ROUND 2 FINALS SERIES PREVIEW – NPL NSW MEN’S
9 August , 2022 By Football NSW
The first week of the National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s finals series provided plenty of excitement and entertainment and this weekend is set to bring even more as the competition heats up.
One team will secure a position in the Grand Final on Saturday, while one team will see their season come to a close on Sunday in what should be stellar football on all fronts.
Sydney Olympic FC v Manly United FC
3:00pm, Saturday 13th August, Belmore Sportsground
Premiership winners Sydney Olympic will host Manly United in the Major Semi-Final on Saturday afternoon, with the winner booking a Grand Final place.
After a week off, Olympic should be feeling fresh and ready to take on Manly, who will surely be buoyed by their sensational late win over Blacktown City.
Having beaten out Manly for the Premiership on the final day of competition, Manly will be fighting for vengeance with a win that would give them a week off before a grand final appearance.
Alen Aganovic was the hero for the Northern Beaches boys last week with his two late goals securing the win for Manly and will be one to watch in this clash, having been impressive throughout the season.
Manly also had three representatives in the NPL NSW Team of the Year with captain Jimmy Oates being selected, alongside Seiya Kambayashai and Bruno Mendes, showing the quality of Adam Griffiths’ team.
While there is plenty of talent in the Manly squad, there is just as much in the Premiership-winning Olympic team.
Roy O’Donovan, Michael Glassock and Darcy Burgess were selected to the Team of the Year from Olympic and are expected to have a big impact on the game, as they have done consistently throughout the regular season.
O’Donovan in particular will be a threat after showing his goal-scoring ability and securing the golden boot in a tight battle with the other talented strikers in the competition.
In a high-stakes match, there is set to be plenty of action at Belmore as one team will secure the valuable place in the NPL NSW Grand Final.