The Western Sydney Wanderers NPL NSW side face a difficult clash at home against APIA Leichhardt FC on Sunday afternoon.
In a 1st vs. 3rd clash, the Wanderers will look to claim their first win over last year’s champions since returning to the NPL NSW competition.
If there was a time to record a win over the heavyweights, this would be the season, as the Wanderers currently sit seven points clear of the rest of the competition at the top of the table, and are eight points clear of APIA.
They won their eighth game in a row last weekend in another tough game against Blacktown City, where a clinical first half performance saw them win 3-0 in a game where both sides finished the game with 10 men.
Nathaneal Blair scored a double to take his tally to the season to 12, whilst Aydan Hammond also played a starring role, scoring a brilliant solo goal and being a nuisance for the Blacktown defence.
The Wanderers may be without several key players this weekend, as some could be with the A-League Men’s side in Melbourne, meaning the likes of Ryley Hollingdale and Adam Bugarija will need to stand tall against tough opposition.
APIA are once again one of the top sides in the competition this season, but have had some notable losses, including a 6-3 loss to Blacktown on the opening weekend, and a 5-1 loss to Sydney United at home two weeks ago.
They did rebound from that to defeat second place Rockdale 3-2 last weekend, with Jack Stewart, Ben Gibson and Rory Jordan all getting on the scoresheet.
They may have lost star striker Jason Romero, but Gibson and Jordan Segreto have carried the burden with six goals each so far this campaign.
The sides played out an entertaining 2-2 draw at Wanderers Football Park last season, before APIA took down a spirited Wanderers side in a narrow 2-1 win at Lambert Park.
NPL NSW Round 12
Western Sydney Wanderers FC vs APIA Leichhardt FC
Sunday 28th April 2024, 3pm
Wanderers Football Park
