The Gunners travel to O’Connor Enclosed with a chance to come back on the front three on Sunday afternoon, in a two-game weekend in which only two matches will take place due to the NTC in Melbourne.
Canberra Croatia is hosting the West Canberra Wanderers at Deakin Stadium on Sunday. The only team at the top not to have dropped points against one of the four at the bottom, the players in the chequered outfits want to keep the good habits at home.
Zoran Glavinic’s team is experienced enough to understand the importance of the last games of the season, and a success against a team in reach on paper is expected for the reigning Premiers. Their recent success over ANU and Tuggeranong shows they are not underestimating their opponents, and Brittany Palombi has found form at the right time.
The Wanderers are warned, and they know what to expect against the Deakin offensive armada. They had conceded three goals in the first half alone the first time they met Canberra Croatia and would need a really solid performance to avoid the same fate. They have shown they can do it against Olympic, do they have another upset in them?
The game of the week takes centre stage at O’Connor Enclosed again on Sunday. Canberra Olympic and Gungahlin United will be battling it out in a game that could have real consequences on the table.
Olympic are in the middle of a tough run, playing top four teams for four straight weeks. The reigning champions know how to level up to when it matters and can put some comfortable room between them and the Gunners this weekend. Olympic is chasing their first Premiership, and results in big games are a necessity at this stage of the season.
The Gunners have had successes this season, albeit too little against the title contenders. With only one success against Belconnen in the league, Gungahlin United wants to show they can grab points against the best. They managed to defeat Olympic once, with a last-minute goal in the Federation Cup Semi-Final, a similar result would bring the Gunners higher up on the table, with a real chance at fighting for silverware.
FIXTURES
ROUND 14
Sunday 16 July
Canberra Croatia v West Canberra Wanderers (Deakin Stadium, 14:30)
Canberra Olympic v Gungahlin United (O’Connor Enclosed, 14:30)