Match of the Round
Adamstown Rosebud FC v Edgeworth Eagles FC
Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility 3, Friday 8pm
Adamstown Rosebud FC head coach Chris Moylan believes his side is primed to deliver some results on the park as they prepare to welcome Edgeworth Eagles to Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility on Friday night.
The Buds have had a disrupted start to the season, with two matches rescheduled due to wet weather and failed floodlights, respectively.
Having also conceded losses to Charlestown Azzurri FC and Kahibah FC, the Buds will be determined to get their season get back on track.
A 2-2 draw against Broadmeadow Magic and a strong performance against Lambton Jaffas before the lights failed suggests the side is on the right track for a win.
Moylan has also been without Uruguayan signing Nicolas Gismero due to a hamstring injury, with Charlie Naylor sustaining a broken toe against Charlestown.
But the Buds’ coach believes that with uninterrupted time on the park and the successful growth he got out of the side last year, it’ll only be a matter of time before their first win comes.
“The mood in the camp's good, we always have a good game against Edgy,” Moylan said.
“We've set ourselves a standard, and we know what we want to achieve. The way the competition is, if we get points out of our two catch-up games, you suddenly jump from second last to sixth.
“The competition's tight, and it was the same last year. We're coming together, and we're pretty confident that the bar that we've set, we can achieve. We'll just keep plugging away.
“They [Edgeworth] move the ball around, they move teams around.
“We have to be really disciplined to counter that. We strengthened our squad from last year, so there are no excuses.
“If we turn up and play to our ability, it'll be a really tough game for them.”
Edgeworth head coach Peter McGuinness comes into this weekend with an opportunity to go top of the table, with Weston set to battle against defending champions Broadmeadow Magic on Sunday.
The Eagles remain the only undefeated side in the competition, developing a knack for pulling out big wins late in games as seen against Valentine FC and Cooks Hill United in the last fortnight.
The results have been even more impressive considering the high turnover of players the Eagles have had compared to last year.
With Kai Herd set to make his return to the side, McGuinness views this weekend as a valuable opportunity to go into the Easter weekend break with a lot of momentum.
“There's a lot of challenges when you get such a large amount of new players together, not just the style of football you want to play, and also, the culture around what we do at Edgeworth,” McGuinness said.
“The fact that they all get on, they're a good bunch of boys, they'll fight for each other. Some of the training sessions are hotly contested, they want to win. [Even] the bench has played a pivotal role in how we've gotten results.
“We have to improve in the goal-scoring department, as well as just tidy things up a little bit defensively so that we're not inviting pressure on ourselves.
“I thought they [Adamstown] created chances [against Magic], they were competitive all over the park, and they were good value in that game. [Against Jaffas] I watched that until the lights went out, they were right in that game.
“We must make sure that we match their enthusiasm, and make sure that we match their efforts, which I'm sure we will.
“Hopefully our football's good enough to take the win.”
Weston Bears FC v Broadmeadow Magic FC
Hunter City Motor Group Stadium, Sunday 5pm
Broadmeadow Magic FC head coach Jim Cresnar is ready to test his side’s consistency against current league leaders Weston Bears FC when they meet at Hunter City Motor Group Stadium in the final match of round six on Sunday.
Magic comes into the match off the back of two draws at home against Adamstown Rosebud FC and Belmont Swansea United, with Cresnar looking for consistency after his side blew Lambton Jaffas off the park in round three.
The defending champions will also be without James Cresnar and Ezra Palombini, with both serving suspensions after conceding red cards against Adamstown and BelSwans, respectively.
With the Bears topping the table after their win over Cooks Hill, Cresnar knows both sides will be up for the contest this weekend.
“It's exciting. We're playing the leaders, so it should be a good game,” Cresnar said.
“Both teams are very strong, we're all looking forward to it.
“I think the players have realised the importance of the match. The training's been solid, [we’re] just managing the expectation from the players. It should be an exciting game for people to watch.
“The biggest message I've been [giving] is around a level of consistency, making sure that we're a bit more consistent in our efforts, in our games and in our training as well.
“Consistency is probably the key message, making sure that we manage the key moments in the game. We didn't do that against Belmont Swansea or Adamstown.
“When we're playing at our best, we're very difficult to beat.”
Weston sits at the top of the table after the first five rounds of the competition, their loss to Charlestown Azzurri the only blemish on an otherwise strong start to the year.
Good wins over Newcastle Olympic, Maitland FC and BelSwans have been complemented with a 2-0 win over Cooks Hill United FC in round five, the Bears all but shutting the visitors’ attack out of the game and raining 24 attempts on goal down on them.
With a valuable Easter break ahead, a victory here could prove pivotal in the Bears’ quest for a title.
Belmont Swansea United FC v Charlestown Azzurri FC
Blacksmiths Oval, Friday 8pm
Belmont Swansea United FC will look to continue their promising start to the season when they take on Charlestown Azzurri at Blacksmiths Oval on Friday night.
BelSwans bounced back strongly in round five, pushing Broadmeadow to a 2-2 draw in a tight contest at Magic Park.
After a tough couple of weeks that saw two consecutive home losses to heavyweights Maitland FC and Weston Bears, the draw over the reigning premiers will do much to improve BelSwans’ confidence.
A victory this Friday has the potential to set them up well for the next month, with BelSwans set to stay at home until round ten with fixtures against Kahibah FC, Newcastle Olympic and Edgeworth Eagles.
But this Friday they will be up against one of the big improvers this season, with Charlestown having not dropped a match since round two.
It’s been a strong run for the young Blues outfit, their win over Weston in round three being followed by a draw against Lambton Jaffas and victory over Kahibah.
Last week’s win wasn’t all good news for Azzurri, with Jarryd Sutherland in a race to be ready for the weekend after being forced from the field early against the Rams.
But with the Blues playing some quality football over the last month, they will offer a lot of challenges for BelSwans.
Lambton Jaffas FC v Valentine FC
Arthur Edden Oval, Saturday 5pm
Lambton Jaffas FC will enter Saturday hungry to get their season back on track when they take on Valentine FC at Arthur Edden Oval.
It has been a frustrating fortnight for last year’s runners-up, having their match against Adamstown abandoned due to a floodlight failure, while also having to come from behind to draw 2-2 with an in-form Charlestown Azzurri at home.
Combined with a big loss to Broadmeadow, the result sees the Jaffas with only one win to start off the year and sitting in eighth on the table.
A win this weekend would be crucial to getting their season back on track, especially with a challenging run looming after Easter, as they face competition heavyweights Weston Bears, Maitland FC and Cooks Hill United in consecutive weeks.
Valentine will look at this fixture as a great opportunity, having come close to victory on several occasions this season.
Despite sitting last on the table, the men in orange have asked plenty of questions in nearly all their matches bar an ugly loss to Cooks Hill in round three.
After pulling a 1-1 draw against Maitland, the Phoenix continued to show promise last week against Edgeworth, the Eagles managing to pull a goal in the 77th minute to snatch victory.
With the Jaffas having not secured a win since the opening round, this weekend looms as a critical chance for Phoenix to snatch victory over a heavyweight side.
Cooks Hill United v Newcastle Olympic FC
Fearnley Dawes Athletics Field, Saturday 5pm
Cooks Hill United will be coming into round six with several points to prove when they take on Newcastle Olympic FC at Fearnley Dawes Athletics Field on Saturday evening.
It has been a disappointing fortnight for Cookers, with a late loss at home to Edgeworth Eagles in round four followed by a 2-0 loss to Weston Bears last week.
Defeat in the Hunter was particularly frustrating, with Cooks Hill spending much of the game on defence and managing only five shots on goal across the whole game, with none on target.
Head coach Jamie Dunning will know that any points this weekend will be valuable, with the next few weeks after Easter seeing matches against last year’s finalists in Broadmeadow Magic and Lambton Jaffas, plus an away trip to play the big improvers this year in Charlestown Azzurri FC.
Olympic are also coming into this match off the back of a heartbreaking last-minute loss to Maitland FC, even more so considering Newcastle had worked their way back from an early two-goal deficit.
The next few weeks loom as a critical period for Olympic, the side also having to play a catch-up game with Adamstown on April 1st.
Brody Taylor will likely be unavailable until after the easter break, missing the match against Maitland with a groin strain.
But with the side sitting on the edge of the top six and having a game in hand, two victories here would come at an ideal time for Olympic, the Easter break serving as a good opportunity to reset.
Maitland FC v Kahibah FC
Cooks Square Park, Saturday 7pm
Maitland FC will look to solidify a position in the top four ahead of the Easter break when they take on Kahibah FC at Cooks Square Park on Saturday night.
Kahibah have improved in leaps and bounds over the last month, managing a victory over Adamstown Rosebud FC and a draw against Edgeworth Eagles following their opening round loss to Lambton Jaffas.
But the last fortnight has seen the side whittled down in grinding clashes by both Newcastle Olympic FC and Charlestown Azzurri FC, with goals coming in the backend of halves on both occasions.
With visa players Shiwa Dul (Lateral Collateral Ligament) and Jilles Bos (hamstring) likely out until next month, the Rams' depth is only going to be tested further in the next few weeks.
Head coach Blair Newham will look to ensure he gets a full 90-minute performance from his side, as a victory over a heavyweight team like Maitland would do wonders for his young outfit’s confidence.
The Magpies have not dropped a game in the last three weeks, a last-minute draw against Valentine FC the only blemish after several weeks of travel.
Coming from a three-goal deficit to defeat Belmont Swansea United in round three, the Magpies overcame a disrupted week of preparation and illness to produce a thrilling last-minute win over Olympic last week, thanks to a brilliant effort from returning defender James Thompson.
With matches against Broadmeadow Magic, Edgeworth, Lambton and big improvers Charlestown ahead, Maitland will know victories over Kahibah this weekend and Adamstown following the Easter break will be games they have to put away to stay in the top half of the table.