Round 19 Preview – NPL Women’s NSW

After an interrupted round 18 of the National Premier Leagues Women’s NSW competition, we hope the weather God’s are kind to us this weekend ahead of round 19 action.

Bulls FC Academy v NWS Spirit at Northbridge Oval, Sunday 2:40pm

The round opens up at Northbridge Oval as Bulls FC Academy take on NWS Spirit on Sunday at 2:40pm.

After 11 games without defeat, Bulls came awfully close on Sunday to losing against Sydney University, being saved by lightning after trailing 2-1.

The last side to defeat the Bulls was in fact their opponents this weekend, Spirit winning 2-1 all the way back in mid-April.

Spirit are also on an undefeated run stretching five games, but haven’t been able to win in their last three, registering consecutive draws.

A win for the home team could see them move into first place, should Spirit take the spoils they would jump the Bulls on the ladder.

UNSW v Western Sydney Wanderers at The Village Green, Sunday 3:15pm

At The Village Green on Sunday, UNSW face off against the Western Sydney Wanderers at 3:15pm.

UNSW had started off very well against Mt Druitt on Sunday before allowing their opponents back into the game and the match being interrupted due to lightning on 26 minutes.

They must win here to keep their finals hopes alive and try to get some consistency at a key point in the season.

Similarly, the Wanderers had put up a good performance before the lightning intervened, level with APIA.

WSW have the capability of hurting UNSW and will be keen to do so.

Macarthur Rams v Northern Tigers at Lynwood Park, Sunday 5pm

The Macarthur Rams welcome the Northern Tigers to Lynwood Park on Sunday evening.

Two consecutive wins, one major victory in the relegation battle last week against the Jets, and confidence is high in Vic Guzman’s camp.

They aren’t quite safe yet but they can take a major leap toward securing their survival with a win here.

The Tigers suffered their third straight defeat on Saturday night, now winning only one of their last five and slipping away from the Top Four.

Points dropped here will all but certainly ensure they miss out on finals football.

Manly United v Sydney Olympic at Cromer Park, Sunday 5pm

At Cromer Park on Sunday night at 5pm, Manly United welcome Sydney Olympic.

Tom Hopley’s team continue to defy the odds and continue their march toward finals football, this time defeating the Northern Tigers.

Sitting in second place and only one point off first place, a win here could put United in the driving seat in the second half of the season.

Olympics’ weekend game was cancelled before it kicked off but have already rescheduled for Thursday night.

After a fine run of form, Olympic were brought back down to earth a couple weeks back and require a response, in particular with relegation still a possibility.

Illawarra Stingrays v Newcastle Jets at Macedonia Park, Sunday 5pm

The Illawarra Stingrays face off against the Newcastle Jets on Sunday at Macedonia Park at 5pm.

Sitting just outside the Top Four, the Stingrays cannot afford to drop any points.

They will expect to secure all three points here and continue their fight for finals football and hold off the chasing pack.

The Jets were very close to securing a major win and snapping a terrible run of form last weekend, instead they suffered a difficult defeat.

This will be a tough away game for the Jets but any point will be incredibly valuable for them.

Gladesville Ravens v Mt Druitt Town Rangers at Christie Park, Sunday 5:10pm

At 5:10pm on Sunday at Christie Park, the Gladesville Ravens host the Mt Druitt Town Rangers.

Four games without defeat for the Ravens and their uplift in form continues, this time holding NWS Spirit to a draw last weekend.

Finals seem a step too far for them but they will want to finish as high up the ladder as possible.

The Rangers mid-week fixture was halted with scores locked at 1-1 after a slow start to the game for them.

They remain at the top of the ladder and to hold onto that spot they need three points with a tough run of games to come.

APIA Leichhardt v Sydney University at Lambert Park, Sunday 5:15pm

The final match of round 19 takes place at Lambert Park on Sunday at 5:15pm as APIA Leichhardt take on Sydney University.

APIA will be in action tonight to finish off what remains of their game from Sunday where they took on WSW and scores were locked at 1-1.

A busy period for APIA but a game they must win to stay within touching distance of the Top Four and the finals.

Uni and Oz Rowley have found some fine form and current giant killers, holding NWS Spirit to a draw, defeating Sydney Olympic, before leading against the seemingly unstoppable Bulls.

They’ve risen up the ladder and will hope to continue to do so as well as knocking off one of the Championship favourites.

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-By Nikola Pozder