Match of the Round
Thornton Redbacks v Dudley Redhead United
Thornton Park, Saturday 4pm
Thornton Redbacks coach Scott Winslade says his side cannot take their foot off the pedal when they host Dudley Redhead United at Thornton Park on Saturday afternoon.
Thornton was defeated 4-2 by Kahibah in their round 11 clash but led 1-0 after 16 minutes.
It was the fifth time this season they had led in a match and allowed their opponents back in the game.
The last time Thornton and Dudley went head-to-head the Redbacks led 1-0 as they went into half-time but left the game with a 1-1 draw.
“Against them [Dudley] last time we were very good in the first half and took the foot off the pedal and let them back in and they had a much better second half than we did,” Winslade said.
“It’s just the consistency for 90-minutes that needs to be there.
“Against Kahibah, that's the fifth game in a row that we’ve been leading at some point in the game.
“We’ve got to finish teams off when we take the lead and we just haven’t been doing that.”
Despite getting themselves into good positions Winslade understood that his side needed to find a way to start winning but believed they were getting there.
“In some ways we’re creating more but it’s a hard one to put a finger on,” Winslade said.
“We get ourselves in good positions and just let ourselves down on the final pass or finish, but it is getting better and it’s something that’s coming together now.
“The games against Dudley this week and whenever we play Wallsend, they’re big games for us and we have to get results because next we’ve got Toronto which is going to be difficult for us.
“We’ve got to find a way to start winning.”
The Redbacks will be without Zac Skippen after he was shown a red card in round 11.
Dudley Redhead United coach Mark Wilson emphasised this weekend’s match was a must win for his side.
“It’s a huge game for us after last night’s result,” Wilson said.
“I think we’re only a few points ahead of a congested couple down the bottom so it’s a massive game for us. It’s really important.”
Wilson wanted his side to be braver in front of goal and since their 3-0 defeat the Thistles have netted two goals.
But they have gone down by one goal in their last two matches which Wilson believed was a result of lapses of concentration.
“I think in the Singleton game we were braver and took a couple of chances,” Wilson said.
“What’s cost us though is just lapses of concentration and conceding goals that we shouldn’t be conceding.
“I think the two goals against Singleton and the one last night against West Wallsend were conceded from set pieces, three goals from set pieces.
“We need to address that because if we keep conceding goals on set pieces like we are it makes it difficult.”
In their past four matches the Thistles were behind as they went into half-time, similar to their match against Thornton earlier in the season.
But they were able to fight back against the Redbacks in round three, something they hadn’t done in their past four games.
“It’s just a mindset thing that we’ve spoken about. It’s going to be important to start the game well,” Wilson said.
“You can’t afford to give away the first half, in this competition you’ve got to start well you can’t give that first half away. Otherwise, it’s too hard to catch up.”
The Thistles will be monitoring Zaell Ford and Laing Hudson after they picked up knocks against West Wallsend on Tuesday night.
South Cardiff FC v Wallsend FC
Ulinga Oval, Saturday 7:30pm
Wallsend FC coach Chris Gallagher says his side have reset and are ready as they travel to Ulinga Oval on Saturday night to face South Cardiff FC.
Wallsend’s last four rounds have been postponed due to wet weather which resulted in five weeks away from the field.
The Red Devils played their first game since the beginning of May on Wednesday night when they went head-to-head with Kahibah FC in their rescheduled round 10 match.
They were defeated 4-2 but pushed Kahibah to the very end fighting for a point.
The time off was a blessing in disguise for Wallsend as it allowed for a range of players to return to play.
“We got a lot of players back because we had a few niggle injuries that people were dealing with, so we got to get all those guys injury free,” Gallagher said.
“It’s been actually good for a lot of the boys because we were able to build a good base for them again. We’ve kind of used it as a mini preseason.”
The Red Devils have three games in hand, the most of any team in the competition but Gallagher believed it will benefit his side.
“It’s good because you can obviously get a bit of momentum,” Gallagher said.
“The plan is momentum and then if we get some momentum, I think things will become a lot easier for us, which I think we definitely can.”
The last time Wallsend faced South Cardiff neither team was able to find the back of the net and walked away with a 0-0 draw.
“To be fair against South Cardiff last time, I thought we should have won,” Gallagher said.
“That was two points we threw away.”
The Red Devils will have a full-strength side for just the second time this season on Saturday night.
South Cardiff will take the field under interim coach Mark Trenter on the weekend after previous head coach Perry Mellon stepped away from the role.
The Gunners played under Trenter for the first time on Wednesday night in their rescheduled round 10 match against Lake Macquarie City FC.
The side bounced back from three matches they would hope to forget after they beat Lake Macquarie 2-1.
Prior to the midweek clash South Cardiff were defeated 6-0, 4-0 and 5-0 conceding 15 goals and netting zero.
They will look to build off the momentum they gained from the midweek victory but will need to remain composed in the back third as they have conceded 27 goals this season, the most of any side.
The Gunners moved to sixth on the table and a win this weekend could move them to fifth and one point out of the top four.
Singleton Strikers v Toronto Awaba FC
Howe Park, Saturday 2pm
Singleton Strikers will look to defeat league leaders Toronto Awaba at Howe Park on Saturday afternoon.
Singleton was unable to down Toronto the last time the two sides met in round three but since then have climbed their way to third on the table and 10 points behind this weekend’s opponents.
The Strikers have had one loss in their past five matches and had one draw and three wins including a dominant 5-0 victory over South Cardiff FC in their rescheduled round nine clash.
They will look to replicate their strong attacking force when they face Toronto but will need to have a solid backline to prevent a commanding Stags front third to walk away with all three points.
Toronto secured their 10th victory and seventh clean sheet of the season when they defeated Lake Macquarie City 4-0 in their rescheduled round nine match.
The Stags have netted 31 goals in 10 matches and have only conceded seven, the best of any side.
They will need to display their dominant full field display on Saturday afternoon when they face the Strikers who have conceded the third fewest goals this season.
Toronto will look to extend their lead and cement their spot at the top of the table with Kahibah FC hot on their heels.
West Wallsend SFC v Cessnock City Hornets
Johnston Park, Sunday 2pm
West Wallsend SFC will hope to make it three in a row when they host Cessnock City Hornets at Johnston Park on Sunday afternoon.
West Wallsend had not won since round one with four draws and three losses to their name but that came to an end in round 11 when they downed South Cardiff FC 4-0.
They continued their winning ways on Tuesday night after they defeated Dudley Redhead United 1-0 in the round nine rescheduled match.
The last time West Wallsend and Cessnock went head-to-head neither team were able to secure all three points and walked away with a 1-1 draw.
The Bluebells will be eager to keep the good times rolling and go one better on Sunday afternoon but will need to remain composed for the entire 90-minutes.
Cessnock have not played in three weeks as rain wreaked havoc on their round 10 and 11 matches.
The last time the side took the field they were narrowly defeated 1-0 by Kahibah FC in round nine, their fifth loss in a row.
The Hornets have not picked up points since their round four victory over South Cardiff and will need to change their ways to escape the cluster of teams at the bottom of the table.
Cessnock have only scored eight goals this season, the second lowest of any side. Skipper Zach Kronholm has netted seven.
They will need to unleash Kronholm’s striking power on Sunday afternoon after they have not found the back of the net in their past two matches.
Kahibah FC v Lake Macquarie City FC
Kahibah Oval, Sunday 4:30pm
Kahibah FC will look to continue their seven-game unbeaten streak when they host Lake Macquarie City FC at Kahibah Oval on Sunday afternoon.
The Rams have not lost since round three when Lake Macquarie defeated them 4-2.
They continued their winning way when they downed Wallsend FC 4-2 on Wednesday night in their rescheduled round 10 match.
Kahibah will look to continue the momentum they gained throughout the season and redeem themselves against Lakes as they have been the only side to defeat them this season.
A win for the Rams could place them just one point away from the top of the table.
Lake Macquarie will look to return to the winners’ circle on the weekend after they were defeated 2-1 in their round 10 rescheduled match against South Cardiff FC on Wednesday night.
The Roosters have lost their last two matches, conceded six goals and netted just one.
They sit fourth on the table but could move to third if they walk away with all three points against Kahibah.
Lake Macquarie will need to shut down Kahibah’s Tyson Masters to recreate their round three victory after he scored a hat-trick on Wednesday night.
