R9 Preview: Raiders v Adelaide Comets

Raiders v Adelaide Comets 
PlayStation 4 National Premier League South Australia Round 9  

When: Monday, April 6th. Kick-off 3pm
Where: Croatian Sports Centre, State Sports Park, off Main North Road, GEPPS CROSS  

Form: 

Raiders: W D W 

Round 6: Pirates 1-6 Raiders, Pirate Park 
Round 7: Raiders 1-1 Modbury, Croatian Sports Centre 
Round 8: Croydon 1-2 Raiders, Polonia Reserve  

Adelaide Comets: L L L 

Round 6: Adelaide Comets 0-3 Adelaide Blue Eagles, SA Athletics Stadium 
Round 7: Campbelltown City 1-0 Adelaide Comets, Steve Woodcock Sports Centre 
Round 8: Adelaide Comets 1-4 West Torrens Birkalla, Roxby Leisure Centre  

Preview: 

Both Raiders and Adelaide Comets are currently outside the top six, but are separated by just two points ahead of an important clash in Round 9 of the PlayStation 4 National Premier League South Australia at the Croatian Sports Centre on Monday.

Raiders have recovered from a slow start to win three of their last four matches, including a 2-1 result over reigning champions Croydon last week. 

Ryan Marveggio says it was a deserved victory. 

“It was a great result for us that was very much deserved. We stuck to our game plan, worked hard on what we had to do in training and it came to fruition during the match,” he stated. 

“We made a lot of changes over the summer, but added quality to the squad and have been working hard since the start. It was going to take time and now we are seeing the results.” 

Raiders failed to make the finals last season, finishing a disappointing 10th. Following those changes their minimum target is a top six position, but the aim is to go even further. 

They have a bye in Round 1 of Westfield FFA Cup Qualifying, but ahead of facing the Comets Marveggio says belief in the squad is high. 

“We believe we are title contenders. There is strong belief in the team and a great feeling around the squad at the moment. We know we have the quality to challenge the leading clubs. 

“I haven’t seen much of Comets this year, but last season they showed how good a team they are. We need to stick to our plan and play at our best to get maximum points.” 

Adelaide Comets come into this game on the back of poor run, having lost four on the trot. Not helping is a tally of just 10 goals scored in eight matches, five of which came in one game. 

They were defeated by West Torrens Birkalla last week, coach Jim Karatzas calling it a bad day at the office. 

“We started poorly against Birkalla, with two defensive errors that put us on the back foot. We came back and thought we could go on with it, then another lapse put us down. We had to chase the game and conceded again,” he noted.  

“It was a bad day. Errors that you wouldn’t think would happen did happen. 

“We are struggling to score goals. We have not been taking our chances, but have been working on that in training.” 

It’s a big weekend for Comets. They play State League outfit Adelaide Olympic in Round 1 of Westfield FFA Cup Qualifying, before facing an in-form Raiders outfit. 

Karatzas says they must work through this difficult period. 

“The boys know they are good enough. It’s been a bad patch and we need to work hard to get through it. 

“Raiders are going very well and scoring quite a few goals. It will be a tough test for us. We’ll have a plan to counter them and hopefully get back to winning ways.”  

Article by Luca Cetta - @l_cetta




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