BASL Men’s Division 2 – League Cup
Grand Final
Swan Hill SC v Deniliquin Wanderers
Sunday, August 7 @ 12.30pm @ Strathfieldsaye Club Court Reserve
The Swan Hill Soccer Club Men’s team will be out to secure their club’s first piece of silverware in 16 years when they face off against the Deniliquin Wanderers in the BASL Division 2 League Cup Grand Final on Sunday.
It will be the fourth time the Swans and Wanderers have played this season, with Swan Hill having an unblemished record against their northern rivals. The Swans recorded a 3-0 win at home the last time they met, with Conner Brown doing the damage with a hat-trick in what was a physical encounter.
Their two previous encounters against the Wanderers also resulted in wins to Swan Hill – with a 3-0 win in Round 3 followed by a 4-6 away win five weeks later.
Brown will be one to beware of for Deniliquin, with the Swan Hill striker scoring eight goals in the three games against the Wanderers this season. While Brown has been the chief destroyer against Deniliquin so far, his captain Cooper Fox has been in equally devastating form in front of the net, scoring a League Cup-high ten goals acrosss the six-game tournament.
The bulk of Swan Hill’s scoring has come from these players, although Angus Op’t Hoog will pose another challenge to the Wanderers’ defence with his recent return to the side, sliding in alongside Brown to form a two-pronged threat up front.
Michael Kadar is another who can be damaging, with the defender a constant headache at set pieces – while youngster Jacob Thompson can also provide the Swans with a different look off the bench, using his speed to regularly get in behind the defence and provide scoring opportunities.
As strong as Swan Hill are up front, their defence is where they’ve excelled in recent weeks, playing with a consistent back four of Kadar, Blaze Hamiliton, Jim De Gregorio and Anyueer Buol, with Joel Page set to provide strong support off the bench. Much of the Swans’ structure starts from the defenders, who along with goal keeper Riley McCosh, are able to set up their defensive press behind the play.
While the Swans allowed four goals to go in back in their Round 6 encounter with Deniliquin, their two games at home resulted in clean sheets – an achievement they’ll no doubt be keen to repeat on Sunday.
That task may or may not be made easier depending on Wanderers leading goal scorer Josh Perizzolo overcoming a red card that was handed to him during their 3-2 win over Spring Gully SC last Sunday – with a tribunal decision set for Thursday night.
Regardless of Perizzolo’s availability, Deniliquin still have more than enough weapons to challenge Swan Hill, with Matthew Hood scoring a brace against the Swans and Jesse Hart, Jacob Hird and Kaan Ozmen all capable of impacting the scoreboard.
Swan Hill’s midfield will be bolstered by the return of Ben Muir-Howie from injury, who will slot straight back into his centre midfield position, with Santosh Gunasekaran and Wiseman Sibanda alongside – with Fox to play his usual attacking midfielder role.
While anything can happen on the day, a tough and physical game is guaranteed based on the previous encounters between the two clubs, with both teams employing an extremely aggressive attack on the ball and aggressive game style.
