes of Kaine Sheppard (7 goals), Dan Heffernan (6) and Andreas Govas (5).
The Bad: Not too much at the moment, though there have been a couple of blips, including against Bentleigh, where the team lost 3-1 after giving up a lead and a man through a red card, along with a 0-0 draw against bottom placed North Geelong.
Verdict: The Bergers are part of a thrilling three-horse race at the moment for top of the table honours, with all three swapping top spot at different times recently. A serious title contender that looks settled and is gelling well, apart from a few minor hiccups. A
Hume City
Position: 5th (with a game in hand), 21 points
The Good: A generally solid outfit, Hume City have for the most part been ticking along well, picking up points regularly. Former Brisbane Roar man Jai Ingham has been a handy acquisition, Nick Hegarty has impressed in the final third, while Shane Rexhepi and Petar Franjic provide a solid backbone.
The Bad: Other than one resounding 5-0 win over Northcote, Hume have struggled to find the right combinations up front at times this season. Jai Ingham leads the club’s scoring with five goals from the wing, Hegarty is the next best on four – also from midfield – while misfiring striker Calvin Mbarga did not score a league goal in his highly anticipated stint at the club.
Verdict: You could accuse Hume of slightly underachieving so far this season. Harsh, perhaps, but Lou Acevski and the club are an ambitious outfit that won’t settle for anything less than a finals spot, and really want to be pushing for silverware. They’ve shown that intent by offloading Mbarga and bringing in Markelis, Harvey and Clarke to rectify their goalscoring situation. B
Melbourne Knights
Position: 4th, 25 points
The Good: At one point, Melbourne Knights were sitting outright top of the ladder with five consecutive wins to commence the season, a blistering start at Somers Street especially when you factor in the injury and form struggles of last year.
The Bad: But then the Knights plateaued, losing to South Melbourne, Bentleigh and Heidelberg, who now all sit above them on the ladder. Too much of the scoring responsibility has also rested on the shoulders of Andrew Barisic and Tomi Uskok, with wide attackers Adrian Zahra and Stipo Andrijasevic struggling to find the back of the net.
Verdict: It may seem like we’ve rifled off more negatives than positives, but only because the expectations are high for this proud club. There have been a number of games where if the Knights had taken some early chances, the course of the game could have been completely different. But then again, Chris May has bailed the team out on occasion, so perhaps it all evens out. In any case, a finals charge would be the minimum forecast at this point in the season. B+