Match of the Round
Alstonville FC v Coffs City United
Crawford Park, Saturday 3pm
Coffs City United coach Connor Knight wants his side to make the most of their chances when they travel to Crawford Park to face Alstonville FC on Saturday afternoon in round two of the UNE NNSW Regional Super League.
Coffs City United sit at the top of the Men’s Group A table on equal points with Alstonville after a 1-0 win over Oxley Vale Attunga in round one.
But the two sides have experienced contrasting results in their respective member zone competitions.
Coffs City currently sit seventh in the North Coast Football Men’s HIT105.5FM Premier League. They opened the season with a draw and a win but have since suffered five consecutive defeats.
Knight is hopeful his side can turn its form around and build on its opening Regional Super League victory heading into round three and the remainder of their Men’s HIT105.5FM Premier League season.
“We've been through a real run the last month where we've just been unable to find goals and unable to have a consistent lineup, so there’s definitely been a bit of a turnaround in terms of the amount of players that have come through that first team,” Knight said.
“There’s been a little bit of inconsistency and just sort of results not going the way we need them to.
“So, a strong weekend overall is going to be massive for us to try to pick up the second half of the season going forward as well.
“It's going to be big for all the boys especially after a week off last week with a bye and hopefully moving forward with our domestic season as well because it'll be big for momentum.”
Knight knows what his side needs to do to perform at its best, and it starts with making the most of its opportunities in front of goal.
“[We need to be] defensively solid in transition. We're looking at being able to play in that front line a little bit quicker than what we have been and just trying to find some goals,” Knight said.
“We've been on the back of a lot of results where we haven't been able to find the back of the net, so any positive performance this weekend depends a lot on us just being able to finish off chances.”
A win on Saturday would put Coffs City United in a strong position ahead of Monday’s round three clash with Moore Creek FC.
Alstonville FC coach Andrea Zubani is confident heading into the weekend after his side’s 1-0 victory over Moore Creek FC in round one.
The top of the table is familiar territory for Alstonville, who currently lead the Football Far North Coast Men’s Premier League after winning six of their seven matches this season.
During that run, they have showcased their attacking quality, scoring 25 goals while conceding just five.
With his side in strong form, Zubani believes Alstonville is continuing to improve as the season progresses.
“We're going to have a full squad this coming weekend. We had a few players missing in the first round, so we’re looking a lot better than we did then,” Zubani said.
“Obviously, we’ve had a few games since then and a couple of players have signed up since we played that first game. Everyone is really keen to play this weekend.
“The majority of the team is the same group from last year, and then we've added a few quality players and the boys have just been getting better since preseason and then getting into the season.
“We had that loss, but that was a bit of a weird one. We had a couple of players sent off and it just wasn't our day that day, but apart from that, we just keep on getting better.
“The last game that we had, by all accounts, it was probably our best game we have played all season.”
Zubani and his side are determined to secure a semi-final berth and know that starts with a positive result on Saturday.
“It's [winning] really important. We'd like to top our group, so a win is a must for us,” Zubani said.
“Then we go again on Monday and hopefully get a result then as well so that we can get a home semi-final.
“Momentum is really important. That’s why a win a couple of days ago was really good because we hadn't played for three weeks.
“We have had games called off and it'd be good to keep on winning and keep the momentum going.”
Alstonville will then look to maintain that momentum when they face Oxley Vale Attunga at Coffs Coast Synthetics on Monday in round three.
Moore Creek FC v Oxley Vale Attunga
Gipps Street Sporting Fields, Saturday 3pm
Oxley Vale Attunga coach Tim Coates says his side will take a makeshift attack into their clash with Moore Creek FC at Gipps Street Sporting Fields on Saturday afternoon.
The two sides are already familiar with each other after meeting earlier this season in the Northern Inland Premier League, where Moore Creek claimed a 4-0 victory.
Despite that result, Coates is eager to test his side against the Mountain Goats with what he described as a depleted squad.
“I'm looking forward to a good challenge,” Coates said.
“This weekend, as we have been for most of the season, we are minus two of our three main goalscorers. So, to get the 28 goals [in Northern Inland Premier League] has been tremendous with our midfield scoring goals.
“We're going into this weekend with a makeshift attack to both games.
“We will be going with a positive attitude and I'm fairly happy that we've got a great group of players that include our reserve grade team that have stepped up significantly this year. The club has shown this year that it's a whole squad effort.”
It is a must-win encounter for both sides as they look to keep their semi-final hopes alive.
Coates was encouraged by his side’s ability to adapt during their 1-0 round one loss to Coffs City United after a collision forced their goalkeeper from the field.
“The fact that my goalkeeper was not able to continue after a heavy knock and head gash and our strongest defender ending up playing in goals, we took a lot out of that because we basically went 75 minutes with a stand-in goalkeeper and a weakened defence,” Coates said.
“We took a lot of positives out of that. We felt that we did a fairly good job and that was on the back of the road closure, so that was a five-and-a-half-hour trip both ways as well.
“It's a long way to go to play in the Regional Super League but if you want to play the best teams, you’ve got to travel.”
A win over the Mountain Goats would see OVA move level on points with either Alstonville FC or Coffs City United, who face off in round two, and put them in a strong position ahead of Monday’s round three clash with Alstonville.
Moore Creek also enters the match on the back of a 1-0 round one defeat to Alstonville, with the decisive goal coming inside the opening 10 minutes.
The Mountain Goats will be determined to bounce back and showcase the attacking form that has propelled them to the top of the Northern Inland Premier League table.
They remain undefeated through the first 10 rounds, scoring 46 goals while conceding just nine.
But Moore Creek will not underestimate their opponents as they look to build momentum before taking on Coffs City United in round three on Monday.
Inverell FC v Byron Bay FC
Inverell Sporting Complex, Saturday 3pm
Two sides chasing their first win of the UNE NNSW Regional Super League campaign will go head-to-head when Inverell FC host Byron Bay FC at Inverell Sporting Complex on Saturday afternoon.
Inverell opened their campaign with a 2-2 draw against Northern Storm in round one, while Byron Bay fell to a narrow 1-0 defeat.
The results leave Byron Bay at the bottom of the Men’s Group B table, with Inverell sitting one place above them in third.
Byron Bay will be looking to carry over the form they have shown in the Football Far North Coast Men’s Premier League, where they sit second and remain undefeated with four wins and two draws.
Their strong start to the Far North Coast Men’s Premier League season has also produced 17 goals in six matches.
After travelling with a reduced squad in round one, coach Ben Ahern will be eager to see what his full complement of players can produce this weekend.
Inverell have enjoyed similar success in the Northern Inland Premier League, sitting second on the table with eight wins and three draws from 11 matches.
Their attacking firepower has been a feature of that run, with 46 goals scored and just six conceded.
Inverell will be hoping round one goalscorers Brent Pedlow and Jonathan Arandale can again find the back of the net. Pedlow enters the weekend in red-hot form, leading the Northern Inland Premier League Golden Boot race with 16 goals.
With both sides boasting strong domestic records, Saturday’s contest shapes as an entertaining battle as they look to gain an early advantage in the race for a semi-final spot.
The result could prove crucial ahead of Monday’s round three fixtures, with Inverell set to face Port Saints and Byron Bay taking on Northern Storm.
Port Saints FC 0-0 Northern Storm
This match was played on Saturday 2 May due to Northern Storm’s participation in round six of the Hahn Australia Cup.
The 0-0 draw saw Port Saints remain at the top of the table on five points, with Northern Storm close behind on three points.
The Saints will face third-placed Inverell FC in round three on Monday 8 June as they look to lock in a semi-final berth.
Meanwhile, Northern Storm will take on Byron Bay FC in round three on Monday 8 June in what shapes as a potential must-win clash, depending on round two results, to secure a place in the semi-finals.