A repeat of the 2025 Hahn Australia Cup Final is in store on Saturday afternoon as Cup winners Canberra Croatia make the short j ump over the border to take on Queanbeyan City at High Street as the National Premier League in the Capital city reaches Round 11.
The Final showed the resilience that Queanbeyan City have in abundance and, with the team enjoying a good season at home in front of their loyal, and passionate, supporter base, Croatia will need to be at their best to maintain their electric start to the local competition.
In six league matches at High Street this season, Queanbeyan have only lost once, a 1-2 defeat to Tigers, winning one and drawing the other four and, after conceding eleven goals in two matches in Round 3 and 4, they have only conceded six times in their last six fixtures.
The league leaders have been in stunning form in front of goal in 2025. In fourteen games in all competitions this season Croatia has netted 59 times, and four away games Croatia have netted fourteen goals and conceded four. Form suggests an away win, but City are seeking cup revenge.
Over at O’Connor Enclosed, the O’Connor Knights welcome Monaro Panthers in an intriguing game between two teams who have sights set on different prizes in the 2025 campaign.
For the Panthers, it’s top-spot but, after losing 3-2 in their midweek match against Canberra Croatia a fortnight ago, now find thewless eight points adrift of the summit, and a place in the Australian Championship that goes with finishing in first place.
They recovered from that lost by narrowly defeating Tuggeranong United 1-0 at Kambah 2 last weekend, a Christian Kreskas goal the difference, but they will need to be at the top of their game against a resurgent Knights who, off the back of an excellent win over Tigers at the AIS, are back in top four contention.
Indeed, only a point separates the Knights from Queanbeyan and Tuggeranong above them in fifth and fourth respectively, Jenno Ceruti’s double meaning that the Knights are back in the finals push.
Tuggeranong United will seek to take full advantage of any slip-up from O’Connor Knights and Queanbeyan City and, with that pair facing the top two, a visit from bottom of the table Yoogali SC to Kambah 2 might afford that opportunity.
History suggests a home win, the teams have met four times in the NPL with Tuggeranong having won three of the matches, and Yoogali claiming victory in the other whilst at Kambah 2 Tuggeranong have kept Yoogali scoreless in league action, winning 3-0 and 6-0 in fixtures played last season.
Tuggeranong have been drawing a blank in front of goals lately though, failing to score for the last two matches and have only netted in one game of the last four they have played. In total there have been fourteen goals scored in the four NPL matches with United having accounted for eleven, and Yoogali three.
Yoogali were defeated by Canberra Croatia at home last week and are on a four-match losing streak since they defeated Gungahlin in Griffith in Round 5, conceding nine goals in the process, however, can take comfort from the four goals they scored in cup defeat at this venue, showing they could upset the odds.
The Round wraps up with a fixture at Gungahlin Enclosed between Gungahlin United and Tigers FC, the teams currently ranked seventh and third in the table and a fixture that Tigers will be desperate to win t keep up their hopes of catching Canberra Croatia before they sail off into the distance.
Gunners earned a 2-2 draw at High Street, Queanbeyan last week, giving debuts to their new overseas recruits’ French striker Loick Lespinasse and Japanese midfielder Ayumu Kimura in the process, both showing touches of class in a potential glimpse of what they might bring.
Tigers FC meanwhile were surprisingly defeated at home by O’Connor Knights, the narrow loss at the Australian Institute of Sport seeing them slip further behind Croatia despite a debut goal for new signing Lukman Ahmed-Shaibu.
When the teams met in Round 3 at South Jerrabomberra Regional Sporting Complex, it was Tigers who emerged with the points courtesy of a 4-0 win, led by a hat-trick from South Sudanese international William Akio, and a goal from Tomohiro Ogawa. The Tigers would love a repeat.
FIXTURES
ROUND 11
Saturday 21 June
Queanbeyan City v Canberra Croatia (High Street, 15:00)
O’Connor Knights v Monaro Panthers (O’Connor Enclosed, 15:00)
Sunday 22 June
Tuggeranong United v Yoogali SC (Kambah 2, 15:00)
Gungahlin United v Tigers FC (Gungahlin Enclosed, 15:00)
TABLE
| P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | PTS | ||
| 1 | Canberra Croatia | 10 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 43 | 8 | +35 | 27 |
| 2 | Monaro Panthers | 10 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 32 | 13 | +19 | 19 |
| 3 | Tigers FC | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 24 | 17 | +8 | 18 |
| 4 | Tuggeranong United | 10 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 11 | 19 | -8 | 11 |
| 5 | Queanbeyan City | 10 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 18 | -10 | 11 |
| 6 | O’Connor Knights | 9 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 17 | 27 | -10 | 10 |
| 7 | Gungahlin United | 9 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 27 | -20 | 6 |
| 8 | Yoogali SC | 10 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 14 | 27 | -13 | 5 |
TOP SCORERS
10: Daniel BARAC (Monaro Panthers)
9: Nick PRATEZINA (Canberra Croatia)
7: Maxx GREEN (Canberra Croatia), Thomas JAMES (Canberra Croatia)
6: Jayce DOTSON (Yoogali SC), Steve NEALON (Tuggeranong United), Daniel SPARROW (Canberra Croatia)
5: Nico ABOT (Queanbeyan City), Lukman AHMED-SHAIBU (O’Connor Knights/Tigers FC), Jenno CERUTI (O’Connor Knights), Robert TKATCHENKO (Monaro Panthers)
4: Stephen DOMENICI (Monaro Panthers), Archie MCGREGOR (Tigers FC)
3: William AKIO (Tigers FC), Darren BAILEY (Yoogali SC), Ben BASSER-SILK (Monaro Panthers), Own GOALS
2: Micheal ADAMS (O’Connor Knights), Augustine BANGURA (Tigers FC), Daniel COLBERTALDO (Canberra Croatia), Josh GASPARI (Gungahlin United), Marko JADRIC (Canberra Croatia), Romeo JAMBREK (Tuggeranong United), Nikos KALFAS (Tigers FC), Ryan KEIR (Canberra Croatia), Christian KRESKAS (Monaro Panthers), Luca MACOR (Monaro Panthers), Phakedi MANDA (Monaro Panthers/O’Connor Knights), Tomohiro OGAWA (Tigers FC), Michael PICCOLO (Monaro Panthers), Nik POPOVICH (Tigers FC), Danny REID (Yoogali SC), Yoshida SHOKI (Gungahlin United), Keegan VUCETIC (Canberra Croatia), Sam WHITEHEAR (Tigers FC)
1: Angus BAILEY (Tigers FC), Thomas BLAZEVSKI (Queanbeyan City), Seth BONNETT (Queanbeyan City), Giancarlo D’ADDARIO (Gungahlin United), Nic EMANUEL (Tuggeranong United), FERNANDO Jorquera (Monaro Panthers), Luca FLOREZ (Gungahlin United), Bevan FOXALL (Tuggeranong United), Nikola JADRIC (Canberra Croatia), Michael JOHN (O’Connor Knights), Chistian JUNNA (O’Connor Knights), Niko KRESIC (O’Connor Knights), Jack LEVERETT (Queanbeyan City), Harry MARTIN (O’Connor Knights), Nathen MEGIC (Tigers FC), Marko MILUTINOVIC (Tigers FC), Alessandro PENA (Tuggeranong United), Thomas ROBERTSON (Gungahlin United), Joey SEO (Yoogali SC), Michael SOUTHAM (Tigers FC), Noah STEINACKER (Tigers FC), Ryan STRAUB (Monaro Panthers), Daniel SUBASIC (Canberra Croatia), Nicholas SUBASIC (Canberra Croatia), Nik TANESKI (Tigers FC), Giuseppe TINE (Monaro Panthers), Riley ZSUZSA (Canberra Croatia)
TOP ASSISTS
12: Thomas JAMES (Canberra Croatia)
7: Maxx GREEN (Canberra Croatia, Nick PRATEZINA (Canberra Croatia)
6: Christian KRESKAS (Monaro Panthers)
5: Daniel BARAC (Monaro Panthers),
4: Stephen DOMENICI (Monaro Panthers), Kobi YARIYARI (O’Connor Knights)
3: Darren BAILEY (Yoogali SC), Phakedi MANDA (O’Connor Knights), Michael PICCOLO (Monaro Panthers), Archie MCGREGOR (Tigers FC), Nik POPOVICH (Tigers FC), Nik TANESKI (Tigers FC), Robert TKATCHENKO (Monaro Panthers)
2: Micheal ADAMS (O’Connor Knights), William AKIO (Tigers FC), Daniel COLBERTALDO (Canberra Croatia), Chaise DONETTO (Yoogali SC), James DRISCOLL (O’Connor Knights), Daniel GALIC (O’Connor Knights), Marko JADRIC (Canberra Croatia), Tomohiro OGAWA (Tigers FC), Danny REID (Yoogali SC), Daniel SPARROW (Canberra Croatia), Nicholas SUBASIC (Canberra Croatia), Shandon WHITEHEAD (Tigers FC)
1: Samuel ABA (Queanbeyan City), Lukman AHMED-SHAIBU (O’Connor Knights), Angus BAILEY (Tigers FC), Ben BASSER-SILK (Monaro Panthers), Thomas BLAZEVSKI (Queanbeyan City), Riley BROWN (Gungahlin United), Xabier DAVIES (Tuggeranong United), Josh DE ROSSI (Yoogali SC), Bailey DICKENSON (Gungahlin United), Jacob DONADEL (Yoogali SC), Jayce DOTSON (Yoogali SC), Nic EMANUEL (Tuggeranong United), Cole FALCO (Tuggeranong United), Marco GAYER (Monaro Panthers), Niko KRESIC (O’Connor Knights), Luca MACOR (Monaro Panthers), Archie MCGREGOR (Tigers FC), Max MELLICK (Monaro Panthers), Josh PEDERSEN (Tuggeranong United), Nicholas PRATEZINA (Canberra Croatia), Joe PREECE (Yoogali SC), Charlie RAE (Queanbeyan City), Robbie RIMMER (Yoogali SC), Thomas ROBERTSON (Gungahlin United), Yoshida SHOKI (Gungahlin United), Tony SPASESKI (Canberra Croatia), Noah STEINACKER (Tigers FC), Luke STEVENS (Tuggeranong United), Ryan STRAUB (Monaro Panthers), Daniel SUBASIC (Canberra Croatia), Giuseppe TINE (Monaro Panthers), Kristian TOKIC (Queanbeyan City), Keegan VUCETIC (Canberra Croatia), Sam WHITHEAR (Tigers FC), Riley ZSUZSA (Canberra Croatia)
