3 Things to Watch for in Round 16 of the IPL

Be it Bulli’s goalless title bout with Wollongong Olympic, Port Kembla’s stumbling win over Picton or South Coast United’s resilient draw against Fernhill — Round 15 threw up more question then answers.

The only match which didn’t go ahead over the weekend was Albion Park White Eagles and Corrimal. It was rescheduled for Wednesday night with Paul Carter’s side pulling off an impressive come from behind 5–2 victory.

There are two standout fixtures this weekend while four teams will go into Round 16 with half an eye on Bert Bampton Cup commitments on Tuesday night. Let’s go over the three things I’ll be keen to look out for this weekend.

1 — Can Port tighten their grip on the final spot in the five

Corrimal’s midweek capitulation at Terry Reserve means we are one result away from a five-point gap between 5th and 6th. And wouldn’t you know it, 6th placed Tarrawanna take on 5th placed Port Kembla on Saturday at Tarrawanna Oval.

Noel Spencer’s side are third in the form guide over the last five matches with their only defeat coming against the White Eagles while a stoic 2–1 win over Corrimal indicates they will be up for this kind of tussle. Tarrawanna have three defeats in the same period they were all against the big three of Bulli, Wollongong United and Olympic.

Last time out Port overcame relegation battlers Picton but only after letting an early two-goal lead slip while the Blueys had a regulation 3–1 win over Cringila. Port are in the box seat, however, they have a tricky run home with matches against the aforementioned big three in the final six rounds. Tarrawanna on the other hand face only two sides currently in the top five in their final six matches (Albion Park White Eagles and Wollongong Olympic) which leads me to think Peter Willis would be content with a draw against the 2017 Grand Final winners.

2 — Could the next four days define Wollongong Olympic’s season?

Wollongong Olympic may feel aggrieved not to have edged Bulli last weekend having dominated possession for a majority of the match. The reality is they barely mustered a clear-cut chance and the draw was probably the fair result. It leaves George Antoniou’s side two points behind Bulli and with little margin for error.

Olympic face a pretty difficult final seven rounds with only two matches against sides in the bottom five. Arguably the toughest will be on Saturday when they host rivals Wollongong United who will be keen to avenge the Round 5 humiliation where they lost 4–0.

United picked up a 4–1 win over Woonona last weekend which backs up their morale-boosting late win over Tarrawanna. While they have been disappointing this campaign, Jeff Allport’s side are in a good position to grab third and they could yet have a say in this year’s title race given they play Olympic and Bulli over the next three weeks.

This match comes three days before they face off in a Bert Bampton Cup semi-final. I am tipping Olympic to win the League encounter while United may pip them in the Cup. Worst case scenario for Olympic is defeat in both — leaving victory in the Grand Final as realistically their only chance of silverware this season.

3 — Corrimal’s season is on life support

In many ways, the upcoming days for Corrimal have a similar vibe to Olympic — failure to win both games all but ending any chance of adding to the club’s trophy cabinet.

Corrimal had a chance to move within two points of the top five when they played Albion Park on Wednesday night but a dismal final hour saw them suffer a 5–2 defeat. Depending on how Tarrawanna vs Port Kembla finishes, they could be as much as eight points off 5th come kick off in their match against South Coast United on Sunday.

The Rangers will be short-priced favourites to bounce back with a win against the lowly United, however, they have a poor record against lower opposition while their lacklustre display at Terry Reserve could be cause for an upset.

Corrimal will play their third game in six days on Tuesday night in a Bert Bampton Cup semi-final vs Woonona. They lost to the Sharks in Round 8 and the short turn around means — once again — an upset could be on the cards.

In fairness, even if they win out in the League they’re outside odds of playing football in September, but defeat in the Cup could mean the Rangers will turn their attention to Mad Monday.

P.S. This was posted later than I would like due to a combination of factors including my disorganisation, a cancelled flight and over 2000 kilometres of travel.