The Review
It was a poor round for the home sides as only Port Melbourne and Pascoe Vale managed to grab points on their own turf. A combined total of four points was an incredibly poor return across seven games for the hosts. Those four points were still better than our tipping effort however, as we fashioned only three correct tips this week.
Port Melbourne Sharks 1 drew with Melbourne Knights 1 (Predicted: 2-1 Knights, Wrong)
Pascoe Vale 1 defeated Hume City 0 (Predicted: 1-0 Hume, Wrong)
Oakleigh Cannons 1 defeated by Bentleigh Greens 2 (Predicted: 2-0 Bentleigh, Result Correct)
Avondale FC 1 defeated by Green Gully 4 (Predicted: 1-1, Wrong)
North Geelong Warriors 0 defeated by Werribee City 2. (Predicted: 1-1, Wrong)
Northcote City 1 defeated by South Melbourne 2 (Predicted: 2-0 South, Result Correct)
Dandenong Thunder 1 defeated by Heidelberg United 6 (Predicted: 3-0 Heidelberg, Result Correct)
***
Port Melbourne Sharks (5th) vs. Hume City (6th)
Last meeting: 3-1 Port Melbourne Sharks
The form:
Port Melbourne did it tough against Melbourne Knights on the weekend but fought hard to earn a share of the spoils despite taking the lead in the second half. They created a few chances, but so did their opponents who perhaps enjoyed the better of the play. Hume City on the other hand fell to a narrow defeat to Pascoe Vale, with a late winner separating the sides.
The players to watch:
Port haven’t had a clean sheet in four rounds, Hume have only scored one in three so it’ll be interesting to see which way this contest falls. The enigmatic Julius Davies created a wonderful goal on the weekend, while at the other end Michael Stark was absolutely brilliant in only his second start of the season. After Theo Markelis’ inconspicuous debut last week, attention may turn to strike partner Paul Harvey, who already has proven himself in the NPL before, while Jai Ingham will be itching to get back on the scoresheet after a bit of a goal drought.
The prediction:
The Round One game between Hume City and Port Melbourne saw the latter get the points, with the former perhaps the more impressive on the day. We’ve now had half a season to assess the two sides, and as predicted in pre-season, they’re hanging around those finals spots. Neither however have shown enough to justify being an outright favourite but at the minute, Port are travelling along just a little bit better. 2-0 to Port Melbourne.
Pascoe Vale (7th) vs. Heidelberg United (2nd)
Last meeting: 3-0 Heidelberg United
The form:
Going by their current pattern of results (WLWLW), Pascoe Vale are due a loss after their late win against Hume City last weekend. If they harbour any chances of making the finals, they’ll want to pick up a point against second place Heidelberg United. But after a barren spell for their standards – two draws against Hume City and North Geelong Warriors – the high flying Bergers are looking like a real damaging outfit, plundering six goals past Dandenong in a dynamic performance.
The players to watch:
There has been plenty of rotation at Pascoe Vale for positions, with plenty of depth across the park, but in goals the battle between Stefaan Sardelic and Alex Pavlidis for the number one jersey has been quite good, but it looks like the latter is their choice at the minute with a scintillating performance on the weekend. For Heidelberg, Dan Heffernan looks to be back to his damaging best after a brace on the weekend, while Jack Petrie continues to do his unassuming role for the team.
The prediction:
Once again, history will repeat itself as I fully expect Heidelberg to get up against Paco. Not that they are a bad team – there is definitely room for them to surprise the visitors – but I think the Bergers have too much firepower at the minute and should grab a comfortable win. 3-1 Heidelberg with a couple goals from midfield.
Oakleigh Cannons (12th) vs. South Melbourne (1st)
Last meeting: 1-0 South Melbourne
The form:
On paper, this is an easy game to assess, with one team languishing in 12th while the other sit pretty atop the league table. But heading back to Round One, no one would’ve predicted the opposite trajectories both sides have taken, as Oakleigh Cannons dominated their clash with South Melbourne, only for Nikola Roganovic to put in a domineering display between the sticks to lead a rearguard 1-0 win at Lakeside. Oakleigh have struggled since then, been reborn under Arthur Papas, and then struggled again after tallying two straight losses. South have gone about their business as usual, but last week – much like against Oakleigh in Round One – they were second best to Northcote City but still came away with the three points.
The players to watch:
Jakob Williams made his debut for Oakleigh at half-time in the midfield, but will he work his way towards becoming a starting player, perhaps one of the reasons for his departure from the Bergers? Mirjan Pavlovic also got a full 90 minutes under his belt, and will be itching to make an impression in Victoria. Iqi Jawadi has had a decent week of football, grabbing his first goal of the season against Dandenong Thunder before laying of a great assist the game after. I’m pretty sure there’s a lad overseas that’s stealing poor Iqi’s celebration (Skip to 8:56) though.
I fancy one of the newcomers Chris Irwin and Nick Morton to see some game time. Watch out for another Tasmanian next season, Luke Eyles, with his “high quality head” getting his NPL Preview debut early, and that’s something to be proud of.
The prediction:
South’s ability to pick up points from poor performances – think the aforementioned Northcote game or against Avondale the week prior – is the hallmark of a championship club. But they’ll have to be at their very best against Oakleigh and I fancy the game of the round going the distance. Let’s go for a 3-2 win for South with a late winner coming from Lujic.
Avondale FC (9th) vs. Melbourne Knights (4th)
Last meeting: 3-1 Melbourne Knights
The form:
Avondale would be bitterly disappointed in the fashion they lost their match against Green Gully, as they were torn apart by new by a Liam Boland hat-trick. They would’ve targeted that game as a real opportunity to pick up points as well, having fallen to South Melbourne and Bentleigh Greens in the weeks preceding the clash. The Knights are finding goals incredibly tough to find at the moment, holding the unwanted record of the equal least goals scored within the top eight sides. They have show they’re willing to fire up, going off this scuffle in the first half against Port Melbourne. (Skip to 3:25 for some censored fun).
The players to watch:
That there is the key for the Knights, can they start getting on the scoresheet consistently? Andrew Barisic once again found the net with his equalising penalty, while Robbie Zadworny put in an energetic display in his Knights debut. His inclusion interestingly meant Adrian Zahra was left on bench, and with Stipo Andrijasevic returning this weekend from suspension, where will it leave the former A-League player? Meanwhile, Jonathan Munoz has been the pick of the bunch for Avondale this season, and it’ll be interesting to see if new signing Chris Maynard gets a start in goals following his move from Heidelberg.
The prediction:
There’s no doubt Avondale will be wounded after the Gully result, but that could just make them more determined to get something out of the contest against the Knights. It’s been four away games since they’ve last gotten a win on their travels, but unlike the Avondale of the past, their home form hasn’t been great this year. I fancy the Knights to get up, but only just. 1-0 Melbourne Knights.
North Geelong Warriors (14th) vs. Bentleigh Greens (3rd)
Last meeting: 2-0 Bentleigh Greens
The form:
A bitter pill to swallow for North Geelong has been the lack of points grabbed in the last fortnight, in two games they would’ve targeted as winnable. A draw against Dandenong Thunder was followed up by an incredibly disappointing loss to Werribee City. They unfortunately look favourites for the drop at the moment, but there’s plenty of the year still to play out. Bentleigh on the other hand are yet to lose a league game this year and showed guts to come back against Oakleigh to win 2-1.
The players to watch:
Ryan de Vries, plain and simple. He’s proven to be one of the best players the league has seen in recent times with a unique blend of raw pace, power, finishing and passing. Liam McCormick found himself on the bench once again on the weekend but will be hoping to return to the starting XI, alongside Tyson Holmes who has been fantastic pulling the strings. Without Zadworny, North Geelong will need to find goals somewhere and through Juso Julardzija they may have their best hope, or even new striker Gareth Richards, joining from Moreland City. Rivdan Saglam looked handy in his debut, having been drafted from the NPL1 with Whittlesea Ranges.
The prediction:
Hard to look past anything but a comfortable win for the visitors. I can definitely see them curtailing the attacking threat of North Geelong, so a clean sheet to go along side four goals in a 4-0 win for Bentleigh.
Northcote City (10th) vs. Green Gully (8th)
Last meeting: 4-1 Green Gully
The form:
The third of the Saturday afternoon games pits Northcote City and Green Gully up against each other in a game that could decide the way in which their respective seasons pan out. Both sides have plenty to fear looking behind them, but also plenty to play for looking up the ladder. Northcote played some scintillating football at home last week against ladder leaders South Melbourne and were unlucky to fall 2-1 losers. The Cavaliers on the other hand got the result they desired with a mammoth 4-1 win against Avondale.
The players to watch:
There was plenty to like about Northcote last week, with Anthony Ramzy lighting up John Cain Memorial Park with a vibrant 60-minute performance. But Northcote have also made a few more splashes in the transfer window, adding utility Bonel Obradovic from South Melbourne, and Nikola Markovski from opponents Green Gully, who interestingly enough made a great start to the NPL season by scoring against Northcote, before falling out of favour. Funny how football works. For Green Gully, their new signing from Oakleigh, Liam Boland, had a dream debut by smashing home a game winning hat-trick. Can he make another big impact?
The prediction:
Arguably the toughest game to tip this weekend but I’ll back in a score 1-1 draw between the two sides. I think Northcote may be the more likely to pinch a result but I just can’t put myself out on a limb and say it.
I also predict to see a bit of the:
What does the #kounashow exactly entail, though?
Dandenong Thunder (13th) vs. Werribee City (11th)
Last meeting: 2-1 Dandenong Thunder
The form:
The term relegation six-pointer has been thrown around quite a fair bit this season, in fact, Werribee have escaped three in a row with six points (wins against Oakleigh and North Geelong Warriors and a loss against Northcote City). They come into their fourth in fine form after two good wins and they look a side capable of matching anyone at the moment. Dandenong on the contrary have been demoralised by two thrashings at the hands of top-two sides Heidelberg United and South Melbourne who put 11 goals past the hapless side in the last week.
The players to watch:
Plucked one out all the way from left field did Werribee City, as they secured the signature of David Thomson from the Norwegian lower leagues. It’ll be interesting to see what he can offer after failing to appear off the bench last week. Nino Ragusa also needs a goalscorer, and that may come in the form of new signing, Hume’s Deang Aguek. Dandenong Thunder have also done plenty of work off the field in the last week. Brodie Patterson looks a very astute pick up after impressing in spades in the NPL1 last season with St Albans before eventually unceremoniously leaving the club, while Nelson Salvatore can be an additional attacking force for the club.
The prediction:
All aboard the Werribee bandwagon! Nino Ragusa’s lads will be keen on making it three on the trot, when they couldn’t seem to buy a win earlier. 2-1 Thunder.