Monaro Panthers v Belconnen United – Saturday 3pm – Riverside Stadium

Belconnen United can all but secure the league title this weekend with a win against Monaro Panthers at Riverside Stadium. A win here would put them 14 points ahead of Canberra FC who can reduce the gap back to 11 with a win on Sunday, but with only 12 points on offer after this weekend the team can smell another premiership. But United must not get ahead of themselves, and need to focus on getting past the Panthers at Riverside. That should be not too hard a task though give history, with a combined 19-0 margin splitting the two sides from their two matches this season.

Monaro played well against Canberra FC last weekend but still ended up going down 2-0, and will look for another decent performance here at home. They have struggled greatly against the ladder leaders so far this season and need to avoid allowing the visitors to get off to a fast start. Panthers have a tough run-in to the end of the season from here on out, but will be hoping to restrict the damage at Riverside and maintain a degree of intensity heading into the final few weeks of the 2017 season.

 

Canberra FC v Canberra Olympic – 2pm Sunday – Deakin 1.01

Canberra FC can confirm their place in the finals this weekend with a win over Canberra Olympic at the Deakin Ovals. Three points will make the buffer to the fifth eligible finals team too big to overcome in four rounds and allow Mark Risteski to focus his side on the top two. A narrow victory over Monaro last week came with a dominant performance and they will aim here for a repeat of their Round 10 shellacking of Olympic, where they finished 8-0 winners. That was with a full squad, compared to their narrow 1-0 win in Round three, and with fitness not much of an issue at this stage the hosts have the chance to set themselves up for a really strong run-in to the finals series.

Olympic will enter this clash having not played last week after their fixture with the Academy was rescheduled and Rob Scott will hope his side’s match fitness has not suffered as a result. Their last league match ended in a 4-2 defeat to Monaro Panthers but only with two very late goals, and Olympic should look to show more of the fight that they did in that matchup. Time is running out this season for their first win and while it will be tough against their rivals, a showing much more like their effort in Round three could prove to go a long way.

 

Tuggeranong United v Woden-Weston FC – Sunday 2pm – Greenway Enclosed

Tuggeranong United will host Woden-Weston at Greenway on Saturday in a matchup that will prove pivotal to the make-up of the finals series. Tuggeranong currently sit in sixth spot, five points behind the Wanderers who occupy the last eligible finals position and will not want to fall behind by eight. Michael Aldred will be hoping that Meg McLaughlin can return after leaving last weekend’s match early as they look to improve their struggling goal difference. For and against could prove pivotal if the going gets tight, meaning a win here is vital, but a win here by multiple goals would be a bonus.

For Woden-Weston their last ditch win over Gungahlin United could prove to be massive in the scheme of things. A three points that for large parts of the game looked out of reach suddenly boosted their lead to five points over Gungahlin, and a sublime performance from Ella Brown has given Diego Elmoudawar another weapon heading into the pointy end of the season. A win here would pull his side right up with United and the Academy, albeit having played a game more, putting the pressure on Gungahlin with a few weeks to go.

 

Canberra United Academy v Gungahlin United - Postponed