Match of the Round
West Wallsend SFC v Wallsend FC
Johnston Park, Sunday 2pm
Wallsend FC coach Chris Gallagher says his side is ready to gain some respect when they take on West Wallsend SFC at Johnston Park on Sunday afternoon.
The Red Devils enter the Wallsend Derby after their worst loss of the season when they went down 6-1 to Lake Macquarie City FC in round six.
“It’s always a big event and they’ve been going reasonably well while we had our worst defeat of the year so it’s going to be a big game for both clubs,” Gallagher said.
“I know the boys weren’t pleased with the result on the weekend and they weren’t happy with their application.
“So they’ll come out and they’ll hopefully be ready to go and make sure they gain some respect.”
Wallsend will be searching for just their second win of the season and Gallagher understood his side's need for points as the shorter season will prevent late runs.
“You’ve got to get as many points as you can now because it’s getting tight,” said Gallagher.
“You’ve got to start getting wins, you don’t have as much time to get momentum.”
Despite sitting at the bottom of the table, Wallsend are just three points from opposition West Wallsend in fifth position, which Gallagher finds comfort in.
“Considering we’ve had a shocking run with injuries and suspensions, it’s good that the gap hasn’t gotten too far for us to actually make a difference,” Gallagher said.
The Red Devils enter round seven with the most red cards in the competition, even with West Wallsend on three. Gallagher knows his side needs to make better decisions on the weekend to prevent this from continuing.
“We need to make sure we compete and our decision-making in key moments is better,” said Gallagher.
“We need to make better decisions defensively so we don’t push ourselves in a position where we have to make a foul.”
Wallsend will be without Cody Halpin (suspension) and Ethan Obrien (injured) but welcome back Zach Gallagher.
West Wallsend coach Bailey Cox is eager to get back to winning ways in front of a home crowd on old boy’s day after their first loss of the season.
“We normally get a good turnout for old boys' day, so hopefully we can put on a show and score some goals and get a win to get us back on track,” Cox said.
The Bluebells enter round seven also in search of their second win after a run of four draws and one loss, which Cox hoped wouldn’t come back to haunt them later in the season.
“We need three points, we’re starting to slip down a bit,” said Cox.
“All those draws at the start of the year, we don’t want that to come back and bite us.”
Cox was hopeful his side’s lapses in matches would come to a halt in the Wallsend Derby.
“Just not the lapses, the goals we’ve been conceding are just small lapses,” Cox said.
“It seems like we’re in the game and just then individual lapses in judgement seem to be costly.
“I just want to put a full 90 together.
“Hopefully we can erase that and put some balls in the back of the net next week.
“Get back to winning ways and sing the team song.”
West Wallsend will be without a string of starters, including Sam Marr (achilles), Matt Paul (meniscus), Spencer Clarke, Jake Bowser and Sam Marshall (holidays) but welcome back Bryson Cox and Dain Greentree who missed round six due to holidays.
Lake Macquarie City FC v Singleton Strikers
Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility, Saturday 4:30pm
Singleton Strikers coach Doug West says a strengthened squad will take the pitch when they travel to Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility to go head-to-head with Lake Macquarie City FC on Saturday afternoon.
Singleton will enter round seven on a three-game undefeated streak after their narrow 3-2 victory over Thornton Redbacks last Saturday.
West was eager to return to the pitch after their third win of the season.
“I’m looking forward to getting on the pitch as quickly as possible after winning on the weekend,” West said.
For the first time this season, a full-strength Strikers side will be taking the pitch.
“At this stage I’m expecting to be at full strength,” said West.
“I should be able to select my best 11 and have a very strong bench.
“It’s the first time since before round one, so it’s been a really difficult period, particularly over those three weeks since the Dudley game.”
Despite being full-strength West understood that they would need to start strong to gain all three points.
“We need to start stronger. We typically start slowly and I think our game against Thornton, they came out and it took us 15, 18 minutes to get into the game,” West said.
“I do feel we’re probably not as fit as our opposition most weeks which comes into play but the experience comes through and that’s what we lean on.”
Lake Macquarie City will be hopeful they can keep the momentum going after defeating Wallsend FC 6-1 in round six.
It was the Roosters' most dominant win so far this season, completing a full 180 following their 3-1 loss to Thornton Redbacks the week prior.
The win put a stop to the habit the Roosters had started to form after two losses in a row to open the season, then two wins and a loss in round five.
Lakes have found the back of the net 16 times this season, the most of any team and will be determined to add to their tally but will need to tighten defense after conceding 12 goals so far this season.
Singleton and Lakes sit third and fourth on the table with just one point separating the sides making this a must win game for each team.
Kahibah FC v Dudley Redhead United
Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility, Friday 8pm
Kahibah FC will be determined to claim the first win of the newest derby in the competition when they host Dudley Redhead United on Friday night at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility.
Neither side was able to take the field in round six as each of their games was postponed due to wet weather.
Kahibah will be hopeful the unscheduled week off hasn’t put a damper on the momentum gained after they handed Toronto Awaba their first loss and downed them 4-2 in round five.
The Rams sit second on the table, five points behind Toronto but have a game in hand which makes their clash with Dudley a must-win to close the gap.
Dudley will be searching for their third win of the season and will be hopeful they can go three matches undefeated.
The Thistles defeated South Cardiff 2-1 in round five and had a 1-1 draw with Thornton Redbacks in their round three rescheduled match that was played on the week of Easter.
They will need to piece two halves together after dominating the majority of the first half against South Cardiff and capitalise on opportunities in front of goal after scoring only five goals this season, the second lowest of any team.
Cessnock City Hornets v Toronto Awaba FC
Turner Park, Sunday 4:30pm
Toronto Awaba FC will be looking to keep the good times rolling when they travel to Turner Park on Sunday afternoon to face Cessnock City Hornets.
The Stags resumed their winning form after their first loss of the season against Kahibah FC when they downed West Wallsend SFC 2-1.
Toronto sit at the top of the table, with one loss in the first six rounds of the season and have conceded the least amount of goals, equal with Dudley Redhead United on five.
They will need to maintain control of the game and remain composed when pressure builds from Cessnock to walk away with their sixth win of the season.
Cessnock will be eager to return to the field after their round six match against Dudley was postponed due to wet weather.
It will be the Hornets' first match in three weeks and they will be looking to return to winning ways after they went down 1-0 to Wallsend FC in round five before the Easter break.
They will need to convert their chances in front of the goal as they’ve found the back of the net only six times so far, the third lowest of all teams.
Cessnock will be without Sam Harden after he received a second yellow in round five for a reckless challenge.
South Cardiff FC v Thornton Redbacks
Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility, Sunday 5pm
Thornton Redbacks will be determined to return to the winner’s circle when they go head-to-head with South Cardiff FC at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility in the closing match of round seven.
Thornton entered round six on a high following their first win of the season in round five but were quickly brought down by a determined Singleton Strikers side.
The Redbacks were handed their fourth loss of the season by the Strikers with a narrow 3-2 defeat.
They will need to treasure the ball and strengthen their defense to gain all three points on Sunday after losing the lead twice against the Strikers.
South Cardiff will be itching to return to the pitch after their round six match against Kahibah FC was postponed due to wet weather.
The Gunners haven’t earned all three points in a match since round one and will be determined to secure their second win of the season against the Redbacks.
While they enter their round seven match-up following two draws and two losses, they haven’t won or lost a game by more than a goal.
They will need to convert their chances and treasure possession to walk away with a win under their belt on Sunday night.
