Match of the Round
Kahibah FC v Cessnock City Hornets
Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility Field 1, Saturday 11am
Kahibah FC coach Blair Newham says his side has what it takes to compete with the big leagues as they take the field for the final time in the HIT106.9 Northern League One competition on Saturday morning at the Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility, where they will face the Cessnock City Hornets.
Kahibah secured the premiership and automatic promotion to the NPL Men’s NNSW competition in 2026 when they downed Singleton Strikers 2-1 last weekend.
The win was their ninth in a row, extending their unbeaten streak to 14 games, but Newham is hopeful their recent celebrations won’t impact their ability to win on the weekend.
“We've been unbeaten since round four, coming into round 18. But Cessnock have their own sort of battles to fight, and they had a great win last night and they're not a team that we can take lightly,” Newham said.
“We've got our own issues with suspensions, injuries and players still celebrating but we'll put our best 11 out with respect to the competition because if you don't have your best 11 available in this competition you find it very hard to get points.
“It's our old boys' day and our 100th year. We deserve to give the fans a good performance, but Josh Maguire is a very good coach and he's got Cessnock scrapping for results and doing well plus they’re coming off the back of a win.
“I think that Saturday could be a very, very hard-fought and enjoyable game.”
But despite what the result could be this weekend Newham knows that his side deserves to be at the top.
“I could not give more credit to our playing group and extended coaching staff and committee and supporters,” Newham said.
“The backing that I've got this year to be able to go and promote my vision, all of that stuff has just come to fruition, and we deserve to be where we are on the back of how hard we fought for results and how tough it's been.
“I could not smile harder knowing that we're going to be in the NPL next year.
“It's only really dawned on me in sort of the last couple of days how much it really meant to our supporters.
“When you meet some people that have been there for a long time, or you've got some supporters that have been there every game and they're breaking down in tears and can't explain what it means to them to be in the NPL for the very first time having been at the club for 35 years. It means more to them than I think I really understood in the last couple of days.
“The celebrations of that really sort of hit home with me and I couldn't be happier to make some of these blokes' dreams come true.”
Kahibah will be without Jackson Burston after he received a red card in round 17.
Cessnock were the most at risk of relegation prior to their midweek match against Thornton Redbacks on Tuesday night.
The Hornets were determined to make sure they didn’t move down to Zone League One and they made that happen when they secured a 2-0 win.
The win saw Cessnock jump from 10th to sixth and while they are only two points ahead of South Cardiff FC in last, they will not be relegated in 2025 due to goal difference.
Coach Josh Maguire believed his side deserved to walk away with the three points and is raring to go again on Saturday.
“The club is on a high after Tuesday night’s win. We are looking to do a recovery session on Thursday and be ready for the final round on Saturday,” Maguire said.
“It was a massive result for us. To pull away from the bottom was vital and it was three points that I think we definitely deserved.
“We have been in every game for a while now, before our win against Toronto the game with Dudley went down to the wire.
“To then get a big result against Toronto out there put the confidence back in the team and it showed on Tuesday night again with the performance.”
Singleton Strikers v South Cardiff FC
Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility Field 2, Saturday 1pm
South Cardiff FC will be playing for their spot in the HIT106.9 Northern League One competition when they challenge Singleton Strikers at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility on Saturday afternoon.
The Gunners are sat at the bottom of the table, one point behind Wallsend FC in ninth.
They will need nothing less than three points against Singleton even if Wallsend and Thornton Redbacks have a draw due to having the worst goal difference of the three sides.
But they will come out firing after they downed second-placed Toronto Awaba 2-1 in a do or die match in round 17.
It was their first win since the middle of June with three draws and three losses following their round 10 victory.
South Cardiff have everything to lose on Saturday and will come out hungry for a win to prevent the 2023 grand finalists from being relegated to Zone League One.
Singleton sit third on the table and will likely remain in the top four at the end of round 18 but mathematically could fall just outside depending on the results of the surrounding teams.
A win for the Strikers would finalise their spot in the top four and feature in the Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Finals series for the first time.
The last time the two sides went head-to-head, Singleton walked away with a 5-0 victory and if they were to recreate that result this weekend it would give them added confidence heading into the finals series.
Thornton Redbacks v Wallsend FC
Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility Field 1, Saturday 1pm
Thornton Redbacks and Wallsend FC will be fighting to escape relegation when they go head-to-head at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility on Saturday afternoon.
Both teams sit at risk of relegation pending the results of the Singleton Strikers and South Cardiff, which will be played at the same time.
Thornton are sat eighth on the table on 19 points and Wallsend sit one point behind them in ninth.
Whoever secures all three points will escape relegation, while the team that falls short will be eagerly awaiting the result of the South Cardiff game.
But if the sides draw and South Cardiff lock in a victory, Wallsend will be sent down to Zone League One.
Wallsend will enter the match hopeful to build off their 3-1 victory over Dudley Redhead United in round 17 and knowing they pushed Toronto Awaba to the very end in their 5-3 defeat.
Thornton have had two draws in their past three matches and will be determined to return to winning ways in their most important game of the season.
The Redbacks narrowly got the upper hand the last time the two sides met when they defeated the Red Devils 3-2.
With everything on the line for both sides they will leave nothing out on the pitch, making it a thrilling match from start to finish.
Lake Macquarie City FC v Toronto Awaba
Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility Field 1, Saturday 3pm
Lake Macquarie City FC will aim for one final push into the top four when they face Toronto Awaba at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility on Saturday afternoon.
The Roosters sit seventh on the table, three points outside the top four, but have a minus-six goal difference.
They could technically still make the top four but will need at minimum a 7-0 victory and other results to go in their favour.
But Lake Macquarie and Toronto Awaba are the two sides that have had dominant results this season, with both teams recording 6-1 and 6-0 victories this season.
The minus-six goal difference may prevent Lakes from featuring in the Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Finals series, but it also prevents them from being relegated for a second year in a row.
Out of the bottom four teams, they have the best goal difference and as Wallsend FC and Thornton Redbacks who sit in ninth and eighth play each other this weekend Lakes will narrowly escape relegation no matter the result.
Toronto have had a mixed bag of results in their past five matches, recording three losses and two wins.
Their 2-1 defeat at the hands of South Cardiff FC last weekend saw the Stags lose any grip they had left on the premiership.
They will be eager to end the season on a high and secure all three points to take added confidence into the Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Finals series.
West Wallsend SFC v Dudley Redhead United
Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility Field 2, Saturday 3pm
A spot in the Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Finals series is up for grabs when West Wallsend SFC and Dudley Redhead United go head-to-head at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility in the final round of the season.
West Wallsend will enter the match on a high after they secured an important 2-1 victory in round 17.
Their original game was abandoned in the 51st after Bluebells Sam Marr suffered a season-ending injury and resumed on Tuesday night.
The win boosted the side into the top four, kicking out their round 18 opponents, but they will need all three points this weekend to secure a spot in the Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Finals series. Something they have already done this year when they downed Dudley 1-0 earlier in the season.
Dudley will be determined to secure their first win in three matches and be in contention for promotion for the second year in a row.
The Thistles were promoted to the HIT106.9 Northern League One competition in 2025 and will look for the possibility to be promoted back-to-back.
But they will need no less than three points after their defeat in round 17 saw them slip to fifth on the table.
They are sat on equal points with the Bluebells in fourth and Singleton Strikers in third and remain in the fight to feature in the Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Finals series but have the worse goal difference of the three sides.
Dudley will need to come out firing as they look to break through West Wallsend’s backline as both sides will leave everything out on the pitch.
