Campbelltown City v West Adelaide
Westfield FFA Cup Qualifying Round 1

When: Saturday, April 4^th. Kick-off 2:30pm
Where: Steve Woodcock Sports Centre, Stradbroke Road, NEWTON

Teams:

Campbelltown City: 17 L. Colalancia, 7 L. Ditroia, 4 I. Fyfe, 3 M. Graham, 8 K. Hara, 20 N. Harpas, 2 S. Harvey, 15 M. Matricciani, 13 T. Mcsorley, 18 K. Minomura, 11 J. Monaco, 1 M. Moore, 6 V. Parhas, 10 O. Totani, 14 R. Townsend, 16 A. Ture, 9 V. Yuel

West Adelaide: 14 N. Andijanto, 21 D. Atkins, 11 T. Briscoe, 10 R. Da Silva, 20 T. Hatzis, 12 A. Jackson, 5 R. Lippett, 1 L. Moss, 23 M. Nicholson, 16 I. Polichronidis, 9 A. Rideout, 18 T. Veart, 4 C. Verbi, 6 E. Vlassis, 7 J. Wright

Form:

Campbelltown City: W W D

Round 6: Croydon 0-1 Campbelltown City, Polonia Reserve
Round 7: Campbelltown City 1-0 Adelaide Comets, Steve Woodcock Sports Centre
Round 8: Campbelltown City 1-1 Adelaide Blue Eagles, Steve Woodcock Sports Centre

West Adelaide: W D D 

Round 6: West Adelaide 3-2 South Adelaide, Adelaide Shores Football Centre
Round 7: West Adelaide 1-1 Adelaide Blue Eagles, Adelaide Shores Football Centre
Round 8: Para Hills 1-1 West Adelaide, The Paddocks

Preview:

The road to the Westfield FFA Cup begins with Round 1 of Qualifying, as two early PlayStation 4 National Premier League South Australia pace setters Campbelltown City and West Adelaide meet at Steve Woodcock Sports Centre on Saturday.

Campbelltown secured a draw against Adelaide Blue Eagles last weekend and after eight rounds are part of a three-way tie for first, along with Blue Eagles and West Adelaide.

Captain Vas Parhas believes his side has a foundation to build on.

“The Blue Eagles game wasn’t one of our better performances, the first half was not up the standard we expect. The second was a lot better and in the end a draw was a fair result,” he said.

“It has been a solid start, but we don’t judge ourselves on points now – nothing is won in Round 8. We judge on performances and each week we are improving. Now we want to consolidate our start.”

Campbelltown have not claimed local Cup honours since 1994, but with FFA Cup Round of 32 qualification also up for grabs it becomes an even more important competition.

After a 0-0 draw between the sides started the season, Parhas sees this as a clash between two evenly matched teams.

“Any game we play we go out there to win. The Cup is just as important as the League for us.

“If Round 1 is anything to go by it will be tight. They’ve had a good start and we are respectful of the players they have. I think these are two evenly matched sides.

“Looking back at the first game both teams had chances and would’ve been disappointed to not take them. West are similar to us in personnel, so whoever is ruthless will win it.”

West Adelaide’s 1-1 draw with Para Hills last Saturday proved a missed opportunity to go to the top of the table, but their opening to the campaign indicates they will be a force.

Coach Paul Pezos is pleased with how his side is faring in the opening weeks of the season.

“I thought we were okay against Para Hills, but found it hard to break them down. When we did get chances we did not take them,” he stated.

“I’m happy with our position, but there is a long way to go and we have to improve. However, we are slowly making those steps which is pleasing for me.”

The Blue and Whites narrowly missed a place in last season’s FFA Cup, going down in the Federation Cup final to Adelaide City.

As they prepare to face Campbelltown, Pezos says his side must be wary of the threat the Red Devils pose.

“It’s another game to play and win. The Cup is important to the club and to the team. We always want to do well.

“Campbelltown are a well organised team led by one of Adelaide’s best coaches in Joe Mullen. He has a lot of experience.

“They are a good team and so we need to perform at our best, play with intensity and put our chances away. That will give us the best possible chance of advancing.”