Match One: New England Nomads v Inverell Saints at Bellevue Oval
What a game to kick off Round 16! The winner of this game will put one foot in a home Major Semi Final in a fortnight, while the loser will almost certainly be back to third place on Saturday night.
It is hard to get much of a form line through these teams in recent weeks. The Nomads have had a stop-start last month, with just two games played in 5 weekends of footy, and a weekend off last week because of the bye. They head into the clash on the back of a dismantling of the Swans in Tamworth 10 days ago and will enter full of confidence from that mid week victory. The Saints have been a little up and down of late as well. They suffered their first loss at home 3 weeks ago, and then had to claw their way out of a hole in Narrabri to steal a win over the Dogs. Their last start was also a thrashing of the Swans, and will hope they see a return of some of their big guns for this clash. The last time these teams met, the Saints caught the Nomads napping and recorded a comprehensive win in Inverell, but back in Round 5 the Nomads took out a close win in Armidale. The Nomads will be buoyed by a big home crowd for this clash, with their annual ball to follow the match. That home-town support may be enough to lift the Nomads in this one, but it’s hard to rule the Saints out entirely.
The worst result for either club here is a draw, but this tipster is tempted to take that option.
TAFL Tipster – Just because they are at home, the Nomads by one point
Match Two: Muswellbrook Cats v Tamworth Swans at Werriman Field
This is an intriguing clash between two clubs desperate to keep their finals hopes alive. The Cats have had the wood over the Swans in recent times, with two wins from two clashes this season, and both games were decided by less that two kicks. They also enjoyed a couple of wins over the boys from Tamworth last season, so it’s been a while between drinks for the Swans in Muswellbrook. The Swans are coming off the toughest week in TAFL history, where they faced the three top sides within the space of 7 days. They were right in the contest against the Roos, before suffering big losses to the Nomads and Saints. They will be right in this match up, and will give themselves a chance of stealing a win on the road. The Cats have struggled with player numbers late in the season, and where competitive for a period against the Roos last weekend. No doubt they will enjoy a return home to Werriman, and will draw confidence from the earlier results this season against the Swans.
Both these clubs still remain a mathematical chance of making the finals, but it will be hard to make a case for the loser on Saturday night. A win for the Cats will probably see them get back on equal points with the Dogs in fourth, but with plenty of percentage in arrears. A Swans win still gives them a shot with the Dogs to come next weekend, but a loss will definitely mean they can start planning for next season. With so much to play for, this should be a great match.
TAFL Tipster – The Cats will continue their winning streak over the Swans and record a 7 point win.
Match Three: Gunnedah Bulldogs v Tamworth Kangaroos at Wolseley Oval
To top off a fantastic weekend of footy, we see two clubs also in desperate need of a win this week. The Bulldogs are coming off a bye after giving up a 6 goal lead to the Saints in Narrabri the week before. They outplayed the Saints in that game for 3 quarters, and were only let down by a lack of numbers on the bench when the whips starting cracking. They are playing some enterprising footy under Errol Lather, who has one of the best midfields going around at his disposal. The Roos are the form side of the competition right now and Tim Cotter has his troops firing on all cylinders. They have suffered just one loss since Round 3, and that was just a one point loss. They have knocked off the Saints in Inverell, the Swans and Cats in the past month and are playing unselfish, team footy. Their midfield has the uncanny knack of rolling forward for a spell and be dangerous up front, and any team’s defence needs to be aware of their rotations through that attack.
The Dogs have a nice buffer in fourth spot, with percentage and 4 points their lead over the Cats at the moment. A win on Saturday will spell the end of the finals hopes for the Cats and Swans, and that should be motivation enough for them to get a win. The Roos must win to keep alive their chances of top spot, with a Grand Final in Tamworth still a possibility. They would desperately love to host another decider, but must win here in order for that to happen.
TAFL Tipster – The Roos need this too much to trip up and will win by 10 points.
Last Modified on 01/08/2012 10:05