A-League Round 5 (03-05/09)

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


Saturday, September 4

Melbourne Heart v North Queensland

Verdict: Verdict: Melbourne Heart are one of four teams yet to register a win this season with 4 games played. They came desperately close last weekend against league leaders, Perth Glory, only to concede a dubious penalty in injury time to eventually draw 2-2. The Heart though have shown signs of life in the past few rounds, especially in attack, and are likely to retain the services of former Australian International striker John Aloisi for this game. North Queensland have been by far the most exciting side to watch so far, having scored 9 and conceded 9 in their 4 games to date. The Fury more than make up for their naive defending with a speedy, young strike force that includes Isaka Cernak, David Williams, and Chris Payne.

After cruelly been denied the win last week following a refereeing error, nothing but the three points will be good enough for Melbourne in this match. This attitude will make for an exciting match, and lots of goals, as North Queensland are naturally set up to play a fast, counter-attacking game.

Side note: Aloisi score a hat-trick in a warm up friendly during the week.

Pick: Over 2.25 goals @1.84 (sbobet, 5 units)
Melbourne Heart 1 - 0 North Queensland


Sunday, September 5

Newcastle Jets v Brisbane Roar

Verdict: Newcastle will look to put their off-field dramas behind them when they face in form Brisbane. The players and staff of the Jets have not been paid two weeks wages as the club is going through a bit of a financial crisis. Meanwhile, Brisbane is playing the best football in the league and getting results to boot with two consecutive wins, in addition to not conceding in their three games so far. Newcastle had a Bye round last week but in the three weeks prior, they have had trouble scoring with only 1 goal to show for their efforts. First team regulars in Wheelhouse, Topor-Stanley, Rooney, and Zadkovich are likely to miss through injury. This means that there will be a reshuffle in the centre-back position with either untested youngster Taylor Regan or midfielder Ben Kantarovski filling in at centre-back.

Brisbane have no such injury worries with only regular right-back, Ivan Franjic, missing out but is being replaced by the equally adept Milan Susak. Brisbane manager, Ange Postecoglou, has emphasized that his team will play with the same attacking intent that they have shown in their last two home games. Indeed Brisbane showed in their first game of the season at Gold Coast, despite a scoreless draw, that they can take it to their opponents on the road. With Newcastle facing problems on and off field, I give Brisbane a good chance to continue their good form.

Pick: Brisbane DNB @2.11 (188bet, 10 units)
Newcastle Jets 0 - 0 Brisbane Roar