A-League Round 5 (19/09 - 21/09)

Queensland Roar v Newcastle Jets
Central Coast v Melbourne Victory
Perth Glory v Wellington Phoenix


In Round 4, Melbourne continued to show that they have a stranglehold on the A-League by winning 1-0 over Adelaide United despite playing the majority of the 90 minutes with ten men! Sandwiched by a couple of scoreless draws for Newcastle, Sydney, Wellington and Central Coast respectively, Queensland impressed in the last game of the round with a 3-0 stroll in Perth.

This week, Queensland's Charlie Miller will be in the spotlight as he tries to become a goal-scoring record breaker against Newcastle, 2nd and 3rd clash as Sydney try to take advantage of Adelaide's midweek exertions in Japan (Asian Champions League), and cellar dwellers Perth and Wellington fight for pride in the last game of the round.

Queensland v Newcastle

Summary: Queensland will aim to break a surprising record of not having registered a victory (or a goal for that matter) on their home ground against the Newcastle Jets. In four attempts since 2005, Newcastle have proven too strong on every occasion. Records are all about history and will prove irrelevant in today's battle, especially as both clubs made key changes to their personel during the off-season. In Round 4, Queensland were most impressive in their 3-0 crushing of league dwellers Perth Glory whereas Newcastle recorded a respectable scoreless draw against Sydney, in a game of few goal scoring opportunities. Queensland's veteran midfielder and former Rangers man, Charlie Miller, will aim to break an Australian domestic league record by attempting to score in 5 consecutive opening rounds.

Queensland
Likely XI (3-5-2: Reddy, Tiatto, Packer, Moore, De Vere, Seo, McKay, Miller, Murdocca, Reinaldo, Van Dijk).
Newcastle
Likely XI (4-4-2: Covic, Elrich, North, A.Griffiths, D'Apuzzo, Holland, Wheelhouse, Song, Thompson, J.Griffiths, Edmundo).

Queensland
In: Tim Smits, Ben Griffin.
Out: Josh Mcloughlan, Isaka Cernak.
Newcastle
In: Kaz Patafta, Adam D'Apuzzo, Noel Spencer.
Out: Jesper Hakansson, Ben Kantarovski.

Verdict: Queensland's forward play against Perth was a joy to watch and 3 goals could of easily been much much more. Reinaldo and Van Dijk seem to be forming a formidable partnership. Together with Miller's creativity and goals from midfield plus the tireless Murdocca/Mckay duo, Queensland may just be clicking into gear after a slow start to the season. Newcastle is almost unrecognisable from the team that won the league last season. Apart from a 3-goal hall against a poor Perth Glory in Round 2, Newcastle have failed to click going forward and have now been kept scoreless on 2 consecutive occasions. Add to this the fact that Newcastle have conceded 9 goals in 4 games and its not hard to see that there are major problems. If Queensland can get over their short turn around (and trip from Perth) of 5 days since their last game, then they shouldn't have a problem in disposing Newcaslte.

Pick: Queensland to WIN
Queensland 0 - 1 Newcastle

Central Coast Mariners v Melbourne Victory

Summary: Central Coast will be looking to get back onto winning terms after dropping 2 points in a scoreless draw at Wellington. Central Coast had plenty opportunities to win comfortably but a combination of good keeping and poor finishing proved crucial. Melbourne proved their mental strength and winning mentality by overcoming Adelaide United 1-0 despite losing striker Ney Fabiano mid-way through the first half via a red card. Melbourne will be without their Brazilian striker but would hope that their good form at the Blue Tongue Stadium continues.

Central Coast
In: Nick Mrdja, Dylan Macallister.
Out:
Melbourne
In: Michael Thwaite, Jose Lopez.
Out: Ney Fabiano.

Verdict: Central Coast have some important inclusions for this contest, most notably Dylan Macallister. Dylan was instrumental in his side's 4-2 victory at Queensland in Round 3 with two goals so he will definitely add some firepower to a misfiring Central Coast outfit. Melbourne's creative ranks are boosted with the return of Jose Lopez from international duty with Costa Rica. In the last few weeks, Central Coast have had key players returning and now they have a full compliment of players. I expect Central Coast to now replicate some of the form that led them to an A-League final last season.

Pick: Central Coast Asian Hcp +0,0.5
Central Coast 2 - 2 Melbourne Victory

Perth Glory v Wellington

Summary: The final game of Round 5 pits the bottom teams on the table in what seems like a 6 pointer, if there was such a thing so early in the season. Perth have accumulated one solitary point till now after they were denied all three in the final kick of the game against Newcastle in Round 2. Wellington are a little better off with 2 points after respectable draws against Queensland (1-1), and Central Coast (0-0) last week. During the week, Perth manager Dave Mitchell took it upon himself to call a crisis meeting with his players after the 3-0 humiliation at the hands of Queensland in Round 4. Just how much effect this will have on a side that have conceded at an average of 3 goals a game, we will soon find out.

Perth
Likely XI: Petkovic, Topor-Stanley, Tarka, Harnwell, Coyne, Rukavytsya, Pellegrino, Srhoj, Bulloch, Trinidad, Dadi.
Wellington
Likely XI: Moss, McKain, Durante, Dodd, Lochhead, Daniel, Hearfield, Ferrante, Johnson, Smeltz, Kwasnik.

Perth Glory
In: Jamie Harnwell, Nick Rizzo, Hayden Doyle, Naum Sekulovski, Mark Lee, Wayne Srhoj.
Out: Amaral.
Wellington Phoenix
In: Michael Ferrante, Adam Kwasnik.
Out: Vaughan Coveny, Leo Bertos, Vince Lia.

Verdict: Dave Mitchell has promised that he will ring the changes this week which is all good and proper if he is injecting quality into the side. I'm afraid this is not the case. Brazilian midfielder, Amaral, will be an irreplacable loss this week as he nurses a hamstring injury. So far this season, the Brazilian has been head and shoulders above anyone else in the Perth team and they will struggle to create goals and orchestrate proceedings in his absence. On the other hand, Wellington can thank their goalkeeper Glen Moss for taking a point from last week's encounter against Central Coast. Good results breed confidence though, and together with the inclusion of creative players Ferrante and Kwasnik for this encounter, Wellington should fly into Australian shores with the confidence that they can bag all three points.

Pick LAY Perth Glory
Perth 1 - 0 Wellington