A-League Round 18 (18/12 to 20/12)

Adelaide United v Wellington Phoenix
Melbourne v Sydney FC
Central Coast v Brisbane Roar
Newcastle Jets v North Queensland
Gold Coast United v Perth Glory


Friday, December 18

Adelaide United v Wellington Phoenix
Team news: Adelaide United - Reid (OUT) -- Wellington - Reddy (IN), Muscat (susp.), Sigmund (susp.)

Verdict: Round 18 provided a week of season milestones for these two sides. Adelaide United broke their 6-game winless streak while Wellington Phoenix were beaten for the first time in 15 home fixtures. Adelaide United manager, Aurelio Vidmar, rang the changes last week in replacing some old heads with youth which ended up paying dividends. Young midfielder, Fabian Barbiero, scored the winner in a 1-0 defeat of Brisbane in a side which was envigorated with the inclusion of fellow young guns Marrone and Mullen. Wellington's injury/suspension crisis clearly affected them in their 1-0 home defeat to Sydney but will atleast have former Brisbane keeper, Liam Reddy, providing more experience between the sticks.

Adelaide United have the perfect opportunity to move away from the bottom of the table against a Wellington side that hold the worst away record in the A-League (1-4-4). Adelaide United players now have a spring in their step and even talk of finals football has been spoken about midweek. I expect the home team to keep the momentum going for atleast another week.

Pick: Adelaide United -0.25AH @1.86 (ibcbet, 8 units)
Adelaide United 1 - 1 Wellington Phoenix

Saturday, December 19

Melbourne Victory v Sydney FC
Team news: Melbourne - Ward (IN), Sukha (OUT) -- Sydney - Bridge (IN), Aloisi (OUT), Colosimo (susp.)

Verdict: The undisputed biggest fixture in the A-League calendar gains even more importance this time round as first meets second. Melbourne's 3-0 win at Central Coast ensured they maintained their 3-pt buffer above Sydney FC, eventhough the latter managed a 1-0 away win at Wellington. Both teams go into this contest on the back of some good form. Melbourne have won three of their last four while Sydney FC have won their last two.

In team news, Sydney FC will miss on the services of arguably the most in form defender in the league, Simon Colosimo. This is a big blow for the visitors especially as they must deal with the most lethal attack in the land. On the other hand, Melbourne have conceded only 1 goal in their last 4 encounters but I am not totally convinced that they can keep out a Sydney team boasting a plethora of attacking players in good form. The Sky Blues forward line is further boosted by the returning Mark Bridge. adding credence to my thinking that we should see plentiful goals here.

Pick: Over 2.25 goals @1.84 (sbobet, 7 units)
Melbourne 0 - 0 Sydney FC