The following are previews with betting tips for Matchweek 16 of the 2020/21 A-League season.
Compare A-League bookmaker odds
View the A-League form guide
View bookmaker football promotions (excludes NSW & WA)
Friday, April 9
 |
Macarthur FC v Brisbane Roar7:05 PM AEDT, Campbelltown Stadium |
 |
The Bulls latest clash was an easy 2-0 win against Perth out West. They took 16 shots to 5 as they dominated the proceedings. As a result they are now in 3rd spot and just four points off 1st. For the Roar it went a little bit differently at Dolphin Stadium as they drew 1-1 with Western Sydney. That despite Brisbane themselves shooting 8/17 on target throughout the clash. It was something at least, but it leaves them five points off a finals berth with Warren Moon’s side desperately seeking some sort of consistent form.
Macarthur’s two strikes came courtesy of Derbyshire in the 10th and 45th minutes of the clash. The classy Strikers first shot was with his right foot from close to the goals, whilst his second was a converted spotkick. Those were his 9th and 10th goals of the season as he now sits alone in 2nd place with respect to the Golden Boot race. As for Brisbane their sole goal came through Danzaki in the 49th minute. And the lead-up to it was simply excellent as it was produced from a brilliant Champness run. Will it be the Bulls who charge further up the ladder or the Roar who break out of their rut?
Betting tips: Pick the Bulls to win at $2.14 (Unibet)
Also pick both teams to score at least once each at $1.58 (Unibet)
And pick the Bulls to score last at $1.66 (bet365)
Saturday, April 10
 |
Newcastle Jets v Melbourne Victory3:05 PM AEDT, McDonald Jones Stadium |
 |
The Jets are currently 2nd last and the Victory dead-last. Sorry to say both sides are in pretty precarious states at the moment. For Newcastle at home their last game was a disaster against W.U. as they lost 1-0. And just 37 seconds into the clash they conceded a goal to Lachie Wales. Things couldn’t have started off worse for them! As for Melbourne Kosta Barbarouses taunted them as he registered both a goal and an assist against his former side during the Sky Blues 3-0 Big Blue win at AAMI Park. Grant Brebner summed it up somewhat with his now famous (but not in a good way) HT quote. “People aren’t expecting much of us anyway.” Wow, ouch and what?!
Most recently between these two sides it was a 72nd minute Angus Thurgate effort that separated them at AAMI Park. Prior to that it was a 1-all draw in the Hunter Valley with both Roy O’Donovan and Ola Toivonen each getting 1X goals on the score-sheet for their respective sides. And prior to that event and again in Melbourne, the Victory turned on the motors to win 4-0, as they shot 9/17 on target. They were like a house on fire there! So the question that still remains is which result will repeat itself here?
Betting tips: Pick both sides to score at least one goal each at $1.61 (bet365)
Also pick the Victory to score first at $2.50 (bet365)
And pick the games highest scoring half to be the 2nd at $2.00 (bet365)
 |
Sydney FC v Melbourne City5:05 PM AEDT, Leichhart Oval |
 |
When these two sides last met at AAMI Park earlier this season it was City who prevailed 3-2 in what was very much so a tale of two halves. Melbourne dominated the opening stanza as they scored in just the 8th minute through Maclaren. Then 20 minutes later Luna was assisted by ‘Macca’ which made it 2-0. And then early on in the 2nd half (53rd min) Maclaren scored again to help Melbourne reach three. And that’s where the Sky Blues came back as they pegged one back through Ninkovic in the 72nd minute and then again through Wood in the 90th minute to make for a hectic five added minutes. With ‘Macca’ now having 13 goals for the campaign and Bobo having scored 4/9, which star Striker will help lead their side to a victory here?
That result has been one of many key encounters for each side this season as the Sky Blues currently sit in 6th with 6 wins from 14 games and City in 2nd with 9 from 14. For Sydney their most recent result was a comprehensive 3-0 thrashing of the Victory in Melbourne. This came about as they scored their goals through Bobo in the 42nd min, Barbarouses in the 50th min and Baumjohann in the 84th min. As for Melbourne it was a tightly contested 3-2 victory at the Woolongong Showground. They opened the scoring first through Good in the 17th min. Then Maclaren in the 45th min. Finally it was Tilio in the 83rd min with an effort from close range that won them the match.
Betting tips: Pick both sides to get on the score-sheet here at $1.57 (bet365)
Also pick Maclaren to score at anytime at $1.90 (bet365), as well as Bobo at $2.10 (bet365)
 |
Adelaide United v Western Sydney7:10 PM AEDT, Coopers Stadium |
 |
With Adelaide in 4th and Western Sydney in 5th this game will no doubt produce some real fireworks! And with both sides desperately fighting for top spot, who will come out on top here? This has the potential to be a thrilling, yet hard-fought contest.
For the Reds they most recently suffered a tight 2-1 loss to the Mariners on the Central Coast. While for the Wanderers they played brilliantly in their 2-2 draw vs the Mariners in Parramatta. Adelaide’s goal, which was also the opener of the match, was produced via Kusini Yengi in the 48th minute. While for Western Sydney, despite them leaking 17 shots, they themselves came up with 7/16 on target to even things up a bit. And two of those shots came through a magic five minute period from Bruce Kamau. He scored in both the 74th and 78th minutes which actually handed Western Sydney a 2-1 lead courtesy of his 2nd strike. For Adelaide only 3 of their 13 shots were on target which certainly didn’t do them any favours here.
Adding further intrigue to this clash is the fact that the Wanderers have won 3 of their last 4 contested matches against the Reds. However, over those four games the losers have still come up with 3, 2, 2 and 1 goals. As for Western Sydney they have reached the 5 mark once and the 3 mark twice. These two streaky teams seem to relentlessly attack one another whenever they have to play each other. They are both integral parts as to why the A-League is so fun, entertaining and thrilling to watch.
Betting tips: Pick Western Sydney to win this clash at $3.10 (bet365)
Also pick them to get on the score-board first at $2.10 (bet365)
And pick the highest scoring half to be the 2nd at $2.00 (bet365)
Sunday, April 11
 |
Wellington Phoenix v Western United7:05 PM AEDT, WIN Stadium |
 |
The score when these two teams last met in what has sort of been a fan forced Derby saw the Phoenix win 2-0 at Westpac Stadium. It was a commanding performance from Wellington which saw them score through Cacace in the 29th minute and then again through Ball in the 90th. Outside of that, they had 55% possession of the ball and shot 9/21 on target + they had 2 shots hit the woodwork. All the while W.U. were kept to just 2/5 shots on target. And Wellington were extremely precise with their passing as well, doing so at an 89% accuracy rate. Good for 491/553. And they gave up just 12 fouls to 23. Now with the Nix sitting seven points of a Top Six berth, no doubt they’ll be as desperate as ever to claim all three points. What will the eventual outcome be here?
Ball is somebody who W.U. should be on high alert for. The English Forward created 4 shot/2 goal assists last time out in his sides closely contested 1-goal loss to City in Woolongong. Not too mention he also came up with 39 completed passes (39% accuracy rate). On the season he has 4 goals and 21 shots assists. While he has come up with 230 passes in total (81% completion rate). If the opposition aren’t careful then as per usual he could cause some real damage here.
That man for Mark Rudan’s side is the ever lasting Berisha. In his sides shock 2-1 upset victory over City in Melbourne during the latest matchweek he came up with both a goal and assist despite him being 35 years of age. On the season he has 6 strikes, + 6 shot/2 goal assists. He is W.U.’s main goal-scoring threat and he always thrives on the biggest of occasions. Given his side are still in 7th and out of a finals position, he’s no doubt primed to do his thing in this one.
Betting tips: Pick both sides to get on the score-sheet here at $1.57 (bet365)
Also pick there to be at least 1+ goal in each half at $1.56 (Unibet) and for Berisha to score at least one of those at $1.95 (bet365)
Tuesday, April 13
|
Newcastle Jets v Perth Glory7:05 PM AEDT, Coffs International Stadium |
 |
As if Newcastle weren’t having a disastrous enough of a season so far it could be about to get a lot worse with SBS (The World Game) reporting that veteran Steven Ugarkovic could be headed to the Wanderers before the month is up. The latest article also talks about how the likes of Tass Mourdoukoutas or Jordan O’Doherty are being offered to the Jets in exchange for him. This is very bad for the Jets as they need more players such as Steven around the club to help build a systemic culture of winning and creating/developing good habits, something which young players unless they’re somebody such as Mbappe or Haaland don’t really tend to do. Will this news make or break Newcaste?
Meanwhile when you take a trip down memory lane these two clubs have contested some real memorable encounters haven’t they?
Their latest clash saw Newcastle take 22 shots to 6 but still manage to find a way to lose. And only as far back as 2019 Perth beat them 6-2 at NIB Stadium. That being the clash where both Castro and Fornaroli bagged doubles. In 2019 Castro scored twice while Taggart also got on the scoreboard in what was a tight 3-2 Glory victory. In 2016 up in Newcastle the Glory thrashed them 6 goals to 1, yet the Jets opened the scoring. While before that it was a 2-2 draw with the Glory eventually prevailing 4-3 on penalties. That with Sandor converting the cluchest of them all in the shootout. It really could be anybody’s game here and we are all so lucky because of it.
Betting tips: Pick Perth to be victorious here at $3.40 (BlueBet)
Also pick them to score first at $2.20 (bet365)
And pick each side to register at least 1+ goal each at $1.61 (bet365)
Wednesday, April 14
|
Adelaide United v Macarthur FC7:35 PM AEDT, Coopers Stadium |
|
As per news.com.au from Joe Gauci. “It’s my spot to lose. I’ve been given the opportunity now and you’ve got to make the most of it.” And the 20-year-old Aussie-born GK certainly has been! From four attempts this season he’s kept one clean-sheet. Not to mention that he’s also averaging a very impressive 3.5 saves per match. It seems to be his position to lose now and with the Reds all the way up in 4th spot his hot form has helped them out a lot. Adelaide are such an incredible club because they give brilliant young lads such as himself the amazing opportunity that they need to shine on the big stage.
Linking over to results now, the Reds have won 6 of their last 7 clashes. Those wins from newest to oldest have been 1-0 vs SYD, 4-1 vs NEW, 3-1 vs MEL, 2-1 vs NEW, 3-2 vs WSW and 3-2 vs CCM. However their match before all of those came in the hands of a 4-0 beating to Macarhur. It was the experienced Matt Derbshire producing 3X goals as he found the back of the net in the 66th, 73rd and 89th minutes of the encounter. While the also-experienced Mark Milligan additionally bagged one in the 83rd min. The Bulls took 25 shots to 8 this match. Whilst they also shot 12 to 1 on target. And they owned 66% of the ball compared to Adelaide’s 34% possession of it!
Will Adelaide turn the tables around here or do Macarhur still occupy rent free space in their heads? Watching this either through a stream or as a live spectator will be something different, that’s for sure!
Betting tips: When the odds become available pick Macarthur to win, score first and for Derbyshire to score anytime at $1.50, $1.50 and $2.10 or more.
Best Bets of the Round
Pick Derbyshire to score anytime against Adelaide at $1.95 (bet365)
Also pick Kruse to score anytime vs Newcastle at $3.75 (bet365)
And finally pick Sydney to open the scoring against City at $2.10 (bet365)