The Roar's A-League expert tips and predictions: Round 22 (weekend 2)

As strange as it might sound, the handsome dude with the spiky hair is within one of the lead in the battle for 2018 tipping honours.

There has been a little bit of Cool Runnings and Forest Gump about my recent surge. Part unlikely comeback with a little bit of simple-minded confidence thrown in for good measure, the resurgence has been astonishing.

Tuckerman, Jeffrey and Kearney will catch chills from the cool breeze created as I fly by them over the final five weeks of the competition and the Crowd will be left flailing in my wake.

This week sees the completion of Round 22, with the majority of people wanting more of the same. After the feast of football we have witnessed over the past fortnight, it is something of a disappointment that the A-League can only throw up two games this weekend.

With only one of the teams in serious finals contention, the potentially flat weekend offers little in terms of post-season action yet plenty in terms of desperation.

Enjoy the limited action and make sure you insert your tips into the sheet below to have your say as the voice of the crowd.

Mike Tuckerman
Western Sydney, Perth
The FFA are damned if they do and damned if they don’t. Split rounds obviously help A-League clubs involved in the ACL, but this one couldn’t possibly have come at a more momentum-breaking time.

Still, neither Western Sydney nor Perth Glory will mind, given that both will enjoy a golden opportunity to press their claims for a finals spot. The Wanderers will appreciate playing their game first and if they are to be involved in finals football, they will surely need to see off Wellington Phoenix – who have already shown the door to another colossal coaching dud in the form of the departed Darije Kalezic.

Perth Glory will likewise be desperate to see off Central Coast Mariners in the west, although they’ve got a tough ask to catch the Wanderers in sixth spot. With four points between the two sides going into this encounter, the Glory simply cannot afford to collect anything less than three points at nib Stadium. Both the Mariners and the Phoenix have provided decent nuisance value at times this season, but it’s hard to see anything other than a couple of home wins transpiring.

(Photo by Stefan Gosatti/Getty Images)

Stuart Thomas
Western Sydney, Central Coast
Wellington have played a key role in the rejuvenation of my tips, yet even I can’t pick them this week. Western Sydney are chipping away at sixth spot and will probably get there, even though they have shown little to convince fans that they can do any damage in the finals.

All in all, it is a questionable affair that hopefully produces something far greater than what is expected. The Wanderers to win.

Perth Glory need three points at home to have any chance of playing finals football and the Mariners need a win to keep their faithful fans positive about the future. I am lost on this one and my dart landing on the Mariners is the only way I could split them.

Daniel Jeffrey
Western Sydney, Perth
The Wanderers didn’t get the win they were after last week, but they should have few problems grabbing all three points this weekend at home against a Wellington side which looks the goods for the wooden spoon this season.

Perth should also have few problems accounting for the out-of-sorts Mariners, whose 1-0 win over the lowly Phoenix last time out was their first victory since the opening week of December. That said, given the Glory have lost more than any other club this season, there’s every chance this could be a banana peel of a game for them, but I’ll still take them to win at home.

Alan Kearney
Alan’s tips will be added to the article when they arrive.