It’s that time of the week again – we’re back with another edition of A-League expert tips.
Last week saw our small field of tipsters start to spread out, with the results ranging from one out of five (sorry Vas) to four out of five from yours truly.
That successful round has seen me jump up to the top of the ladder alongside Matt on nine points, just the single correct tip ahead of Mike. We’ve then got The Crowd on seven, Janek on six and Vas bringing up the rear with five points.
So, what’s on the cards for this week?
Well, we start off with Melbourne City taking on the injury-depleted Adelaide United at home, before this year’s surprise packets Newcastle host league leaders Sydney FC. Perth will be hoping for a second road win in a row when they travel to Brisbane, and the round finishes up on Monday night when the Victory host Wellington.
As always, be sure to lend your voice to The Crowd in the form below to help every Roarer out-tip the experts. Voting closes at 4pm (AEDT) on Friday, so make sure you check back after then to see the final results.
On to the tips!
Melbourne City, Draw, Western Sydney Wanderers, Perth Glory, Melbourne Victory
Melbourne City vs Adelaide United
City. Buoyed by their FFA Cup semi-final win and with their opponents suffering something of an injury crisis, City should be too strong at home.
Newcastle Jets vs Sydney FC
Draw. The Jets have scratched around for a couple of results so far, while Sydney FC are bound to slip up eventually. A cagey affair could end in a stalemate in the Hunter.
Western Sydney Wanderers vs Central Coast Mariners
Wanderers. The hosts will be kicking themselves for letting a two-goal lead slip last week. They’re unlikely to make the same mistake against the goal-shy Mariners.
Brisbane Roar vs Perth Glory
Glory. A tough one to pick, not least because the visitors rarely save their best form for the road. Perth are in form, though, and could prove too strong for a patchy-looking Roar outfit.
Melbourne Victory vs Wellington Phoenix
Victory. The hosts will be stung by their FFA Cup semi-final defeat to their cross-town rivals. They’re likely to unleash on the Phoenix in this holiday-eve encounter.
Adelaide United, Sydney FC, Draw, Draw, Wellington Phoenix
Melbourne City vs Adelaide United
The Reds haven’t had to endure a midweek derby spite night and they were good last week – I reckon they’ll get up. United win.
Newcastle Jets vs Sydney FC
Sydney FC are the form team in the comp and they don’t struggle up in the Hunter. Sky Blues without too much of a sweat.
Western Sydney Wanderers vs Central Coast Mariners
The Wanderers look defensively fragile without Nikolai Topor-Stanley and with Andrew Redmayne between the sticks. Central Coast aren’t too crash hot at the back either, so maybe a 2-2 draw here.
Brisbane Roar vs Perth Glory
With Kenny Lowe likely to be behind double glazed glass for this one, I expect Perth will suffer without him kicking every ball on the sideline. The Roar aren’t quite a well-oiled machine yet, though. Draw.
Melbourne Victory vs Wellington Phoenix
I’m tipping an upset here. There was plenty to like about the ‘Nix against Sydney last week and their attacking trident of Roy Krishna, Kosta Barbarouses and Gui Finkler has plenty of ammo. Victory aren’t quite themselves yet, so if the ‘Nix are going to get a win there it will be this weekend. Wellington win.
Adelaide United, Draw, Western Sydney Wanderers, Perth Glory, Draw
Melbourne City vs Adelaide United
Adelaide were unlucky against the Victory and City had a midweek cup match to contend with. Adelaide.
Newcastle Jets vs Sydney FC
Sydney are on a roll but this Newcastle team has some fight in them. Draw.
Western Sydney Wanderers vs Central Coast Mariners
Western Sydney will be desperate for three points after the collapse last week. A win at home for the Wanderers.
Brisbane Roar vs Perth Glory
The Glory look like a top-two quality team this season. Perth win.
Melbourne Victory vs Wellington Phoenix
Wellington don’t deserve to be pointless after three games, though Kevin Muscat will have his team pumped up after the FFA Cup loss. Draw.
Melbourne City, Draw, Western Sydney Wanderers, Perth Glory, Melbourne Victory
Melbourne City vs Adelaide United
They’re on one point from three games and now face a trip to Melbourne to face high-flying City – the challenge gets no easier for the champions. Adelaide were unlucky to lose at home to the Victory, but they will need to lift to another level if they are to leave Melbourne with any result. City win.
Newcastle Jets vs Sydney FC
The Novocastrians have confounded everyone’s expectations with their dogged displays thus far. They now have the ladder leaders Sydney FC visiting in what could be the match of the round. The Sky Blues have been impressive, but against a determined Jets outfit, this could have the makings of a thrilling classic. Too close to call an outright winner, so the draw looks a good tip.
Western Sydney Wanderers vs Central Coast Mariners
The Wanderers are straddled in the middle of the ladder. Win, and they can keep in touch with the top, but lose, and they fall considerably within the chasing pack, even in these early stages. The Mariners have had their own set of concerns, but in a fight of desperation, expect the home side to have too much quality. Wanderers win.
Brisbane Roar vs Perth Glory
Trips across the continent have historically proven problematic for the Glory, but this season’s vintage looks a different unit. Against a struggling and rudderless Roar, Perth should leave the eastern seaboard with another valuable three points. Glory win.
Melbourne Victory vs Wellington Phoenix
It’s been a stop-start season so far for Kevin Muscat’s side, with a valuable win in Adelaide last week spoiled by their loss in the FFA Cup against crosstown rivals City. They face the Phoenix, whose form is far better than their bottom position suggests. While Wellington will be worthy challengers, the Victory should be strong enough to see off this threat. Melbourne win.
Melbourne City, Sydney FC, Western Sydney Wanderers, Perth Glory, Draw
Melbourne City vs Adelaide United
City played with fire last week and were left with burn marks right down the centre of their defence from the Glory, but they bounced back nicely in the FFA Cup against the Victory and should be good enough to dispose of Adelaide. City.
Newcastle Jets vs Sydney FC
Newcastle’s salvage job against the Wanderers was very good to me last week, but I can’t see them getting anything out of their match against a very strong Sky Blues side. Sydney.
Western Sydney Wanderers vs Central Coast Mariners
Tony Popovic is going to be demanding a better performance from the Wanderers following last week’s late-game capitulation. He should get it against the Mariners. Wanderers win.
Brisbane Roar vs Perth Glory
Brisbane might have nabbed the three points last week, but a 1-0 win over the Mariners hardly screams ‘convincing side.’ Perth, on the other hand, were very good for their win against City, and will be confident of another win against the Roar. Perth in a tight one.
Melbourne Victory vs Wellington Phoenix
I really ummed and ahhed with this one before sitting myself quite firmly on the fence. Melbourne finally grabbed their first win of the year last week, but Wellington were unlucky to come away from their game against Sydney without a point, so I’m thinking (read: hoping) the two will cancel each other out here. Draw.
| Round 4 | Mike | Matt | Janek | Vas | Daniel | The Crowd |
| MLC v ADL | MLC | ADL | ADL | MLC | MLC | MLC |
| NEW v SYD | Draw | SYD | Draw | Draw | SYD | SYD |
| WSW v CCM | WSW | Draw | WSW | WSW | WSW | WSW |
| BRI v PER | PER | Draw | PER | PER | PER | PER |
| MVC v WEL | MVC | WEL | Draw | MVC | Draw | Draw |
| Last week | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2 |
| Total | 8 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 9 | 7 |
Well, that’s another week of Crowd tips in, with most of the games following a fairly clear consensus. Melbourne City and Sydney FC both garnered more than 50 per cent of the vote for their matches against Adelaide and Newcastle respectively, while nearly three-quarters of voters tipped Western Sydney to beat the Mariners.
The final two games were a little closer; Perth (46.9%) were tipped to get the points on the road against Brisbane, while the draw (45.7%) was the preferred option for Melbourne Victory vs Wellington Phoenix.
Matt Hummels, a veteran of Dortmund's 2013 Champion League's loss, was instrumental in his side's win over PSG, delivering a header five minutes into…
PSG created chance after chance but unfortunately, the crossbar and post stood between them and a win on a luckless night.
Death, taxes and PSG messing it up in Europe. But the story shouldn't be that Paris have again failed again on the biggest stage…
With the Australian Professional League’s rumoured financial problems, it is important that fans know the truth in regard to where football currently stands.
Cameron Burgess scored the winner to confirm Ipswich’s status as a Premier League club.
A referee wore a camera for the first time in an English Premier League match as Crystal Palace beat up Manchester United 4-0. Footage…
