All 12 A-League teams are still alive with just three weeks remaining before the finals kick off.
Melbourne City has a chance to secure a third successive Premiers’ Plate this weekend when they head to Gosford, but the real drama involves the bottom eight sides.
With a spot in the finals the reward for a strong run home, and an Australia Cup playoff fixture the punishment for falling off, everyone from fifth placed Wellington to the last placed Victory have plenty of motivation to finish the season off on a high note.
We’ve got you covered with our tips and match previews below for every match this weekend.
Despite this being a battle between ninth and eleventh on the A-League ladder, both sides have to find a way to arrest their form slide to keep their slim finals hopes alive.
Macarthur might have taken a point off the Wanderers last week, but they have gone four games without a win have taken just eight points from 11 away matches all season.
The only club they have a better away record than is Perth which should give the Jets hope of ending a six match winless run.
With neither side offering a lot of encouragement for punters to back them, the draw looks to be the way to go here.
That outcome will not boost the finals chances of either side, but it will at least ensure one more meaningful match in Round 25.
Football can be a complicated sport at times but that is not the case for Melbourne City this weekend, if they win, they will be crowned premiers once again.
However defeating the Mariners will be no sure thing with Nick Montgomery’s side winning three of their last four matches, all by a three goal margin.
Confidence is the best asset a team can have at this time of year, and the Mariners will be brimming with it knowing they will likely need to defeat City at least once next month to secure silverware.
After a brief blip in form, City’s results have returned to the norm with a win in the postponed derby before a 4-1 battering of Wellington on the weekend.
While the first play to jump out in the market is taking City at $2.25, there is also value in the total goals market, and with two of the three most prolific attacks in the league coming into this one in form, we should be in for a bit of a goal-fest.
In most seasons, a battle between fourth and last would not generate a whole lot of interest with one side out of contention.
However in this wild and wacky A-League campaign, both sides still have plenty on the line heading into this one.
Knowing that a loss would provide Wellington with an opportunity to potentially overtake them in Round 25, the Wanderers have to find a way to attain maximum points from this fixture.
Meanwhile the Victory face the prospect of being the first side to be mathematically eliminated if they lose here plus Wellington takes a point from their fixture and Sydney wins on Sunday.
This has been a relatively one-sided rivalry over the last four seasons with the Wanderers winning five of the seven head to head matches including a 1-0 win in Round 2.
On their day the Victory can absolutely compete in a fixture like this one, but they have shown a real lack of cutting edge up front which plays perfectly into the Wanderers hands here.
It’s a crowded field in the league this season, but no side has been more Jekyll and Hyde than the Roar.
On the rare occasions things have clicked, like last week against the Jets, they look like a side that can compete with anyone, however they still suffer major letdowns at the most inopportune times.
Since interim coach Nick Green took over, the Roar’s form has been easy to digest, winning at home and losing on the road.
A fortnight ago they produced a no-show in Gosford and ahead of their first trip across the ditch since November 2019, they simply have to find a way to produce a result.
Unfortunately for them, Wellington’s success this season has been built on defending their turf, with 19 of their 28 points coming at home.
If we get the version of the Roar that played last week, this may turn into the match of the round, however if it is the one that played against the Mariners in Gosford a fortnight ago, this could get ugly.
On the evidence of the last couple of months, Wellington should be a lot shorter priced than $2.20 and it is value worth taking.
In the last few weeks, the “back against Perth away from home” rule has not been as profitable as it has been in the past with the Glory taking points on the road against the Jets and Victory.
Despite being on the back foot for much of last week’s match at AAMI Park, they showed an impressive level of resilience which shows that they will not roll over for Sydney here.
Especially knowing that a shock win would see them climb up into the finals picture and give them something to defend ahead of two final home matches.
As for Sydney FC, their form line has been less than ideal over the last month with two defeats and two draws, however they will be feeling pretty good about taking a point from Adelaide on Good Friday.
Considering there is just one point between the sides on the ladder, there is clearly not a lot separating the sides in terms of on pitch performance and the draw looks like the way to go, much to the relief of the five teams below them on the ladder.
The lengthy winning run of the Reds came to a halt in front of a packed house at Coopers Stadium last week, but they remain the best placed to challenge the all-conquering Melbourne City in a month’s time.
In Round 24 they have a chance to get back into the winner’s circle against an out of sorts Western United side seemingly destined for an Australia Cup playoff.
There has been no shortage of goals in the last few meetings between these clubs with Adelaide and Over 2.5 hitting on the last three occasions these sides have met.
Further working in the Reds favour is the fact they have scored multiple goals in eight of their last ten matches and will take on the side with the equal worst defensive record in the A-League.
If the Reds are the legitimate contenders many expect them to be, they should win this one comfortably.