A-League tipping Round 23 : Finals places going fast

It’s Newcastle Jets or Auckland FC for premiers, any team from Macarthur FC down to basement club Western Sydney Wanderers can claim the sixth and last finals spot, but we know it’s not as cut and dry as that in the world’s best football league. The trap door can open very quickly for Sydney FC under their new head coach and who knows what Wellington Phoenix are going to pull out of the hat next.

After a weekend of thrilling international football, we return to domestic action, with only five rounds remaining. You do the maths, you predict the scenarios, every team will earn between 0 and 15 points before the end of the regular season. Anything can happen.

If anyone knows the latest on the future of The Roar, please do share it with us. We’ll keep the A-League tips and predictions firing until the Grand Final, and who knows we could be back home for next season. Stay connected, stay tuned and keep your fingers crossed.

Please don’t be shy. Share your tips, enter your selections in the Google sheet and let’s make sure that The Crowd stays well ahead of the chasing pack.

Stuart Thomas

Macarthur, Brisbane, Adelaide, Central Coast, City, Victory, City

They continue to be the dark horse of the league and the Bulls pinch all three points at home against a disappointing Newcastle. Things will tighten up in the race for the plate as a result. Brisbane will beat Sydney after a nice rest and the drama that has unfolded in the harbour city.

The Reds in front of a sell out crowd are good things and Auckland might stumble on Friday night. The Mariners won’t do the same and should beat a Perth side that has missed what could have been a great opportunity in season 2025/26.

City far too good for the McWanderers who remain nothing more than a happy meal of a club that represents nothing and Victory will round out the six matches with a nice win over the Phoenix. A dark blue team looms as title winners based on history.

One extra game tacked onto the end of the round, and we have a few hundred fans at AAMI Park for City’s impressive win over the Mariners with a Daniel Arzani bicycle kick from outside the area going viral around the world.

Andrew Prentice

Newcastle, Sydney, Adelaide, Central Coast, Melbourne City, Melbourne Victory, Draw

The Jets air show keeps soaring. They can take a big step towards the Premiers Plate with a win at Campbelltown on Thursday night. Macarthur did them a favour last round by beating Auckland in the kind of result that would’ve had men in white lab coats rushing the stables if it was a horse race. Clayton Taylor’s availability will be a factor for the Jets, although they managed to beat Sydney without him. The Bulls win last start may look more of an aberration after this game.

The Roar haven’t won since Round 13. Sydney look a shambles but may benefit from the dead cat bounce of a new coach (though how long he’ll hang around is a subject bookmakers won’t give you odds on – just don’t gamble!) Given the respective form guides of both sides, I’m sure both would be happy to come to a gentleman’s agreement on this one. That said, a Sydney win would see them go to third and with more to play for that should tip the scales in their favour.

What on earth happened to Auckland last start? Looking to shore up (at the least) a top two spot and an advantage run in the finals, they fell asleep against the Bulls and got gored. Adelaide are enjoying a run of form that sees them unbeaten in 7 matches and they know how to score a goal. Even without Lord Craig, they are making life miserable for opposition defences. This will be a cracker of a game with the Reds home ground advantage giving them the edge.

The Mariners amazing run ended at the hands of a rampant Victory. They tumbled out of the top six as a result but have the chance to haul themselves back onto the horse as the Glory put the chocolate eggs aside for an Easter trip to Gosford. In truth, the Mariners 4-1 loss to Victory looked worse on paper, conceding injury time goals blew the score out when they were still hanging in there through the 90. Glory could still harbour theoretical finals ambitions but will more likely provide nuisance value. A 1-0 Mariners win looms.

Since being freed of the shackles of the Asian Champions League, City have – if not recaptured champions form in the league – then at least looked a facsimile of a team that cares again. Their finals chances really rest on the next two games and they should have enough at both ends to dent the Wanderers, who this week lovingly opened their arms to a former mortal enemy as next year’s coach. It seems like Western Sydney are right in 2026-27 preparation mode. City to win, but not with any style.

The Melbourne “style” is being left to Victory, who last lost in Round 15 and who have scored 8 goals in their last two games. The Phoenix are much-improved of late, and in this crazily tight A League season could jump into the semi final spots with a win here. They’ll have to find a way to deal with Juan Mata though, and no-one yet has figured out how to do that (well, apart from the Wanderers last season). 

A Tuesday night deferred game will see two tired teams full of Easter chocolate trying to hang onto top six places. It may not make for a classic but there will be enough grit and endeavour on display to cancel each other out. While neither side benefits greatly from a draw, when the final whistle blows, they may just accept it in the same way we all now stare glassily at petrol prices and think, “Can it get worse?”

Texi Smith

Newcastle, Brisbane, Auckland, Draw, City, Victory, City

Four defeats on the bounce followed by an away win at the premiers – only in the A-League – and Macarthur FC were good value for their win in Auckland. The Jets consolidated top spot with a smash-and-grab to end Ufuk Talay’s tenure as Sydney coach and will have the backing of a good number of fans at Campbelltown Stadium on Thursday night. In recent seasons this would be a home banker, but now that the Jets have shown their cards, Will Dobson will have them in the lead early, Kota Mizunuma adding a second late in the game after the Bulls have pushed them all the way. Crack open the champagne, our new Premiers are on the march.

Sydney FC fans’ Tour of Duty heads to Suncorp Stadium for a Thursday night showdown against the embattled Brisbane Roar. The vibe manager’s undoubted vibeyness has not yet rubbed off on the home team, and with a new (interim) man at the helm for the Sky Blues, we get the first chance to experience the regimented PK era. Wholesale changes to the team that threw a point away against the Jets, Sydney FC are a new-look, well-drilled outfit, but when Corey Hollman i dismissed only four minutes after coming on as a second-half substitute, it’s the home team who take the spoils thanks to a marvellous Jay O’Shea half-volley straight out of Alessandro Diamanti’s top drawer.

Good Friday under lights at a packed-out Coopers Stadium. Public Holiday, nothing else to prevent Adelaide United fans from attending, the A-League draws a full-house for the visit of reigning premiers Auckland FC. Adelaide have put together a strong run of results of late, and have goals in their attack, but Auckland have Jesse Randall, and it ends up being a shoot-out between him and Luka Jovanovic, both players with a brace, but Lachlan Brook’s late screamer gives the Kiwis a vital win in their premiership defence.

Perth Glory’s season has lurched from one bad result to another in recent weeks, but their spirited draw with Melbourne City may have stopped the rot. A rare start for Jaiden Kucharski is rewarded with an early opener in Gosford, and when Scott Wootton rises to plant in a second, the sparse home crowd is left wondering why they gave up their time on a long weekend to follow this shit. James Sabit has a swift reply after coming on as a second-half sub, and that man Ali Auglah chips in a dramatic equaliser to give them a share of the spoils and keep the finals conversation going.

Western Sydney Wanderers’ interim coach Gary Van Egmond now knows his place in the club’ plans and these final weeks of the season will be like the last days of school back in year six; almost checked out, apprehensive about the new year ahead and determined to have a good time with what time remains. The visit to Melbourne City could be another one of those A-League aberrations, but the Wanderers are bottom of the pile for a reason, keeping City at bay until just before half time when Marcus Younis opens the scoring. It’s one way traffic in the second half and Andrew Nabbout fills his boots, City finding form just at the right time.

Wellington’s mini-renaissance comes to a shuddering halt at Melbourne Victory on Easter Sunday, Clarismario Santos and Nishan Velupillay on the scoresheet early in the game. Phoenix look troubled, and a shadow of the team that won well at Brisbane last round. Nikos Vergos is thrown on to try and put the game to bed and he certainly does that, a quick-fire double setting up a thumping Victory win to keep them in the hot seat for finals football.

The game that no one wanted this round is hidden away on Tuesday night, when everyone is back to work or on their extended holiday. Both Melbourne City and Central Coast Mariners are vying for sixth spot in the ladder, but with Sydney FC totally out of form, they could be aiming even higher. A thumping header from Max Caputo gives City the lead in the second half after sustained pressure and Daniel Arzani reminds us of his credentials with a devastating second goal near the end. The race for the finals is hot; keep your eye on City as a dark horse for the Championship.

See what everyone tipped this round, the shock at Texi choosing a draw, and marvel at the Crowd’s lead at the top :

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