It’s the final round of A-League football before the World Cup enforced break and the competition is going out with a bang in Round 6.
The action gets underway with the Original Rivalry on Friday night before the headline feature on Saturday with the Sydney derby returning to Allianz Stadium.
Brisbane and Perth have an early start to their break with their fixture postponed due to ongoing upgrades to venues in WA so those players can join the rest of us sitting back and enjoying all of the action from the A-League.
Find our tips and match previews for Round 6 below!
Friday nights at Coopers Stadium have a history of producing some of the wildest contests in A-League history and this edition of the Original Rivalry could add to that lore.
It will provide an opportunity for Craig Goodwin to receive a rapturous ovation from his hometown supporters ahead of his trip to Qatar for the World Cup while some of the Victory players will be out to show Graham Arnold what he is missing out on.
Adelaide’s attack has come alive with eight goals from their last three outings, obtaining seven points in that run including a dominating win over Western United last Sunday.
Melbourne played themselves into form with an impressive 4-0 drubbing of Newcastle for their first win since Round 1.
This one could go either way but as long as both clubs play close to their potential, this has the makings of a back and forth draw.
Nothing against Newcastle, but there really is only one play to have when it comes to this match, especially with the market priced as it is.
City has played about 20 bad minutes of football all season (which brought about their two dropped points against Wellington) but outside of that it is hard to fault their efforts to date.
Jamie Maclaren and Matt Leckie will be jetting off to Qatar after this fixture and they will be eager to maintain their strong form heading into the World Cup and there’s no reason to back against City here.
It’s the fixture both of these clubs will have been waiting for, with Sydney FC hosting their first derby at the rebuilt Allianz Stadium and by all accounts, it will be a raucous atmosphere coming from both sets of active supporters.
Former Sydney FC star Milos Ninkovic will be one of the main focal points on the pitch, as he turns out against his former club in red and black for the first time.
Neither side has had an ideal build up to this one with both clubs suffering convincing losses last week, which suggests they will be eager to atone for those errors.
On top of that, given where this derby falls in the season’s fixture list, both clubs will be desperate to enter their World Cup break on the back of a win over their local rivals.
However it’s tough to find where either side has a clear edge in this fixture and going off the very even recent history between these clubs, the draw looks like the way to go.
Reigning champions Western United may be the happiest club in the A-League to have a four week hiatus coming up.
Their title defence has been a massive disappointment as the club just has not been able to recapture the form that won them a Grand Final earlier in the year.
With one point through five matches, their focus will be on getting through this game and taking the opportunity to regroup before they return in December.
Wellington might not have been setting the world alight but with a win and three draws so far, they certainly should be able to add to their tally here.
Something has clicked with the Central Coast Mariners in the last fortnight, the club picked up back to back wins, scoring seven goals in the process and is sending three players to the World Cup.
The likes of Jason Cummings, Garang Kuol and Danny Vukovic will be eager to depart for Qatar on a high note and when they click, the Mariners play some of the most entertaining football in Australia.
Macarthur has suffered back to back defeats at the hands of Sydney FC and Wellington, which will bring about questions over whether or not their Cup run magic has disappeared.
There has been plenty of goals in every Mariners match and the last few for Macarthur so it’s all pointing towards the Mariners winning and scoring plenty in the process.