And then there were six. The A-League has jettisoned four clubs who dragged the chain and became relative cannon fodder for the six teams who have advanced to the finals series.
While Perth Glory and Sydney FC wait in the wings, glass in hand and rested legs ready for the second week of action, the four remaining combatants face immediate elimination with a loss this weekend.
Seeing Melbourne Victory depart the scene would be something of a shock considering their quality and reputation, while Wellington would become the fairy tale should they manage to wriggle past them.
Melbourne City and Adelaide United looks like being a cracking encounter at Coopers Stadium, with The Reds’ recent form impressive and the unpredictable City a serious threat when they manage to produce one of their good days.
Good luck with your tips this week and be sure to insert them into the sheet below to have a say in the voice of the crowd for the first week of elimination action.
Here is the way the panel sees things panning out on Friday night at AAMI Park and late Sunday in the City of churches.
Mike Tuckerman
Phoenix, Adelaide
Yeah yeah yeah, Keisuke Honda, Kosta Barbarouses, big-match experience and all that. I just reckon the Phoenix are primed for an upset. They’re unfazed by playing at AAMI Park and in Roy Krishna they’ve got a striker angling for a big-money move elsewhere. Expect the Nix to nick this in a close one.
Adelaide versus Melbourne City is just as tough to predict as the other elimination final. On the one bench, you’ve got Marco Kurz, who looks like he could get his players to run through brick walls, and on the other, you’ve got Warren Joyce. I think a parochial home crowd will help the Reds get the edge here.
Stuart Thomas
Victory, City
Applying logic to the art of tipping rarely works in the A-League. Doing so in these two matches is fraught with danger. The mind suggests Melbourne Victory has the weapons up front to deal with the Phoenix at home. However, with three draws played between the clubs this season, the mind can be quite deceptive.
(Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)
The reality is that Wellington’s attacking trio of Roy Krishna, Sarpreet Singh and David Williams has scored precisely the same number of goals (34) as the dynamic Victory threat of Ola Toivonen, Kosta Barbarouses and Keisuke Honda. An interesting statistic brought to my attention during the week.
Throw in the three prior draws and this is probably something far less than the comfortable Victory triumph than many will undoubtedly predict.
The 12th man will be the weapon Victory need to make the difference. 20,000 plus at AAMI Park should get them over the line in extra-time.
The Melbourne City vs Adelaide United clash is very much a toss of the coin and the result will be dependent on which City team actually turns up to compete.
Should a blasé and slow passing team of negatives fly to Adelaide on Friday then the Reds will win in a canter. If the energetic and skilled unit that has moved the ball quickly in recent weeks and been far more of a threat in front of goal makes the trip, then City may well advance to the semi-finals.
I’m heading to the airport to see which set of players actually does board the plane. My best guess is the latter and thus, a Warren Joyce-led victory with Jamie Maclaren hitting the score sheet on more than one occasion.
Paul Nicholls
Victory, City
We are down to the pointy end of the season, though with six teams out of ten in the finals it’s more pear-shaped. Speaking of points, I wish I had already received my flu jab as I appear to be struck down with the lurgy. My fearless predictions may be a little off this week and I hope Stuart will apply a suitable modifier to my scores.
First up is Melbourne Victory vs Wellington Phoenix at AAMI Park. There’s not much between them, as these teams have drawn all three of their meetings this season. Victory’s attacking weapons of Ola Toivonen, Kosta Barbarouses and Keisuke Honda won’t be that far ahead of a Wellington forward line led by golden boot winner Roy Krishna.
In defence, Victory has conceded 32 goals to Wellington’s 43 and this is where they should have the edge. In Georg Niedermeier, Thomas Deng and the combative Leigh Broxham, Victory will limit the damage of a well-rested Wellington. The away team is strengthened by the return of the A-league’s best goalkeeper, Fillip Kurto and Roy Krishna, who comes back into the starting line-up.
(Photo by Ross Swanborough/Getty Images)
Victory to win 2-1 in an extra-time thriller.
Sunday sees the league’s most in-form team over the last five weeks, Adelaide, take on Melbourne City.
Despite both teams notching up five-goal hauls last week, it’s no guarantee of a goal-fest. In fact, I expect a cagey game with Warren Joyce’s City looking to hit the Reds on the counter.
Riley McGree’s pending move back to Belgium comes as no surprise as his late-season form has been excellent. If he can get decent minutes in Europe he will do well.
Adelaide will pile on the pressure with Craig Goodwin looking to connect with the 21-year-old George Blackwood, who is in the best form of his career.
It will be a great tussle that could well go to a penalty shootout. City to survive another week.
| Elimination Finals | Mike | Stuart | Paul | The Crowd |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MVC vs WEL | WEL | MVC | MVC | ? |
| ADL vs MCY | ADL | MCY | MCY | ? |
| Last week | 3 | 1 | 3 | 5 |
| Previous Total | 47 | 56 | 61 | 60 |
| New Total | 50 | 57 | 64 | 65 |
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