In his NSW Men’s 1 Round 4 football preview,MARK STAVROULAKIS looks at how the south west clubs Bonnyrigg, Sydney United 58 and Marconi Stallions may fare over Easter:
Bonnyrigg White Eagles v Blacktown City, 7.30pm Saturday, at Bonnyrigg Sports Centre:
This is a heavyweight clash between two of the competition’s best sides. Bonnyrigg showed that experience counts, coming from 2-0 down to snatch a 2-2 draw at Belmore Sports Ground against Sydney Olympic in last week’s Match of the Round.
To be truthful, Bonnyrigg was played off the park by the enterprising Olympic, but the White Eagles know how to get a result, and they will be all the better for the point they snatched. Blacktown City have won three from three but were not convincing against Parramatta last weekend. Patrick Antelmi’s late double did the job, but coach Mark Crittenden will be after improvement as they travel to one of the toughest away venues in the division.
Sydney United 58 FC v South Coast Wolves, 7.30pm Saturday, at Sydney United Sports Centre:
Sydney United 58 FC are on the right track and have improved with each performance, culminating in their come-from-behind 4-2 win against Blacktown Spartans last weekend. New signings Justin Pasfield and Nick Stavroulakis have bedded in well and with the promise of more attacking football, United will be keen to get on the front foot at home to South Coast Wolves.
Nahuel Arrarte’s Wolves should have put Sutherland away at Seymour Shaw Park last weekend but they weren’t clinical enough. They let Sutherland back into the game and only took one point when it should have been three. They will need to put United away if the opportunity is there, or the Reds will surely punish them.
Rockdale City Suns v Marconi Stallions, 3pm Monday, at Ilinden Sports Centre:
Rockdale City have had an indifferent start to the season, shipping more goals than they would like and then, when they finally kept a clean sheet, they were battered by Manly United but escaped with a nil-all draw. Coach Branko Culina will want to marry a clean sheet to some goals at the other end, and with the visit of Marconi they have a valuable opportunity to kick start their season against a side that has struggled so far. The firepower is there for the Suns, they just need things to click.
Marconi meanwhile are at the foot of the table without a point, only three goals scored and 12 conceded. Albeit, five of those were against APIA Leichhardt last weekend, but that doesn’t excuse conceding seven in the previous fortnight. Coach Paul Carter has his work cut, although Milorad Simonovic could provide the spark his side needs as they travel to Botany on Monday afternoon.
The rest of the round four draw is:
APIA Leichhardt Tigers v Sydney Olympic, 4.15pm Monday, at Lambert Park;
Manly United v Blacktown Spartans, 7pm Friday, at Cromer Park;
Parramatta FC v Sutherland Sharks, 7.30pm Saturday, at Melita Stadium.
