The NPLWA - Men’s Top Four Cup begins tomorrow with league champions Perth RedStar and Stirling Macedonia meeting at RedStar Arena for the right to qualify for next week’s final.
Callum Salmon’s team, who won this competition 12 months ago, found form when it mattered most this year with an eight-game unbeaten run guiding them three points clear of their opponents after 22 matches.
But Stirling have a clear advantage in the head-to-head meetings between the pair, with four wins from four since they returned to the top flight at the beginning of last season.
The winners of Saturday’s match will advance straight to the Top Four Cup final at the State Football Centre on Saturday 16 September, while the losers will get a second bite of the cherry in midweek against the winners of tomorrow’s other semi-final between Olympic Kingsway and Perth SC, who meet in a knockout tie at Kingsway Reserve.
After winning the Night Series in March, Olympic continued to impress in their first year back in the top flight in over 20 years to finish third in the league. But their form did plateau near the end of the league season, with just one win in their last five league games. However, that did come against tomorrow’s opponents when Ciaran Byrne and Tyler Garner netted in a 2-0 win at Dorrien Gardens.
That result was Perth’s only loss in their final six matches and their strong second half to the season will have them confident of a fourth triumph in the past six post-season finals competitions.
Both of tomorrow's semi-finals will be shown live and free on Streamer, along with the NPLWA - Men’s U20s semis: https://streamer.com.au/
Fixtures
Saturday 9 September
NPLWA - Men’s Top Four Cup
First Team (both 3pm)
Perth RedStar v Stirling Macedonia (RedStar Arena)
Olympic Kingsway v Perth SC (Kingsway Reserve)
U20s (both 1pm)
Perth Glory v Perth RedStar (RedStar Arena)
Perth SC v Bayswater City (Kingsway Reserve)
U18s (both 11am)
Perth Glory v Sorrento FC (RedStar Arena)
Floreat Athena v Bayswater City (Kingsway Reserve)