5 Things to Watch for in Round 12 of the IPL
We are moving into the second half of the season with a number of teams still well in the hunt for the League Championship and the top five while the battle at the bottom seems to dwindled down to two. Round 12 is set to get underway under gloomy skies, let’s go over the five things I’ll be looking out for this long weekend.
1 — Can Cringila resurrect their season under Friday night lights?
A 1–0 defeat to Port Kembla is the latest in a run of six matches without a win for the Crehan Park club. This evening their season effectively goes on the line against 4th placed Albion Park White Eagles and for mine, anything less than a win would rule a line through their top fives chances.
Zivko Jovanovski’s side have only scored two goals across this barren run — both against South Coast. Expect new signing Kristofer Stefanovski to be drafted into the lineup, the striker has joined from NPL 2 club Parramatta FC where he scored four in 11 in the under 20s.
PS — I love Friday night football.
2 — A matter of fine margins for Port’s top five hopes
Five wins, a draw and five defeats is Port Kembla’s record at the halfway mark — identical to the same point last season. Can the repeat last year’s incredible run which saw them claim the big biscuit? Time will tell.
The concerning factor of Port remains the inability to beat sides above them with the only win against that trend being a 3–0 result over Fernhill. This sort of form means there is no margin for area against sides such as South Coast United who they play this weekend. Greg Valic’s side is close to full strength and have been okay in their last two matches but they’ll be long odds to knock off Port Kembla.
Port Kembla could make the top five but their grinding style will mean it will go down to the final couple of rounds. I think they’ll win by one this weekend.
3 — Rested Tarrawanna to reprise Round 1 upset
Going into the season I had the Blueys as a shoe-in for the top five but a meek opening day defeat to Fernhill almost made me reevaluate my preseason predictions.
This weekend they have a chance to exact revenge and start to solidify their position in the top five. However, a repeat of the Round 1 result could see the Blueys slip as low as 8th.
I think Tarrawanna will benefit from their first full week off since April and record a win by a goal or two.
4 — An Olympic test for Woonona’s new-found resilience
Woonona’s 1–0 win over South Coast United last weekend was a painful watch but a win is a win and they have now gone unbeaten in five in all competitions. In that run, they have kept four clean sheets which coach Dan McGoldrick has highlighted as one of the keys to the recent success.
While the Sharks’ positive spell was much needed after no points after seven rounds, the highest placed opposition they faced was Tarrawanna in 5th. This weekend they host Wollongong Olympic who are the joint top scorers in the league and sit two points off the top of the table. Chris Gibson and Dylan Nikolovski will do well to keep Yusuke Ueda and co at bay.
5 — Corrimal hoping for déjà vu against Wollongong United
Corrimal are without a win in five matches, despite this, coach Rob Jonovski believes his side have shown they are capable of challenging for the top five. In an article in the Illawarra Mercury, Jonovski said, “I thought last weekend against the champions of the Illawarra we dominated the match but some things didn’t go our way and that’s how football is.”
They will need to be at their best to beat Wollongong United on Saturday. United have won five of their last six in the league and were perhaps unlucky to get three points against Albion Park last weekend. The Rangers beat Jeff Allport’s side 1–0 in a rescheduled Round 1 match, it wasn’t pretty but a repeat could have huge ramifications on the league table.
Note — this match has been moved to Saturday 5pm.
