NPL1 Round 9 Preview
Tuggeranong United v Riverina Rhinos | Saturday, 8th June – 5pm @ Greenway Enclosed
Second last Tuggeranong take on last placed Riverina at Greenway on the weekend in a crucial clash for both teams. A win for Tuggeranong would all but clear their name from the relegation chat, while a loss would allow their opponent’s to draw within three points of them. A 2-0 loss to Woden-Weston last weekend followed a loss in the cup to Tigers FC, and would not have been how Mitch Stevens wanted to back up their important victory over Belconnen a few weeks back. United had a goal chalked off in that outing but otherwise struggled in front of goal, but will likely have some more freedom here against the Rhinos’ defence that has conceded 29 goals so far.
Riverina were soundly beaten to the tune of 8-1 by Olympic last weekend, and again make the trip to Canberra this weekend to round out the first half of the season. It has not been a fun start to the campaign, scoring just four times and conceding almost 30 goals. But Keith Jackson’s stunning goal last week was certainly a positive, and a clear indicator that there are creators and scorers in this team. With no substitutes last week’s game was always going to be a tough task, and it remains to be seen whether there will be reinforcements on the bench this week. With Tuggeranong struggling in the past week or so, this arguably presents the Rhinos with one of their better chances to pick up points on the road.
Monaro Panthers v Woden-Weston | Saturday, 8th June – 5:30pm @ Riverside Stadium
After a big home outing against Tuggeranong followed by the bye, Monaro came back to earth last weekend in a heavy loss to Belconnen United. They conceded four goals to an understrength Blue Devils outfit and Jimmy Kanaridis will be looking out for a bounce back effort here. Despite that loss they still sit in a very strong spot on the ladder, and would jump into the four with a win this weekend regardless of the outcome in other matches. They didn’t capitalise on chances and were held at bay well by Finn Jurak in the loss , so being clinical needs to be a focal point in this outing. They will be up against a Woden-Weston side who struggled after the early rounds but returned with a vengeance last weekend in the win over Tuggeranong.
Rey Castro’s side picked up a very important three points and will look to keep momentum going here approaching the bye weekend for the cup. Alex Oloriegbe has proved this season that he is still a danger in this competition, poaching another goal again in the win against Tuggeranong. He will be a threat here with his pace, alongside his fellow talented forwards. They haven’t scored more than two goals in a game yet though, and will not want to enter into a shootout with the Panthers who have shown they can score plenty on their day. As with the hosts, a win here would allow the Wanderers to jump into the four and be sitting pretty as the season turns onto the home straight.
Gungahlin United v Canberra FC | Sunday, 9th June – 3pm @ AIS Grass 1
Marcial Munoz’s surging Gungahlin United side will welcome Canberra FC to the AIS on Sunday afternoon in a top four outing. United ended Tigers’ undefeated record last weekend and have been flying in recent weeks. Jeremy Habtemariam grabbed another two goals last weekend to add to his strong first half of the season, while United possess the stingiest backline in the league. They haven’t lost since the round 2 defeat to Canberra Olympic and have dropped points only once, and this is a marquee matchup that presents them a chance to finish the first half of the season alone in third. They must be mindful of a Canberra FC side that have gathered steam as the campaign has aged and have been improving in the front third.
Luka Ujdur’s side had the bye last weekend and remain in fourth spot on the table level on points, goal difference, goals for and goals against with Belconnen United. The week before saw them create a myriad of chances against Tigers FC but still end up with only a share of the points, before ANU FC pushed them all the way in their FFA Cup round 6 match. Ujdur will be looking for a more polished performance in this outing, particularly in a top-four clash. A loss or draw here could see them outside the top four as the first half of the season closes with Monaro and Woden-Weston just a point behind, so the visitors will be keen to take maximum points and jump their opponent’s into third. A blockbuster clash looms shortly after this one as they face Canberra Olympic
Tigers FC v Canberra Olympic | Sunday, 9th June – 3pm @ Nijong Oval
A pivotal clash in the context of the season will take place on Sunday afternoon in Cooma as 1st placed Canberra Olympic take on 2nd placed Tigers FC at Nijong Oval. Tigers’ undefeated start to the season came to an end at the hands of Gungahlin last weekend, and Gaby Wilk’s men will be keen to rebound from that 3-1 loss. They will take on that task without Jose Defilippi after he was sent from the field in the loss, and will hope to show a bit more endeavor going forward, having been largely thwarted for the first 70 minutes of the game. A win in this game would leave Tigers at the top of the pile after the first half of the season, while a loss could leave them five points adrift of Olympic and with no momentum heading into the FFA Cup Qualifying Final next Saturday.
Olympic thumped the Rhinos last weekend to draw two points clear at the top, in a result that made it three straight league wins after their only loss to Monaro. Nick Faust has returned to Olympic after a stint with the Central Coast, while recent signing Dane Milovanovic has headed back to Victoria. Stephen Domenici was at his best last week as he turned in four goals, while Kofi Danning got back to contributing on the scoresheet with a brace of his own. A win here would allow them to be five points clear of their nearest competitors with one half of the season in the books, with a massive midweek clash against Canberra FC next Wednesday at Woden Park. It’s getting to crunch time in the season, and Olympic find themselves in a good spot at the right time.
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