Match of the Round
Kahibah FC v Belmont Swansea United FC
Kahibah Oval, Sunday 2:30pm
Kahibah FC coach Mat Moncrieff doesn’t feel threatened by league leaders Belmont Swansea United FC ahead of their top-of-the-table clash at Kahibah Oval on Sunday.
This clash will be the first game played at the venue since round nine back in April, with Kahibah playing six away games since then and their two home games being washed out and either relocated or rescheduled.
They have only lined up at Kahibah Oval twice this season, both of which they produced 4-0 victories.
BelSwans will be on high alert come Sunday as the Kahibah men look to reward their home fans for their patience and loyalty.
This blockbuster clash sees Belmont Swansea looking to extend their lead at the top of the table to 16 points.
BelSwans extended their 13-point lead to 16 on Tuesday night when they won a rescheduled round 14 match 3-0 away from home against Thornton.
That win was their 13th in 16 matches and was once again spearheaded by the competition’s leading goal-scorer, Kane Woolston, who bagged a double to move to 22 goals for the season.
Woolston has played in all 16 games this year and has only failed to find the back of the net in two of them.
Despite their dominant run this year and their competition-bests in the for and against columns, BelSwans have not done enough to fully impress their opposition coach this weekend, who is confident his men can get the job done against the league leaders.
“Obviously they’re the most consistent team in the competition but they’re not the best team in the comp in my opinion,” Moncrieff said.
“There are a couple of teams getting around playing a bit better football, but at the end of the day, they’re doing their thing and they look like they’re going to run away with the comp.
“We need a few more wins to make sure we make the top four, so we’ll be giving everything we’ve got to take it to them and hopefully get the points.
“We’re not really worried about the automatic promotion. I don’t think it’s an achievable target now, although beating them on the weekend would give it some credence. But it’s not a drive of ours, we’re just making sure we win the games we can win to get that second, third or fourth spot.
“Our defence is as good as anyone’s and we’re scoring plenty of goals. We’re on a roll and doing it at both ends, which is pleasing as a coach.”
BelSwans’ coach Mick Stafford is well aware that a victory on Sunday would open up more than a five-win lead at the top of the table, but he is refusing to look beyond the 90 minutes against a tough opposition outfit.
“Kahibah are a good team and Mat’s done a good job with them this year,” Stafford said.
“They’re scoring plenty of goals and their results speak for themselves. They are the second-best team in the comp at the moment.
“We’re just taking it week by week and we’re looking for maximum points every game. It’s a busy schedule, and whoever we’re playing at the time, we’ve got to get through.
“We’re two-thirds of the way through the season now and our goal was to have 20 points per third. We’ve reached that target being on 41, so we’re reaching our goals and we want to continue to do that as we go on.”
BelSwans have been lethal in front of goal this year, scoring 68 times, 29 more than Kahibah who is next best on 39. It is their defence that has been most impressive though.
The boys from Blacksmiths have only conceded 15 goals in 16 games and they are on a five-game run of consecutive clean sheets.
“I think that shows good structure and discipline,” Stafford said.
“We have players who understand football. They’re sticking to the shape and defending well.
“Five games in a row without conceding a goal is pretty impressive, on top of the 68 goals we’ve scored.”
The two sides have already met twice this season and BelSwans have picked up six points from those encounters with a 4-1 win in round two and a 2-1 win in round 11.
They are now looking for a clean sweep against their closest rivals, while Kahibah is determined to ensure that does not happen.
Cessnock City Hornets FC v Singleton Strikers FC
Turner Park, Saturday 4pm
A Hunter Valley derby will be contested at Turner Park when Cessnock City Hornets host Singleton Strikers on Saturday.
This game is a battle between two sides who are sitting far lower on the table than they feel they should be, with Cessnock in eighth and Singleton in seventh.
The Strikers have had a frustrating year and have struggled to get going with any real momentum.
But that has started to turn around following a 3-0 win in a rescheduled round 14 clash on home soil at Howe Park against Wallsend on Wednesday. That victory was their second in a run of four consecutive games unbeaten and the eight points they have taken from those matches is the most they have picked up in a four-game stretch all year.
The Strikers are now just seven points outside the top four, and with nine games left to play, they are confident they can make a late charge and claim one of the promotion playoff positions.
Cessnock turned heads earlier in the year when they became the only side to have beaten league leaders Belmont Swansea all season and were the final remaining Northern League One side in the Australia Cup Preliminary Rounds.
But their recent form has dipped with four losses in their past five games leaving them 10 points outside the top four with only eight games left to play.
The Hornets had the bye in round 14 and were not required to take the field during the week, which has given them a chance to rest and regroup ahead of what is a must-win match on home soil this Saturday.
These two sides have met twice this year and they have both scored a win over the other away from home after Singleton prevailed 4-0 in round two and Cessnock got up 3-1 in round 11. Both are now focused on getting the three points in their final meeting of the year.
West Wallsend SFC v Thornton Redbacks FC
Johnston Park, Saturday 4:30pm
Johnston Park will host a top-four battle when West Wallsend SFC welcomes Thornton Redbacks to town on Saturday.
These two sides are separated by just two points on the table, with West Wallsend in fourth place on 23 points and Thornton fifth on 21 points after both were overtaken by Toronto Awaba following the Stags’ win at South Cardiff on Wednesday night.
A win on Saturday would see the Redbacks return to the top four, while a loss would see them potentially finish the weekend five points outside the promotion zone.
The impressive defensive resolve they have based their game around this season has suffered a few cracks of late, with Thornton losing their past two games by a combined scoreline of 9-1.
That included a 3-0 loss against Belmont Swansea at Thornton Park on Tuesday night in a rescheduled round 14 clash.
The Redbacks are now determined to produce an improved defensive display against Westy.
The Bluebells were meant to be in action mid-week as well but their rescheduled round 14 clash away from home against Kahibah on Wednesday was washed out and postponed.
Westy is yet to beat Thornton this season following a 1-0 loss in round two and a 1-1 draw in round 11. Bailey Cox and his side are keen to get the job done on Saturday.
Wallsend FC v Toronto Awaba FC
The Gardens, Sunday 2:30pm
The round 20 action will wrap up at The Gardens on Sunday afternoon when Wallsend FC host Toronto Awaba.
For Wallsend, it will be the first time they play at their home ground in 13 weeks. The last time they lined up at The Gardens was back in round six in March and since then they have had a run of away games and relocated home fixtures due to the abundance of rain over the past three months.
They now face a mammoth task in Toronto Awaba, who are on a roll, having won three of their past four games. Their most recent win was on Wednesday night when they travelled to Ulinga Oval and beat South Cardiff 4-2 in a rescheduled round 14 clash to climb from sixth to third.
The Stags now trail second-placed Kahibah by five points with two games in hand on them.
Wallsend also played on Wednesday night in a rescheduled round 14 clash, but they were not as successful as their away trip to Howe Park resulted in a 3-0 loss against Singleton.
That was the Red Devils’ 13th loss in 15 games this season and they are still at the bottom of the table, nine points behind eight-placed Cessnock.
South Cardiff FC have the bye.