There’s a lot of hype surrounding tonight’s A-League “battle of the west’’ clash between Macarthur FC and Western Sydney Wanderers at Campbelltown Stadium.
The hype is a little spooky, because it just so happens the annual Festival of Fisher’s Ghost also kicks off today with the traditional street parade.
And of course being October 31 it’s also Halloween, and both clubs have embraced the spooky fun of it all ahead of the match, which kicks off at 7.40pm.
One player who will run on to the pitch determined to keep his emotions in check and just do all he can to help his team win the game is Ryan Fraser.
“I tend to see these kind of derbies as just any other match,’’ he said while speaking to the media ahead of the round three clash.
“You want to win the game and don’t want to get caught up in emotions,’’ he said.
“That’s the mentality needed going into this game, for me anyway.’’
The 32 year old signed with the Bulls after one season with the club that will line up against them tonight.
Fraser has already made a big impact in the first two rounds of the 2026-27 season.
He’s obviously a very experienced player, but he’s also a very clever one.
Watching him on the ball you can see he’s an “eyes up’’ player who always looking to create opportunities for his team – and ask a lot of questions of the opposition defence.
In the round one game against Perth, he was involved in both the Bulls goals in the 2-1 victory, scoring from the spot himself and delivering the cross for central defender Joanathan Aspropotamitis to head the ball into the net.
And then in round two up in Newcastle, Fraser passed the ball behind the defence, allowing young gun Musa Toure to pounce and get the equalizer for the Bulls.
While derbies provide a wonderful atmosphere, the bottom line is getting the three points, which is why Ryan Fraser is on the money, and he will be the key man to watch tonight at Campbelltown Stadium.
