Round 17 is going to be very hard to top.
As far as a round of A-League goes, it had everything – fast kicking, high scoring and ties? You bet.
Brisbane Roar let go of Coach Warren Moon after what has been another nightmare season, currently sitting one point of the bottom of the ladder and have not won a game since the 6th of January.
There’s heaps of action this weekend and as always, I’ve got you covered for tip!
Here is my preview of the A-League Round 18.
The Mariners will look to hold onto their second place spot on the ladder when they take on the ‘Nix at home on Friday night.
CCM did well to claw back for a draw in Perth last week, but they will be looking for all three points in a match up that they should win.
Wellington has won five of its last six A-League night matches against Central Coast but I’m liking a win to the Mariners here.
Back CCM H2H @ $1.90
After a loss in the Melbourne Derby last week, City will be keen to bounce back and get one over the other Sky Blue team.
Sydney FC open as $4.00 and were quite disappointing last week against a struggling Roar side.
A 94th minute equaliser saved the day for them and they will need to be a lot better if they want to beat the team that’s 13 points clear at the top.
Melbourne City has won each of its last 14 A-League home matches following a loss and I expect them to extend that to 15.
Back Melbourne City H2H @ $1.77
United have a huge opportunity to claw themselves off the bottom of the ladder against Newcastle here and I honestly think they can do it.
Yes they’ve let in seven goals in their last three games while only scoring three in that time but the Jets have been pretty shaky at the back at times this season too.
The underdog has won three of Newcastle’s last four A-League matches and the ‘Over 2.5 Goals’ market has hit in each of Newcastle’s last seven A-League day matches as a home favourite.
I’m backing a United win here and at $2.90, we could be on.
Back Western United H2H @ $2.90
They went down early against the Jets last week and couldn’t get one back, Macarthur will need to be a lot better than that if they want to steal the 3 points from Western Sydney.
The Wanderers open as $1.72 favourites to Macarthur’s $4.40 but only have one win in their last 5 games.
It was a pretty dramatic finish to their 4-4 game against Adelaide and you’d imagine they should bring in a bit of momentum from that fixture into this game.
Last time these two sides met, it was a 4-0 belting the Wanderers way, could this be the game that gets their winning ways back on track? I think so.
Back WSW H2H @ $1.72
Are the Victory starting to turn things around? They’ve won two of their last three and despite being second last they’re only seven points out of finals contention.
After their big Melbourne Derby win, they’re $2.10 favourites to win against an Adelaide United side that leaked 4 goals against the Wanderers and could only muster a draw.
Melbourne Victory has lost each of its last five A-League matches following a win and ‘Both Teams to Score’ market has hit in each of Melbourne Victory’s last six A-League matches.
We could be on for a draw here and that’s where I’m leaning.
Back the Draw @ $3.45
It’s all been quite spicy in the Brisbane camp this last week. Warren Moon is out and Nick Green has been appointed as the Interim Head Coach.
Quite often immediately after a manager is sacked, the side will get a win straight away and the Roar have a huge chance to do that against a travelling Glory team who are 1-1-6 away from home this season.
Am I a mad man for once again backing the Roar? Quite possibly, but all signs lead to a Roar win this weekend.
If they can’t get it done here I promise not to tip them for the rest of the season.
Back The Roar @ $1.98