Photo: Kingston City
As the final round of NPL 2 approaches, the equation sees two clubs from both East and West in contention for the title in their respective divisions.
The top-placed club gains automatic entry into the top tier of NPL Victoria next season and qualifies for the overall NPL2 grand final (a game that is purely for silverware and has no effect on promotion or relegation), while the second-placed club will have to go through a series of playoffs to earn their chance at the top tier.
As it stands, the top two teams in the East are Kingston City and Dandenong Thunder, while in the West St Albans are in the lead and are followed by North Geelong.
In the last round of NPL2 East:
- Kingston City play away against Brunswick City
- Dandenong Thunder play at home against Springvale White Eagles
In the last round of NPL2 West:
- St Albans play at home against Whittlesea Ranges
- North Geelong play away against Ballarat Red Devils
In the East, Kingston are on 65 points, three ahead of Dandenong Thunder on 62. A draw will be enough for Kingston to be guaranteed promotion and the title. If Kingston lose and Thunder win, the latter will leapfrog the former into top spot due to a superior goal difference. If Kingston lose but Thunder either draw or lose, Kingston will remain top.
It’s a similar situation in the West as St Albans lead on 53, while North Geelong are on 50. A draw will be enough for St Albans to be guaranteed promotion and the title. If St Albans lose and North Geelong win, the latter will leapfrog the former into top spot due to a superior goal difference. If St Albans lose but North Geelong either draw or lose, St Albans will remain top.
The second-placed teams of East and West will play-off at a neutral venue. The loser of that game will spend another season in the second tier.
The winner will face off against Richmond SC (also at a neutral venue), who finished 12th in the top tier – it’s already been determined that Melbourne Victory (14th) and Northcote City (13th) will be in NPL2 next year.
If Richmond lose, they will join Victory and Northcote in the second tier in 2017 and will be replaced by the NPL2 club they lost to. If they win their playoff, they will stay in the top tier, while the NPL2 club they defeated will stay put in the second tier for another year.
This is the second year of the East/West format. In 2015, Bulleen Lions (West) and Richmond SC (East) finished top of NPL2 and were automatically promoted, with Richmond claiming the NPL2 grand final.
Moreland Zebras and Melbourne Victory finished second in the West and East respectively. Victory won the second-placed play-off and then faced 12th placed top-tier club North Geelong Warriors in the final promotion/relegation contest. Victory won that day to be promoted, while North Geelong were relegated.