The following are previews with betting tips for Round 9 of the 2017/18 A-League season.
View and compare the latest A-League bookmaker odds
View the A-League form guide
Friday, December 1
 |
Adelaide United v Sydney FC7:50 PM AEDT, Coopers Stadium |
 |
Last Time They Met: These two teams played each other as early as last week to contest the 2017 FFA Cup Final and boy did that match deliver. Sydney opened the scoring through Milos Ninkovic in the 19th minute, while Adelaide struck one back through Nikola Mileusnic in the 67th minute. Neither team could find the back of the net after that so the match went into ET, where Bobo, Sydney’s million-dollar marquee man stood up and delivered on his price tag on the biggest stage of all, scoring the winner in the 111th minute. Sydney’s dominance of the match is displayed through their possession, 53% to 47% and their 18 shots compared to Adelaide’s 9. If this game turns out to be even half of what the final was, then we’re in for a real treat.
What Happened Last Round: United last round finally ended WSW’s unbeaten start to the campaign defeating them 2-0 in Josep Gombau’s return to Adelaide. Both of the strikes came from their match winner of the round before in Ryan Kitto, who bagged a nice double. Kitto now has 4 goals for the season, equal along side the likes of Maccarone and Riera while ahead of Berisha and Taggart. However it wasn’t all easy going for the home side as they missed a penalty in the 22nd minute after a red card was given to Western Sydney’s Robert Cornthwaite. While Adelaide themselves received a red card in the 77th minute to Ben Garuccio. This match was action-packed. As for the Sky Blues they posted a comprehensive 3-0 win over Brisbane at Allianz. However it was one marred by a disgusting spitting act from Avraam Papadopoulos on Matt Simon. Papadopoulos was sent of with a red for his behaviour while Simon was as well for retaliating to it. The goals came through Carney, Mierzejewski and Ryall while Jack Hingert bagged a consolation goal for the away side in the 93rd minute of the game.
What Should Happen: Hindmarsh Stadium is by no means an easy place for Sydney to play at as they have lost 2 of their past 4 games their against Adelaide to go along with a draw and a win. However these days, Sydney rarely tends to drop points anywhere, meaning they should be able to re-write the books a bit and come away with their 7th win for the season. Bobo will be crucial up front after having made only a cameo appearance of the bench against the Roar while how Mierzejewski controls the midfield upon his further return from injury will also play a massive part in the result. These two players will be massive in whether the game is won or lost for the Sky Blues, they should help ensure they travel back home with all 3 points in the bag.
Betting tip: Pick the Sky Blues to win at $2.15 (William Hill)
Pick Sydney to also score the final goal of the match at $1.70 (William Hill)
Saturday, December 2
 |
Western Sydney Wanderers v Brisbane Roar5:35 PM AEDT, Spotless Stadium |
 |
Last Time They Met: The first week of the finals last season, where in a tense game at Suncorp Stadium, the Roar prevailed after winning on penalty’s 6-5. The goals from both sides came within an 8 minute period of each other, with Terry Antonis striking 1st for the away side (47th minute) and Jamie Maclaren getting the home side back to level terms very quickly after that (55th minute). Of the Roar’s 28 shots, only 10 of them were on target. While for the WSW’s, of the 20 shots they attempted, only 6 were on target. The Roar probably should have won the match before it went to penalty’s as 2 of their shots came of the woodwork. Also complicating matters for the Wanderers in this match was a Jaushua Sotirio red card late in the 1st period of extra time. Will the Wanderers get their revenge and inflict more misery on Brisbane, or will the Roar show a bit of fight and come through strong with the victory?
What Happened Last Round: Josep Gombau’s return to Adelaide as head coach of Western Sydney was not a happy one, as his side suffered their first loss of the season going down 2-0. Ryan Kitto scored both of the home sides goals. The Wanderers could only muster up a total of 2 shots on target for the entire match while Robert Cornthwaite stupidly got himself a red card early on in the game leaving them with 10 men for most of the match. However he could count himself lucky that Papa Diawara missed the ensuring penalty attempt. While their opposition also had Ben Garuccio receive a red late in the game. This was a poor effort all-round from the Red & Black and one that they will be looking to rectify immediately against Brisbane. While for the Roar, they were pretty poor in their efforts against the Sky Blues, going down 3-1 and in the process, ranking 2nd last, ahead of only Wellington. They conceded early in the match and from their the flood gates opened, their only consolation was a late Jack Hingert goal in what was one of the final plays of the match. However this game was marred by Avraam Papadopoulos’s spitting action against Matt Simon. This horrendous act earned him a red card, while the man who he spat at in Simon, also received a red for retaliating to it.
What Should Happen: An upset Brisbane win, despite the Wanderers obviously being better than Brisbane this season, their only win of the campaign came in Round 1, while the Roar’s only win of the season came 2 weeks ago and in convincing fashion, beating Melbourne City 3-1. This combined with the Wanderers playing a bit dysfunctional of late and still trying to acclimatize to Gombau’s style of play means that Brisbane are fair game of winning this match.
Betting tip: Pick an upset Brisbane win at $4.01 (Pinnacle)
Pick Massimo Maccarone to score at any point during the game at $7.50 (UNIBET)
 |
Newcastle Jets v Melbourne City7:50 PM AEDT, McDonald Jones Stadium |
 |
Last Time They Met: 3 of the past 7 matches these 2 teams have contested, have resulted in commanding 4-0 Melbourne City wins. The latest of these was the last time these 2 teams met. Tim Cahill opened the scoring in the 12th minute, then it took until 53 minutes later for Nick Fitzgerald to make the score 2-0 in the 65th minute, then within the space on 6 minutes, from the 75th minute to the 81st, Bruno Fornarolli struck twice to make the final score 4-0. Fornarolli while currently out injured, has scored 8 goals from his past 5 matches against the Jets. If Cahill or Kamau could take his place, then there’s a strong possibility of a rebound City win. Also in this match, Melbourne had 61% possession to Newcastle’s 39%, while they also had 19 shots at goal compared to the Jets 7.
What Happened Last Round: The Jets made 2nd spot all theirs with a comprehensive 4-1 thrashing of the Victory. Kosta Barbarouses opened the scoring for the visitors with a screamer of a strike in the 5th minute, but from there it was all one way traffic. Daniel Georgievski evened things up 8 minutes later with an equally as fantastic goal. Andrew Nabbout got Newcastle’s 2nd in the 37th minute. Then it took until the 75th minute for them to strike again with Joseph Champness getting on the board and Nabbout getting his 2nd in the 83rd minute. Newcastle took an incredible 25 shots while the kept Melbourne to only 2 shots all game such was their strong defensive presence throughout the game. Newcastle also had a shot come of the woodwork which could have further added to Melbourne’s pain. For City, they suffered their 2nd loss on the trot going down to Perth 3-1. Mitch Nichols opened the scoring for the Glory before Ross McCormack struck back to even things up. However further goals from Xavi Torres and Mitch Mallia made the score what it was. Osama Malik saw red in the 41st minute, while Perth proceeded to score only 2 minutes later, making the score 2-1. Malik getting sent of had a big impact on the match. While funnily enough for Newcastle in their game, opposition player Mark Millgan was also given his marching orders in the 28th minute. That decision also swayed the match in the Novocastrian’s favour a bit.
What Should Happen: The Jets are without a doubt, this seasons best improved team. They are 4 points clear of 3rd placed Melbourne City and their only blemish this campaign was a tightly contested 2-1 loss to champions Sydney FC. Even with no Roy O’Donovan and Ronald Vargas they still posses the likes of Andrew Nabbout (4 goals and 4 assists) and Dimitri Petratos (4 goals and 3 assists). They are also competing against a Melbourne team that have lost 3 of their past 4 games (with only a draw in-between). At the very least the Jets should win this match by 2+ goals, but don’t be surprised if they reverse the history books a bit and inflict and painful score line on the team that’s desperately trying to catch up to them.
Betting tip: Pick 4+ goals to be scored in the match at $2.70 (Ladbrokes)
Also pick both teams to score at $1.61 (Bet365)
Sunday, December 3
 |
Wellington Phoenix v Melbourne Victory5:00 PM AEDT, Westpac Stadium |
 |
Last Time They Met: The last 2 matches played between these teams have both times resulted in convincing 3-0 Phoenix wins. In the last game the scorers were Roly Bonevacia x2 and Shane Smeltz. While in the match before the strikes came via Bonevacia again, Jacob Tartt and Kosta Barbarouses who now suits up for the Victory. Over these 2 games, Wellington have had a combined 14 shots on target compared to the Victory’s 4, that’s good for a massive difference of 10. Now for the 2 matches before these, have resulted in 2 wins for the Victory by an aggregate score of 10-2. Berisha has bagged 4 goals from these games. Melbourne have had 15 shots on target during this period while Wellington, 10. The Phoenix haven’t been able to take their chances. Which side will come through and claim the win? The dominant Phoenix, or the past Melbourne monster?
What Happened Last Round: For Wellington, after their convincing victory over Perth, many thought they may have been starting to realise the damage they could do to other teams. Apparently not however as it was the Mariners doing all the damage to them en route to their 4-1 win. Dario Vidosic was the only scorer for the Phoenix, while Daniel De Silva, Andrew Hoole and Trent Buhagiar all bagged goals for the away side plus an Andrija Kaluderovic own goal. The result pushed the Mariners into the Top Six and only 2 points of 4th spot, while it left Wellington dead last. It also means that the Phoenix have lost 4 of their past 6 games, not a good statistic to be a part of. While for the Victory, they also suffered a 4-1 loss, just at the hands of a much better opponent in the form of Newcastle. Barbarouses opened the scoring for Melbourne before only 8 minutes later it was even again courtesy of a Newcastle strike. Mark Milligan in the 28th minute was sent of and things went all pear-shaped from there for Melbourne. They could also only muster up a pathetic 2 shots all game, while their opponents also had a shot come of the crossbar, which should have added to their nightmare of a game. The result left Melbourne languishing in 8th place.
What Should Happen: This match has so many different avenues it could go down. Melbourne could finally start to regain some of the form that made them the obvious 2nd best team in the country last season and absolutely pummel the Phoenix. While likewise it was only 2 games ago that Wellington smashed Perth 5-1. Maybe that Phoenix side shows up instead of the one that got killed by the Central Coast last round. However a draw is the most likely scenario here. Both sides are starting to slip away and only a win will do. Both sides (especially the Phoenix) should be placing an emphasis on attack given its goals they need. Based of this, also expect a relatively high-scoring affair.
Betting tip: Pick Besart Berisha to strike at any time during the match at $2.10 (William Hill)
Likewise pick Andrija Kaluderovic to do the same at $3.40 (William Hill)
 |
Central Coast Mariners v Perth Glory7:00 PM AEDT, Central Coast Stadium |
 |
Last Time They Met: A 2-1 Glory win was the score when these 2 sides last faced of. Wout Brama opened the scoring for the Mariners in only the 14th minute, while it took Perth until the 70th minute to get a goal back through Andy Keogh. While 15 minutes later an Adam Taggart strike decided the result. The Mariners couldn’t get the result despite having 57% of the ball and 2 blocked shots. While they also had a better passing accuracy than their opponents and less fouls. The Central Coast love to score against the Glory, having scored 8 goals from their past 4 matches against them. Will the Central Coast continue to march on after their commanding win last round or will Perth get the chocolates?
What Happened Last Round: Playing in NZ is always tough, but the Mariners made that sentiment an absolute joke last round flogging Wellington 4-1 in an absolute smashing. The goal scorers for the CCM were Daniel De Silva (54th min), Andrew Hoole (66th min) and Trent Buhagiar (93rd min). Their was also an Andrija Kaluderovic own goal in the 39th minute of the match. The solitary goal-scorer for the opposition was Dario Vidosic in the 71st minute. The Mariners were also very strong defensively this game keeping Wellington to only 2 shots on target as well as making 16 tackles and winning 54 duels. As for Perth they came away from AAMI Park with an easy 3-1 win. They opened the scoring through Mitch Nichols before Osama Malik was sent of in the 41st minute of the match. Before that Ross McCormack had evened the scoring for City, so Malik seeing red was an obvious game changing moment. Only 2 minutes later Xavi Torres scored while Mitch Mallia rounded things out in the 83rd minute. The result put the Glory only 3 points of 3rd place, an impressive feat given their well documented recent struggles on the field.
What Should Happen: A Mariners win, to simply put it. All season long Daniel De Silva has been rightfully pushing his claim for a Green & Gold jumper for Russia. Every good result the Mariners have gotten this campaign, he’s been the master mind behind it. For the season he has 2 goals and 8 shot assists. He’s crazily good in midfield. Expect him to again turn up big in what should be the Mariners 3rd victory of the season.
Betting tip: Pick a Mariners victory at $2.25 (Pinnacle, Sportsbet)
However despite this, Pick the Glory to strike first at $2.15 (William Hill)
Best Bet of the Round
Pick both sides to score in the first half of Perth vs the Central Coast at $4.00 (William Hill)
Pick the total goals bracket for Wellington vs Melbourne to be 4+ at $2.45 (Ladbrokes)