Major Semi-Final
Broadmeadow Magic v Edgeworth FC
Magic Park, Sunday 2:30pm
Edgeworth FC coach Pete McGuinness says that his side will have to be at the top of their game when they take on Broadmeadow Magic for a ticket to the grand final on Sunday.
The Eagles will go head-to-head with Magic’s men in the major semi-final at Magic Park, with the winner advancing to the grand final. The loser will get a second chance in the preliminary final against the winner of the minor semi-final; between Charlestown Azzurri and Lambton Jaffas.
The two sides have been hard to separate this year, with a win each to their name.
Edgeworth defeated Lambton Jaffas in the qualifying final last weekend with a dominant 2-0 performance that saw the competition's top goal scorer Ryan Feutz net both goals.
McGuinness said that his side would need to be at their best away from home this weekend if they were to defeat the premiers.
“It should be a very good game,” McGuinness said.
“Magic is a very good side with speed, mobility and game changers.
“We will need to be at the top of our game to counteract their positive attributes and allow us to play to our strengths.
“We have trained well this year but since the finals have begun, the levels have gone up again.
“The boys are focused and determined to do well.
“We are looking forward to the match on Sunday.”
Edgeworth will have all players available for the clash besides captain Pat Wheeler, who is out for the season with an anterior cruciate ligament injury.
Magic’s men enter the contest well rested after a week off as they were crowned premiers.
Their coach Jim Cresnar has one clear aim for the weekend which is to win at all costs.
“Our aim is to win the game. It’s as simple as that,” Cresnar said.
“We want to get to the grand final.”
But Broadmeadow have struggled at times against Edgeworth, being one of the three sides that defeated them this season.
Cresnar said his side's challenges to break down the Eagles this season have added extra fuel to the fire to defeat them this weekend.
“We haven’t beaten Edgeworth this year since all of their players joined the squad. We haven’t been all that successful this year against them,” Cresnar said.
“It adds a bit of extra motivation for the players. They were fairly disappointed in the last game that we played them.
“I think apart from the two New Zealand players [Seth Clark and Feutz] they also have good players all across the park. I think they have a strong team all around and more importantly, are well coached and structured.
“They are definitely the in-form team.
“There are going to be certain things that we are going to work on more closely ahead of the weekend.
“We have got certain aspects of our game that are going really well so we are going to continue to do that as well as focus on the opposition's opportunities, strengths and weaknesses.
“We need to make sure that we dominate in the midfield and don’t let them.
“We have to play our own game and know that there are other players that can hurt us as well. We need to be weary.”
Minor Semi-Final
Lambton Jaffas v Charlestown Azzurri
Arthur Edden Oval, Saturday 2.30pm
Lambton Jaffas coach David Tanchevski hopes that his side can get themselves up for their minor semi-final match against Charlestown Azzurri at Arthur Edden Oval on Saturday.
The 2022 and 2023 champions have struggled to hit their stride at the back end of the season, going down in three of their last five matches.
After they went down to Edgeworth FC in the qualifying final last weekend, Jaffas will have one final chance to progress at home against the Blues.
The winner of Saturday’s match will advance to the preliminary final and will face the loser of the major semi-final, which will be Broadmeadow Magic or Edgeworth for the last spot in the grand final.
Tanchevski hoped his side would be able to bounce back from their loss against the Eagles and take it to Charlestown at home.
“We know that we have a second chance,” Tanchevski said.
“There is a lot of fatigue in our squad. We have to try and keep the body and mind right.
“With Charlestown, it is always a tough game. We know this weekend will be another challenging game against a good side.
“There is no second chance. I am confident that we will get a result but will be reminding the boys that we don’t get another game if we lose.
“After having a good successful run it would be disappointing not to get to the grand final.
“We just have to hope that the boys can get up to it.”
One big boost for the Jaffas will be the return of Japanese international Yuhei Sato, who will come back into the squad after he was sidelined for a month with a knee injury.
The midfielder added a spark back into the Jaffas with his livewire energy, which Tanchevski will hope he can bring again this weekend.
“We will have Yuhei back which will be really good for us,” Tanchevski said.
Azzurri will be out with a score to settle after narrowly going down to Jaffas in their last two competition meetings.
The Blues enter the contest in better form with five consecutive wins under their belt.
They defeated Newcastle Olympic 2-0 in the elimination final which saw them dominate from start to finish.
But in a big blow for Charlestown, they will be without their goal scorer from last week Ty Cousins, who received a two-match suspension for serious foul play.
They will have to rely on the attacking sparks of players such as Harrison Frendo, Dean Pettit and Jack Gallagher to get them over the line and keep their season alive.
Azzurri coach James Pascoe will hope that his side can continue their momentum and end the reigning champions' run.