A-League Round 9 (01-08/10)

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


Friday, October 1

Gold Coast United v Wellington Phoenix

Verdict: Gold Coast United did well to come out of a busy week with 5pts from a possible 9 after playing three games in 7 days. They were rather fortunate in the 1-1 draw at Sydney on Sunday but the good news is that striker, Bruce Djite, is finally off the mark for his new club. Wellington Phoenix made the most of two gifts by North Queensland to record their 3rd win of the campaign with a 2-1 result.

Wellington have struggled on their travels so far this season, picking up a point from a possible 12 to date. They hope to get star striker, Paul Iffil, back from a groin injury but even he has been sub-par in away games. Gold Coast are playing some of the best football in the country at the moment. They create plentiful opportunities and maintain possession well but if I were to be critical, have lacked a cutting edge up front. I think they can overcome this today against a Wellington side that has only kept two cleansheets so far. In addition, Gold Coast regain the services of the attack minded Taj Minniecon and James Brown who both return from national youth team duty. A win here will rocket the Gold Coast 5 positions up to 2nd so their is an incentive there for the players.

Pick: Gold Coast United -0.25AH @1.90 (pinnacle, 10 units)
Gold Coast United 3 - 1 Wellington Phoenix


Saturday, October 2

Central Coast v North Queensland

Verdict: North Queensland will play the third game of their whirlwind road trip, in the space of seven days, when they face third placed Central Coast. The visitors remain winless in their last 6 outings, and can perhaps thank their lucky stars that they managed to come away with a 1-1 draw against bottom side Sydney FC on Wednesday. In contrast, Central Coast are coming off a two week break and have a chance to come within 3pts of league leading Adelaide United with a win here.

North Queensland has been terrible in their last two games against two sides, in Wellington and Sydney, that aren't on top of their game at the moment. Central Coast is a confident side and arguably has the strongest backline in the league, conceding a league best 4 goals in 7 games. In saying that, their attack has trouble scoring goals as Simon and McBreen are a little too similar in style. Nonetheless, the home side regain the services of the impressive Bozanic from National Youth team duty while Argentinian midfielder/forward, Patricio Perez, plays his third game for the club. North Queensland looked a tired and rudderless side without captain Ufuk Talay (misses again today through susp.), on Wednesday, so they are in for a really tough time at the Bluetongue Stadium.

Pick: Central Coast -0.75AH @2.08 (188bet, 10 units)
Central Coast 3 - 2 North Queensland


Friday, October 8


Melbourne Heart v Melbourne Victory

Verdict: In what is the first Melbourne derby in the history of the A-League, it is safe to say that this is a big game for both sides. The Heart go into this game on the back of a 4-0 loss at Brisbane, their worst result for the season, whereas Victory stretched their unbeaten run to four games with a scoreless draw at Newcastle. Victory have now kept 4 cleansheets in their last 5 games which will please manager, Ernie Merrick, after his team conceded 7 goals in the opening three games.

The Heart regain the services of centre-back, Michael Beauchamp, from suspension while captain Simon Colosimo should recover sufficiently from his neck injury to play. There are though problems in the wing-back positions with Heffernan suspended and Hammill on international duty with the Australia youth team. The Victory will be happy to have captain Kevin Muscat back from injury while midfielder Grant Brebner is 50/50 after suffering from a broken toe two weeks ago.
Victory has struggled for goals this season which is the main reason why they only sit in 5th position. Last year's runner up though has seemed to have steadied the ship, and are beginning to show some consistency from game to game. The same cannot be said of Melbourne Heart who are still a work in progress. They often let themselves down through bad discipline, lack of understanding, or individual errors. In the pressure of a derby game, I believe these factors will be the Heart's major downfall, not to mention that the Victory is the team in better form.

Pick: Melbourne Victory DNB @1.70 (188bet, 10 units)
Melbourne Heart 2 - 1 Melbourne Victory