Round 22 Preview

Last weekend’s fixtures decided all the key positions in the Illawarra Mercury Premier League for 2016, so apart from a bit of a reshuffle of the pack in mid-table, Round 22 is about clubs saying farewell to their fans if their season finishes with this final round of the regular season. Or, if teams have qualified for the Finals series, it is a chance for coaches to test out new blood and/or rest some key players ahead of those Finals matches, which will start next weekend.

Even the Golden Boot for 2016 looks like staying on Ben McDonald’s feet, after the Bulli centre forward scored a brace in Round 21 and leapt a good few goals clear of his nearest rival.

All matches this weekend take place on Sunday afternoon, 28 August and kick off at 2.30pm.

Match of the round

Kemblawarra Fury v Port Kembla @ Albert Butler Memorial Park – kick-off 2.30pm

There will be a festive feel to Sunday afternoon at Albert Butler Memorial Park as Kemblawarra Fury have the luxury of a final round in front of their home fans, knowing that they have already won the IPL title for 2016. The League trophy will be presented after the match this weekend.

Port Kembla’s late run of form was not quite enough to get them into the Finals series, but this final Round match sees two of the IPL’s in-form sides go head-to-head. Port are unbeaten in five; and the Fury have won their last five, so somebody’s run has to come to an end on the final day of the regular season.

Matthew McNab and Alvin Ceccoli scored the Fury’s two goals in their 2-1 win back in June at Wetherall Park. Doug Woodiwiss got the Port’s only goal that day.

Last week’s goal hero Fabian Iacovelli scored against Port Kembla when the Fury won the equivalent fixture under their previous guise of Dapto Dandaloo in 2015.

Two of Luke Maguire’s front men still have an outside chance of winning the IPL Golden Boot, but one of them –Robbie Shields – is still slowly coming back from injury so may not be risked for this tie. After this match, the Fury have a week off before beginning their Finals campaign. Prediction: home win, unless Maguire rests a bunch of key players.

Other matches on Sunday 28 August

Albion Park White Eagles v Wollongong United @ Terry Reserve – kick-off 2.30pm

Albion Park White Eagles’ form has seen them fly into the Finals and they are the team to watch as the Finals series begins. Jeff Allport’s outfit haven’t lost a league game since Round 11, when they fell 1-0 to this weekend’s opponents. Scorer that day was defender Ben Brooks, who remains United’s top scorer for the 2016 season.

With second playing third in the Qualifying Final, it makes no difference to Albion Park whether or not they finish ahead of Bulli in the ladder. Winning can become a habit, though, and with the added motivation of wanting to venge that Round 11 defeat, there is an incentive for the White Eagles to go for this one rather than rest up ahead of the Finals.

With United’s chances of making the Finals already gone by the time his side took to the field in Round 21, coach Oliver Vrtkovski gave a few Youth Grade regulars a chance to step up last week. He may well do the same again and if so it will be interesting to see how they cope with the fast flowing football of the White Eagles in full flight.

Prediction: White Eagles to keep momentum with a home win here.

Shell Cove FC v Picton Rangers @ Barrack Heights Sportsfield - kick-off 2.30pm

Morale at these two clubs must be poles apart, with Shell Cove certain to sit on the bottom of the ladder, while Picton will be celebrating the extraordinary achievement of making the Finals series in their first year back since promotion from the District League.

Since these two sides drew 1-1 in a rescheduled Round 11 match in July, Shell Cove have lost six in a row. The club has never recovered from the six point deduction it faced in mid-season so, although its form overall is equal to Cringila (in eleventh spot), Shell Cove find themselves six points adrift going into this tie.

There are some talented players at Shell Cove, though, with new blood like Daniel Vellonio and Kurdvan Abduljabbar fitting in well alongside veterans like Ljupco Naumovski. Relegated teams sometimes put on a farewell show for the fans in the final game, and I fancy Shell Cove to do that this weekend.

For Brett Morley’s side, this may be an opportunity to rest key players in his squad ahead of the Elimination Final against Wollongong Olympic in a week’s time. Most of his squad were playing District League this time last year and few would have imagined being at this stage a year ago. Prediction for this one: draw.

Tarrawanna Blueys v Cringila Lions @ Tarrawanna Oval kick-off 2.30pm

On a wintry night in June, the Blueys ran riot in the reverse fixture, winning 5-0 at Crehan Park, with five different names on the scoresheet that evening.

The Lions have improved markedly since then under new coach Milco Saveski, most notably guaranteeing their IPL safety with a 6-1 hammering of Shell Cove, and basically denying Bulli a shot at the IPL title by drawing at Balls Paddock last weekend.

The Blueys were on a dreadful run of their own, losing six on the bounce until they too got the better of Shell Cove in Round 21.

So this final match pits two sides that may have been bruised by a tough season of Premier League football, but both have been showing signs of emerging with smiles on their faces as we go into the summer close season.

The Lions know from that 5-0 trouncing that any number of Blueys players may pose a goal threat and it was Rick Goodchild who scored a hat-trick in the equivalent fixture in 2015. For the Lions, Esali Ali has been in fine form all season and has scored twice in recent weeks.

This could go either way, but I’m going to go for a Blueys win so that their fans can at least end the season well their team promised so much early on.

Wollongong Olympic v South Coast United @ PCYC, Wollongong – kick-off 2.30pm

South Coast United did the double over Wollongong Olympic in 2015. Arguably those results are what cost Olympic a Finals berth last season.

There’s no chance of a repeat this year since these two drew the reverse match 1-1, and Olympic have cruised into the Finals already. They will end the season in fourth spot.

Yusuke Ueda scored Olympic’s goal in Round 11 and he remains their top scorer for the season. If Rob Birkin plays a full strength side, Ueda is the one to watch for United’s defensive line.

At the other end of the pitch, Gong Jun Lee scored United’s goal in that reverse fixture, but Liam Unicomb will always be a threat if Olympic’s defence give him too much space.

South Coast have not had a great season overall and lie in tenth spot on the ladder. But by drawing with both Albion Park and Bulli in recent weeks (and losing to the Fury), they could argue that they have had a hand in deciding who won the IPL title this year.

On the back of those draws against two top teams, I’m going to call this one a draw as well, especially with Olympic minds on the following week’s Elimination Final.

Woonona FC v Bulli FC @ Ocean Park – kick-off 2.30pm

The Sharks might well be wishing the IPL season was just starting, as they have finally put together an unbeaten run of three matches, which included a devastating 6-0 win over last season’s Grand Final winners Wollongong United.

Bulli, meanwhile, can look at their three 2-2 draws in the last five matches as being games that cost them a shot at the title. Funnily enough, that 2-2 scoreline was the result when these two met in the same fixture in 2015. There’s no point in looking back over old results for Ben Smith’s squad, though, as they prepare for a qualifying final showdown against Albion Park White Eagles in a week’s time.

Ben McDonald looks a shoe-in now for the IPL Golden Boot after his two goals last week which helped his side come back from 2-0 down against Cringila. He scored the only goal in the reverse fixture back in June, when Bulli beat Woonona at Balls Paddock.

If Dylan Lewis, Julian Minutillo and Ben McDonald all play up front, I can’t see this being anything but an away win, but then again, the Illawarra Mercury Premier League has had its fair share of surprises in 2016 and the Sharks have been responsible for a few of those…

By Simon Duffin

Photo Courtesy of Pedro Garcia (library image)