Finals Week 1

This weekend sees the start of the four week Finals series, with fifth playing fourth in the Elimination Final, and third playing second in the Qualifying Final for a chance to take on the title winners. All matches will be played on Sunday at either Tarrawanna Oval or Crehan Park.

Here we preview both First Grade and Youth Grade in the Illawarra Mercury Premier League. Two clubs have teams in both sets of finals this weekend: Bulli and Wollongong Olympic. Both Bulli teams get to play at Tarrawanna Oval, whereas the Olympic sides will be playing across both venues for this weekend.

As First Grade title winners, Kemblawarra Fury has a week off, but its Youth Grade team go into an Elimination Final against Woonona Sharks. Wollongong United Youth Grade await the winners of the Qualifying Final in Youth Grade.

First Grade

Qualifying Final

Bulli FC v Albion Park White Eagles @ Tarrawanna Oval – kick-off 2.30pm

Two of the IPL’s in-form teams go head-to-head in what should be a thrilling battle at Tarrawanna Oval on Sunday. Both sides play an exciting, attacking brand of football, so this is surely the match all neutrals should be attending this weekend.

Bulli go into the Qualifying Final unbeaten in nine IPL matches. In fact their last defeat came at the hands of this weekend’s opponents, who beat them 3-2 at Terry Reserve back in June.

Albion Park came from behind against Wollongong United to maintain their own unbeaten run last weekend.

Ben McDonald held onto his Golden Boot in 2016 with 18 goals for Bulli in the regular season, but Shohei Okuno finished second in that race with a brace at the weekend for the White Eagles taking his tally for the season to 15.

Bulli’s Dylan Lewis has also grown into the First Grade role this season and ended the season with 14 goals himself. He makes as many as he scores with his runs down the right, mirrored by Julian Minutillo down the left.

The White Eagles’ Japanese trio have bedazzled many a defence this season, spearheaded by Okuno. Bulli’s defence is the most solid in the IPL, though, having conceded just 24 goals through the 22 Round season.

This game may be so tight that it could go to penalties. I have a sneaking hunch it could go the White Eagles’ way, though.

 

Picton Rangers v Wollongong Olympic @ Crehan Park – kick-off 2.30pm

Elimination Final

Picton Rangers go into the Elimination Final knowing they can beat today’s opponents Wollongong Olympic. They won the league fixture at Hume Oval just two weeks ago. Having said that, on that day in Round 21, Picton needed the three points to ensure they qualified for the Finals, whereas Olympic already knew they had made the Finals series so arguably had less to play for.

Defence has been key to Olympic’s success this season, with the second lowest Goals Against tally in the IPL. Olympic’s problem against Picton is that they have failed to score in the 180 minutes of IPL football between the sides in 2016.

Yusuke Ueda is Olympic’s top scorer this year, though Brendan Fordham has marshalled a great team spirit across the camp at Olympic, a spirit that won them their first silverware for decades back in July when they took the Bampton Cup.

Picton’s first season back in the Premier League has been a success whatever the outcome of this match. But they will hope to repeat that win of a fortnight ago, when Dayne Morley and Mitch Hall scored.

Picton will be tough opposition and will fight to the last, but I fancy Olympic have the talent to take their Finals Series into the next stage with a win here.

Youth Grade

Kemblawarra Fury v Woonona FC @ Crehan Park - kick-off 12.15pm

Elimination Final

These two sides ended the season equal on points so there’s little to choose between them going into the Elimination Final. Woonona grabbed fourth spot on the ladder thanks to their free-scoring attack, which gave them a much better goal difference than this weekend’s opponents.

Seven players in the Sharks’ squad have scored six goals or more already this season so the goal threat comes from all over the park. And five of them have already found the net in the two matches between these two in the regular season. Joel Beattie and Kyle Del are Woonona’s top scorers with 13 goals apiece.

Cody Waller is out and out top scorer for the Fury Youth Grade, with 21 goals in the regular season. Woonona need to watch out for the likes of Kyle Senior and Kyle Kirkland, too though, as both have had First Grade experience in recent weeks.

Both teams’ form slipped in the last weeks of the season, though Woonona came back strongly in Round 22 with a fine 2-1 win over Bulli. That might give them the edge in this one, though this will surely be a tight affair.

Bulli FC v Wollongong Olympic @ Tarrawanna Oval kick-off 12.15pm

Qualifying Final

Wollongong Olympic finished just one place and one point above Bulli in the end-of-season rankings in the Youth Grade ladder, but they go into this one with the psychological advantage.

Not only do Olympic go into the Finals on the back of a five game winning sequence, but they have already beaten Bulli once in the League this season, and their opponents have failed to score against Olympic in either of their previous league encounters this season.

Jamie Wakeling is the one to watch from Olympic. He is top scorer by a long way with 29 goals and has had some First Grade experience this year too.

Bulli has the stingiest defence in the league, though, conceding only 16 goals across the 22 matches of the regular season. They just need to find a way through that Olympic defence which has kept them out for 180 minutes so far this season.

Nikolas Miceski is Bulli top scorer in 2016, but they have eight players in the squad who have bagged five goals or more.

This will surely be a tight match, but I’m going for Olympic to nick it by a single goal.

The winner here gets through to play the league champions Wollongong United. The loser gets another crack against the winners of the Elimination Final.

By Simon Duffin

Photo courtesy of Pedro Garcia (library image)