State League One
In terms of long-term ramifications, Eastern United v Cobras is certainly the most monumental fixture of the round – as the loser will find themselves rooted to the bottom of the table. Both sides are coming off tough losses, however it was Eastern’s 5-0 defeat at the hands of Birkalla that would be more worrying – as Cobras should take encouragement from their narrow defeat to White City. Relegation looms and the possibility of going straight back down to SL2 is a real possibility for both sides.
Western Strikers were mere moments away from securing a 1-0 win over fellow top six contenders Adelaide Victory, doing so would have sent them into 5th place rather than their current standpoint, which is 7th. They travel to 9th placed Fulham who were shown the door by a Modbury Jets outfit that was simply too good. If Strikers seek to get back into the finals-hunt then this is a must-win affair, Fulham’s motivations would involve the threat of relegation – as a win would put some welcomed distance between themselves and the other clubs struggling at the bottom.
White City have shown the tendency to do things the hard way in recent weeks, nonetheless they are still taking home the three points week in week out. This week they face a difficult test in Adelaide victory, whose inconsistency renders any fixture against them tricky to navigate. On their day, the young squad can give any team headaches – so White City will inevitably have to be on their toes and ready for a battle.
Modbury Jets have slowly been chipping away, and now find themselves in 2nd. Due to the tightly packed nature of the top six at the moment, every fixture feels like a must-win. Hawks are currently sitting in 8th and had a positive result against West Adelaide last weekend. They’ll be looking to build on this win by making it two from two against the Jets, such a result could see Hawks land as high as 6th.
The struggles of West Adelaide continue and the mountain they must climb gets ever-steeper. Five straight defeats, and now staring down the barrel of a Playford side who have thus far made light work of teams teetering towards the bottom end of the table. Playford will be chomping at the bit to make things right after a disappointing loss to Para Hills, which has them coming into this one in 4th place.
Para Hills are acquiring some serious momentum, which was only amplified after overcoming Playford in a huge 1-0 win. The win sees the Knights into 5th, but the challenge only increases with this week’s opponent Birkalla. Birkalla themselves are coming off a hugely emphatic 5-0 drumming of Eastern United and are sitting in 3rd.
State League Two
This week’s pick of the action sees 1st placed Port Adelaide host 4th placed Gawler Eagles. The Eagles come into this one as the inform team, with two wins in their last two. Pirates have had their considerable lead at the top slowly chipped away at and are now equal on points with Uni on the back of two draws.
Seaford will play host to Adelaide Uni in an 8th v 2nd match that Uni will desperately want to win as they continue to breathe down Port Adelaide’s neck. Seaford themselves will be highly motivated to stay within reach of the six and break a poor run of form.
Salisbury’s charge toward promotion has hit somewhat of a roadblock as they have only managed to acquire two points from their last three, they currently sit third. Nonetheless, they are still only five points off top spot and will back themselves to be put back onto the winners list by overcoming a struggling 9th placed Cove outfit.
Pontian have had a few results not go their way but are still sitting in 7th and are just three points off third (but are -11 goals away). Noarlunga sit in 5th after their 1-1 draw with Salisbury and will be looking to consolidate their position in the top six.
Northern Demons and Modbury Vista is a huge fixture in the context of the lower end of the table. Northern Demons currently sit in 10th after their 5-3 loss to Cove, Vista still sit in 11th but are coming off a win over Mt Barker. Both sides are sitting on seven points, with Northern Demon’s narrowly ahead on goal difference.