MATCHES CHANGED

Woden Valley v Belconnen United switched to Saturday evening at Hawker Football Centre at 7:30pm

Cooma Tigers v Canberra Olympic switched to Hawker Football Centre at 3pm, still on Sunday

Saturday 12th April
Tuggeranong United v Canberra City (Kambah 2-1, Kick-Off: 3pm)
Tuggeranong United welcomes Canberra City to Kambah for their first home match of the 2014 National Premier Leagues: Capital Football season having pushed Belconnen United all the way in their opening match at Hawker Football Centre last Friday night. In the only game that survived the weather, Tuggeranong was more than a match for the Blue Devils for a large part of the fixture and led once new recruit Jon Toole had opened the scoring. They were unable to hold on to the advantage, in the main due to some excellent attacking from Belconnen, but Head Coach Steve Forshaw would have taken plenty of positives from the match. The loss of striker Zach Munster to a fractured ankle is a blow as the forward was growing into the role and his absence will force a re-think from Forshaw this weekend. City meanwhile had to sit out last week when their much anticipated first game at their new Gungahlin Enclosed venue was a victim of the incessant rain. The absence of a match could be a blessing for City though after a tough pre-season schedule and they’ll arrive at Kambah fresh and fit and raring to go. Both teams have ambitions of the top four this season. Getting three points here would be a step in the right direction.

Monaro Panthers v Canberra FC (Riverside Stadium, Kick-Off: 3pm)
League Champions Canberra FC will attempt to get their 2014 National Premier Leagues: Capital Football season off to a belated start with a trip to the Riverside Stadium to take on Monaro Panthers in Saturday’s other afternoon kick-off. FC missed out on starting their season at home to Cooma Tigers on Sunday fresh from an 8-0 battering of a young Belconnen United team in the NPL Pre-Season Cup decider. That victory, achieved against a mostly under-20 Blue Devils team, did showcase the exceptional pace that FC possess in the final third and the Panthers will need to be wary of this potential game-winning area. Monaro pushed Canberra FC all the way in the pre-season competition eventually succumbing to a 2-4 defeat after they led 2-1 despite having an outfield player in goal and being down to ten-men for half an hour. Admittedly it was an under-strength Canberra FC side but the performance should give Njegosh Popovich and his team a boost of confidence heading into what is always a testing match. FC will be favourites to take the three points, and few would bet against them after their impressive showing in pre-season, but the Panthers have been known to upset the Canberra FC apple-cart on more than one occasion in the past and would take great delight in doing so again.

Woden Valley v Belconnen United (Hawker Football Centre, Kik-Off: 7:30pm)
Belconnen United heads to Hawker Football Centre on Saturday evening as they tackle Woden Valley as Woden Park is developed. Forced into exile while work commences on a new playing surface and facilities at Woden Park, a new-look Woden outfit will be keen to carry on where their predecessors left off and create plenty of problems for a Blue Devils side who, traditionally, seem to struggle to see off Woden. Mitch Stevens has a young and vibrant squad at his disposal this season with a number of departures giving the Woden youth ranks a chance to showcase their skills at the top level. Belconnen took some time to warm up into the match against Tuggeranong on Friday night, the only match of Round 1 that was completed, as a stubborn Tuggeranong defence denied the Blue Devils any space. It wasn’t until they went behind that Belconnen found the formula to unlock the parsimonious United back-four but, in Dustin Wells, they have a potential match-winner every week. Dean Ugrinic faces his former club as Head Coach of Belconnen for the first time in an NPL fixture but any feelings will go out the window for the duration of ninety minutes as Belconnen aims to build on its opening day success and stay at the top of the fledgling National Premier Leagues: Capital Football ladder.

Sunday 13th April
Cooma Tigers v Canberra Olympic (Hawker Football Centre, Kick-Off: 3pm)
Grand Final winners Canberra Olympic begin the long journey back to the National Premier Leagues: Capital Football showdown as they make the trip to Nijong Oval to battle Cooma Tigers in Round 2. With both teams having an enforced rest last weekend, Tigers due to their postponement versus Canberra FC and Olympic due to the bye, this fixture is the first chance supporters of both clubs will have to see just where their teams have come into the competition, off the back of their exploits ion the NPL Pre-Season Cup. The pair met in the pool stages during that pre-season clash with an entraining 3-3 draw the outcome as both teams traded goals at a furious pace. With some of the best attacking talent on offer in the NPL: Capital Football on display in this match we are surely going to be blessed with lots of opportunities and a fair few goals! Visits to Cooma are never a pleasant experience in winter time for the teams at the top end of the ladder, as the bitter wind blows in off the mountains and the temperature plummets with the sun, and so Olympic will probably be grateful to head to the Tigers den during a fairly temperate time of year. This is a tough match to call with both coaches, Gaby Wilk (Tigers) and Frank Cachia (Olympic) keen to get a win under their belts. A high scoring draw could be in the offering.

TABLE

LEADING SCORERS
2 Dustin WELLS (Belconnen United)
1 Jason UGRINIC (Belconnen United), Jon TOOLE (Tuggeranong United)