Big weekend and big trip for Ngongotaha AFC

Ngongotaha AFC have two games in three days over Queen's Birthday weekend. PHOTO/BEN FRASER

Ngongotaha AFC will take confidence from their away win last season - but they may need more than that over the long weekend.

The Villagers make their longest away trip of the season tomorrow, to Whangarei, to take on Northern FC then have to back that up with a home Chatham Cup game against Beachlands Maraetai AFC on Monday.

Northern sit in fourth place on the Northern League division 2 ladder, one above Takapuna who Ngongotaha beat 2-1 in Auckland last weekend. Ngongotaha lifted themselves to eighth with last weekend's win.

"I'd say their confidence will have grown since last week's win," said coach Shane Davis.

The main focus of the weekend will be the Northern League points.

"We are after the three points first, and then we'll go from there. Saturday is going to be a bit of a mission and it's the one team we haven't played yet so they are pretty much unknown."

The good news was Davis' team didn't pick up any new injuries last weekend and he will be able to field a similar line-up to the one that beat Takapuna.

He said he would encourage his players to rest as much as possible between games.

Beachlands-Maraetai play in the same Auckland/Northern Football Federation conference as Bucklands Beach, the team Ngongotaha beat 4-2 in the last round of the Chatham Cup.

Saturday's game kicks off at 2.45pm and Monday's game at 2pm.