Welcome to the Friday Forecast for another week, as a clearer picture emerges in the NPL and the early posturing continues in the Super League.
In the NPL, with most sides having now played a similar amount of games we are getting a better idea of where teams stand, and who looks to be in the thick of the title race. The conclusion, Devonport are the team to beat, but the chasing pack have the quality which they are increasingly adding to, in order to haul them in. As such, we are seeing the early goings of an arms race, as sides search for that final piece of the puzzle. South Hobart have added Canadian winger Isky Van Doorne to their squad a week after Darcy Hall made his sparkling return, giving them unmatched depth in attack and midfield, that could well prove telling in this longer season. The Strikers are apparently set to add a returning Raphael Reynolds, whilst the Hobart Zebras are actively pursuing mainland options. The competition is fierce at the top, the margins are fine, and adding in that one extra player could well push these sides over the top.
I am sure the usual suspects will be up in arms over these imports supposedly taking a young players place etc, but seriously, have you looked at the average age of the league? It's currently frighteningly young and well below that of mainland NPL's. The fact is, if you are a talented young player in Tasmania, you are not going to be starved of senior football opportunities, so please spare me the sanctimony. The work these players do coaching and working with our young players is fantastic for their development as footballers. There is no doubt in recent years the likes of Groenewold, Fischer, Giantsopoulos, Baker, Van Doorne etc have raised the standard of the league with their play and a higher quality league can only be good for our local players and see them raise their own games in turn. The positives far outweigh the negatives when it comes to the topic of imports.
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Move over over clouds[/caption]
Moving onto the actual contests this week and we begin on the Friday night as Glenorchy Knights host South Hobart at KGV. South Hobart is coming off a 13-0 thumping of Clarence United last week, and will need to adjust to playing a tougher opponent, but they are turning things around after a slightly sluggish start. They currently sit in second place with a 3-1-1 record and have augmented their squad nicely after some injury worries. When it comes to injuries though, the Knights have had the worst run of injury luck of any side in the league. They are currently sitting in fourth place, but have lost their two games against the likely contenders, falling to both Devonport and Olympia. If they are to push beyond a mid table finish, then they will need to start getting results against the competition heavyweights. The in form Declan Brown, who has been one of the stand out players of the season so far, hit upon his sides biggest challenge so far at Friday morning's press conference, stating
"In the Championship, it was one or two every year. The biggest thing this year is getting up and about for those big games every single week."
There are no weeks off in this league and whilst the past 3 years they could ride out a few injuries and still win reasonably comfortably, they are learning quickly that is not the case in the top division.
In other Round 7 action, three games will take place on the Saturday. At 4:15pm, Riverside hit the road as they travel down to take on the Olympia Warriors. It will be a stern test for a Riverside team still making their way at the top level, and they will be big outsiders, but their organised defensive setup should lend itself to the smaller dimensions of Warrior Park. Their defenders will be engaged for longer periods of the game than usual, but we have seen sides manage to stifle Olympia in the past by setting up in a manner similar to which the Roos executed against Devonport last week. For the Warriors this is the start of a three game stretch against the current bottom 3 sides over their next three games and represents a major chance for them to start climbing the table.
Elsewhere in the South, the undefeated Zebras host winless Launceston City at KGV in the Italian derby. The Zebras are building into the season nicely and will be warm favourites on their home deck. The defence looks a strength and whilst their attacking play hasn't consistently clicked yet, they've shown flashes of what they could be. Launceston City certainly turned a corner with their display against Knights last weekend, and if not for some Hart heroics in the Knights net, they would have claimed a first win of the season. They need to build from that and generate some momentum as they try to recover from their stumbling start.
In the earlier game, top plays bottom when the Devonport Strikers host Clarence at Valley Road. It's hard to see anything other than a big Strikers win in this one, with goal difference potentially so crucial, so don't expect any feet to be taken off the accelerator. They've seen Zebras and South cash in to bolster their goal difference, and will want to do likewise. Picking up Lachie Burt midweek was a step in the right direction for a Clarence side who will be hoping last week was their nadir. Hopefully its a catalyst for a few more signings, as they have been non competitive to date.
In the Super League there are just the two games this week, both taking place on the Saturday afternoon. Ulverstone make their home bow, as they face a revenge game with a Kingborough Lions side who inflicted their only defeat in 2018 at this very venue, coming in the statewide cup. They have already matched that season total of defeats this year, as they were outplayed by the Olympia Warriors last week and it perhaps hinted at a changing of the guard at the top. It's still very early though and you'd think Ulverstone might take a few weeks to click into gear, given their shorter preseason. Kingborough meanwhile will be disappointed with their heavy loss last week and looking for redemption. Their preseason form showed a side ready to fight it out at the top, but last week showed a side still someway off that. Their actual level is probably somewhere in between those two, but their best is going to be good enough to beat anyone, so Ulverstone will need to be sharp to avoid another surprise loss at the hands of the Lions.
[caption id="attachment_10097" align="alignnone" width="592"]
The Warriors are the early pace setters- Solstice Photography[/caption]
At Warrior Park, Olympia will be expected to take the points when they host South Hobart. Having seen off their main title rivals and walked away with a maximum six points from their first two weeks, they will now look to consolidate their lead atop the table against a South side struggling personnel wise. Poppy Wood, Ellie Dick and Phoebe Djakic are all set for extended stints on the sideline, and having lost key players like Fulton, Ferrier, Fader and Carter over the off-season, Craig Westwood has a truly unenviable task of trying to build a new look side on the fly. They fought really well against Clarence last week in a cracking game, but the Warriors present another threat altogether as the side that has jumped out as the early season title favourites.
NPL TASMANIA
Friday 29 March
Glenorchy Knights v South Hobart, 8:15pm, KGV LIVE STREAM GAME
Saturday 30 March
Devonport v Clarence, 2:15pm, Valley Road
Olympia v Riverside Olympic, 4:15pm, Warrior Park
Hobart Zebras v Launceston City, 4:30pm, KGV LIVE STREAM GAME
Women’s Super League
Saturday 30 March
Olympia Warriors v South Hobart, 2:00pm, Warrior Park
Ulverstone v Kingborough, 2:30pm, Ulverstone
Move over over clouds[/caption]
Moving onto the actual contests this week and we begin on the Friday night as Glenorchy Knights host South Hobart at KGV. South Hobart is coming off a 13-0 thumping of Clarence United last week, and will need to adjust to playing a tougher opponent, but they are turning things around after a slightly sluggish start. They currently sit in second place with a 3-1-1 record and have augmented their squad nicely after some injury worries. When it comes to injuries though, the Knights have had the worst run of injury luck of any side in the league. They are currently sitting in fourth place, but have lost their two games against the likely contenders, falling to both Devonport and Olympia. If they are to push beyond a mid table finish, then they will need to start getting results against the competition heavyweights. The in form Declan Brown, who has been one of the stand out players of the season so far, hit upon his sides biggest challenge so far at Friday morning's press conference, stating
"In the Championship, it was one or two every year. The biggest thing this year is getting up and about for those big games every single week."
There are no weeks off in this league and whilst the past 3 years they could ride out a few injuries and still win reasonably comfortably, they are learning quickly that is not the case in the top division.
In other Round 7 action, three games will take place on the Saturday. At 4:15pm, Riverside hit the road as they travel down to take on the Olympia Warriors. It will be a stern test for a Riverside team still making their way at the top level, and they will be big outsiders, but their organised defensive setup should lend itself to the smaller dimensions of Warrior Park. Their defenders will be engaged for longer periods of the game than usual, but we have seen sides manage to stifle Olympia in the past by setting up in a manner similar to which the Roos executed against Devonport last week. For the Warriors this is the start of a three game stretch against the current bottom 3 sides over their next three games and represents a major chance for them to start climbing the table.
Elsewhere in the South, the undefeated Zebras host winless Launceston City at KGV in the Italian derby. The Zebras are building into the season nicely and will be warm favourites on their home deck. The defence looks a strength and whilst their attacking play hasn't consistently clicked yet, they've shown flashes of what they could be. Launceston City certainly turned a corner with their display against Knights last weekend, and if not for some Hart heroics in the Knights net, they would have claimed a first win of the season. They need to build from that and generate some momentum as they try to recover from their stumbling start.
In the earlier game, top plays bottom when the Devonport Strikers host Clarence at Valley Road. It's hard to see anything other than a big Strikers win in this one, with goal difference potentially so crucial, so don't expect any feet to be taken off the accelerator. They've seen Zebras and South cash in to bolster their goal difference, and will want to do likewise. Picking up Lachie Burt midweek was a step in the right direction for a Clarence side who will be hoping last week was their nadir. Hopefully its a catalyst for a few more signings, as they have been non competitive to date.
In the Super League there are just the two games this week, both taking place on the Saturday afternoon. Ulverstone make their home bow, as they face a revenge game with a Kingborough Lions side who inflicted their only defeat in 2018 at this very venue, coming in the statewide cup. They have already matched that season total of defeats this year, as they were outplayed by the Olympia Warriors last week and it perhaps hinted at a changing of the guard at the top. It's still very early though and you'd think Ulverstone might take a few weeks to click into gear, given their shorter preseason. Kingborough meanwhile will be disappointed with their heavy loss last week and looking for redemption. Their preseason form showed a side ready to fight it out at the top, but last week showed a side still someway off that. Their actual level is probably somewhere in between those two, but their best is going to be good enough to beat anyone, so Ulverstone will need to be sharp to avoid another surprise loss at the hands of the Lions.
[caption id="attachment_10097" align="alignnone" width="592"] The Warriors are the early pace setters- Solstice Photography[/caption]
At Warrior Park, Olympia will be expected to take the points when they host South Hobart. Having seen off their main title rivals and walked away with a maximum six points from their first two weeks, they will now look to consolidate their lead atop the table against a South side struggling personnel wise. Poppy Wood, Ellie Dick and Phoebe Djakic are all set for extended stints on the sideline, and having lost key players like Fulton, Ferrier, Fader and Carter over the off-season, Craig Westwood has a truly unenviable task of trying to build a new look side on the fly. They fought really well against Clarence last week in a cracking game, but the Warriors present another threat altogether as the side that has jumped out as the early season title favourites.
NPL TASMANIA
Friday 29 March
Glenorchy Knights v South Hobart, 8:15pm, KGV LIVE STREAM GAME
Saturday 30 March
Devonport v Clarence, 2:15pm, Valley Road
Olympia v Riverside Olympic, 4:15pm, Warrior Park
Hobart Zebras v Launceston City, 4:30pm, KGV LIVE STREAM GAME
Women’s Super League
Saturday 30 March
Olympia Warriors v South Hobart, 2:00pm, Warrior Park
Ulverstone v Kingborough, 2:30pm, Ulverstone