MATCH OF THE ROUND
Terrigal v Killarney
Terrigal and Killarney will meet at Pluim Park for the Round 13 match of the round as the two sides will battle it out for the Ash Grant Cup.
Terrigal enters their important Ash Grant Cup fixture coming off a 2-2 draw with Avoca. Terrigal was leading 2-0 in that game only for a small lapse of concertation was enough for Avoca to come back and split the points. Terrigal will now have to overcome that disappointing result and turn things around against an undefeated Killarney side. A win this weekend would further solidify Terrigal’s spot amongst the top three and help cement their spot for finals football. This contest over the year has produced some fond memories for Terrigal, winning the 2020 BPL Grand Final being among the top.
Marty Griffiths knows what a win this weekend means for his club and how impactful it can be for his O’lads for the remainder of the season “Looking forward to our Ash Grant Cup fixture against our local rivals Killarney. They have been in outstanding form this year winning all ten games. Obviously, we will be looking to take all three points, which will give us a massive confidence boost going into the second half of the season. The lads know how important it is to put in a big performance and hopefully take points off the league leaders.
“It’s a fixture that means a lot to this club, as Ash was well respected on the coast and having chatted to Jacqui, Tai and Nath this week after the Avoca game, it’s a fixture the whole family is looking forward to,” stated Griffiths.
Killarney will enter this Sunday with ultimate confidence as Chris Ackerley’s team remain the only unbeaten side in the competition. A huge part of their success this season has been the backline marshalled by Sam Kirk and Adam Smith who have only conceded 5 goals in 10 games. Although the Terriers were only able to score 1 goal against last-place Wyoming last weekend, Killarney had multiple players missing on their team sheet including Adam Woodbine, Andy Klijn, and Ethan & Matt Hall. Killarney should be welcoming these players back for the Ash Grant Cup this Sunday as the Terriers look to repeat their performance from earlier in the year when they walked away 3-0 winners against the O’lads.
Despite already beating Terrigal this year, Chris Ackerley knows that the weekend is going to prove as a very hard test for his undefeated squad. “Expecting an extremely hard clash as the past few seasons have shown with all games being close no matter who comes out the winner. As Griffo had said, this is a massive game for them after the draw with Avoca. Hopefully, we will get a few players back from injury this week to give us a selection headache.
Ackerley also added, “Terrigal has been scoring a few goals lately so it will be a good test of our defence who have been going well this season. The Ash Grant Cup is always a good game between the two sides and u don’t expect it to be any different this Sunday.”
MATCH OFFICIAL – Luke Dunkerley
Berkeley Vale v The Entrance
Two sides desperate for points are set to battle this weekend as Berkeley welcomes an underperforming Entrance to Mingara Oval
When these two sides met back in round 4, it was a very exciting and close battle that saw the Wombats leave Pat Morley as 3-2 victors. After Berkeley was enjoying a 2-0 lead early in the second half, the Reddies would rally back and score two quick goals that would leave the Bats stunned. The contest remained very back and forth until Berkely Vale was awarded a penalty and ex-Entrance captain Nathan Blunden stepped up to hand his new club the win.
Berkeley Vale will be hoping for a similar result this weekend as Mark Pratt’s side is coming off their biggest defeat of the season. Last weekend Berkeley Vale failed to score as they conceded four goals to Kariong away from home. Failure to make the most of their chances once again hurt Pratt’s squad. There has been numerous game this season where their poor form in front of goal has come back to hurt this team, but the Wombats still hold a 4-point cushion in fourth place as the Association Cup winners still have high hopes to play finals football at the end of the year.
Last week before the game this Entrance squad would find out that their head coach Patrick Zwaanswijk would be stepping down due to personal reasons. This decision has made way for Zwaanswijk’s former assistants Josh Rose and Ray Seers now to assume the spot-on top of the mantle for the remainder of the season. After multiple lack-lustre performances in a row, the Entrance now finds themselves only 7 club championship points clear of the relegation zone.
Since picking up their second win of the season, a 1-0 win over Wyoming in round 9, the Entrance has lost their last three fixtures with a combined score of 15-1. Finding the back of the net has been a major problem for this side in recent weeks but The Entrance has faced the top three first-grade teams (Terrigal, Killarney, Kanwal) and the challenge will not get much easier this week as they verse fourth-placed Berkeley.
MATCH OFFICIAL – Trent Dickeson
Kanwal v Wyoming
Kanwal will look to keep within distance of league leaders as they hope to repeat their round 4, 3-0 win over Wyoming
After Kanwal’s dominant 4-0 win over The Entrance last weekend, The Bulls now enjoy a 4-point cushion in second place. Looking like a lock to play finals football, Kanwal has impressed many outsiders with their ability to constantly pick up results this year. One of the biggest factors to their terrific season is their ability to hold out teams from scoring as their defence, marshalled by their captain Kyle Price, currently records the second-best defensive record in the league.
With a total of six clean sheets in ten games, it’s no wonder Ryan Walker’s side is doing as well as they are in the competition. The last time these two sides faced, Wyoming couldn’t handle Kanwal’s relentless high press that caused multiple errors in the Tiger’s backline. On that day, Brad Porter was given man-of-the-match honours but Porter was once again left off the team sheet last weekend so Kanwal will be relying on someone else to step up and lead the pack come Sunday.
Despite having multiple key first graders out last weekend and missing their head coach Ian McAndrew, Wyoming set up with a tremendous gameplay that saw them almost be the first team to take points of the league leaders Killarney. McAndrew, who was missing due to covid, gave the coaching reins to Scott Snodgrass who was able to pick up wins in the lower two grades. However, McAndrew will be back to join his team this weekend as they look to pick up their second win of the season.
Despite picking up wins in the lower grades last weekend, Wyoming still remains at the bottom of the Club Championship with 56 points. The race to stay up from relegation is extremely intense and close as 3 other teams remain within 12 points of the Tigers. Having recently welcomed back some experienced players to their squad, Wyoming could look like a whole different outfit compared to the start of the year and these additions are going to be a crucial part of Wyoming’s success this year.
MATCH OFFICIAL – David Richardson
Kariong v Woongarrah
Both coming off their biggest wins of the season, Kariong and Woongarrah will both be out further improve on their win and pick up another crucial three points.
It was another historic day for Ryan Finch and his Kariong squad last weekend as the Cougars were able to defeat Berkeley Vale in all three grades. This is the first time in the club’s history they were able to pick up a win in all three grades and to make things even more special, they were able to do it in front of a home crowd at Kariong Oval.
That perfect Sunday took Kariong from 40 points to 61 points on the club championship and also lifted the Kariong of the bottom and now only 2 points from safety. Kariong will be looking to repeat last weekend’s results as they welcome Woongarrah to Kariong oval. This fixture will mean a lot for both clubs as a win in first grade will see Kariong climb over Woongarrah and out of the relegation zone. Kariong will be turning to their main man up top Chris Lennon who leads his team for goals scored with 6 for the season as he comes up against a Woongarrah side yet to keep a clean sheet this season.
A very brave Woongarrah were able to overcome all odds and pick up a win over Southern & Ettalong last weekend. After going a goal down in the early stages of the match, things went from bad to worse for Luke Roger’s side as his goalkeeper was shown a red card after an illegal handball outside of the box saw the Wildcats forced to finish the game with just 10 men. However, thanks to a Jayden Rogers hat-trick, Woongarrah were able to come out 3-1 victors to secure their third win of the season.
This fixture is just as important for Woongarrah as it is for Kariong as they can further distance themselves away from the relegation zone if they are able to get the win this weekend. Woongarrah did get the best of Kariong earlier in the year when they picked up a 2-1 win over the Cougars in a very close battle. With so much on the line this weekend, you can be sure to expect another close encounter between these two sides come Sunday.
MATCH OFFICIAL – Miles Allen-Scott
Avoca v Southern & Ettalong
After defeating the Sharks by one-goal earlier in the year, Southern will look to turn their horrid form around and get back to winning ways against Avoca on Sunday.
After trailing by 2 goals in the second half against Terrigal last weekend, Avoca capitalised on a lapse of concentration from the opposition and was able to walk away with a point after the game finished 2-2. Tyler Wade scored both goals for his side as he now takes the lead as Avoca’s leading goal scorer and also equal first on the Golden Boot standings. Avoca will take plenty of confidence from that heroic comeback.
Avoca currently remains above Southern on the ladder only by goal difference as the two sides both boast 11 points after 10 games. Avoca will look to take advantage of an underperforming Southern attack and look secure their first clean sheet of the season to help them obtain maximum points. Expect another close encounter between these two sides come Sunday.
Southern would have been left extremely disappointed in themselves after their last weekend’s loss against Woongarrah. Southern enjoyed an early 1-0 lead over the Wildcats and seemed to have the game under control, especially after Woongarrah were reduced to 10 men early in the first half. However, Southern failed to convert any of their other chances and conceded three straight goals to go down 3-1. This is the second time this season Southern has been defeated by a side with 10 men.
Dale Eggleton’s squad now find themselves dropping to seventh place on the BPL ladder and on equal points with their opposition this weekend. The Lions currently remain 5 points away from the fourth place and another loss this weekend could be detrimental to their chances and hopes of playing finals football. Having only seen glimpses of Southern’s full potential this year, Eggleton will be hoping it can all come together this weekend and serve as a turning point for their season.
MATCH OFFICIAL – Anthony Kabbout
