Friday’s triple header kicks off in Melbourne with City looking to build on an unbeaten December that has seen them climb up to fifth place.
Admittedly it does come with the caveat of their last three matches ending in stalemates including a New Years Eve clash in Gosford.
Meanwhile, Wellington managed to end a three game losing streak with a win against Newcastle last weekend.
Home ground advantage has been the deciding factor over the last two years with the hosts taking out the victory in each of the last four meetings.
City is doing a good job avoiding defeat at the moment and they should be able to see off a stubborn opponent that is a bit low on confidence.
BEST: Melbourne City to Win $1.75 | VALUE: Andreas Kuen First Goalscorer $8.00
It has been a rough season for the Mariners so far with just two wins from their ten matches so far.
However that is still a whole lot better than their opponents for this match Brisbane, who are on a historically bad run of results, with two draws and seven losses to date.
They are showing no signs of improvement and there should be concern over the team going totally in the tank with plenty of vitriol coming from the few remaining supporters in the stands.
And yet, Brisbane is still a slight favourite in this market… go figure that one out.
BEST: Central Coast to Win $2.90 | VALUE: Central Coast to Win -1 Goal $5.50
Normal service resumed in Perth last weekend with the Glory losing another match, this time at the hands of Macarthur going down 3-0.
Now Western United comes to town having just scraped past another struggling team in Brisbane, but the Glory’s defence has been worse than the Roar’s.
Add in the fact Western United have some proven goalscorers including Hiroshi Ibusuki who has five goals for his new club.
BEST: Western United to Win $1.85 | VALUE: Hiroshi Ibusuki First Goalscorer $4.80
Looking at Newcastle’s recent results, it’s hard to see exactly how they are going to be competitive in this game.
They have lost five of their last six with their only win in that run coming against the lowly Perth.
Meanwhile, Sydney is coming off a comprehensive 3-0 win over Melbourne Victory, the third straight time they have scored three in a match.
They can score, Newcastle cannot, this looks like a pretty straightforward selection.
BEST: Sydney to Win $1.78 | VALUE: Sydney to Win and Over 4.5 Goals $4.50
Context is everything, especially when you consider Melbourne Victory’s recent run of results.
They have two draws and a loss from their last three but there is still a lot to like about they way they are trending.
In the immediate aftermath of Patrick Kisnorbo’s departure they fought back to grab a point from their derby, they lost to Sydney FC after an early (and controversial) red card before grinding out a draw against league leading Auckland.
Western Sydney is going to be a proper challenge for them though, with their good run coming to an end on New Year’s Day, losing to Macarthur.
How both teams back up from their midweek engagements will be the deciding factor, but a low scoring draw looks to be on the cards here as both clubs will likely find a way to cancel one another out.
BEST: Under 2.5 Goals $2.25 | VALUE: Draw and Under 2.5 Goals $5.25
Round 12 proper wraps up on Monday night, with a clash that promises plenty of goals, we’re just not sure which team will be the one scoring them.
The Bulls held on against a 10-man Wanderers on Wednesday to move up into second place, ahead of the Reds on goal difference (and having played two games more).
Both clubs are scoring at a rate of over two goals per game on the season and a repeat of Macarthur’s wild 4-3 win in December 2023 is very much on the cards.
BEST: Over 3.5 Goals $1.92 | VALUE: Over 5.5 Goals $4.80
*RESCHEDULED ROUND 17 MATCH*
Two of the league’s longest unbeaten runs will go on the line in this game and both sides are coming off impressive wins on Friday evening.
City broke a run of three straight draws with a commanding if not comprehensive win over Wellington at AAMI Park with goals from Harry Politidis and Nathaniel Atkinson.
Western United meanwhile left it late for their fourth straight victory, scoring twice in added time to beat lowly Perth out west.
While they have three full days to recover, the travel back across the country is going to have some sort of impact on their sharpness for this game.
City has won the last three head to head meetings, although it has not been easy with the last two finishing 1-0 in their favour.
With that in mind, City to win looks like the best play in this market but it won’t be an end to end, high scoring fixture.
BEST: Melbourne City to Win $2.10 | VALUE: Melbourne City to Win and Under 2.5 Goals $5.75
*RESCHEDULED ROUND 11 MATCH*
Same story as Friday night for this one, Brisbane is just not playing well at all and even being at home is not enough to justify their status as favourites for this match.
Their first half against the Mariners was flat and uninspiring, which set the stage for another defeat for Ruben Zadkovich and his men.
Newcastle meanwhile offered up some signs of life against Sydney FC before giving up two late goals and having to settle for a point.
That was still a lot more than what we have seen from Brisbane at just about any point in time in season 2024/25 though.
BEST: Newcastle to Win $2.90 | VALUE: Newcastle to Win -1 Goal $5.50
*RESCHEDULED ROUND 11 MATCH*
Sydney were not good for large portions of their clash with Newcastle on the weekend but they still found a way to salvage a point so it was not all bad news for the Sky Blues.
Granted, they will not want to make the same mistakes against a Perth side that has some fight to them despite their lowly standing this season.
If Sydney shows up and is ready to play, Perth will not have much chance of withstanding this very talented side.
BEST: Sydney FC HT/FT Double $1.73 | VALUE: Joe Lolley First Goalscorer