by Andrew Fisher
Melbourne Knights kick off its 2017 PS4 NPL campaign with a tough away fixture to Hume City tomorrow night.
ABD Stadium hasn’t always been the best hunting ground for the Knights, having registered just the 1 win & 1 draw from their past 4 visits, with Hume taking out the most recent fixture 3-0.
Overall Hume City narrowly edge the Knights in the last 10 fixtures with 5 wins to 4, while 1 fixture was played out as a draw.
Personnel-wise, Hume City is barely recognisable from last season with only 5 players retained, having brought in a remarkable 12 new faces into the club. Former Bentleigh skipper Wayne Wallace & Green Gully FFA Cup hero Liam Boland headline the new arrivals, along with seasoned state league campaigners Bryan Bran, Kris Kioussis and ex-Knight James McGarry.
The exodus at Hume City paved the way for Andrew Marth to snap up Tom Cahill, Danny Dixon & Kym Harris who now call Knights Stadium home, and will provide an intriguing side battle as they return to ABD Stadium for the first time tomorrow.
Jake Barker-Daish and Elvis Kamsoba impressed in pre-season and are also in-line for a debut in a Knights shirt, while former youth captain Tomi Fadjevic returns to the club to bolster the defensive stocks. Deadline day signing Patrick Gerhart is expected to be available within the next 2 weeks.
FACTS & STATS:
Who: Hume City V MELBOURNE KNIGHTS.
Where: ABD Stadium, Broadmeadows.
When: Seniors- 5:30pm, Under 20 – 2:45pm.
Past 10 Games: Knights Wins: 4, Hume Wins: 5, Draws: 1
Former Players: James McGarry (67 Games, 11 Goals)