Round 4 Preview

Round 4 of the Illawarra Mercury Premier League sees the first tie to be played on neutral territory at the WIN Stadium – that’s our Sunday 1pm kick-off this weekend.

Round 3 saw 23 goals across the six matches, so the entertaining start to the season continued, with no shortage of surprise results, making this a hard League to predict in 2016. Picton’s win over 2015 Champions Wollongong United has catapulted them into the top five, while Tarrawanna stayed as overall leaders with a third win in three. Port Kembla and Cringila Lions both managed a draw in Round 3, leaving South Coast United the only side yet to get a point from those first three rounds.

Match of the round

Tarrawanna Blueys v Kemblawarra Fury FC @ Tarrawanna Oval – kick-off 2.30pm, Saturday 16 April

It’s top versus third in the tie of the round at Tarrawanna Oval on Saturday.

Peter Willis’s team have had the perfect start to the IPL season, with three wins from three, culminating in a 5-0 thrashing last weekend of bottom side South Coast United. The new Blueys coach has managed to get his new young players to blend in immediately with more established members of the squad. So, two of last season’s mainstays, Rick Goodchild and Darren Stone, have already got their names on the scoresheet in two of the three games so far, but so has new boy Sam Isabella.

The Blueys’ weakness in 2015 was their inability to get results against their main rivals for top spots in the ladder, especially at Tarrawanna Oval. Those first three rounds this season have been against teams likely to end in the bottom half of the ladder, so this Saturday’s match against Kemblawarra Fury is the Blueys’ first big test.

The Fury are also unbeaten this season, and while they failed to score against Bulli and left it late against Cringila, they were back to their best with the Round 3 win over Woonona, and most promisingly for them their new targetman Matthew McNab was back on scoring form with a brace.

This match could go either way, so I’m plumping for a draw between two on-form teams.

Friday 15 April

Cringila Lions v Wollongong Olympic @ Crehan Park – kick-off 8.00pm

The weekend’s fixtures kick off on Friday night with one of the Round’s most intriguing battles.

The home side may only have one point to their name after three matches, but the way they held off Kemblawarra Fury for 90 minutes of the Round 2 tie, and their plucky draw against a good Albion Park White Eagles team last week gives cause for optimism in the Lions’ camp.

Inconsistency probably cost Olympic a Finals spot last season and there are early signs they may have a similar problem in 2016. This side can be brilliant, going two up against Champions Wollongong United early in Round 1 and then thrashing Port Kembla in Round 2, but they were easily beaten by Bulli last time out and let that two goal lead slip against United.

At one end, it will be fascinating to see how the Olympic defence and midfield deal with the Lions’ exciting newcomers Esala Ali and Mikal Awad (who both scored last week). At the other end, the Lions’ defensive line will be hoping to smother Olympic’s target men Yusuke Ueda and Wandi Jajaw.

There will surely be goals in this one, but I reckon the match may end all square.

Other games on Saturday 16 April

Port Kembla FC v Picton Rangers FC @ Wetherall Park - kick-off 2.30pm

The visitors will be on the crest of a wave after a tremendous week of football, which saw them thrash State League side Balmain Tigers in the FFA Cup and then overcome IPL Champions Wollongong United at Hume Oval on Saturday. And they’ve scored 11 goals in their last three competitive matches, with Mitch Hall getting his name on the scoresheet in each of those games.

In contrast, Port Kembla have been struggling in front of goal this season, only breaking their duck with Joe Lavalle’s equaliser last weekend at Shell Cove. That also saw Port Kembla get off the mark with their first point in the IPL and that took them off the foot of the ladder after three Rounds.

On form, many may expect Picton to pick up the points this weekend, but I’m going to stick my neck out and predict a win for Port, with Stuart Beedie’s side finally starting to show signs of gelling last weekend, and I fancy Peter Richardson’s defensive leadership to stem the tide of Picton goals.

Woonona FC v Albion Park White Eagles @ Ocean Park – kick-off 2.30pm

Ocean Park plays host to another potentially tight tie this weekend.

After an encouraging 3-0 win in Round 1, Woonona have failed to pick up any points in subsequent matches, and this is the third tough tie in a row for the Sharks after their defeats to Tarrawanna and the Fury. Coach Brendan Anderson had instilled new belief in his squad who were playing good football in the pre-season cup and in the opening rounds of this season, but defeats can become a habit and Anderson will be looking to stop the rot against the White Eagles.

With one win, one draw and one defeat, the visitors start Round 4 in mid-table. But there is a new flair to the football being played by Jeff Allport’s outfit this season and although they started disastrously against Cringila last week, they showed depth of character in coming back to gain a point after going 2-0 down.

New recruit Shohei Okuna has been the find of the season for Albion Park, and it was his goal on Saturday which won the White Eagles a point.

I’m going to sit firmly on the fence for this one and predict a draw between two battling sides.

Wollongong United v South Coast United @ Macedonia Park– kick-off 5.00pm

Last week’s defeat at Picton left Wollongong United in fifth after what was surely one of the shock results of the season. The 2015 Champions also left it late to salvage a point at Wollongong Olympic in Round 1, so it’s not been the start to 2016 that coach Oliver Vrtkovski might have hoped for.

Funnily enough, in 2015, United also dropped points in surprising ways, including a home draw in this equivalent fixture against South Coast. It’s been a torrid time for the visitors so far this season, though, with three straight defeats and ten goals conceded already.

It’s hard to see anything but a home win for this one, as United seek to get their season back on track and with the breadth of talent across the park, they will surely prove too much for a shaky South Coast to handle.

Sunday 17 April

Bulli FC v Shell Cove FC @ WIN Stadium – kick-off 1.00pm

Bulli and Shell Cove are the first two IPL teams to get a chance to play at WIN Stadium this season, as part of a series of games arranged as curtain-raisers for Wollongong Wolves matches in 2016.

Bulli’s attacking force has looked very strong in the last two rounds, with Ben McDonald knocking them in again this season, aided by Julian Minutillo on his left and Dylan Lewis on the right. They looked especially sharp against a useful Wollongong Olympic team last weekend and will surely test Shell Cove’s defensive abilities.

But Bulli’s good start to the season is due as much to their defence as it is their attacking play. They have yet to concede a goal in open play in those first three IPL rounds, so will be tough to get past for Shell Cove.

Shell Cove have some exciting new players on their side this season in the likes of Jordan Hassiem and Daniel Vellonio, but it was veteran Ljupco Naumovski who found the net against Port Kembla last week.

I expect Shell Cove to perform well on the big stage, but can’t oppose Bulli to take the three points this time.

By Simon Duffin