With Football Manager 2016 lauded for its realism and scouting depth of the NPL Victoria in its newest edition, we thought it’d be interesting to see how the league pans in the virtual sphere, running alongside the league season proper. Here’s the first of our NPL Victoria Preview’s for the season, as we run all the games of the week through the Football Manager engine.
Please let us know anything you’d like to see from this save for next week and we’ll do our best to work it into the preview.
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Recap
Round 1:
Matteo Ballan laid on two assists as FC Bullen Lions came back from two goals down to draw with reigning champions Bentleigh Greens. Topping that feat was Port Melbourne youngster Alex Goodwin who grabbed a double to get past Oakleigh Cannons, re-writing history after a real-life 0-0 draw. Interesting to note that not a single result went the same way as they did in real life; Heidelberg turning around a 6-0 loss with a 1-0 win courtesy of a goal to Andreas Govas. Steven Pace was the Player of the Round with an 8.70 rating, marking Milos Lujic out of the game completely. Avondale FC and Richmond picked up draws, while Northcote City and Green Gully grabbed wins.
Round 2:
Hume City and Bentleigh Greens both surprisingly continued their slow start to the season, notching up consecutive draws in the league. Bentleigh were dominant despite the draw, notching up double the shots and 60% possession over the recently promoted Rihcmond. Green Gully were perhaps the most unlucky side of the week, with Arthur Papas’ men putting in a commanding display (66% possession, 16 shots on goal), but weren’t able to get past Alex Pavlidis in goals for Pascoe Vale, who stole a 1-0 win through Adrian Talarico. Melbourne Knights atoned for their 6-1 loss in real life with a 1-1 draw against Heidelberg, who sit 11th courtesy of their three-point league penalty. South Melbourne got their season up and running with a 2-0 win over Northcote City. Port Melbourne’s George Krommidas was the Player of the Round for his superb defensive display which saw him win 5/6 tackles, 4/5 aerial duels and six interceptions.
Round 3:
Avondale FV shot to the top of the NPL Victoria ladder with just their first win of the season. Alex Khrapko and Mass Murdocca did the damage in an even game against a 10-man Green Gully. Kenny Athiu was the star as Heidelberg grabbed a 3-1 win over Pascoe Vale, while Hume and Bentleigh still search for their first win of the season after grabbing a score draw at ABD Stadium. Melbourne Knights’ virtual side followed their real life counterparts with a win over Northcote City as Stipo Andrijasevic found the back of the net twice. Joey Katebian struck the winner against Bulleen Lions, while Oakleigh got their first win of the season against bottom placed Richmond, this time able to hold onto their two goal lead. Michael Eagar was the Player of the Round with a 9.1 rating after netting in the 1-1 draw against Port Melbourne.
Avondale FC marks the biggest contrast between the two NPL Victoria leagues, with FM predicting Anthony Barbieri’s men start the season undefeated, while in real life they’re yet to pick up a point. Virtual South Melbourne weren’t able to replicate the flying feats of their real side, but are playing good football, with players like Michael Eagar, Iqi Jawadi, Matthew Millar and Matthew Foschini all enjoying good season’s to date (as they are in real life). Bentleigh Greens and Hume City will be hoping to pick up a win to kick-start their season.
Preview:
Port Melbourne Sharks vs. Melbourne Knights
Football Manager’s take: FM predicts a close affair, with Port Melbourne creating the majority of chances. This victory was due to their tenacious tackling, winning 87% of their defensive duels. Alan Kearney was sent off while Shaun Kelly went down with a ACL injury.
Man of the Match: Bonel Obradovic (7.9)
Our take: Similarly to their FM counterparts, Port Melbourne’s defensive performances this season have been their strength this year, with Jacob Eliopoulos carrying the brunt of the work. Outstanding in their first two rounds as the Sharks got two clean sheets, he successfully marked Milos Lujic out of the game last week. Knights will also fancy their chance at a clean sheet, with their opponents having only found the net once in 2016.
Oakleigh Cannons vs. Hume City
Football Manager’s take: Hume City have struggled this season, and while again they weren’t outplayed, they were well beaten by Oakleigh Cannons, who also hit the woodwork twice in the 2-0 win. Chris Oldfield was kept busy with four saves, most coming from Goran Zoric and goalscorer Dimi Hatzimouratis who looked busy throughout.
Man of the Match: John Black (7.7)
Our take: Oakleigh Cannons have struggled this season, and although they haven’t been outplayed, they will start outsiders against Hume City. The Broadmeadows-based side dropped their first points of the season against Bentleigh but will be raring to go. Oakleigh on the other hand picked up their first points of the season last week, but would be disappointed, given they held a two-goal lead. Two attacking sides should provide a tantalising contest.
Richmond SC vs. Melbourne Victory
Football Manager’s take: Having made his NPL2 East debut in 2015, young Samet Salis shone for Melbourne Victory on the left of defence, grabbing an assist as they won 2-0 over fellow promoted side Richmond SC. Anthony Duzel and George Howard grabbed the goals, as the Victory played an effective direct brand of football.
Man of the Match: Samet Salis (8.6)
Our take: Richmond will be buoyed by their comeback last week, completed by a stunning Alex Caniglia curler. Melbourne Victory have proven a tough side to beat in 2016, one that looks to play the game on their terms and hurt teams with their width. Bulleen found that out first hand last week as George Howard struck a late equaliser. Victory will fancy their chance at finding the back of the net and grabbing a win.
Avondale FC vs. Bentleigh Greens
Football Manager’s take: Goals to Chris Lucas and Wayne Wallace – both set up by Danny Charalambous – were enough for Bentleigh to claim a first win of the season, while Kane Pierce made his fourth straight start over Ryan Scott in the league. They were clinical with the ball and looked safe without it as Bentleigh put in a commanding counter attacking performance to grab the win, restricting Avondale to a number of shots from distance.
Man of the Match: Danny Charalambous (7.9)
Our take: In real life, Ryan Scott has been one of Bentleigh’s standout players, while Chris Lucas has found the back four times compared to the one his virtual self has netted in 2016. They’re a complete outfit but would’ve been disappointed with their performance against Hume last week despite claiming a point. Avondale were trumped 3-0 by Green Gully last week as the pressure builds on Anthony Barbieri’s men. Expect them to fight against Bentleigh, but it’s a tough ask ahead of them.
Green Gully SC vs. Heidelberg United
Football Manager’s take: John Lazaridis opened the scoring, while Jack Petrie rounded off the result for Heidelberg with a rare headed goal. The game saw the ball spend a lot of time in midfield, with both teams registering a large amount of passes, while creating three clear-cut chances apiece. While the Bergers were able to finish, Gully couldn’t as they struck the bar twice. Sean Ellis was fantastic, pulling the strings from behind the strikers.
Man of the Match: Sean Ellis (8.7)
Our take: Heidelberg United have made it two wins straight to help combat what was arguably the worst start to the season possible. A three-point penalty was compounded by a heavy loss to South Melbourne, but wins against Knights (6-1) and Pascoe Vale (1-0) have restored parity to their goal difference and put their points tally in the positive. They meet Gully who are buoyed by their own first win of the season, and will be looking to cement their place within the top six with another victory at home.
Northcote City vs. Pascoe Vale
Football Manager’s take: Northcote City grabbed their second win of the season with a comprehensive victory over Pascoe Vale. They created more opportunities, and created the better ones, while also showing a good clinical touch to take the game away from their opponents. Northcote played direct and struggled to hit their passes, but their defence held up incredibly well to repel Paco’s attacking opportunities.
Man of the Match: Michael Cunningham (8.4)
Our take: Pascoe Vale fell to their first defeat of the season against Heidelberg, but weren’t out of the contest as they went down 1-0. Despite that, Vitale Ferrante’s men have shown that they’ll be finals contenders once again, while on the flip-side, Northcote City will have to act fast to prove they aren’t relegation fodder. On paper, this is a comfortable win for Pascoe Vale, but Northcote will be eager to turn around their winless start.
Bulleen Lions vs. South Melbourne
Football Manager’s take: Bulleen Lions held their own against the firepower of South Melbourne, taking an early lead through Bardhi Hysoli before being pegged back by a Matthew Millar strike. Both Millar and Michael Eagar continued their good start to the NPL Victoria season, while Matteo Ballan had his least influential game in the league after beginning with a flourish. Sami Nour was forced off with a minor injury which curtailed the attacking threat of the Lions, who had to that point forced Nikola Roganovic into five saves.
Man of the Match: Michael Eagar (7.5)
Our take: If Bulleen are to stop the juggernaut of South Melbourne, they’ll need to see a good performance from their defensive structure. Eli Luttmer will be up against it versus Nick Epifano, while Felix Rosman and Will Abbott will have to be wary not only of Milos Lujic, but also the darting runs of Marcus Schroen who holds the key to unlocking the contest.