Programme Round 9 CONTENTS Lotto NRFL 2015 3 Lotto NRFL Premier Preview 4 Lotto NRFL Women’s Premier Preview 5 Lotto NRFL Division 1 Preview 6 Lotto NRFL Division 2 Preview 7 Lotto NRFL Premier Squad Lists 6 Lotto NRFL Women’s Premier Squad Lists 8 Lotto NRFL Division 1 Squad Lists 10 Lotto NRFL Division 2 Squad Lists 12 Lotto NRFL Premier Tables 14 Lotto NRFL Division Tables 15 Lotto NRFL Premier Golden Boot 16 Lotto NRFL Division Golden Boot 17 Lotto NRFL Premier Team Progress 18 Lotto NRFL Division Team Progress 19 Lotto NRFL 2015 Welcome The early weeks of the season are now behind us and the Lotto NRFL is entering an inter- esting phase with the standings in each division starting to take on increased relevance. The halfway point is rapidly approaching and a clearer picture is now emerging of who the contenders for glory will be and what sides are likely to instead be battling against relegation. This weekend’s action will be significant as the jostling for places continues but there is a bit less in store than usual due to the first round proper of the ASB Chatham Cup, the country’s oldest and most prestigious knockout competition. The cup commitments of the Division One and Two sides means there will be no matches in those leagues but there is still plenty to look forward to in both the men’s and women’s Premier Leagues. Both divisions are being tightly fought with Hamilton Wanderers and Glenfield Rovers locked at the top of the Premier League while Claudelands Rovers have just a three-point lead over Three Kings United, who have played one less game, in the Women’s Premier. In the programme this week, we preview Round 9 of the Premier League and the re- scheduled Round 6 of the Women’s Premier as well as featuring photos from Phototek of several matches from last weekend. In the spotlight were Central United’s 2-1 home win over Onehunga Sports in the Premier League and Manukau City’s 4-2 triumph at One- hunga Mangere United in Division Two, as well as Three Kings’ 2-0 victory at Lynn-Avon United in the Women’s Premier. As always, we also have all the up-to-date league tables, graphs and golden boot charts so there is a wealth of info at your fingertips! Our Lotto NRFL social media platforms continue to be the place to go for all score up- dates, results, goal details and other news – remember to tag us @LottoNRFL with your updates from the sideline! Good luck for your game! All photos by Phototek Lotto NRFL Gallery available at: www.phototek.co.nz/aff_picture_gallery.html Social @LottoNRFL Lotto NRFL Governing Federations Lotto NRFL Premier Preview Round 9 Waitakere City vs Glenfield Rovers Fred Taylor Park | Saturday 9 May | Kick-off: 2.45pm | Referee: Carl Watkins, Assistant Referees: Rajesh Kumar, Tom Woo vs A quick glance at the league table suggests it will not be difficult to pick a winner here, especially with Waitakere coming off the back of a hiding and Glenfield with their confidence high after a comfortable victory. To have any chance of earning a good result, Waitakere boss Colin Tuaa must do something to plug the defence as his charges have now conceded a staggering 29 goals in their last five matches. Melville United vs Central United Gower Park | Saturday 9 May | Kick-off: 2.45pm | Referee: Jan-Hendrik Hintz, Assistant Referees: Bruce Horrox, Nadia Browning Central offered a glimpse of their substantial potential last weekend in beating a talent-packed Onehunga vs Sports side and coach Jose Figueira will be looking for his young side to now add the consistency required to lift themselves up the table. Melville’s goals are somewhat more humble as they are simply looking to get their first points on the board and an away win would therefore be the bookies’ pick. Eastern Suburbs vs Bay Olympic McFetridge Park | Saturday 2 May | Kick-off: 2.45pm | Referee: Mark Fisher, Assistant Referees: Hayden Tutbury, Sarah Walker vs With Suburbs newly promoted and the Bay having undergone a massive makeover in the off-season, neither of these sides were expected to trouble the top four. But both have surprised the doubters in making solid starts and are well positioned as the half-way stage draws near. Bay Olympic have lost just twice while Suburbs would likely be even higher had they not played one less match than their rivals. The winner here is therefore anyone’s guess. Birkenhead United vs East Coast Bays Shepherds Park | Saturday 9 May | Kick-off: 2.45pm | Referee: Martin Neale, Assistant Referees: Mazhar Batoor, Glenn Lochrie This northern derby would usually be one of the highlights of the round but, with East Coast Bays’ stocks having vs dropped considerably, it is not the top-of-the-table clash it was just a couple of seasons ago. Birkenhead are at home and lie sixth places ahead of their neighbours so will go in as hot favourites, although Bays will still be on a high after sticking six goals past Waitakere. Onehunga Sports vs Western Springs Waikaraka Park | Saturday 9 May | Kick-off: 2.45pm | Referee: Cory Mills, Assistant Referees: John McCoskrie, Ravinesh Kumar Both sides are in need of the points here after suffering losses last weekend, Onehunga 2-1 to Central and Springs vs by the same scoreline to Bay Olympic. It will not be easy for the visitors to find the net as, despite occupying a mid-table position, Sports have a defensive record that is bettered only by the top two. They join Springs in having a low scoring rate however so this is likely to be a tight one. Three Kings United vs Hamilton Wanderers Keith Hay Park | Saturday 9 May | Kick-off: 3pm | Referee: Chris Kerr, Assistant Referees: James Ashford, Steve Merriman Wanderers’ title push hit a speedbump last weekend in being held to a 3-3 draw by Birkenhead – the first time vs they have failed to claim all three points since the second round – and they have now lost their outright lead with Glenfield joining them at the summit. Rovers are likely to pick up a win at struggling Waitakere so Hamilton will feel the need to do likewise here. They must be wary of the Cam Philpot-Allan Pearce double act, which has been dangerous for Three Kings in recent weeks. 4 | Programme 2015 50 Years of Local Pride Lotto NRFL Women’s Premier Preview Round 6 Claudelands Rovers 1-0 Glenfield Rovers Galloway Park | Sunday 26 April | Kick-off: 1pm | Already played. vs Fencibles United vs Three Kings United William Green Domain | Friday 8 May | Kick-off: 7pm | Referee: Johanna O’Connor, Assistant Referees: Jesse Dale, Dave Doidge Second-from-bottom meets second-from-top here in a match of great significance to both sides. For Three Kings, victory is vital as they look to keep up the pressure on leaders Claudelands while Fencibles are seeking a result that will help them pull away from Lynn-Avon at the foot of the table. To do so, they must switch on at the back as they have the league’s second-worst defensive record and are coming up against one of the most potent vs attacks. Norwest United vs Western Springs Huapai Reserve | Sunday 10 May | Kick-off: 1pm | Referee: Rhys Kimber, Assistant Referees: Wendy McNeely, Reza Al Rebea These sides will be in contrasting moods after posting opposite results last weekend, Norwest slumping to a 6-0 loss to Glenfield while Western Springs swept aside Papatoetoe 5-0. On paper, Springs appear to have too much class for Norwest and will look to join Claudelands, Three Kings and Glenfield in recording a hefty win over the NRFL newcomers. Norwest coach Chris Acott will be aware his side’s record against the league’s heavyweights vs leaves a lot to be desired so far and will be keen to start putting that right. Eastern Suburbs vs Forrest Hill Milford Madills Farm | Sunday 10 May | Kick-off: 1pm | Referee: Rajesh Kumar, Assistant Referees: Hilary Osborne, Isaac McNickle Paul Marshall’s Eastern Suburbs project remains a work in progress and the visit of the defending champions will provide a good indication of his team’s current status. He will feel it’s a good time to be facing Forrest Hill as Mauro Donoso’s side had their confidence knocked with a 4-1 defeat by Claudelands last weekend while Suburbs vs are flying after a 6-1 thumping of Fencibles, Grace Jale and Deven Jackson both helping themselves to hat-tricks. Papatoetoe vs Lynn Avon Murdoch Park | Sunday 10 May | Kick-off: 1pm | Referee: Neil Tobin, Assistant Referees: Kieran Withers, Allan Tobin Lynn-Avon’s search for a first win remains ongoing but things should improve over the coming weeks as they have been unlucky to meet all but one of the league’s top-half sides already. The only team near them on the ladder they have faced so far is Norwest and they took a point from that encounter so have reason to approach vs this match with confidence, especially as Papatoetoe conceded five goals to Western Springs last weekend. | 5 Lotto NRFL Premier Squad Lists Bay Olympic Birkenhead United Central United FC East Coast Bays AFC James Pritchett 1 Damian Hirst 1 Danyon Drake GK Aidan Gwilt Stewart MacKay 2 Ryan Howlett 2 Scott Jacques GK Alex Carr Matthew Rowland 3 Mitch Watts 3 Ollie Wright 2 Brock Messenger Matthew Thomas 4 Reese Cox 4 Marko Dordevic 3 Avi Estrin/ Ian Hogg 5 Harry Bolton Roberts 5 Angel Berlanga Deklan Wynne Anusheel Singh 6 Chad Coombes 6 Takuya Iwata 4 Connor Daw Stephen Ashby- 7 Godwin Darkwa 7 Mario Ilich 5 Alec Solomons Peckham 8 Mikali Brendevelt 8 Dean Lausev 6 James Anderson Adam Barkley 9 Adam Dickinson 9 Regont Murati 7 Sheldon Pillay Alan Ferguson 10 Elijah Neblett 10 Aaron Bawdekar 8 Dylan Stansfield Ken Yamamoto 11 Jack Hobson-Mcveigh 11 Finn Cochran