Canberra Croatia head into their Round 20 OPC NPL Men’s clash knowing that they only need one point to claim the 2025 League Champions title as they travel to the AIS to take on Tigers FC.
A win or draw for Dean Ugrinic’s side would secure yet another trophy in the cabinet for the Croatian club, with a game to spare. They come up against second-placed Tigers, who are finishing the season strong, having been unbeaten since Round 12.
The two fixture proceeding this title decider, have a win apiece for each side. Croatia dominated for a 4-0 win in Round 12, while Tigers scored late to win 2-1 in Round 5.
Expect an action-packed game between the top sides, with a piece of silverware on the line.
There’s just as much action around the grounds, as Queanbeyan City welcome rivals Monaro Panthers to High Street for the third edition of the “Clear Waters’ Derby.
There is more than just bragging rights at stake in this match. While their spot in the finals is secured, the Panthers still have the opportunity to secure a top two spot on the ladder, should Tigers fail to win in their last two matches. Add in that the fact that they are winless against the bitter rivals, and it only adds more fuel to the fire.
Queanbeyan City are clinging on to their top four spot by the virtue of goal difference alone, with Tuggeranong and Gungahlin hot on their heels. Their recent form has left a bit to be desired, with only the one win in their last five. Goran Josifivski and his squad will be buoyed by the fact that they have gotten the better of the rivals in their two outings, and will be keen to make it three from three.
Sunday afternoon brings about two more highly important matches, with Tuggeranong United welcoming O’Connor Knights to Kambah 201.
Depending on the result in the Clear Waters Derby the day before, a win or draw could propel Tuggies into the top four heading into the last round. Form has been patchy recently for the side, with two wins and a draw in their last five. A win this weekend will give Mitch Steven’s side a boost of confidence heading into Round 21 against Canberra Croatia and a potential finals appearance.
They face a struggling O’Connor side who will be desperate to avoid finishing in eight place, and the dreaded moniker of the wooden spoon. The Knights have not won since Round Nine, a 2-1 win over Tigers, and will be desperate to finish strongly.
The final match of the round sees Gungahlin United face Yoogali SC at the AIS on Sunday afternoon.
With a midweek win over O’Connor putting them just two points off the top four, Javier Roca’s side will be desperate to put an uncharacteristically rocky season behind them, with a top four finish. The form of their Japanese imports Ayumu Kimura and Yoshida Shoki has been integral to Gungahlin’s recent form, scoring 10 of the team’s last 12 goals between them.
Standing in their way is a Yoogali side who have proven to be capable of pulling off remarkable results this season. A 2-1 win against Croatia three weeks ago, and an astonishing 5-1 win over Gungahlin back in Round Five, will give the men from Griffith the confidence to make the trip east in search of a positive result.
FIXTURES
ROUND 20
Saturday 23 August
Tigers FC v Canberra Croatia (AIS Grass 1, 15:00)
Queanbeyan City v Monaro Panthers (High Street, 15:00)
Sunday 24 August
Tuggeranong United v O’Connor Knights (Kambah 201, 15:00)
Gungahlin United v Yoogali SC (AIS Grass 1, 15:00)
TABLE
|
|
|
P |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
PTS |
|
1 |
Canberra Croatia |
19 |
15 |
0 |
4 |
73 |
23 |
+50 |
45 |
|
2 |
Tigers FC |
19 |
12 |
4 |
3 |
46 |
30 |
+16 |
40 |
|
3 |
Monaro Panthers |
19 |
11 |
3 |
5 |
57 |
23 |
+34 |
36 |
|
4 |
Queanbeyan City |
19 |
6 |
6 |
7 |
19 |
31 |
-12 |
24 |
|
5 |
Tuggeranong United |
19 |
6 |
6 |
7 |
26 |
42 |
-16 |
24 |
|
6 |
Gungahlin United |
19 |
6 |
4 |
9 |
33 |
53 |
-21 |
22 |
|
7 |
Yoogali SC |
19 |
3 |
3 |
13 |
23 |
46 |
-23 |
12 |
|
8 |
O’Connor Knights |
19 |
3 |
2 |
14 |
31 |
60 |
-29 |
11 |
TOP SCORERS
17: Daniel BARAC (Monaro Panthers)
15: Thomas JAMES (Canberra Croatia), Nick PRATEZINA (Canberra Croatia)
14: Steve NEALON (Tuggeranong United)
13: Maxx GREEN (Canberra Croatia)
10: Yoshida SHOKI (Gungahlin United)
9: William AKIO (Tigers FC), Stephen DOMENICI (Monaro Panthers)
8: Lukman AHMED-SHAIBU (O’Connor Knights/Tigers FC), Daniel SPARROW (Canberra Croatia)
7: Jenno CERUTI (O’Connor Knights), Ayumu KIMURA (Gungahlin United), Own GOALS
6: Nico ABOT (Queanbeyan City), Jayce DOTSON (Yoogali SC)
5: Aisosa IHEGIE (O’Connor Knights), Michael JOHN (O’Connor Knights), Connor MYNOTT-SMITH (Monaro Panthers), Robert TKATCHENKO (Monaro Panthers)
4: Ben BASSER-SILK (Monaro Panthers/Tigers FC), Giancarlo D’ADDARIO (Gungahlin United), Ryan KEIR (Canberra Croatia), Christian KRESKAS (Monaro Panthers), Loick LESPINASSE (Gungahlin United), Archie MCGREGOR (Tigers FC), Michael PICCOLO (Monaro Panthers / Canberra Croatia)
3: Darren BAILEY (Yoogali SC), Mason DONADEL (Yoogali SC), Stefan DONADEL (Yoogali SC), Zac LAWRENCE (Tuggeranong United), Phakedi MANDA (Monaro Panthers/O’Connor Knights), Misko NAUMOSKI (Queanbeyan City), Nik POPOVICH (Tigers FC), Tomohiro OGAWA (Tigers FC), Thomas ROBERTSON (Gungahlin United), Noah STEINACKER (Tigers FC), Daniel SUBASIC (Canberra Croatia), Nik TANESKI (Tigers FC), Sam WHITEHEAR (Tigers FC)
2: Micheal ADAMS (O’Connor Knights), Gabriel AYUEL (Queanbeyan City), Angus BAILEY (Tigers FC / Gungahlin United), Augustine BANGURA (Tigers FC), Daniel COLBERTALDO (Canberra Croatia), Dylan DEEP-JONES (Monaro Panthers), Abderrahim DELLAHI (Queanbeyan City), FERNANDO Jorquera (Monaro Panthers), Bevan FOXALL (Tuggeranong United), Josh GASPARI (Gungahlin United), Marko JADRIC (Canberra Croatia), Romeo JAMBREK (Tuggeranong United), Nikos KALFAS (Tigers FC), Jack LEVERETT (Queanbeyan City), Luca MACOR (Monaro Panthers), Joshua MILICEVIC (Tigers FC), Marko MILUTINOVIC (Tigers FC), Danny REID (Yoogali SC), Ryan STRAUB (Monaro Panthers), Keegan VUCETIC (Canberra Croatia)
1: Connor BILL (O’Connor Knights), Thomas BLAZEVSKI (Queanbeyan City), Seth BONNETT (Queanbeyan City), Isaac DONADEL (Yoogali SC), Nic EMANUEL (Tuggeranong United), Luca FLOREZ (Gungahlin United), Daniel GALIC (O’Connor Knights), Nikola JADRIC (Canberra Croatia), Chistian JUNNA (O’Connor Knights), Niko KRESIC (O’Connor Knights), Alex-Junior MALAUULU (Gungahlin United), Harry MARTIN (O’Connor Knights), Zac MCLAREN (Monaro Panthers), Nathen MEGIC (Tigers FC), Alessandro PENA (Tuggeranong United), Jack PERAIC-CULLEN (Canberra Croatia), Euan PETERKIN (Tuggeranong United), Sam RACITI (Yoogali SC), Marko RATHOUSKI (O’Connor Knights), Daniel ROBERTS (Queanbeyan City), Joey SEO (Yoogali SC), Michael SOUTHAM (Tigers FC), Nicholas SUBASIC (Canberra Croatia), Giuseppe TINE (Monaro Panthers), Daler TOKHIROV (Yoogali SC), Noah VANDERPOL (Queanbeyan City), Hamish WALES (Tigers FC), Riley ZSUZSA (Canberra Croatia)
TOP ASSISTS
20: Thomas JAMES (Canberra Croatia)
9: Christian KRESKAS (Monaro Panthers)
8: Daniel BARAC (Monaro Panthers), Phakedi MANDA (Monaro Panthers/O’Connor Knights), Nick PRATEZINA (Canberra Croatia)
7: Maxx GREEN (Canberra Croatia), Yoshida SHOKI (Gungahlin United)
6: William AKIO (Tigers FC), Stephen DOMENICI (Monaro Panthers)
5: Tony SPASESKI (Canberra Croatia), Nik TANESKI (Tigers FC)
4: Darren BAILEY (Yoogali SC), Nik POPOVICH (Tigers FC), Thomas ROBERTSON (Gungahlin United), Shandon WHITEHEAD (Tigers FC), Sam WHITHEAR (Tigers FC), Kobi YARIYARI (O’Connor Knights)
3: Daniel COLBERTALDO (Canberra Croatia), Giancarlo D’ADDARIO (Gungahlin United), Josh DE ROSSI (Yoogali SC), Cole FALCO (Tuggeranong United), Aisosa IHEGIE (O’Connor Knights), Jack LEVERETT (Queanbeyan City), Connor MYNOTT-SMITH (Monaro Panthers), Michael PICCOLO (Monaro Panthers), Archie MCGREGOR (Tigers FC), Tomohiro OGAWA (Tigers FC), Danny REID (Yoogali SC), Luke STEVENS (Tuggeranong United), Nicholas SUBASIC (Canberra Croatia), Robert TKATCHENKO (Monaro Panthers), Riley ZSUZSA (Canberra Croatia)
2: Micheal ADAMS (O’Connor Knights), Angus BAILEY (Tigers FC), Nikita BYRNES (Gungahlin United), Abderrahim DELLAHI (Queanbeyan City), Chaise DONETTO (Yoogali SC), James DRISCOLL (O’Connor Knights), Nic EMANUEL (Tuggeranong United), Bevan FOXALL (Tuggeranong United), Daniel GALIC (O’Connor Knights), Marko JADRIC (Canberra Croatia), Michael JOHN (O’Connor Knights), Loick LESPINASSE (Gungahlin United), AJ MALAUULU (Gungahlin United), Joshua MILICEVIC (Tigers FC), Josh PEDERSEN (Tuggeranong United), Marko RATHOUSKI (O’Connor Knights), Robbie RIMMER (Yoogali SC), Daniel ROBERTS (Queanbeyan City), Daniel SPARROW (Canberra Croatia), Noah STEINACKER (Tigers FC), Ryan STRAUB (Monaro Panthers), Keegan VUCETIC (Canberra Croatia)
1: Samuel ABA (Queanbeyan City), Niko ABOT (Queanbeyan City), Lukman AHMED-SHAIBU (O’Connor Knights), Ben BASSER-SILK (Monaro Panthers), Connor BILL (O’Connor Knights), Thomas BLAZEVSKI (Queanbeyan City), Riley BROWN (Gungahlin United), Sam BROWN (Canberra Croatia), Xabier DAVIES (Tuggeranong United), Dylan DEEP-JONES (Monaro Panthers), Bailey DICKENSON (Gungahlin United), Jacob DONADEL (Yoogali SC), Jayce DOTSON (Yoogali SC), FERNANDO Jorquera (Monaro Panthers), Marco GAYER (Monaro Panthers), Matt GRBESA (Canberra Croatia), Romeo JAMBREK (Tuggeranong United), Mitchell JERVIS-HAMILTON (Monaro Panthers), Ryan KEIR (Canberra Croatia), Niko KRESIC (O’Connor Knights), Steven KRESKAS (Queanbeyan City), Luca MACOR (Monaro Panthers), Zac MCLAREN (Monaro Panthers), Harry MARTIN (O’Connor Knights), Archie MCGREGOR (Tigers FC), Max MELLICK (Monaro Panthers), Ibrahim OBEID (O’Connor Knights), Deacon PALOMBI (Gungahlin United), Nicholas PRATEZINA (Canberra Croatia), Joe PREECE (Yoogali SC), Charlie RAE (Queanbeyan City), Sam ROESTBAKKEN (Monaro Panthers),Luke SAKAMOTO (Tuggeranong United), Vincent SANCHEZ (O’Connor Knights), Cassidy SCHLESINGER (Tuggeranong United), Michael SOUTHAM (Tigers FC), Daniel SUBASIC (Canberra Croatia), Giuseppe TINE (Monaro Panthers), Kristian TOKIC (Queanbeyan City), Sam WALKER (Tuggeranong United)
