2022 NPL Round 25 – Knights v Magic

Coming off the back of a convincing 2-0 triumph, the Melbourne Knights will face the Altona Magic in their final home game of the season.

Last week saw the Knights pick up their ninth win of the season, and their first under new caretaker coach Ben Surey. A late flurry of momentum at the end of the first half unlocked two quick-fire goals for the Knights, thanks to Dylan Murnane and Gian Albano. An entertaining fixture concluded with the Knights still firmly ahead, ensuring the three points stayed on home soil.

Tonights opponents – tenth placed Altona Magic, suffered a 2-1 defeat last week to the relegation-battling Dandenong City. Despite taking the lead in the first half and carrying that lead through to the break, Dandenong’s will to win was stronger. Two second half goals, including a late penalty, was enough to scrape the 13th-placed side to victory. 

When these sides last faced, the Magic endured their first win against the Knights since being promoted to the NPL Victoria competition. The Magic took the lead mid-way through the first half which saw the Knights unable to play on their terms. Things seem different this time around however. The Knights will be looking to end their run of home games on a high against an opponent they feel they can get the upper hand on, given their last two strong outings. 

Altona Magic’s Cherif Mohamed Aidara is their current top-scorer this season, with seven goals from 24 appearances. He proved to be the biggest threat last time around, scoring the sole and decisive goal to give Altona the three points. Despite this, the Knights are not short of talent up front, with George Ott shining against Oakleigh two weeks prior and Gian Albano proving to be key to Knights goal scoring ability.

Make sure to be at Knights Stadium for the final time this season, as the Knights hope to continue a winning run until the end of the season. 

Melbourne Knights FC:

Squad: 1- Harry Cakarun (GK), 2- Jack Marth, 3-Taylor Schrijvers, 4- Theiry Iradukunda, 5- Ayden Brice (C), 6- Anthony Duzel, 7- George Ott, 10- Gian Albano, 11- Justin Micallef, 15- Dylan Murnane, 16- Mohammad Sumaoro, 17- Trevor Ssemakula, 18- Jack Morton, 19- Luka Kolic, 21- Thomas Manos (GK), 23- Steve Sokol, 24- Ivan Miletic, 

Caretaker Coach: Ben Surey

Altona Magic SC:

Squad: 1- Chris Oldfield (GK), 3- Jamal Ali, 4- Alex Castiello, 5- Vinca Lia, 6- Johnny Stojcevski, 7- Jonas Markovski, 8- Mohamed Aidara, 9- Peter Skapetis, 10- Stefan Ristic, 11- Dimi Hatzimouratis, 13- Tommy Semmy, 15- Daniel Radenkovic, 16- Ashton Ahluwalia, 20- Mo Rahimi, 21- Thomas Woerndl, 22- Akim Abdul (GK), 23- James Xydias

Head Coach: Savvas Patikkis

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