The exciting NPL Championship continues this week with matches that captivate the interest of football fans. Hellas wants to overcome the shock of their home defeat by Alexandros and of course, there’s no better medicine than… three points.
The South Melbourne team, who follow the schedule of the Cannons, will travel this Sunday (26/03) to St Albans where they will face the Saints. The visitors will again have Ajak Riak out of action, making Esteban Quida’s life difficult. It will be interesting to see whether the Argentinian coach will once again rely on Maxi Mikkola, who failed to impress against Heidelberg, or whether he will try a different option for his attacking line.
This Saturday, Oakleigh will host a Greek-Turkish battle. Last year’s champions, the Cannons, will welcome Hume City, who passed through the previous matchday at the home of the Geelong Warriors with a score of 0-4. The “Greek team” will be missing their captain, Joe Guest, who was suspended for two matches due to the red card he received in the derby against Alexandros.
Nevertheless, Chris Taylor is determined to lead his team to victory and keep them within reach of the highly competitive Avondale, who are currently sitting at the top of the table; don’t miss out on this exciting match – it’s sure to be a nail-biter!
Alexandros is looking to build on last week’s success when Pancyprios visit on Friday (24/03) afternoon. Coach Katsaki’s team is in high spirits after their away win against Hellas and they’re determined to take all three points against Bentleigh Greens. This is only the sixth round, but the visitors are in desperate need of a lifeline to save themselves from the threat of relegation.
If the “Cypriots” don’t change their playing style soon, it’s almost certain that they’ll end up in the NPL2 championship at the end of the season.
A dangerous mission awaits Nea Hellas. The “Sharks” travel southeast of the city to take on the always formidable Thunder. Adam Piddick and his players are coming off a tough home defeat by the Knights and are expected to give it their all in order to leave the inhospitable home of the “Albanians” with at least one point in their bags.
The battle between Avondale and Green Gully on Saturday afternoon is also expected to be exciting. The “Italians” are in great form and no one seems to be able to stop their incredibly productive attacking line. The “blues” have already scored 19 goals in just 5 matches and it will be very interesting to see what tricks the Green Gully coach will come up with, in order to put a brake on the frantic course of the leaders.
Round six of NPL2 looks extremely interesting as well. The fourth in the standings, Kingston City, will welcome the Eastern Lions with the sole objective of winning to keep them in the upper half of the table. Leonidas hosts Juve from Brunswick while Iraklis take on bottom-of-the-table Bulleen Lions at their home ground.
A difficult away mission also awaits Pythagoras in the NPL3 championship. The Box Hill side will travel to North Sunshine to take on the Eagles. The “Greek” team entered the season in a negative way as they suffered a 1-0 defeat on the first matchday of the league against Caroline Springs.
THE NPL PROGRAM
Friday 24/3
Melbourne Knights – Altona Magic 19:30
Heidelberg United – Bentleigh Greens 20:30
Saturday 25/3
Moreland City – North Geelong Warriors 15:00
Avondale v Green Gully 15:15
Dandenong Thunder – Port Melbourne Sharks 19:00
Oakleigh Cannons – Hume City 19:45
Sunday 26/3
St Albans Saints – South Melbourne 15:00
NPL – Ladder
1. Avondale 5 13
2. South Melbourne 5 12
3. Oakleigh Cannons 5 11
4. Green Gully 5 9
5. Melbourne Knights 5 8
6. Dandenong Thunder 5 7
7. St Albans Saints 5 7
8. Hume City 5 6
9. Port Melbourne 5 5
10. Altona Magic 5 5
11. Moreland City 5 5
12. Heidelberg United 5 4
13. North Geelong 5 3
14. Bentleigh Greens 5 0
THE NPL2 PROGRAM
Friday 24/3
Dandenong City – Manningham United Blues 19:45
Pascoe Vale v Langwarrin 20:15
Preston Lions – Melbourne City (Y) 20:30
Saturday 25/3
Werribee City v Western United (Y) 15:00
Brunswick City – Brunswick Juventus 15:00
Monday 27/3
Kingston City – Eastern Lions 20:15
Bulleen Lions v Northcote City 20:15
NPL2 – Ladder
1. Pascoe Vale 5 12
2. Preston Lions 5 10
3. Langwarrin 5 10
4. Kingston City 5 9
5. Eastern Lions 5 9
6. Western United (Y) 5 9
7. Manningham 5 7
8. Brunswick City 5 7
9. Northcote City 4 6
10. Werribee 5 5
11. Dandenong 5 4
12. Brunswick Juventus 5 4
13. Melbourne City (Y) 4 3
14. Bulleen 5 3
THE NPL3 PROGRAM
Friday 24/3
Caroline Springs George Cross v Boroondara Eagles 20:00
Saturday 25/3
North Sunshine Eagles – Box Hill United 15:00
Nunawading – Essendon Royals 15:00
Doveton v Melbourne Victory (Y) 15:00
Goulburn Valley Suns – Beaumaris 15:00
Sunday 26/3
Ballarat City v Geelong 14:00
NPL3 – Ladder
1. Goulburn Suns 1 3
2. Melbourne Victory (Y) 1 3
3. Nunawading 1 3
4. Geelong 1 3
5. North Sunshine 1 3
6. Caroline Springs 1 3
7. Ballarat 1 0
8. Doveton 1 0
9. Essendon 1 0
10. Box Hill 1 0
11. Beaumaris 1 0
12. Boroondara 1 0