Week 13 of the Hyundai A-League kicks off on New Year’s Eve, Thursday December 31, with five matches scheduled to take place through until Sunday afternoon.
The ladder-leading Western Sydney Wanderers kept the Jets scoreless last week and feature in this week’s headline clash against Adelaide United on New Year’s Day with last season’s second-to-bottom placed team searching for their incredible 10th consecutive win.
The other feature game takes place on Saturday afternoon with the second-ranked Brisbane Roar hosting Perth Glory, who drew with Melbourne Victory 1-1 last Sunday, at Suncorp Stadium.
Get the hottest A-League Week 13 betting odds and promos with us here at Ladbrokes!
Central Coast Mariners vs Wellington Phoenix
Central Coast Stadium, Thursday December 31, 7:00pm (AEST)
The Central Coast’s woes continued in Week 12 when thrashed 4-1 by Sydney FC, the Mariners remaining at the bottom of the ladder with just the single win for the season so far way back in Round 1. This week they get the home advantage hosting Wellington in New Year’s Eve football, Phoenix clinging to sixth in the standings and also coming off a well-beaten defeat when kept scoreless 3-0 by Adelaide last week. In 365 days the Mariners have only won five matches and are underdogs on Thursday night and it should be another entertaining, but likely fruitless, match thanks to Tony Walmsley’s care-free attacking.
Western Sydney Wanderers vs Adelaide United
Pirtek Stadium, Friday January 1, 7:40pm (AEST)
Western Sydney sit pretty at the top of the table having won or tied their past nine straight. They shoot for double-digits then on New Year’s Day when they host Adelaide United. Adelaide are also doing well with four games played without defeat, but can they knock the Wanderers from the summit? The top six is within reach for United, but our odds suggest that at $4 they won’t get the better of WSW ($1.85) who boast the equal best defensive record in the comp plus plenty of depth in their attack thanks to Mark Bridge who has netted five goals in as many games.
Brisbane Roar vs Perth Glory
Suncorp Stadium, Saturday January 2, 4:15pm (AEST)
Brisbane play at home on Saturday afternoon up in Queensland and are red hot favourites to defeat Perth Glory who are at the longest odds of any team this round paying around $6.50 to score what looks a near impossible upset. The John Aloisi-coached Roar are second on the table and just one win behind Western Sydney after their Week 12 3-1 win over Melbourne City in last week’s A-League blockbuster. Brisbane have enjoyed a stellar start to the season and are chasing another Premier’s Plate after their 2013-14 success. Off-field, pre-season strife hasn’t stopped the Roar’s flying form and they look in for an easy win to take them to four successive victories.
Melbourne City vs Sydney FC
AAMI Park, Saturday January 2, 7:30pm (AEST)
Melbourne City are third on the ladder after going down to the Roar last week and are fighting to move closer to second position with a win over Sydney FC at AAMI Park on Saturday. Brisbane won’t lose to Perth in Saturday’s other clash, but City still have plenty to play for. Sydney come off the big win against Central Coast, this season’s worst, and have their work cut out for them to bring that form to one of the competition’s best. Sydney FC also play without striker Matt Simon who received a one-match ban after striking Jake McGing off the ball last Saturday, and captain Alex Brosque (hamstring) also looks like he’ll miss the trip to Melbourne.
Newcastle Jets vs Melbourne Victory
Hunter Stadium, Sunday January 3, 5:00pm (AEST)
Newcastle couldn’t post any points when going down 2 – 0 to the in-form Wanderers last Thursday but come into this clash with the fifth-placed Melbourne Victory off a nice little rest. Victory meanwhile tied with Perth Glory last Sunday and remain firmly inside the top six this season. It has been two months since the Jets have got a win on the board and they have been very disappointing, but they should be refreshed and they did beat Victory earlier this season at home in October. That was the eighth-placed Jets’ last win at home, but even with their defensive structure depleted by injuries and the loss of Lee Ki-je to Korea, this is the week for them to get back on track; they pay juicy $5 v $1.65 odds to do so also!