MEN’S PREVIEW: WESTERN SYDNEY WANDERERS v MANLY UNITED

The Manly United Men’s 1st Grade team travels west on Saturday to Wanderers Football Park and will be seeking a return to winning ways against Western Sydney Wanderers.

This will be the second meeting between these two clubs in NPL NSW Men’s 1st Grade, following a 0-0 draw at Cromer Park in 2020. Only three points separate Manly from the Wanderers, so expect a closely fought battle as the two teams fight for a victory that would see them move closer to the top half of the table.

Western Sydney Wanderers are led by a familiar face in Andrew Christiansen, who spent eight years at Manly United as a coach and technical director. This is Christiansen’s first season with the Wanderers – he’s already built an impressive coaching resume and he led Central Coast Mariners Academy to promotion in 2022. The Wanderers will be confident after defeating rivals Sydney FC last weekend, Zac Sapsford scored the only goal of that game and he is someone that Manly’s defence will need to track closely.

Manly are looking to maintain a very good recent record against A-League Academies – we haven’t lost to an A-League Academy since 2020. Lucas Rainbird was a strong performer in our backline on the weekend and the young defender could play a key role against the Wanderers.

Our U20 side are now in the top four and were convincing winners on Saturday, defeating Wollongong Wolves 3-0. Olly Burden had an U20 debut to remember, scoring our third goal and receiving praise for his performance from the coaching staff, while Stefan Visscher will be trying to start a scoring streak after goals in his last two U20 games. There is also plenty at stake in the U20 fixture, with one place and three points separating us from the Wanderers.

If you can’t get to the ground for our Men’s 1st Grade clash, tune in on NPL.TV .

Western Sydney Wanderers v Manly United

Saturday 29 April, 7pm (U20s kickoff at 5pm)

Wanderers Football Park