The Western Sydney Wanderers can secure safety in the NPL NSW competition with a draw against Mt Druitt Town Rangers on Sunday afternoon.
With the side currently sitting four points ahead of this weekend’s opponents who currently occupy the relegation playoff spot, a draw for the Wanderers would ensure there would be no way for Rangers to overtake them on the table.
The Wanderers will be without many of their top players, who are currently on a training camp with the A-League Men’s side, meaning the likes of Nathaneal Blair, Teng Kuol and Josh Hong will need to stand tall and put in strong performances against a desperate Rangers team.
Mt Druitt are on a poor run of form, being winless in their last nine matches and seeing them slide down the table into the relegation places; last week they fell to a 2-1 defeat against a 10-man Marconi Stallions team at home.
Their last win came in early June against an already relegated Bulls FC side, and they have to win this week to avoid falling into the promotion-relegation playoff against a FNSW League One team.
The Wanderers picked up a point that ended up being valuable due to Rangers’ defeat, but they were immensely frustrated not to pick up all three points after letting a two goal lead slip in a 2-2 draw against Manly United.
Nicolas Milanovic and Oscar Priestman scored great goals in the first half, before Mat Sim and Bruno Mendes pegged them back.
The reverse fixture saw Mt Druitt take a narrow 2-1 win at Popondetta Park back in May, with goals from Nikola Djordevic and Kotaro Katsuta cancelling out a brilliant volley from Marcus Younis.
Mt Druitt have only won twice since then, and the Wanderers will be hoping to continue Rangers’ pain whilst securing their spot in the division for 2024.
NPL NSW Round 29
Western Sydney Wanderers FC vs Mt Druitt Town Rangers FC
Sunday 20th August 2023, 1pm
Wanderers Football Park
