Hyundai A-League Round 24 Preview

Perth Glory v Wellington Phoenix
ME Bank Stadium
Friday 22nd January 2010

Perth Glory’s season looked to be imploding around them when they trailed 2-0 after an hour of Tuesday night’s clash with Adelaide United. A Jacob Burns-inspired fightback, however, secured a vital victory for the West Australians who now enjoy a four-point buffer between themselves and Central Coast in seventh place. Coach Dave Mitchell will also have an enjoyable selection dilemma this week, with Naum Sekulovski, Jamie Harnwell, Wayne Srhoj and Victor Sikora all expected to be fit and pressing for starting places.

One Wellington Phoenix player who will be especially keen to impress at ME Bank Stadium on Friday, meanwhile, is Eugene Dadi who was of course released by Glory barely three weeks ago. The former Ivory Coast international has made a stellar start at his new club, bagging three goals in his first two appearances and he would dearly love to add to that tally in front of the Glory fans who still hold him in high regard.
With Daniel and Chris Greenacre now both back from injury and Adrian Caceres also in the mix, Ricki Herbert has plenty of striking options at his disposal and it will be interesting to see who gets the nod to start against Glory.

Phoenix do not traditionally fare too well at ME Bank Stadium and it has certainly been a fortress for the home side thus far this term, a factor which should see Glory installed as slight favourites. There’s not much to choose between these two sides but bolstered by their gutsy win in midweek and roared on by a partisan home crowd, the men in purple should just sneak it by the odd goal.

Prediction: Perth Glory 2-1 Wellington Phoenix

Central Coast Mariners v Gold Coast United
Bluetongue Stadium
Friday 22nd January 2010

Will this prove to be the year when perennial top four finishers Central Coast Mariners finally fail to feature come finals time? That scenario is looking increasingly likely with Lawrie McKinna’s side currently four points adrift of the top six and facing a difficult run in to the end of the season. Back-to-back draws have at least bucked the Mariners’ five-game losing streak, but they remain without a win since Round 15. The return of Nicky Travis should provide the home side with a welcome boost after the creative midfielder missed the trip to Adelaide due to a virus and there may also be a senior debut for former Cardiff City man Jonathan Brown who has now received his international clearance.

Mariners goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne, meanwhile, has declared that he will be joining Brisbane Roar from next season after being unable to loosen Danny Vukovic’s firm grip on the number one shirt at Bluetongue Stadium.

In sharp contrast to their Friday night hosts, Gold Coast United have seemingly timed their return to form to perfection, reclaiming top spot with a deserved victory over Sydney last time out. The Queenslanders showed in that clash at the SFS that they can defend as well as attack and Miron Bleiberg’s defensive stocks could be further strengthened this week if Adama Traore continues to make a quicker than anticipated recovery from his ankle injury. Robson’s knee problem continues to keep him out of action, but the Brazilian midfielder is expected to be fit for United’s finals campaign.

United were well beaten on their last visit to Gosford in Round 7, but it is hard to see them suffering a similar fate on this occasion. A comfortable away win looks to be on the cards in this one.

Prediction: Central Coast Mariners 0-2 Gold Coast United

North Queensland Fury v Brisbane Roar
Dairy Farmers Stadium
Saturday 24th January 2010

North Queensland Fury may remain five points off sixth spot on the back of a run of just one win in their last five games, but boss Ian Ferguson remains publicly confident that his side can still clinch a finals berth in their maiden A-League season. Their cause will certainly be helped by the fact that Ufuk Talay is expected to play the full ninety minutes this week after returning from injury to feature for an hour of the Round 23 defeat at Wellington. The midfielder’s tenacity and experience will be crucial if Fury are to defy the odds and reach the finals, as will the form of Robbie Middleby who is due to reclaim his place in the side this week after missing the Wellington game through illness. Former Perth speedster Jimmy Downey made a promising debut last week and his arrival at Dairy Farmers Stadium is particularly timely given that David Williams will be out for at least another fortnight with a hamstring problem.

As for Brisbane Roar, their finals prospects also look bleak after Newcastle consigned them to a third consecutive defeat last time out. The arrival of former Belgian international Pieter Collen has seemingly done little to tighten up a defence that has conceded twelve goals in the last four games, but coach Ange Postecoglou has still decided to trim another defender from the squad, with Bob Malcolm having his contract terminated this week. Malcolm’s place on the roster has been taken by Steven Bryce, a veteran Costa Rican midfielder whom Postecoglou hopes will act as an on-field mentor for his generally youthful side.

Although they have of course not admitted it publicly, Roar’s recent off-field activities indicate that Postecoglou has all but written off this campaign and is instead already preparing for next season. Fury, however, show no such inclination to give up the ghost and that extra level of commitment should carry them to a narrow win over their state rivals on Saturday.

Prediction: North Queensland Fury 2-1 Brisbane Roar

Melbourne Victory v Adelaide United
Etihad Stadium
Saturday 24th January 2010

Both Melbourne Victory and Adelaide United come into this game having played Perth in their last outing with contrasting results. Ernie Merrick’s side tore the West Australians apart to record a thumping 6-2 win and move to within two points of leaders Gold Coast with a game in hand, while Aurelio Vidmar’s charges squandered a two goal lead and had two players sent off as they crashed to a 3-2 defeat that all but ended their slender finals hopes.

The poor condition of the Etihad Stadium pitch has been a major talking point this week, but ground staff have been hard at work replacing large areas of turf damaged by a recent music event and have insisted that it will be in far better shape for Saturday’s game. In terms of team news, Merrick seems unlikely to make any unforced changes from the side that destroyed Perth, although Evan Berger is close to recovering from his hamstring injury and may come into the reckoning for a squad place. Matthew Kemp and Surat Sukha, meanwhile, remain two weeks away from full fitness.

Vidmar and his players looked shell-shocked in the wake of Tuesday’s defeat at the hands of Perth and it will be very interesting to see how the South Australians respond to that crushing blow. Iain Fyfe and Lucas Pantelis will both miss the trip to Melbourne through suspension after picking up red cards against Glory, while left-sided utility man Cassio is also expected to be unavailable after sustaining a calf injury. On a brighter note for the rock-bottom Reds, Kristian Sarkies and Alemao are set to return after recovering from their respective hip and quad problems.

With nothing to lose, the visitors may throw caution to the wind and could cause Victory some problems, but the home side were a cut above last week and it’s hard to bet against them securing another comfortable win here.

Prediction: Melbourne Victory 3-1 Adelaide United

Newcastle Jets v Sydney FC
EnergyAustralia Stadium
Sunday 24th January 2010

Six wins from eight games has all but guaranteed finals football for Newcastle Jets and they will be confident of downing a Sydney FC side for whom the goals have dried up in recent weeks. Joel Griffiths has again been capturing the headlines in the Hunter Valley this week, with the feisty striker finally being given the green light to join Chinese Premier League outfit Beijing Guoan for a fee of around $450,000. With that saga now done and dusted, Branko Culina has been able to focus his full attention upon the run in to the end of the regular season and the possibility of bolstering his squad with some new recruits.

With marquee man Fabio Vignaroli ruled out for the rest of the season by injury and Griffiths now off the roster, the Jets have two available spots to fill and are set to bring in at least one striker within the next couple of weeks. Fortunately for Culina, he has no fresh injury concerns ahead of Sunday’s clash at EnergyAustralia Stadium and will be keen to see his charges produce a repeat of their Round 16 performance when they cruised to a 3-1 win over the Sky Blues at the SFS.

The visitors, meanwhile, turned in a lack-lustre display in last week’s top of the table clash with Gold Coast and coach Vitezslav Lavicka will be demanding a vast improvement on Sunday, especially from his strike force who have managed a paltry four goals in the last six games. Rhyan Grant is available once again after serving a one-match ban and Lavicka may be tempted to shake things up by starting with the likes of Chris Payne and Brendan Gan.

Sydney FC have gone off the boil at exactly the wrong time and their indifferent form may cost them dearly in terms of whom they will face in the finals and perhaps even more crucially given their woeful away record, increase their chances of facing a tough road trip. Newcastle, on the other hand, are coming home with a wet sail and that momentum may be enough for them to shade what is likely to be a tight battle on Sunday.

Prediction: Newcastle Jets 1-0 Sydney FC